Just bought another car...

[cabbage]

I've taken the plunge and bought a replacement workhorse 4x4 as my Surf was getting rougher and rougher after 5 years of use. Ended up with a 2003 3.5 V6 petrol Mitsubishi Shogun..... not sure it'll be as hard wearing as the surf but its met the criteria on equipment and was within budget. The reviews says its supposed to be "unrefined" and a rough ride, i'll have to give the reviewers a shot in my surf with seized poly bushes and heavy duty springs!

Things I'm slowly getting used to are:
the more upright driving position,
complete lack of engine noise at idle,
gauges and controls are on the wrong side
it was 1/2 the cost to insure
the feeling that it'll topple if I corner at more than 3mph
the fuel tank takes >£100 of the stuff from the other pump

I really want to keep hold of the Surf as its still a usable vehicle but I'll have to see how the cash flow situation holds up! The engine is crying out for new piston rings and crank shaft seals so I'm going to start gathering parts for a total engine rebuild and see where I am after that.

Anyone any experience with the Mitsubishi's? Good or bad?

[Sancho]

I've taken the plunge and bought a replacement workhorse 4x4 as my Surf was getting rougher and rougher after 5 years of use. Ended up with a 2003 3.5 V6 petrol Mitsubishi Shogun..... not sure it'll be as hard wearing as the surf but its met the criteria on equipment and was within budget. The reviews says its supposed to be "unrefined" and a rough ride, i'll have to give the reviewers a shot in my surf with seized poly bushes and heavy duty springs!

Things I'm slowly getting used to are:
the more upright driving position,
complete lack of engine noise at idle,
gauges and controls are on the wrong side
it was 1/2 the cost to insure
the feeling that it'll topple if I corner at more than 3mph
the fuel tank takes >£100 of the stuff from the other pump

I really want to keep hold of the Surf as its still a usable vehicle but I'll have to see how the cash flow situation holds up! The engine is crying out for new piston rings and crank shaft seals so I'm going to start gathering parts for a total engine rebuild and see where I am after that.

Anyone any experience with the Mitsubishi's? Good or bad?

Um...This probably won't go well.

Anyway, Stormforce has an L200 pickup. I have an L300 Delica. I can't tell you anything the L200, but the Delica is basically a different body on the Pajero / Shogun chassis. It's incredibly slow and has phenomenal body roll.

The rear leaf springs make it reasonably terrifying even in a straight line. Generally, Mitsubishis are considered more agricultural and less reliable than Toyotas. That's certainly been my experience to date.

[cabbage]

Mitsubishis are considered more agricultural and less reliable than Toyotas. That's certainly been my experience to date.

I've driven an older Pajero and I'd have to agree with your comments, though this newer version is definitely more hairdresser than farmer. Coil springs all round as well but they look like the springs from a biro compared to the the Toyota's ones. The 5 speed auto isn't as smooth either and 1st seems the most pointless gear ever as its used for 3 seconds when pulling away. Going to get the trailers out this afternoon and see what it'll pull....

[woodwarm]

you have the surf to work on, so all is not lost

Enjoy your new vehicle.


Is it a nice pastel colour ?

[cabbage]

you have the surf to work on, so all is not lost

Enjoy your new vehicle.


Is it a nice pastel colour ?

Its silver on silver with more silver bits, doesn't quite have the hill billy wagon look about it that my tr-colour surf has but looks not too bad.

Turns out the turning circle is really good, better than the surfs , and its got quite a high creep speed which makes maneuvering trailers really easy.

[Bonk]

I've never owned one but a friend has and the only downside he mentioned was resale value. Being a v6 petrol he said it was really juicy (so I suppose that's a downside too) and really hard to sell afterwards. He practically gave his away when he could no longer afford to run it.

[TwoBobRob]

I have a '96 V6 3000 petrol Shogun.

It was cheap and everything on it works.

It's a stop gap until I find a decent petrol Surf. I had low expectations of it when I bought it, it's certainly not as nice down the road as the couple of petrol Surfs I've driven, but on balance it's a decent thing that pulls my trailer nicely.

I'm told that the later 3500's suffer from blocked fuel micro filters, so look into that.

Mine has been perfect so far, aside from a cold running hiccup/misfire that no one can cure. It feels electrical to me, so we'll see. They all appear to like fresh coil packs, leads & plugs - mostly due to them being ignored for yonks due to the job being a pig apparently.

The biggest problem with them (in my opinion) is they're ###### ugly.

[cabbage]

I have a '96 V6 3000 petrol Shogun.

It was cheap and everything on it works.

It's a stop gap until I find a decent petrol Surf. I had low expectations of it when I bought it, it's certainly not as nice down the road as the couple of petrol Surfs I've driven, but on balance it's a decent thing that pulls my trailer nicely.

I'm told that the later 3500's suffer from blocked fuel micro filters, so look into that.

Mine has been perfect so far, aside from a cold running hiccup/misfire that no one can cure. It feels electrical to me, so we'll see. They all appear to like fresh coil packs, leads & plugs - mostly due to them being ignored for yonks due to the job being a pig apparently.

The biggest problem with them (in my opinion) is they're ###### ugly.

fuel consumption is really high, but I have the Surf as my ecconomic run about...... Looks like it'll do 300miles to a tank of fuel like the surf, though it has a bigger tank!

Read a few things about the micro filters, plan is to get a full service as I have no service history with it.