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I drive a 20 plate ranger wild track for work towing fuel tanks and generators around the country.
As said above it drives better towing 2,5 tonnes than it does empty.
Would I have one, not a chance.
Run two new shape Navaras for the last three years, no failures of any description both average 35mpg and they have a five year 100k warranty- both just went through Mots last month with nothing more than tyres and front discs.
Driving wise they are not an SUV they are good on motorways and amazing in snow and mud, mine also tows about a ton on a regular basis.
The question is if it wasn't tax efficient (lets not forget Rishis 130%) would i drive one? Probably not but currently a New Tekna is £22k if you shop about, we get the VAT back and 130% on the tax so they stand us just north of 16k each with a five year warranty. They will fetch 12k or more after 3 years. Thats 100 quid a month and personal tax and fuel card is less than that a month.
They are very cheap for a limited company, hence so many about
I’d look for a 4×4 van, or a Mitsubishi Delica, just as big, but much safer for keeping kit in, and to kip in!
For a 4*4 van you'd be needing double the budget and for a delicia worth having in the UK you'd need a time machine
I ran an L200 as a shooting / stalking / everything motor for 8 yrs or so.
As an everyday car ? nope, no chance.
Get a transit custom if you need somit like that.
I've got a '17 plate Navara Tekna. 125,000 miles with no issues until today when the a/c failed! It drives OK, parking is a trial, but it has a cool all-round camera, which helps. I tow regularly with it and get about 30mpg overall. It's OK inside, leather seats etc. Very comfy and a good view out (as long as you don't have a cabin on the back!), but ride is a wee bit jiggly. 7 speed autobox is good, if a bit slow. Engine and box are Renault. It's RWD, not front, btw. 4WD only for low speeds, really. Would I have one if I didn't need it for work? No, not a chance. I had a Freelander2 before, which also did 125,000 miles with no major issues. Superior vehicle in every way.
63 Reg Ranger here. Got it when it was a year old. Very happy. Used daily, no biggie parking as I don’t live in toy town! Site visits, towing, family stuff, carrying loose logs, trips to the alpes or the beach, carrying a zodiac and outboard. Kids like it in the back, we had more car sick episodes in the Passat we had for a few years. Not sure why anyone would need a “better handling” car. Who do think you are, Ari Vattenen? The roads are too busy and pot holed for making progress. OP, get one, you won’t loose money on it. They hold value well.
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Unless it has a work logo on the side or is covered in mud and battered, or has an animal in the back, it'l also make you look like a nobber.
No offence taken molgrips.
Unless it has a work logo on the side or is covered in mud and battered, or has an animal in the back,
Does it have to be a working cat for VAT relief?
Estate car, roof rails, fish box. A surfer with a ute is a farmer. It looks good but very impractical and expensive.
An estate doesn't have the rad bro factor though does it? Especially if you add a raceface tailgate pad for more gnar.
I'm in Oz, where the biggest selling vehicle is the Hilux and every other car is a utility (pick-up).
It took me a few years living here for it to feel right - especially from a security perspective (stuff doesn't get nicked as much here), but now i wouldn't be without one.
My everyday car is a Mitsubishi Triton (L200 in UK i think?). Fuel economy isn't bad compared to the competition, but not great compared with 'normal' cars.
They drive pretty much the same as a standard car, parking is really the same if you have any kind of spatial awareness, and i've done a few very long drives in it (Queensland to Victoria and Queensland to Tasmania).
Best of all, in the 70,000 miles i've driven it (on top of the 60,000 before me) it hasn't had a single problem. Zilch.
However it's so convenient for camping. I've got roof racks on the top for a pod and racks over the tub at the back so i can fit four bikes inside the footprint, with all the camping gear including fridge underneath the bikes.
Another Australian here.
My 7.5ft surfboard fits into my Honda HRV (based on a honda Jazz chassis) - and my wetsuit goes in a trug in the boot. Works perfectly. The only thing that's a bit annoying is that the boot lid (when open) is about an inch too low to stand under without ducking.
You don't need a pickup because of bodyboarding - sorry 🙂 Unless you plan to upgrade to real surfing at any point? Lol. And even then a regular hatchback is fine.
What'd put me off having one in the UK is the security of the storage area. Not really an issue over here in Australia, but I'd worry every time I stopped off at the service station in the UK
Ford is about to release a new, unibody pickup called the Maverick that will likely be smaller and more efficient than the current Ranger (and will likely come in a hybrid as it's built on the same C2 platform as the Escape, which has a hybrid). If you want a pickup for the light duty stuff you describe, I'd see it as the ticket.
You could wheelspin into the Hossegor carpark in a blaze of sound, stickers and spots but you'd have to wait till the coast is clear before you go round the back and pull out your shark biscuit.
Bill has a point you'll look like the guy i saw drive past in peebles in his Mitsubishi Walloper with all the bikes hooked on the tailgate in the enduro style... A clapped out 90s mointainbike, a ladies shopper and kids bike.
“Mitsubishi Walloper” 🤣
Proper tickled me that
Ford is about to release a new, unibody pickup called the Maverick that will likely be smaller and more efficient than the current Ranger (and will likely come in a hybrid as it’s built on the same C2 platform as the Escape, which has a hybrid). If you want a pickup for the light duty stuff you describe, I’d see it as the ticket.
Early publicity shots just in...
They drive pretty much the same as a standard car, parking is really the same
Was your last car in the uk an Austin Allegro ?
Forgot that I used to drive a pick-up actually.
Brilliant little thing, but may not be the lifestyle statement you're after OP.
Have the responses changed your mind, out of interest?
