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[Animal Chin]

In need of new vehicle. No ride, no fishing.

I'm not a car guy, so need downlow and I figure there should be people on this forum who can help me out. Priority is reliability/safety, excellent gas mileage, low cost of ownership (parts etc) and user friendly 4X4.

Will not be used for purposely off-roading, or towing, just want to access to varied locales.

Driving from Vancouver to fish, camp, bike and snowboard so would like to be able to handle snow/ice safely (Mount Baker in a snowstorm, Coquihalla etc), logging roads etc. Otherwise, errands and such but not daily driving to work..though driving to fish seems like full time job...so not looking for luxury but relatively rattle free would be nice. 

I am also thinking of possibly getting into hunting therefore my interest in this class of vehicles. Otherwise I'd just get a economy fwd. Ideally I'd like to spend around $5-6000.

Any information, experiences, opinions would be appreciated..what years are good, anything I should know before buying, that sort of thing.

Thanks in advance. 

[mvelasco]

an older compass or a caliber may do the trick. if you are willing to push your budget a jeep patriot would be a good bet. I too am in the market for an all around car and I've slimmef my options to these three. leaning towards a patriot for the mpg and size.

[milo]

In that price range, I suggest you look into an older (1996-2004) Nissan Pathfinder, Suzuki X7 or Toyota 4Runner. You might pay a bit more for a Toyota, which are always in high demand.
The reason you should go bigger is you also get a portable sleeping room and the extra cargo area is a definite bonus.
It is amazing how easily you run out of space with the smaller SUVs on longer trips. With a medium sized SUV you don't have that problem. You can even get an inflatable boat and carry it around anywhere you go, along with all other fishing and hunting equipment and accessories.
If you happen to kill something in your hunting forrays, you can throw it in as well after dressing it on the spot. A big cooler fits in a medium size SUV without taking up most of the cargo space. But throw a big cooler into a mini 4x4, and you have little room for anything else.

If you go that route, look at rust. Rust is your n. 1 enemy. Avoid Ontario cars.

Good luck with your search.

[MoeJKU]

Those little pajero's are pretty slick for a little diesel. I own a 4 door wrangler takes me anywhere, has a tow package so i can put a little trailer on it(w/ a full moose), haul a 17ft boat, etc. I could fit everything in it, but its a lot better after a long rainy, muddy hunting trip to just be able to leave a lot of the stuff in the little 4x8 trailer. I would look at a wrangler, 4 runner, tacoma, trackers, sami's. just remember when buying it you will be on gravel alot, rough roads, maybe 4x4 only, so you want something solid. (don't get an escape or something like that) my 2cents

[TheFishingLad]

What Milo said.

As for the Dodge Caliber it's a Dodge neon with a new body. Which is fine but not what you need.

However my little Neon has been through some of the worst snow storms over Rogers pass and going to Alberta, Dawson Creek and Fort Nelson. So anything Milo has mentioned with good winter tires is a good bet.

[Ezio]

if your are not too worried about fuel mileage, older jeep cherokee's 91-2001 would work perfect for your application, they are 4x4, small enough to get anywhere you need to go, yet roomy enough to sleep in the back with the rear seats folded down, they are probably one of the most reliable 4x4 SUV's you can get, parts are readily available, and cheap! only down side to jeep's is that they are abused by young folk like myself, and they get 15mgp average.   But i've owned 7 jeeps now (5 cherokee's 2 comanche's) and i suppose there is a reason why i keep buying them, but i havent really found it other then their reliablility, and how cheap and easy they are to work on.

[Damien]

reliability
excellent gas mileage
user friendly 4X4
Under 6K

Tracker/Sidekick

/Thread

Less good on gas, try a Ranger/MazdaB or Nissan Frontier.  4wd only came in V6. in these.

[Animal Chin]

reliability
excellent gas mileage
user friendly 4X4
Under 6K

Tracker/Sidekick

Kinda figured as much. Those Pajero's and other RHD Japanese imports look sweet, but thinking parts and good mechanics may be expensive or hard to come by. Hoping someone will tell me otherwise..haha. Truth be told gas mileage is pretty important considering how much it costs to get out to the Vedder regularly. Nissan Frontier is interesting, likely won't pay the premium for a Tacoma.

Thanks for the suggestions so far.

[ShaunO]

Suzuki Sidekick's are the ticket.  They're available in both 2 and 4 doors.  Older 2 doors are available as a convertible (with removable hardtop) and as a tin top (much more coveted).  The 4 doors are only in a tin top.  As for economy both 2 and 4 doors start with a 1.6L, 8 or 16 valve engine (4 doors only). 

