looking for dual cab ute opinions

[MrFaulty]

Mate has a Ford Ranger (auto) work truck, its a pile of crap, 115000kms and the I had to check it wasnt a manual as it constantly sounds like the clutch is slipping on take off, but apparently the auto box is shot. Go the navara or a hilux, you get what you pay for

[rawprawn]

I have two dual cab utes at home. I have a D22 Navarra and a new Hilux. Both are capable vehicles but I prefer the cab on the Hilux. We have a lot of Ford Ranger dual and single cab 4x4 at work. They seem to have a reasonable build quality and they do the job however we are now replacing them all with Toyota’s due to the resales value (have you considered resale value in your thinking?).

[Pookie]

I have heard stories of the d40s clutches going before the 2-3yrs mentioned, iv heard of issues withing the first 6-8months and not covered under warrenty as it is a wear and tear item, $1500 later.

How big is the family?
The back seat in the bt50 is quite significantly bigger, much more comfy

[ArWeTherYet]

it will be a lease car, so fuel included luckily

Well get a V6

I bought a new D40 Navara 6 years ago and the v6 goes like the clappers. Can easily overtake any slow and noisy diesel going up a hill towing the caravan pack to the rafters. Faster than my old V8 falcoon. Of coarse Nissan Australia are arses and have to fight with them to get any thing done and the extended warranty isn't worth the paper its written on, but that's probably not going to bother you if your leasing.

[DaftWullie]

What swung me to the BT50 was the cabin space and the fact although they are the same car as the Ranger they are 6k cheaper, If you are leasing it its not such an issue. As far as I can see Toyota/Nissan/Mitsubishi are all old models facelifted or not and to keep up with the new breed and need to pull their fingers out. Ironically it was VW that put the cat in amongst the pigeons with the Amarok.

[troutfish]

went and looked at a ranger this arvo, and whilst lovely, the deal was 10k away from the mazda (i am adding lots of bits from ARB).

it looks like the bloke has had a real crack at giving me the right price first up, and i respect when buying something

looks like the mazda is in the lead.....

[paffoh]

Bt50 boss kit = mega win.

[BIGKEV]

When at ARB get the suspension kit (old man emu shocks) this will also give your car a nice 40-50mm legal lift also. It changes the dynamics of the vehicle completely making it much nicer to drive both on and off road. This was the best money I have ever spent on my Pathfinder and would not be happy with 'off the shelf' suspension in any make of vehicle ever again.

Becareful though, ARB is an easy place to spend your hard earned.

Kev

[bildad]

Whatever Brand model you choose don't get style sides, get tray style sides all the room is taken up by wheel arches there is nothing to tie to and you will be afraid of scratching it.
Trayback is th GO!

[polylureosis]

Volkswagen Amarok

http://www.volkswagen-commercial.com.au/au/en/models/Amarok.html

[troutfish]

Thanks for all your advice guys, keep it coming....

Arb - yep,'easy to spend money, and am certainly planning to do so
Canopy
Snorkel
Dual battery
Lift
Suspension
Bar
Lights
Bigger tyres
Awning

I will be going style sides, maybe not as practical, but looks cooler, and I'm all about the cooool

Saw the amarok, looks interesting, but not for me

Still looks like the bt50 is in the lead, Mazda are certainly trying the hardest, just waiting to see how my trade in goes

Thanks again

[BIGKEV]

Roof racks!!!! Don't forget the roof racks, you're going to need them for the awning to fix on to and also if you ever plan on using your yak again they may come in handy. Also if you get a suspension upgrade you will get a 40-50mm lift that is 100% completely legal. If you try and lift a vehicle by other means then you start pushing into grey areas as far as legalities are concerned.

Many of the items you have listed can be done directly through your dealer particularly bigger tyres as you should only have to pay the difference between the stock and the replacements. If your dealer is willing to work hard enough for you, they will arrange the after market stuff too, meaning that you can pay just the one person and drive away in a completed vehicle without having to run around getting bits and pieces done for the next few weeks. They should really be able to package it all up and do a pretty good price.

Don't forget some form of rust protection if you plan any beach work, electronic or chemical, doesn't really matter, they both seem to do the job.

One other tip, don't just sit back and wait for the dealer to offer you a trade in value, give them a 'changeover figure' that they can work towards, at the end of the day trade in values mean nothing as they will flog your car off to a wholesaler anyway. Chances are your first trade in quote will be insulting and then they will dissapear out to the back office to talk to the 'boss' and all of a sudden offer you more dollars making you feel all warm and fuzzy and sign up on the spot. Work out what you think your trade is worth on redbook or similar, then add a bit to it and deduct this from the cost of the vehicle and then you have a 'change over' amount. Give them this figure and tell them you can't exceed these costs and see how you go. They'll probably need to talk to the 'boss' but at the end of the day, it's just a numbers game and they will rob Peter to pay Paul if it makes you feel good about signing up.

Enjoy your new vehicle, I'm about to go through the same thing, but have a different set of vehicles in mind.

Kev

[BIGKEV]

Volkswagen Amarok

http://www.volkswagen-commercial.com.au/au/en/models/Amarok.html

Hadn't heard too much about these so looked them up and found a reveiw from January this year. They were given a pretty good review except for one big problem. At the time of the review (Jan 29, 2012) VW were quoting 6-8 months waiting time from date of order. WTF???? If i'm buying a car I want it now, if not now then 6-8 weeks seems a standard sort of lead time, 6-8 months is bordering on the ridiculous. I don't know if this has changed recently but I would expect it to cost them alot of sales.

Kev

[Bretto]

I will be going style sides, maybe not as practical, but looks cooler, and I'm all about the cooool

Exactly why I got style side... Except now I can't fit shit in the tray.

[rawprawn]

Volkswagen Amarok

http://www.volkswagen-commercial.com.au/au/en/models/Amarok.html

Hadn't heard too much about these so looked them up and found a reveiw from January this year. They were given a pretty good review except for one big problem. At the time of the review (Jan 29, 2012) VW were quoting 6-8 months waiting time from date of order. WTF???? If i'm buying a car I want it now, if not now then 6-8 weeks seems a standard sort of lead time, 6-8 months is bordering on the ridiculous. I don't know if this has changed recently but I would expect it to cost them alot of sales.

Kev

I’ll be in the market for new dual cab in the next 6 months. I really like the write ups on the VW but the thing that worries me about them is reliability. I just don’t know how they will fair in the Australian conditions and what the service cost and availability would be.

This is generally why I stick with Toyota. They maybe overpriced and may not have as many bells and whistles, however that are tough and reliable and if something does go wrong I know no matter where I am there will be a service centre somewhere relatively close.

Once the VW has had some time in the market we will see how they go. Personally I hope they do well because we could do with some serious competition.