Small Weird CUV's?

Mitsu Outlander 

I'm laughing really hard right now!

Mitsu Cordia/Tredia Turbo AWD

Mitsu Space Wagon AWD

(OK, might be another Colt) 

What about an Izusu Ascender? 

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/d/2004-isuzu/6552098950.html

This place does Mitsubishi Delicas. Definitely weird, not so much a CUV tho. 

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/scz/ctd/d/1992-mitsubishi-delica-glx/6552097960.html

V6 rav4! Ive read they they run low 14s, which is 90s v8 mustang fast. I'm hoping to get one and give it a mild 'battle car' treatment.

Nivas...I remember back in the late 1980's when a Swedish importer with more vision than business sense had a couple of hundred brand new Nivas that just wouldn't sell. I thin they went to Estonia or something.

You have more cool (quirky) AWDs in the US than we ever had in Europe I guess. 

But I just have to toss in the Alfa 33 Sportwagon.

You need the early version with a manually selectable AWD, without a center differential. Hardcore.

I test drove one back in 1998-99 when I though I was an Alfista. That was an experience and I bought another Ford instead.

Gustaf

JDM Jimny's are pretty available for @$5k, which makes them a real contender for purchase instead of a side by side stock.  While they won't be great on the highway, all the swap stuff you can get for a samurai will work and they are usually in better shape than a comparable Sammy.  Add VW TDI and Toyota axles and trans and you can pass for a hard core off-roader.

But a Sidekick/Tracker from somewhere outside the rust belt is probably the best all around answer out of the box.  The one I inherited from my Dad was a total rust bomb but it was unstoppable.  I only got rid of it to upgrade to the Amigo, which is perhaps less reliable but much, much nicer as a daily driver. 

In reply to pinchvalve :

Along that same vein the Honda Civic once had an AWD model in the form of the RT4WD.

This thread has reminded me just how badly I want an SX/4.

It's cheaper to buy a jdm jimny than a decent samurai at this point.

AWD Aztek in walter white tan?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ said:

This thread has reminded me just how badly I want an SX/4.

This one was at Crusin’ the Coast last fall. 

simplecat said:

V6 rav4! Ive read they they run low 14s, which is 90s v8 mustang fast. I'm hoping to get one and give it a mild 'battle car' treatment.

A friend has one and it rips. They hold their value very well though. Where I live, a used V6 can demand up to a 50 percent $$ premium over a similar 4-cylinder. That much power in a tall-and-tippy platform might be a bit scary offroad. 

This thread got me thinking, hate to threadjack, but depreciation on Juke Nismo RS is a sight to behold.  AutoTrader

That's a lot of car for 10K, what say the hive?

EDIT: this one is just a NISMO, no RS.  Still, depreciation on these seems to be in full effect. Even higher than with the base models.

The0retical said:

In reply to pinchvalve :

Along that same vein the Honda Civic once had an AWD model in the form of the RT4WD.

Sadly, rare as hen's teeth. Total Civic Wagovan production only accounted for 5% of 4th-generation Civic production, and RT4WD-equipped models were a fraction of that 5%

In reply to NickD :

I'm not saying there's one in Dallas right now, but..........

As far as the rest of this, I'm still sorting through all of the information. I've added about 30 search terms to my CL searches and am doing a point by point list on why I NEED another small weird SUV. 

In reply to mazdeuce - Seth :

I have a friend who has (or maybe had? Not sure if it's still in his possession or not anymore) and there is a lot of stuff that is specific to just the wagon, just as a heads-up. 

Don't worry, $3k is cray cray money for that car and I have NO interest in it until it's about 1/5 that price. They world is full of other weird stuff for way less. A super clean manual manual Trooper just showed up in College Station for $2500. Much cooler. 

4 pages of absolutely clueless posts.  Watch this Dirt Every Day video of the Jeep Renegade on Black Bear Pass. You know what to do.

Dirt Every Day give Renegade thumbs up

Edit: Jeep has put $4,500 on the hood for leftover 2017's.

What were the issues why I want to avoid a Freelander?  I've seen a couple advertised cheap but I keep thinking there's a reason I'm supposed to say no. 

The list of non issues on the freelander is much much shorter than the list of issues.  It is one of the very rare cara that even this forum gives a flat NO to. 

SwankForceOne once dubbed the Freelander "the Anti-Answer"