I've had Samurai's and Sidekicks and they're cheap, simple and reliable.  You'll get there... eventually, but you'll still get there and it wont break the bank!

[Damien]

boom;

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/rds/cto/4123455082.html

you're welcome

[Animal Chin]

haha..just saw that Vitara 2 seconds ago. I also came across a 96' 4 door sidekick, 200K for good price. Going to see if it's available.

Wrecked car on Tuesday coming back from Stave, so hopefully I'll get ICBC matters dealt with quickly. Don't want to rush into anything, though I know I will, because season's going by quick.

I really like the tintops. Was told 2 doors were the way to go because the wheelbase is only a foot longer than most ATV's (maneuverability), but it'd be nice to have the extra room with 4 door..and I'm not hunting yet. 

Hey ShaunO, any difference between the 8 and 16 valve in terms of reliability/quirks that you know of (94-98 year range). I'd imagine there's a diffence in power, but I can take it slow. And I'd obviously prefer a 5 speed by a long shot, but will an automatic be acceptable or avoided because of the small engines?

Thanks.

[ShaunO]

I don't know of any quirks or issues of the 8v over the 16v Suzuki engines.  The both just keep on running with regular maintenance.  The 8v is a lower horsepower engine, but a few extra ponies can be freed up with a cold air intake.   When you're dealing with engines that produce less than 100hp, you'll want every advantage possible.  5 speed is going to get more power to the wheels than an automatic, so I would recommend that as a consideration.  I personally like the tin tops for winter as you lose much less heat than a soft/removable top.  Quieter for road noise as well.  I've recently seen some mid 90's 4 doors sell for around $2500 with 200k clicks.  Also, as most Sidekicks are 4x4, one thing you'll want to check is the locking hubs.  The auto locking hubs are a problem and the manual locking hubs are preferred.  If you're kicking the tires, try locking the hubs.  They should both engage without much effort.  If you can, lock the hubs, put it in 4H and make a couple of turns.  This will let you hear any issues with the 4x4, specifically the CV joints in the front.

Happy Car Hunting!

[Suther]

If you want to get into hunting, none of these are really suitable.

You want something more rugged, something that is built body-on-frame like a real truck. Most of the suggestions you have been given are Unibody with front-wheel-drive based 4x4 systems. You want a real axle, especially in the back, not this CV-shaft crap you get on "trucks" now adays. Unibodies also get their my friend kicked off-road - they dont like to flex like a body-on-frame truck will, it stresses the body joints and will eventually crack and break (Seen a few Cherokees like this over the years.)

Personally, I like the Ford Ranger-based vehicles. I have an old Bronco II which is my baby, but Rangers, Mazda B-series, and 90-94 Explorers are all good options. In '98 they changed the suspension on the Ranger to something more road-friendly, but less off-road friendly. I would say get the nicest 97 Ranger you can find. Parts are super-available, aftermarket is really good for Rangers, and lift kits are dirt cheap if you want to do that. You can also drop a 302 V8 into a Ranger (Well, I've seen as much as a 454 under a Ranger hood, but thats a little overkill...) or get a 2.3l turbo put in.

If mileage is a big concern, a 2.3l turbo Ranger would be a good option. (They never came stock with a turbo. Best option is to pull an engine from an 80s SuperCoupe, but you can just add a turbo to a stock engine for smaller applications of boost.)

[Suther]

but a few extra ponies can be freed up with a cold air intake. 

This is probably untrue.

Cars are typically designed from the factory with cold-air intakes, and then people put big K&N Cones under their hood, thinking it increases power. Long story short, it doesn't. a cone under your hood is sucking in hot air from within the engine compartment, while most stock air intakes draw air from behind the headlight or something similar. These stock intakes are getting much colder air than your K&N cone under the hood ever will.

 The reason K&N Filters seem to change something is they kinda suck. They do NOT filter as well as a cheap paper filter, which means more air passes through the filter (and more particles into your engine.) and you have to oil them every so often. That oil gets sucked into your intake and fouls up your Mass Airflow Sensor. So then you have to pull the intake apart and clean that.

Unless you are talking about a REAL cold air intake, using an intercooler. Which is crazy-expensive and not worth it unless you've got a car with boost that really needs that colder, denser air.

[newb33]

JEEP YJ
Not a Tj
I owned a YJ for 7 years, it is extremely reliable and there isn't a single computer in the vehicle and the odometer is not computerized it rolls over it is the easiest vehicle to work on and parts are dirt cheap
It comes as a 4L or 2.5L if your concern is gas mileage don't get the 4L
Guaranteed the best 4x4 vehicle on the planet