anybody had/own one?
give me a summary please, looking for a good bike vehicle.

cheers
Lee

quite common grey import here in oz. Have a pretty good reputation for reliability. If something does go wrong it's pain to get at the engine. I test drove one and quite liked it. If i had to criticise it it'd say it was working a little hard to keep up and visibility wasn't all that good. Comfort was ok and damn good for passangers / bikes. quite a few versions 7/8 seat and model changes with age

If you try one and can live with it and with it implications of it being a grey import (i assume it is in the uk) then i think it'd be a potential bargin.

Now that i think back it was pretty noisey. could get wearing on long trips esp if tired coming back from a ride

I live in Canada, can only get a 15 year old one due to importation rules which is my biggest put off tbh, I'm wondering if it might be a bit underpowered in the mountains too

might have to get a big ass pick up but fancied something I can leave the bikes in on roadtrips

I recall an accident a couple of years back where the Delicia was deemed to have unacceptable stability.

It's an Outlander running gear on an 'estate' body – it has full 4wd and offroad capabilities (check some of the videos on YouTube) but as it is so high up it's apparently very unstable if you need to swerve or make sudden changes of direction.

From what I have read about them, they are very good vehicles, but I believe they are quite expensive to run – mainly due to age and technologies used the engines aren't as efficient as they could be, the extra weight and the 4wd also makes them a bit thirstier on the juice. Saying that, they seem to be very reliable and the vast majority of them have been well maintained from new.

I think I'd like one if I was doing more away trips for weekends on the bikes, or perhaps a Mazda Bongo type affair with sleeping accommodation in it as well.

PC Mark Dempster told the Kendal inquest that some Delicas had been imported from Japan, where they were meant for low-speed urban use, with minimal safety tests.

Here in Bristol, they are the preserve of a certain type of person.

I have one and have for 5 years. Mine is the L400 version.

Its a thirsty beast but super versitle, its basically a 2.8 td Shogun underneath with a MPV body. Mine is the 7 seater version and I use it as the main family transport, as a van (can get 3m lengths of timber inside,front to back) and we use it as a camper.

The super select 4wd was very useful over winter during the cold spell as it left most motorists including a lot of urban/sport type 4wd drivers stranded in the snow

Comfort wise its like being in an airplane, noise isnt any more of an issue in the L400 that any other older 4wd vehicle, as the engine is at the front unlike the l300 where you are sat on it. It drives like a dream and has all the toys, including glass roof, swivel chaptains chairs, split climate control, electric eveything. At the end of the day these were built soley for the Japanese market and tended to be second family cars for suburbanites to ferry the kids to school so have lowish mileage for their age.

Relaibility wise its been pretty good for a 15 yo motor, I did have some issues with a failed turbo and had to replace some cooling components (header tank and rad) but most bits are relatively easy to get in the UK if you know where to go. The Pe8w engines arent that difficult to work on and access whilst awkward isnt so bad.

The fatal accident in one was found to be due to drive reaction at their gearbox giving up the ghost on the motorway. They steered into a skid at speed and tipped it, if I recall correctly it was the L300 model where you sit over the engine. I think the copper invovled at the inquiry was later quoted as saying this type of accident would have happened in any tall vehicle in the same circumstances. They passed the old SVA and still can pass the newer IVA testing so they meet all current safety standards for UK roads are approved for use by VOSA

Cannot agree with them all being well maintained as the best ones tend to go to Russia or OZ, we get the chaff. So I would recommend buying one of a owners club such as MDOCUK or Delica Friends. Just google either of those for the forums and all the info you could ever need is there

I use one to shuttle people up alpine passes, its great and cheap vehicle that will last you ages….

Common problem is the fuel pump seal, the low sulphur diesel in the uk does not lubricate it and it perishes. £10 for the part and about £400 in labour.

Other than that great car, but as comments above it is a high vehicle and the are known to opple over, but no more than any other hi sided car

fuel consumption on a run when empty at 65mph is about 27mpg in mine, but shuttling people and trailers up alpine pases reduces this to about 10!!

I bought mine 4 years ago for £4k with 65k miles and it was mint!!! it now has 170k miles and it runs perfectly, I have just changed the shocks and all the rubber bushes, gaiters etc.

The 4M40 engine is bullet proof, chain cam etc and wll last forever but it is thirsty and old. The auto box is strong and relaible (very few manuals about)

THe super select is great and this car will do everything its bascically a shogun and will go anywhere.mine regularly goes offroad.

check out http://www.mdocuk.co.uk there is a wealth of info on them.

cheers for the info, I have done a bit of digging on the delica forum in Canada but got the feeling everyone was in love with theirs so was wondering what ownership would be like, it appears the good importers over here change most of the cooling system on arrival so thats not a worry, yours Ferrit is exactly what I want with the captains chairs etc star light roof and definately a L400

I've been in one of the L400s and the ride was horrendous from the point of view of body roll – it's quite terrifying even when driving gently. I don't know if that was a particularly bad one or not, but it'd put me off. A lot more roll than you get in a van…

the problem over here is not many vans, I can get big mpv's with big petrol engines in, the equivalent of a transit has a 5.8 v10 in it

everyone seems to use pickups for virtually everything but again means a 5 litre engine

diesel is like the devils juice here I think as only vw and merc seem to embrace it

Bottoms – Shogun not Outlander…sorry.

