Best 4x4 for rural / remote living - UK

[Martyn]

That sounds a great deal, Jeffz As most of the rest of us have become embrioled in pure fantasy, my offering is a 6x6 Ural campervan on the delightfully random Fleabay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Expeditio..._Motorhomes&hash=item45fe2e051d#ht_4967wt_932

Possibly a bit too far into fantasy land - 13 tons unladen puts it definitely into "need a new licence to drive it" category and the 10.8 litre engine should be good for about 4 or 5 mpg. At roughly £1.25 per mile in fuel alone, it's not really the economists choice!

 

[Ronnie]

Good value if you like to spend all day running over zombies, and still be able to make a nice cappuccino afterwards in the back of the van

 

[santaman2000]

Sounds like a day well spent.

 

[British Red]

Now if you want a cheap vehicle, a buddy of mine just picked up a Mog for sub £3k. No tax needed, no MoT needed, about £20 a year to tax. Engine is sound as is the cab. 3pl needs a little work and he needs to make a rear body as the Hi-ab he chopped in for scrap (and got £200 of his money back). Pretty cheap utility vehicle to have around methinks - wants a stonking trailer to go with it (which he is sorting)

 

[sharp88]

I'm thinking of getting a 2.4D Hilux Pickup next year. Does about 30 to the gallon on long runs and you can fit a dozen mujahideen, janjaweeds or somalian pirates in the back!

 

[Robbi]

sounds useful in Kent

 

[jeffz]

If that's the case, I'd recommend an AugustaWestland Super Lynx. Bit pricey, but will bypass most rugged-terrain issues very swiftly.

 

[ship]

he,s right

best overland wagon.... Toyota Hiace AWD.

You don't need a tricked up comp spec vehicle for dirt roads. Look at what the locals drive around the world. Africa & Asia the Hiace is the workhorse of choice.

 

[demographic]

Personally I would avoid all pickups.

Only good for carrying logs or plant machinery, cos whatever you put in the back gets soaked or nicked, hell even putting a motocrosser in the back is a pain cos the bed is so high.

Maybe a Delicia.
As mentioned, avoid low profile road tyres, total crap on snow.

 

[CLEM]

Always fancied a swb Nissan Patrol. I really like the shape of the old version, the Y60 I think it's called. I think I'd quite like a rebuilt swb turned in a mwb with big 4.2 Diesel engine. Don't half hold there price.

 

[scottishwolf]

The best 4x4 for rural and remote living is.......... whatever one you can comfortably afford to run and maintain. Simple as that. They all have their ups and downs but at the end of the day, it all boils down to what you can afford. It definitely helps if you're handy with the spanners etc too. Car repairs are pricey enough but when it comes to 4x4's the repair costs are scary and that's just for parts.

 

[Paul_B]

A few years back we got caught out in Grasmere when the snow fell heavily for the UK. Had to drive out through Ambleside, past Kendal then the M6 in a full on blizzard. Going up the hill from Windermere heading south I drove past abandoned cars including a wide range of 4x4s. I even watched a fancy 4x4, land cruiser I think, being driven by a major prat over revving it and just spinning out on a slight incline covered in snow.
My conclusion is that in the UK in most places you can get by with anything if you can drive a car properly. We got home that evening by driving sensibly. I was driving an astra estate, the one with an Isuzu diesel engine. It slid around only on a section of the Kendal bypass. I took 3 hours of constant driving to get home, one hour in slow moving traffic/traffic jam due to Muppets driving stupidly. One guy in a Mazda mx5 was revving his engines more and more in response to his spinning wheels. I always thought you went into a higher gear and kept to lower revs to get through snow or ice patch. He only got on with the help of 4 lads pushing him to keep him straight and going forward. He'd have wiped out into the newsagents in Ambleside without them.
Since then I've always thought winter tyres on any car with a good, sensible driver can get you a lot further in snow than a Muppet / idiot in any 4x4! If we're ever going to get over this "everything stops for snow" effect common in the UK it'll take drivers learning to drive in snow or other bad conditions and enforced winter tyres. We should make winter/low grip driving a skill tested in driving lessons. At least make it part of the theory test. I understand some countries make new drivers learn to drive over an extended timescale, over a year IIRC. This is allows them to gain experience in all seasons. Think it was northern European country like Finland that gets real winters. Explains how the Finns make great racing drivers, especially in rallying.

 

[peaks]

+1 Paul_B
An awful lot of folks can't adjust their driving style to the prevailing weather conditions be it snow - or rain or fog........
Improved driver training would go a long way!

 

[janso]

The best 4x4 for rural and remote living is.......... whatever one you can comfortably afford to run and maintain. Simple as that. They all have their ups and downs but at the end of the day, it all boils down to what you can afford. It definitely helps if you're handy with the spanners etc too. Car repairs are pricey enough but when it comes to 4x4's the repair costs are scary and that's just for parts.

Bang on! The best one is what you can afford. - currently awaiting a new crank shaft for my l200+new tyres+tax+mot = expensive month for transport!!


Sent from my hidey hole using Tapatalk... sssh!

 

[janso]

Paul B you are also bang on about drivers! I also have seen many a 4x4 'stuck' in various terrains; all capable except for driver ineptness. It's not what you drive, it's how you drive.
I remember a road blockage once down here on a single lane where a discovery owner was stuck uphill towing a caravan; he didn't know about his rear diff lock - queue was huge! Bless him, bought a vehicle he couldn't drive - wouldn't want to see him reversing.
There are too many drivers out there who through their own ignorance, can't drive the vehicle they own


Sent from my hidey hole using Tapatalk... sssh!

 

[demographic]

One of the best vehicles for snow is a Citroen 2CV, seriously.
Skinny tyres, not much power. Practically unstoppable.

I'm not suggesting that anyone buys one of the bean tin French cars, just pointing out that fat low profile tyres are absolutely feckless on snow.

 

[unruly]

One of the best vehicles for snow is a Citroen 2CV, seriously.
Skinny tyres, not much power. Practically unstoppable.

I'm not suggesting that anyone buys one of the bean tin French cars, just pointing out that fat low profile tyres are absolutely feckless on snow.

Agreed, I drove one for years and snow never stopped me.
They don't like the wet though, I did end up stranded in "puddles" a couple of times.

 

[cranmere]

Yes! I took my 2CV across all sorts of rough ground and it handled beautifully in snow and ice,although occasionally I had to resort to going up steep bits backwards because reverse was a lower gear than first.

 

[lavrentyuk]

Can't fault the 2CV argument - but they are rare on the ground and rustbuckets.

A Discovery 1 is fairly cheap, are rustbuckets too, but spares are cheap and you can always learn to weld.

 

[Goatboy]

A guy I used to work with worked on the Africar project. He said they were in the middle of the bush stuck and an old battered 2CV just waltzed past them with out a care. They were meant to drive across ploughed fields after all.
[video=youtube;fRA9wUBoOpQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRA9wUBoOpQ[/video]