World's fugliest thing (not fugliest pickup, not fugliest car, just fugliest thing)
This is what the OP needs
Best pickup ever
Other than the colour of that one
I quite liked a jumbuck
Hateful machines which unless you need it daily for specific job are a compromise in pretty much every way
I have just handed back a Mercedes X250 Element (Yes i know the Navara jokes). The wow factor lasted about 24hrs and i wanted to hand it back for 12mths. I was last offered a pickup as a company car about 15 years ago when i worked for Ford and i offered my resignation rather than accept. I hoped things had moved on this time.
Fuel economy - 25mpg. Don't kid yourself its any better.
Comfort - Huge step up. Dirty trousers every time i stepped in off the side bars. Banged your head or jammed your legs into steering wheel every time. Uncomfortable legs out seating position. Rear passengers feel like they are sat on the roof. Poor leg room.
Drive - Wallowy bag of shite
Safety - **** everyone else, my 2t bohemouth will kill everyone else in an accident, who cares
Load space - Ask my wife what she thinks of climbing into the load be to retrive the weeks shopping? Does nothing well compared to a nice estate car.
Honestly, i would tax these vehicles out of existence unless you need it for work.
You see loads of them on the road but in fairness to Ford they don’t make them any more. They’ve gone with V6s and turbos.
Ford north America will still happily supply you with a 5l v8 400hp 12,000lb towing machine. And that's in the f150. If you really want a pickup you want an f250 or f350 duallie. Baby robins will commit hari-kari on your massively oversized front grill.
At least dodge stopped making the ram with the viper engine in it.
these are my reasons;
1. I go away on bodyboarding weekends once a month or couple of months and I love the idea of being able to throw all my wet gear in the back, instead of having my boot stinking of salt and sea, and then be able to hose or rinse out the whole back bed area.
2. I would like one of the full roof coverings over the bed.
3. Also like the idea of throwing muddy wet bike gear in the back.
4. Regards bikes, either a rack on the back or on the top.
1. A better solution is Really Useful Boxes. We have three that we can fit a full family of wet canoe kit in, put lid on and there is no damp or smell escape. We then hose out whole box at home.
2. An estate car, people carrier or van has this in place already -usually more secure as well.
3. See my suggestions for the Really Useful Box and add in Ikea bags.
4. Again an Estate, people carrier or small van can do this at less cost to buy and run, financially and environmentally.
There is a guy near me who drives a Ford Sierra pickup. It is too many layers of awesome.
Nothing else to add to this thread other than when I read your requirements, you described needing a van with bulkhead or an estate with plastic boxes in the boot as described by Matt above.
So OP, Whatcha gonna do?
Aw bless. My Father in Law’s truck had a 9l V10 and did 8mpg on a good day. You see loads of them on the road but in fairness to Ford they don’t make them any more. They’ve gone with V6s and turbos.
Ford released a new 7.3L pushrod petrol V8 in 2019. They still have the 6.7 v8 diesel powerstroke and 6.2 flex fuel.
What you need is a VW Saveiro
So OP, Whatcha gonna do?
Probably currently too shocked at the price of vans to respond.
What you need is a VW Saveiro
Love the "Robust" badge.
😀
World’s fugliest thing (not fugliest pickup, not fugliest car, just fugliest thing)
Not seen the SSangyong Musso then ?
cromolyolly
Free MemberIf you’ve been to north America in the last 5 years, you’d think 60% of people on the road are in the building trade.
The top 3 selling vehicles over there are the Ford F series, Chevy Silverado and Dodge Ram. Makes a bit of a joke of us lot piddling around with our 1 litre 3 pots.
Probs mentioned above .. hope you like 12 point turns!!!!😀
I had a hire xc60 the last few days even that was pushing the limits of what constitutes "in a parking space"
I jumped in my friends Ranger yesterday and skimmed through his on board computer, 16mpg average,,, ouch!
I’d quite fancy. Nissan p200, looks like a sensible bakkie and I could probably justify it , in my mind anyway, but a van is probably more useful. Quite like the look of the doblo pick up too.
I was doing the despatch checks on a bunch of vehicles this morning, and when I got to this one, and opened the back up, I suddenly remembered this thread and thought it’s exactly what the OP actually needs; Ford Transit Tourneo Connect. Seven seater, with a big plastic tray set across the tops of the rear pair of seats. Masses of room for all the wet sandy stuff in the back, all nice and safe, and still room for five, and room for seven if necessary.
Your camera makes it look worse to look at than that l200 up there.
And it's a transit so it'll rust for fun.
Many better options than a ford.
I own a 2014 Transit Connect. No rust that I can tell yet despite living for most of that time in the Northeast USA where there is snow all winter and they salt the roads. Overall, it's a great utility vehicle, but isn't refined. They do most of their business for fleets and somewhat apathetically converted it to passenger duty. If you can get by that, you get about the most space possible for the footprint.
If you don't use the rear seats, I'd just unbolt them and take them out. The super low/flat load floor is great. The one exception is if you want to toss a pad in and sleep in the back. Then keep the third row in so things are level.
Can't see any of the pluses that isn't covered by a good small van and none of your requirements cover what a pickup does well.
My dislike for them is safety, for others and the occupants
Hit someone and you will be more likely to kill them
Also, I used to drive leeds to Sheffield daily on the M1. These things always got completely out of shape when they had to brake hard in a very scary way.
Got me thinking.. i have a lifelong pickup habit i have owned..
1980 Nissan Doublecab 2 wheel drive six seat "thing"
Sierra P100
VW Caddy MK1
Mitsubishi L200 double cab
Nissan Navara MK1
Nissan Navara current model
Always had a proper car aswell