I really want one, not out of any particular logic, I just think they're awesome Really want a pop-top camper conversion, just love the idea, drive up a mountain, stop, sleep, drive back down.

The crash-tests for the L400 used to be on youtube but they're gone now I think, looked crazy as it tipped over in the side-impact but then so do most people carriers.

I've been in one of the L400s and the ride was horrendous from the point of view of body roll – it's quite terrifying even when driving gently. I don't know if that was a particularly bad one or not, but it'd put me off. A lot more roll than you get in a van…

not if you get a super exceed spec it comes with ECS suspension, effectively allowing you two settings on the suspension stifness. Off road and "sport". It isnt what you would call sport but it definatley tightens things up nicely.

On a whole the body roll is no worse than most 4wds, its on a par with a Shogun and they have better road manners than most 4wd pick ups like the l200, hi-lux, ranger etc

Wouldnt fancy taking any van down some of the tracks mine has been down so its a trade off really, do you need off road ability or do you want to tootle around on the tarmac in a transit?

Happy owner of an '89 L300. Use it for carpentry duties but mostly just throw the bikes in the back and go to the woods or Sweden (live in Copenhagen).
There is notable roll but you dont buy this kind of car to do high speed corners. The diesel consumption isn't the best. just a little more than 10 k to the litre (sorry for the continentalism) when driven conservative.
But despite I love it. Just popping it in 4wd this winter was ace and it has saved me a couple of times in Sweden.
Probably going up to Hafjell this summer. See how that goes. she's an old lady 🙂

Very versatile and not many around here.

don't need full off road capability really, the only time that will be useful will be Winter as the roads can be a bit ropey here

just like the configuration, kipping in it will be a bonus too

next month I will be wrking on one as an ambulance at Glastonbury. I'll let you know then!

I hadn't seen or heard of one before we moved down here to Worcestershire – there's flippin loads around here!(?)

OP convert a Toyota Hi-Ace and part-convert it?

If it doesnt have to be 4×4.

Bongo Fury!

What he said ^

For serious off roading, I'd be looking at a Delica. For more road based use with a bit of light off-roading (forest tracks, the odd grass bank, snowy roads etc) a 4WD Bongo is a good bet.

Similar issues – Engine's a wee bit buried, cooling system doesn't stand abuse, thirsty on diesel. Very versatile vehicle though. Tin top ones are a bargain, pop-tops a wee bit dearer.

Bongo Fury's the place to go.

(I've never even been in a Bongo, I just love the website's name).

4×4 Hiace? http://www.outbackimports.ca/hiace_vans.html

(I've never even been in a Bongo, I just love the website's name).

4×4 Hiace? http://www.outbackimports.ca/hiace_vans.html

IMO Too old. Buy a decent 04 Hi Ace for circa 4k. Adding 2 large side windows costs £500, adding a second row of seats (with seat belts fitted) costs £750. Then carpet etc to taste.

In addition- the bulkhead can be unscrewed by yourself.

I have considered a Bongo as a replacement for the Mitsi when I finally replace it, but a good newer elevating high top with a conversion already done starts getting pricey. The pop top does provide a double sleeping space over the main vehicle but doesnt really add much in internal headroom, and theres no walk through from front to rear which is handy in the Mitsi.

Bongos are no where near as rugged as a Delica, but they are different animals, so its horses for courses.

I`ve had a bongo 3 yrs and been France, Germany, Holland and all over the uk, the last trip was to livigno with 5 peaple luggage and ski kit steady 80 most of the way handled the alpine roads fine, mine is a 2wd hitop with folding rear seats and its a perfect bike bus for trips away, I love it

IMO Too old. Buy a decent 04 Hi Ace for circa 4k.

Uhh…OP is in Canada. Hiaces not sold new in Canada. Imports allowed only when 15 years or older in Canada.

never heard of a Mazda Bongo before, looks interesting, only being introduced in 1995 though will mean they are only just trickling through to the import market here

+1 wot Ferrit said. Watch out for the pulley bearings for the pumps/air conditioning unit. They are weak and will go at about 60k miles so make sure you're warranty will cover that or just get the importer to change it before it goes. The engine will run on and you can do damage to engine casings :o(

I put bigger wheels off a HiLux on mine (minor body work alterations with a lump hammer) and the difference off road for grip and clearance is impressive, another vote for going 29er (not so easy to manual tho ;o) )

I have the 8 seatet which gives me about 29mpg on a run but down to 10 towing excavators. It used as a family runabout, uplift bus, camper, truck for delivering bikes, race vehicle, trail digging tool, I used it to tow mini diggers out of holes they're awesome trucks and can be driven pretty much like a car definetely a quieter and more luxurious ride than your average 4wd pick up and landy. Good advice on common issues at the delica owners club http://www.mdocuk.co.uk/