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Had a Vitara in Oz as a sort of 4x4 lite (had a Toyota for the serious stuff).
Got it bogged in mud up to its axles once, put it in low range and it just drove out. Had a lot more respect for it after that.
The only thing I didn't like about it was its lethal rear axle behaviour if you gave it some welly on a rough road. I suspect the Jimny would be similar.
For the money/05 money you could buy a non-turbo forester on steel wheels. Mine was utterly awe-inspiring for handling and alround usability/assurance
If you are not doing serious off roading the forester offers more in buckets. All imo of course
A Forester is [i]much[/i] bigger than a Jimny, Autoexpress were only getting 24.5/gal on their test vehicle, a 2.0 litre, and it's Group 15 insurance against the Gp 7 of a Jimny. Please, be realistic, the OP specifically pointed out the requirement for a small, cheap second car. A Forester fails every one of those requirements. I would laugh in your face If you suggested I replace my Skoda with one. 24.5 against the 45-63/gallon I get in my 1.9TDi? Get real, I'm earning nowhere near enough to afford to run one, and I'd be surprised if the OP would even consider one as a second car.
33/34 average on group 11. From memory they tested a automatic forester not a manual. For the record my 2.0lt petrol Legacy averaged 40mpg at 80 on the motorway compared to 33 for a 1.6 toyota auris.
Or 39 in a new shape 1.3 Yaris.
Oh and I found at a constant 55 I hit 50mpg in the legacy.
Ps. The yaris cost more to insure than the forester.
The reports I've read seem to suggest the Forester should get a lot more than that - well into the 30's in mixed driving on the non-turbo + motor journo's are notoriously heavy on the right foot, especially when someone else is paying for the fuel.
I was seriously thinking of getting one until Hora recommended it 8)
Hora are you sure a petrol legacy can hit 40mpg at 80mph! It seems that Subaru have developed a perpetual motion device that is more efficient than a Yaris of half the weight and half the engine size of said Subaru. I thought you canna change the laws of Physics but you obviously can. What a load of B@ll@cks! (And its running an extra prop and diff etc etc.)
One word, gearing.
At 80 my Legacy sat at 3,000rpm.
The auris and yaris both at OVER 4,000rpm.
The Forester is amazing. I've never had a car pull itslef on rails around roundabouts until I drove one of these. Like a gravity traction-beam! and it now lives up in Heptonstall (silver 53 reg). The elderly lady who owns it uses it to delivery groceries throughout the surrounding area and loves it.
I also like ther jimny if I'm honest but not as an only car for baby etc 🙁
OP wait until the Jimnys peak selling season is over. Winter is the best time to buy a mx5 and spring onwards for a Jimny IMO
Do not crash one, you are unlikely to survive.
Oh
I feel that I have to comment on the Jimmer debate. My other half has owned one for the past 2 years now. To begin with I was a bit dubious about it but did my research and warned her of the pitfalls and let her make her own mind up. 2 years down the line and I think its a fantastic little car. yep its no good at high speed, motorway cruising is 65 or you just burn through fuel. but urban, rural and A & B road driving is perfectly acceptable. In bad weather I would rather be in that the anything bar a defender. we made it back from North Yorks when it was really bad and had to cut through all the little vilages around leeds to get home. None of them were cleared and the little Jimmer went up, round and through everything. Some of the lads may take the piss about the size or styling but then they soon change their mind when they want to go riding/boarding and they cant leave their street!
As far as reliability ours is a 2000 w reg and we have had it serviced once in 2 years + its had a new battery. MOT it failed the 1st year on a offside leaking swivel hub (which can be replaced!!) and the 2nd year on the other. swivel hubs are based on the defender version and were £200 fitted each. Bearing in mind we got ours for £1600 and we could sell it tomorrow for the same I dont reckon it owes us much. Its a solid proper offroader based on a ladder chassis design (again like the defender) so you can laugh at people in x5's cayennes, q7, when they cant get up a snowy icy hill and you chug past them.
no idea but they look woeful
A neighbour who lives up the hill has 2 (one for him and his wife), he's the only one who can get his car (and his wife) parked outside their house in this heavy snow, everyone else is parked around the streets.
My wife wants one now, especially after having to spend the night at work last night.
especially after having to spend the night at work last night
Even though the roads were properly gritted that night? 😉
Yep - we sold ours a months ago, my Mum has one, inlaws have one, blah blah blah.
Good points:
Comically good off road. Very little will get you further - extremely light, loads of clearance, proper low range 'box
Incredibly easy to park - tiny turning circle and tiny car.
Very robust and reliable.
Actually quite well specced - most have aircon, heated electric mirrors, airbags, ABS brakes (post 2005), etc
Cheap to buy
Bad points:
Tiny boot
Thirsty for what they are - 30ish mpg
Noisy for any distance driving
Quite "jerky" on roads - what makes them great off road hinders them on it.
Servicing a wee bit steep.
Overall, they are a surprisingly fun little thing. The mags reviews are mostly complete tosh - they are looking at road comfort and very few actually off road them. AutoExpress tested them PROPERLY against loads of other 4x4s and it came 2nd. The Disco was 1st.
Loads of farmers around here have them.
Watch service history - my Mum is having major front hub issues and the brakes can need replacing. Get as late as possible - post 2005 gets a better engine, ABS brakes and some other goodies. They are VERY cheap to buy and with more aggressive tyres, are one of the best off roaders out there.
Apart from the Defender maybe 😉
Servicing a wee bit steep
When I was considering buying one I wondered why there were a fair few upto 5yrs old with circa 2 stamps!
Hora - sold ours with only 23k on the clock (but 5 years old) so most services were time rather than mileage dependent. A few bills shocked me but then we always went to a main dealer. Much cheaper with an independent.
You'd have to be slightly mad to do a lot of miles in one!
Front axle hub swivel's are non replacable (unlike Landrover), swivel seals leaking grease/water ingress, requires axle swop to fix.
Not completely true. Unlike a Landrover, the Swivels are not oil filled, therefore the surface of the swivel can become pitted without major issue. A simple rub down with emery and re-paint will fix. No need to change an axle. The seals are commonly available. If its leaking grease then something else is wrong, usually the kingpin bearings are worn and need replacing (about £25 per side)
Indicators on the wrong side
Only true for Japanese built ones, its on the "correct" side for Spanish ones.
gf picked up a vitara this weekend - same deal, wanted a small cheap 4*4 after being snowed in for 10 days during bad weather. track to house very muddy, in 4wd, vitara went straight through no bother. comfy at around 80 on motorway but loses some on uphills. suspension a bit firm but livable with, passenger seat REALLY hard and unconmfortable. a bit noisy.
great fun, i like it.
Sorry to resurrect this thread, but I just thought I'd see if anyone has a Jimny they want to sell now that all the snow's gone. And this thread seemed to be a good place to find a Jimny owner.
My GF needs one for getting up to the sheep down a bumpy lane - and it's currently destroying my poor old Mondeo. No, I don't want a Forester 🙂
Oh, and I'm on a limited budget...
I like ours apart from the soft top. Very reliable car. Anyone got a spare wheel please ? mail in profile