Choosing the best 4WD
My 4wd of choice is the Mitsubishi Pajero. I bought a Pajero in April 2005, the NP model with Automatic gearbox and Petrol 3.8 litre V6 engine. There are so many great 4x4 vehicles on the market today that the choice can be very difficult. The bottom line is that you have to take a hard look at what you really want to use it for and buy the right thing for you. I have put together what I have learned as it might be helpful to someone else asking the same questions.
Holden Adventra
Before I bought the Pajero I was originally looking to buy a Holden Commodore as I have always liked them and I had a rare opportunity to buy a brand new car. At the time Holden had just introduced the new Holden Adventra, a four wheel drive model based on the Commodore. It seemed like the perfect combination of a car I liked but with some off road capability. The Holden Adventurer was a little more expensive than the Commodore but it seemed like the extra capabilities it had would be a great lifestyle value, allowing me to experience some new things. This was a turning point in my life really since before that I had never seriously considered the 4wdriving lifestyle. The time I spent reading the Adventra brochures, looking at the photos of families camping in the bush, driving on beaches and dirt roads, gave me a new desire to get out there and do something different. So I read every review of the Adventra I could find and went and test drove one as well. Unfortunately there were a few disappointments with the car. Firstly the reviews said the car had very heavy steering and the reported fuel economy was very poor, being in the vacinity of 17 litres per 100 km, there were also reports that the centre differential was prone to breakage. A test drive of the car confirmed that the steering was quite heavy and there was an annoying drone sound at 80 to 100kph.
So I began to lose interest in the Adventra and felt it was too much of a risk to buy a 4wd from a manufacturer that did not have a longer 4wd manufacturing experience. Although I had lost interest in the Adventra my desire for 4wdriving had begun and now I started to consider a "real" 4wd from an experienced 4wd manufacturer.
Prado vs Pajero
At this time Mitsubishi started advertising run out deals on their previous year models of Pajeros for much the same price as the Adventras I had been looking at. I knew the Pajero had a good reputation as a decent 4wd and this was another turning point in heading me toward a real 4wd instead of a car with some 4wd features. The obvious competitor to the Pajero is the Toyota Prado however Mitsubishi and Toyota have a very different approach to configuring their models. Every Pajero model from the base GLX up to the top of the range Exceed has basically the same safety and performance features, i.e. ABS, traction control, EBD and so on. The difference in the models is in their trim and accessories eg sidesteps, satellite navigation systems, dvd players and so on. In comparison The Prado base model does not have traction control, EBD, stability control etc so you have to buy a higher model to get those features. Obviously the higher models cost a lot more, making the base model Pajero much better value for money if it is not the fancy trimmings you are really after.
Pajero options
So it seems my mind was made up on the Pajero. I still had to choose whether to go with an automatic gearbox and diesel or petrol. Doing lots of city driving meant the auto gearbox was essential and the Pajero Super Select gearbox which allows a manual gear change mode is excellent. I chose the Petrol engine mainly because of the price. See my page on Pajero LPG conversion for all the reasons I think the Petrol engine is better and all my experience with Pajero fuel economy. The petrol engine is also much smoother and quieter. Anyway I finally bought it, brand new from Motorama Mitsubishi at Moorooka in Brisbane.
4WD specifications
4WD Accessories
4WD Modifications
Camping
4WD Destinations
- Fraser Island
- Moreton Island
- Bribie Island
- Bigriggen
- Landcruiser Mountain