JM Baraza helps a small-scale farmer chose one vehicle among 12

I’m a small scale farmer, I farm avocado and macadamia. I have a budget of between Sh500,000 and Sh750,000. I would like to acquire a vehicle that will serve me well for some time and propel this venture with minimal pain in my pocket. I’m in my midlife and I guess that is the stage in life where men are in a dilemma when it comes to making decisions. I want to avoid the Hilux because I feel one pays for the name.

I have categorised the models into three groups, namely: Pickups, Vans and 4WD Station wagons. Help me choose one in each category.

1. Pickups: Isuzu TFR (third generation), Mitsubishi L200 (second generation), Ford Ranger (first and second generation), NP 300 and Mahindra Scorpio. Preferably Diesel 4WD for all. While at it kindly let me know if any Defender fits the bill.

 2. Vans: Toyota Town Ace 4WD Diesel (1996 - 2007), Toyota Hiace 5L 4WD

3. Wagons: Isuzu Trooper Diesel 4WD (second generation), Mitsubishi Pajero Diesel 4WD (first and second generation), Hilux Surf (second and third generation), Prado Box, Suzuki Vitara (second generation). Which engines are good for these? Can I do a diesel engine swap on a first generation Trooper? They seem to be affordable.

I intend to put a carrier on the wagons to carry a few crates of avocados. I would also wish for a robust body for this function.

Thank You in advance.

Regards,

Ken.

Hi Ken,

I would certainly appreciate it if my palliative impact on the economy would be monetarily recognised, but that is neither here nor there. We will live.

To your questions - I have never heard of a farmer avoid a Hilux on the basis that it is overrated. There are those who cannot afford it, understandably, but "paying for the name"? You really have no idea just how capable a truck the Hilux is.

So, on to your three categories:

1. Pickups: this is an odd lot you have here, a very odd lot. I don't remember when I last heard of the Tougher pickup, which you call the TFR, but if it's the third generation you specify, this could include the TFS as well. To attain some sense of merit, we will try and use elimination, but for this to work, we will have to overlook your rather skimpy budget.

The Scorpio is the newest vehicle here, and is the cheapest brand new, while the NP300 has been in production the longest. This is important because when shopping around, these two will most likely be the most contemporary vehicles you will find. Newness in a commercial vehicle is vital because it is indicative of how much productive life is left in it. TFR/TFS? Could be too far gone. L200 second generation? Serviceable examples are getting fewer and far between. Ford Ranger 1? Yeah, I'm not sure when I last saw one in operation. They came, they saw and they quietly died to pave way for more appealing Ford Rangers years down the line.

The Mahindra and the Nissan were both available with turbo engines way back then, which is a crucial plus as far as diesel power is concerned, but you will have to specify that for the NP300 since it was also available with a pair of naturally aspirated diesels shared with the E24 Caravan matatu that were notoriously prone to overheating. Fortunately, replacement engines are fairly cheap. The rest of the pack only got turbo engines much later in their lives in future generations (when the DMAX came around in Isuzu's case) and are therefore saddled with gruff, rattly, sluggish mills that sacrifice refinement and performance for longevity (and some of these diesels can really go on forever).

The NP300 sports looks and comfort over the Mahindra, while the Mahindra is simply cheap, so utilise your preferences here to make a decision. If you are not scared of financing, you can go for a brand new Scorpio which has warranties attached to it. This is what I'd opt for, if I ever went into commercial farming. The performance belies the price and the latest one does come with a host of creature comforts to make it less of a prison experience, and it sports an extra-long bed which increases the carrying capacity. The 2.2 liter M-Hawk engine is a revelation.

2. Vans: well, a choice between two Toyotas, huh? Go for the bigger one, the Hiace. The 5L engine has been tried, tested and found to be true, no contest here.

3. Wagons:  people think the Landcruiser Prado is unstable. These people have never driven the second generation Isuzu Trooper. This vehicle was a disaster as far as stability was concerned, it got so bad that recalls became their lot and the vehicle was eventually banned from certain markets. I have never heard of a Prado being banned from sale anywhere.

The Trooper came with 3.0-liter and 3.1-liter diesel engines, so I don’t know which swap you want to perform, but my advice here would be to buy this only if you run out of options and you really, really need a mid-size seven-seat SUV. Given its top heavy characteristic and tendency to topple over at the first sign of a corner or the mildest of crosswinds, do you want to further compromise the c-of-g by carrying avocados on its roof? I don’t think so.

The first generation Pajero is a slouch, and this comparison is being unfair to slouches. Acceleration is a word you cannot use when describing it. They also tend to smoke a lot and the engines don't last that long under uncommitted care. They're cramped inside and the ergonomics are very poor. Buy one only if you really need an off-road vehicle and don't have enough money to afford an old Suzuki, which means you barely have any money at all.

