Toyota Pickup 4wd

[Pond Life]

Im in the market for a Toyota Hilux 4WD xtracab pickup truck.

I've got the second hand price list & it quotes a '97 SR5 at 375k Baht, but a '98 Tiger at 300k .

So my question is, was the Tiger realy a dog ?

Why is the Tiger with a bigger engine & all the whistles & bells cheaper?

I've had 3 Hilux 4WD's in the past & loved them, I need a truck thats capable of getting a load of cement bags up a steep, muddy, rutted mountain track, was the Tiger the start of the decline into the suburban shopping trolly era ?

While I'm on the subject, has anyone given a Vigo a serious arse kicking offroad yet, I think it looks awful but I cant believe Toyota would ruin the Hilux reputation by turning it into a shopping trolly.

Thanks for your opinions in advance.

[chanchao]

> Im in the market for a Toyota Hilux 4WD xtracab pickup truck.

> I've got the second hand price list & it quotes a '97 SR5 at 375k Baht, but a '98 Tiger

> at 300k . So my question is, was the Tiger realy a dog ?

Well... Let me side step that question by explaining why SR5's are valued rather highly:

SR-5's (Mighty-X model) were built in Japan and imported to Thailand. For this reason, also when bought new they always cost significantly more than the 2WD Mighty-X models for this reason. Thus, when selling second hand, people seem to want more money for them. (Also there's far fewer of them around compared to Tiger 4WD trucks.) With the Tiger model, the 4WD version was made in Thailand and priced only moderately higher than the top of the line 2WD models. The perception is that build quality of 'imported' SR-5's is higher. Of course, many of them are also quite a bit older than the more recent Tiger 4WD trucks.

Secondly, Mighty-X style SR-5's have higher commercial / cargo hauling value because the truck bed is the same length as the regular pick-up. For the Tiger 4WD version, Toyota realized that most of those would not actually be used for cargo-hauling and reduced the truck-bed length a bit to make it look smarter.

> I've had 3 Hilux 4WD's in the past & loved them, I need a truck thats capable of

> getting a load of cement bags up a steep, muddy, rutted mountain track, was the

> Tiger the start of the decline into the suburban shopping trolly era ?

Hm.. ALso the SR-5 I think has a front suspension that features the wishbone setup.. If you look at the 'hard-core' version used by trucks going up mountains such as the Royal Project and Forestry Dept trucks then you will see that these are more "basic" models that have front leaf springs and don't have electric windows and stuff. Those really are the best trucks for 'real' off-road cargo hauling.

> While I'm on the subject, has anyone given a Vigo a serious arse

> kicking offroad yet, I think it looks awful but I cant believe

> Toyota would ruin the Hilux reputation by turning it into a shopping trolly.

It's strange that since the Mighty-X era I've not seen another Toyoya truck with the tough front leaf-spring setup and without all the bling and electrical stuff and the option of a 'single-cab' with very long truck bed... As the old trucks age, sooner or later they should offer a replacement you'd think. The current Vigo 4WD sure isn't it.

Final note: If you go for the Tiger model then I'd really seek out the more recent modfels with latest common-rail D4D engine. The first generation Tiger 3.0 liter engines were under-powered and thirsty, then came the turbo efi whatever ones that were even thirstier, but then Toyota finally got it right with the D4D engine which is still in use in the Vigo.

375K is perhaps a bit high for an SR-5... Then again, the condition it's in matters a lot. You obviously don't want a seriously beat up one. For your intended use I think I'd prefer a late SR-5 in good condition over an early Tiger 4WD truck.

Also have you looked at Isuzu's? 2.8 or 3.0 turbo engines on the previous model are also very capable and they have a longer truck bed than the Tiger. They also have somewhat less ground clearance but this often isn't that much of an issue. Just fit the right tyres for the job. Whatever you do don't get the 2.5TD Ford or Mazda. 2900 engine could be okay for the job though but haven't driven one in ages.

Cheers,

Chanchao

[chanchao]

Also, a price difference doesn't matter that much because you'll get quite a bit of that back again if/when you sell it. SR5's hold their value like gold. Have you ever seen the thing Top Gear did on the durability of the Mighty-X truck... It was completely outrageous, cruel and hilarious. See if you can find it online somewhere, it's good.

[Pond Life]

Thanks for the info Chanchao, you seem to know your Hilux, had a few ?

I didnt see the Top Gear but heard about it, I've never got that carried away but the only thing I've ever managed to break on a Hilux was the windscreen.

I prefer the rigid front axle models mainly because its easy to fit a limited slip diff. But I've never seen any reasonably recent xtra cabs with this, only the single cab.

Anywhere in particular I should look ? I've seen a bunch of trucks on the right as you come into CM past the Army camps (Queen of the battle !).

Thanks

[chanchao]

> I prefer the rigid front axle models mainly because its

> easy to fit a limited slip diff. But I've never seen any

> reasonably recent xtra cabs with this, only the single cab.

I've seen some double cabs with that setup.. Get the feeling those were like specially built/sold for government projects and the like.

> Anywhere in particular I should look ? I've seen a bunch of

> trucks on the right as you come into CM past the Army camps

Yup... all the major roads into town have those car shops... There's quite a few on the Hang Dong road too, all the way to Hang Dong and beyond.

BTW, perhaps I should move this post to the general motoring section, then you should get some more comments on the "Mighty-X" SR-5 vs. Tiger 4WD issue. I will leave a link to this topic here after moving.

Cheers,

Chanchao