Poll: help me possibly make a bad decision.

I'm considering a low budget tow vehicle come camping/touring rig.... Yeah, it's already sounding dicey isn't it.

Basically I'd like to spend less than 5k, and I don't have access to the wide array of awesome cheap tow capable vehicles you guys do because Australia... But we get other cool stuff so there's that.

Preference is for something reasonably reliable, able to tow between 1.5-2.5 tons, 4x4, able to have our roof top tent mounted to it and either turbo diesel or lpg fuel. It'll need to be able to tow a trailer whilst I'm grabbing building supplies for renovations.

I think I've kind of narrowed it down to a few choices, so I'll lay them out below in no real order.

Option 1: Land Rover discovery. Probably diesel, because petrol v8s are thirsty and have liner issues at times. Probably manual, because the Landy autos tend to cost more than my buy in when they decided to die. That leaves the td5 disco 2 or the 300tdi disco 1. Tdi is easier to get in manual, and has wayyyy less that can electronically mess up. Td5 is smoother, more powerful, more expensive and harder to get in manual.

Option 2: Mazda bravo(b2500)/Ford courier.  It's a platform I'm pretty well versed in, but not so much the 4x4 or turbo diesel side of things. I'd much prefer an extra/extended cab over a dual/crew cab, but extra cabs can be like unicorn farts to find. Gearbox synchros can be a bit weak with load, but it's the same basic box as several other Mazdas (rib case).

Option 3: Mitsubishi Pajero (Montero?)swb or possibly a Mitsubishi Triton. Swb patrols look awesome, and ideally I'd like one with the 4d56t, they're a pretty solid engine and can be had in a few other mitsi's so parts aren't to scarce. I'd consider a Triton, but it'd probably have to be dual cab, and again, not a massive fan.

Option 4: Swb Nissan Patrol.

Hard to come by, and the gq(y60) is probably not going to to come in under budget. However, the mq will. Sd33t would be the only engine I'd consider for an mq, otherwise not happening.

Option 5?? Something left of field I haven't thought of......?

​​​pretty much everything on my short list is probably impractical in one way or another... But I likes what I like 

what are grm's thoughts

Bang for buck, I think the Pajero wins hands down.   It's probably the cheapest option and arguably the most reliable so we can go ahead and cross that one off the list right away.

Does anything "Toyota" come in under budget (landcruiser, Ute, or otherwise)?

Also.  Is there a good site we can search to see some Aussie market awesomeness?

Any of them, except the rover. Id personally do the patrol as we didnt get them in the US except for a few thousand models in the late 1960’s and ive wanted one for a long time. 

In reply to Hungary Bill :

Swb Pajero is a bit of a unicorn here, but Pajero's didn't get much love over here in general for whatever reason.  its pretty much a 2 horse race between Toyota and Nissan and really landcruiser vs patrol when it comes to overlanding and offroading. 

I'd honestly love a hj45 swb or Ute, but they're hens teeth in my price range. The Toyota tax is real here too. Petrol 60 and 80 series lwb cruisers pop up in budget a bit, but they're pretty thirsty. Hiluxes also come up, but again, usually not the turbo diesel stuff. 

Check out Gumtree it's more ore less like Craigslist. Also check out Carsales

In reply to TJL :

The patrol is probably the most agricultural, but also most bombproof of the options of listed. Bonus points for the removable rear hardtop to make an open backed ute

A friend of mine in the UK was one of the production engineers who set up the Disco I production facility. His take - and he does/did own a Disco I - was to get an "everything manual" turbodiesel as those were the most reliable. His also seemed to happily tow at speeds somewhat beyond legal, and I know he did a lot of greenlaning in it.

daeman said:

In reply to Hungary Bill :

Swb Pajero is a bit of a unicorn here, but Pajero's didn't get much love over here in general for whatever reason.  its pretty much a 2 horse race between Toyota and Nissan and really landcruiser vs patrol when it comes to overlanding and offroading. 

I'd honestly love a hj45 swb or Ute, but they're hens teeth in my price range. The Toyota tax is real here too. Petrol 60 and 80 series lwb cruisers pop up in budget a bit, but they're pretty thirsty. Hiluxes also come up, but again, usually not the turbo diesel stuff. 