Oddly enough, these first generation Pajeros are still being sold at ambitious prices which is why they rarely change hands since no one wants to spend good money on a junk heap. That said, one of my friends and employees bought one at Sh150,000 only. A working example, no less. I only found out why it was so cheap when I overtook him on the Southern Bypass while driving a Mazda Axela recently. I was in second gear and he was in fifth...

Since you want to carry fruits and nuts on the roof, well, you have a decision to make if you go for one of these. There is the flat roof version, many of which I have seen with carriers, but the cherry of this model is the high-roof which comes with plenty of headroom and reduced claustrophobia, but you'd be making a big mistake if you installed a roof rack on the high-roof.

The second generation Pajero was much better (I should know since I had a petrol one for a while). More comfortable, better to look at, higher performance, superior handling, cossetting ergonomics... this is the definitive Pajero and was proof that the Japanese could follow the Range Rover formula of comfort and handling plus off-road ability all in one presentable package, the only difference is you weren't required to sell your ancestral land to get a Pajero. Some say this is the vehicle that revolutionalized SUVs, and not the old-money-generational-wealth Range Rover. I can't say that I disagree...

And you can get one cheaply... as cheap as the boxy first generation Pajero, so, of the two, which one would you rather have? The petrol versions are more reliable than the diesel ones (if you avoid the GDI technology for the second generation), but they're thirsty as hell. The diesel versions may or may not require frequent repairs and engine rebuilds depending on how badly maintained they were by previous owners.

Can it carry stuff on its roof? Depends on which one you buy. Go for the entry level vehicle with a flat roof, since some came with half a high roof. Yes, the Japanese must have been tripping on fugu toxins from eating too much sushi when they came up with some vehicles in the 80s and 90s. If you buy one of the higher trim models, it will be tasteless to carry nuts on the roof. Just enjoy it as it was meant to be enjoyed: a comfortable family off roader that creeps to shopping centers every now and then

The second and third generation Hilux Surf were more or less the same vehicle. It loses out on the seven-seat configuration that the Pajero and Trooper (and Prado Box) boast of, plus the second generation vehicle was prone to a sagging rear suspension, but you do get bulletproof reliability from a Toyota long roof derived from the indestructible Hilux truck, and there is that nifty rear windscreen that drops into the tailgate on command. 

Handling and comfort are not at Pajero II's level, but they are passable enough. The engine choices are wide enough to suit most tastes and dare I say: the previous two vehicles immediately occupy the runner up positions when pitted against the Hilux Surf...

...until we get to the Prado Box. No sagging suspensions here and the architecture is that of the mighty 70 Series. Good start, but that's about it. Clean examples can become ridiculously expensive, affordable examples should be scrapped. The tall, boxy design means aerodynamics are poor and the handling is terrible, but it surely has the looks, no? No one can look at a Prado Box and call it undesirable. I came dangerously close to buying one in 2019, then Covid-19 happened.

I've never seen a Hilux Surf carrying stuff on its roof, so I don't know if you want the honours of being the pilgrim to kick down that particular door. I have seen Boxes with boxes on the roof, but the tall boxy construction I mentioned earlier means you are more prone to land ribs-first into roadside foliage if you do not exercise extreme caution when piloting a loaded 78 wagon.

And now the Vitara. It's the smallest vehicle here and diesel examples are rare, but this is one talented goat of a car. It will go anywhere the rest will go and also go some places the rest either can't or won't. It's comfortable, but thirsty, and as a load lugger, the rest beat it hands down. The vehicle itself is robust, but the body... not so much. It's plasticky and the bumpers are prone to cracks and tears when exposed to hard use. Good car, but I think it's trying (and failing) to punch above its weight here.

So, our winners are:

1. Pickups: Nissan NP300. Surprised? Me too. I know I extolled the virtues of the Mahindra Scorpio, but really, at that budget, the infancy of the Scorpio in the automotive market means you will wind up with a badly beaten unit. The NP300 is older which leaves slightly more room for negotiation, plus as a legacy automaker, Nissan trumps Mahindra, and you can tell simply by comparing the build quality of those two vehicles. Yes, Mahindra has come a long way since then and are building very good cars nowadays - the same Scorpio won our Car of The Year Award for 2020, but that one costs Sh2.9 million, way out of this discussion's league.

2. Vans: the Hiace with a 5L engine. It's bigger, so it's obviously better, and that 5L engine is what made people refer to subsequent Hiaces using the "L" designation, which is both nonsensical and living proof of the power of legend.

3. SUVs: this is an odd one because it is a tie, but it comes with a disclaimer: don't buy an SUV to carry avocados on its roof. Stick with the pickups and the vans for that work. That out of the way, the tie is between the second generation Pajero and the Hilux Surf. The Pajero I am referring to is the high spec model, the one with all the trim. 

It's comfortable, looks good and rugged, handles well and has seating for seven, but dependability is questionable. The Hilux Surf, however, is reliable to a fault and comes with a raft of available engines that have established themselves as unbreakable work horses over the years. Toyota reliability is not just mythical, it is one step away from being established as scientific fact.

See you next week.

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