Thread: Fuel Efficient 4WD

It is important that @Synthetic remembers that he's talking to a bunch of guys that - for the most part - will just recommend what they've got. Me with my Hilux, others with their Suzukis. Both options are equally valid. Then there are the extreme ends of both options, like our mates on here who do river crossings in cars built like Coke cans that would have made Top Gear proud in their heyday!

So the thing is Synthetic, is both options are... equally valid. It is 100% dependant on what grade of tracks you think you want to tackle, and how much gear (weight) you will be carrying at the time. This is really important, as so many guys buy big hairy 4WDs then never use them for what they are designed to do. Equally, guys who have a Vitara or similar might push the limit because they encounter something they weren't expecting, and come to grief in something a larger / higher vehicle would stroll through.

Weight and cubic capacity is also really important. Gear, plus dog, plus bleeding red stag carcass? A ute tray just makes so much more sense, if you're doing it regularly.

But backing up what @vietnamcam said above, in 2000 I drove one of the original Rav4s in Mozambique, and that little car was a revelation. It was the first time I'd ever used a small AWD crossover and it was farkin' brilliant. The only thing I'd caution, is that I was alone in the car 95% of the time, with just my rod and tackle box and a few fish, and the moment we drove out with four adults and all their camping gear, it was a completely different story! Where before I used raw pace to get over sandy humps and soft holes, I couldn't do that any more without hitting the bump stops really hard, and things turned to custard. The absence of low range really hurt. Also didn't have a compressor so dropping the tyre pressures helped, but then couldn't reinflate when we reached the tar seal.

That's where the Jimny comes into its own with proper ladder chassis, 4WD and the hi/low box. A Grand Vitara is a good option too, just more prone to sill damage. The mechanicals underpinning these "All Grip Pro" systems are in a totally different class to a soft roader AWD like the Rav4. Big difference! Personally? I'd love one of the current 2019 model Jimnys. But I'd keep my Hilux, I'll go to my grave in that truck.

Its also worth remembering that all these modern 4WD systems are electronically controlled, whereas a traditional part-time 4WD ute with stick selected 2WD / 4WD hi / 4WD low is all mechanical. To me, in NZ conditions, the more electronics you have governing drive train, the more nervous I am with river crossings and long, wet, muddy bog holes. Just sayin'..... been there, done that. Water and electricity has never mixed particularly well, just ask Land River Disco owners. When modern vehicles are 10+ years old, that's when I'd be getting really nervous.