Check out Gumtree it's more ore less like Craigslist. Also check out Carsales

Dang. I thought there would be more of them out your way.  Pajeros were all over the place in Kuwait (with the swb being the rarer of the options).  A bit "tin-canny" but dang reliable.

What I would do is this: if your life and the lives of your family depended on the reliability of your vehicle, which would you trust the most to get out of danger. Consider also your ability to do field-fixes, carrying spares etc. You can always add roof tents and racks to anything to make them more travel and camping-friendly.

Fj60?  Looks like they land in your price range and will probably survive anything short of a direct nuclear strike.  Doesn't help much in the "thirsty" department though.

In reply to Hungary Bill :

80s-90s Pajero's are definitely around, but the turbo diesel are harder to get. Not super keen on the Mitsubishi v6 petrols.

A 60 series will definitely be bulletproof, but finding a decent diesel one in budget will be a harder ask. 

In reply to BoxheadTim :

I have to be honest, after seeing a bunch of high mileage rovers I got curious and spent the last few days trawling the aulro forums trying to shake my perception of rovers being unreliable junk. My conclusion is much the same as your friends, the less electronic the better. Allegedly 300tdi's will tow 3.5 ton pretty comfortably and when not towing are good for around 1000km per tank

At the risk of project creep...

What are Australia's engine swap rules like?

You said you wanted to make a bad decision...get the Disco. Seriously I love discos, even though I have had plenty of experience with them that I shouldnt.

It has Kangaroo on the door panels, who else can say that

In reply to ebonyandivory :

You make a good point and it's definitely something to consider if we're going to go to more extreme or remote areas.

In reply to Hungary Bill :

You're a bad man bill! But I'd be lying if Frankensteining something hasn't already crossed my mind.

You can engine swap, but you've got to get it engineer certified and you're emissions must comply to whatever is newest, the engine or the chassis.

A Toyota or nisssan driveline in an old landrover 2a chassis has been a dream for quite a while 

Where's your mind headed

In reply to Opti :

What versions of the disco have you had? They're supposed to be pretty comfortable from what I've heard, that's a plus where the partner is concerned.

Kangaroo ? Have I missed something?

My brain is still stuck on Toyota (sorry, admittidly I'm a fanboy).  BUT  $3000 FJ60 with a 1VD-FTV would be my "budget be damned" option.

But that Nissan in a Landy idea of yours.  I like it.

Get the Rover.  Carry spares and a toolbox.

In reply to Hungary Bill :

See I'd be down for a 1VD-FTV in either a fj45 swb or a bundera, but that's never happening on the current budget.

Speaking of Toyota swaps, some guy over in Western Australia stuck a cat 3208 v8 into a 45 series Ute. Video here

I figure truck like straight 6 turbo diesel noises, Nissan driveline strength, reliability and part availability along with classic Land Rover styling and the bonus of a rust proof body is an idea worth visiting one day 

In reply to daeman :

I think it was the Disco 2s (maybe it's a us thing) that had a small patch of leather in the door panel where you rest your arm. Land Rover wanted the softest leather available, which happened to be Kangaroo.

I've never owned one, tried probably 15 times to buy one, it's a nightmare buying E36 M3ty cars out here.

In my time in the auto industry I have worked on a ton of them, and the experiences normally ranged from "'Im gonna burn this mofo down" to "Why in the world do I like these so much?"

In reply to daeman :

Oh, that is beautiful 

Would a Pajero of 2001 and newer fit in your budget?  The 4 doors makes it much bigger and large room for hauling/camping.  The unibody makes it much better at on-road but still excellent at off-roading.  

https://www.carsguide.com.au/car-reviews/mitsubishi-pajero-58080

daeman: "help me possibly make a bad decision"

GRM forum: "You've come to the right place!"

Enabling commences....

In reply to Opti :

The things you learn on grm!, I had no idea about the kangaroo leather in discos. 

"'Im gonna burn this mofo down"  fills me with much confidence and a sense of what could possibly go wrong haha

In reply to 1988RedT2 :

Any reason why? Or just enabling?. There's a joke in there somewhere given the discos towing capacity