New car

kiwifoz

kiwifoz

Forum Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2014
Messages
287
Location
Dunedin, NZ
Car Year
1989
Car Model
L series
Transmission
5 speed dual-range PT4WD
So at the moment it's not looking good for my car. It's had a bad crunch, has 215000 km and is due for cambelt and needs a clutch. As well, the passenger's Hg is leaking oil and the coolant has dropped noticeably recently. At this point I'm considering not fixing it and instead moving up to an SH or a diesel Vitara.
I have heard of DPF problems with the vitara though and being a French Renault engine I'm unsure of its reliability.

Alternatively, I'd be getting a 2009 SH EJ253 dual range with traction control. Traction control would be great for off-roading, it would certainly help in cases of diagonal wheelspin. I would also seriously consider fitting 1.59 gears and DCCD too and probably standard height King springs in the rear - factory ground clearance is good at 220mm but avoiding a saggy butt is necessary, I've read SH suspension is soft.

I'm also considering a diesel SH and fitting a dual range but that is a bit out of my price range.
 
That sounds like a plan!

Other than that, how about a late SG with dual range and VDC?

Of course, the SG comes (at least USDM) with less ground clearance but since it is not multilink, as far as I know, it should be easier to lift. In addition, it has shorter wheelbase, which offsets some of the SH clearance gain.

I think that each has its advantages, with the best deal getting the call!

VDC is definitely a big deal, I can attest to that.
 
No manual SG ever had VDC unfortunately or I'd be on them like a fly to sh*t.
The only SG to get VDC was the automatic XT for MY2007.

VDC is important, the crash that has totalled my SG could have been prevented by it. The SH also has side curtain airbags, and seeing a car come at you and hit your door makes you re-evaluate those priorities. I love my SG but its days are numbered.

The SH has enough clearance factory to get by - the approach and departure angles are better but as you say the wheelbase is 10am longer.

Feel free to prove me wrong though, God knows I'd love to be!
 
Buy an SH diesel.
Winner all round.
 
Gidday KF

Sorry to hear about the troubles, mate ... :-( :cry:.

Watch out for any "consumer diesel". An old and dear friend in Darwin was contemplating a 2015 diesel Forester to replace her aged Honda CRV. I rang Subaru in Sydney, and the guy told me straight up that they had managed to destroy the DPF in two weeks and about 2,000 kms. His words were that they are fantastic for travelling salesmen and the like who spend their (driving) lives on the open road, and a disaster for town use.

I remarked to him that this was a remarkably candid assessment, to which he replied that it is better for my friend to know now than for Subaru to have to (continually) fix the problem later.

IMO, this criticism can be levelled at every "consumer diesel" engine that has a combined DPF and catalytic converter. "Commercial diesels" have separate DPFs and Cats, and their DPFs are designed to be easily removed and serviced when necessary.

Our friend bought a 2015 2.5L petrol Forester instead, even though absolutely committed to the Forester diesel to begin with.
 
And why not another SG and you keep the crashed one for bits and pieces.
 
With all that, the SH regular seems the clear winner in NZ, as kiwifoz knows his stuff.

Hope you find exactly what you want!

VDC and the more modern airbag system are definitely huge advantages, the former is a great difference maker off-road.
 
there's a lot of people p!ssong and moaning about DPF's on the forums,
all of them do nothing but drive the kids to school.

here's my own experience owning a DPF equipped SH Diesel.
I monitor DPF soot accumulation and regens with Torque App and an OBD dongle

#1 rev the engine. driving it higher in the rev's produces less soot accumulation, it also allows the turbo to spool faster and make hotter exhaust gasses which burns off the soot.
#2 it does take a good 50km+ of constant hot highway driving to see a ~10% reduction in soot accumulation, but a good weekend away where you may do 100km+ each way drops the soot level right back.
#3 regens and partial regens burn it off really quickly,
you can monitor the regen state with the app (also the exhaust note gets louder and deeper at low RPM) and when it turns on, take the long way home, do an extra 10km and let it burn off.

SO for most of us here who like driving and have to drive into the middle of nowhere for something to do on a weekly/ fortnightly basis, the DPF regens aren't an issue as it's passively controlled by normal driving.

here's some excellent reading
https://subdiesel.wordpress.com/
https://subdiesel.wordpress.com/ecu-analysis/dpf-management/

If all you're doing is driving like a granny to the bowls club and back, buy something else, or simply have the DPF removed.
 
The issue with an SH diesel is that I straight-up can't afford one.
As it turns out, I also can't afford an SH petrol - wishful thinking on my behalf.

Much as it pains me to do this, I'm taking a Suzuki Grand Vitara for a test-drive tonight. Very similar to the SH Forester with a much better approach and departure angle and a 2:1 reduction gear. 5-speed manual, 122kw DOHC 2.4 with a timing chain (so no belts to change). And it has traction control, which is the main reason I'm not getting another SG - I've just had so much frustration offroad with crap articulation and essentially open diffs front and rear. And reading the ARB locker doesn't fit Subaru R180s pretty much killed my ultimate Subaru dream. :(

I probably will end up getting the Zook to be honest. It's several thousand cheaper than an SH, with much better offroadability out of the box (traction control, 2:1 DR, locking centre diff) and much better aftermarket support.

Mods will be Ironman or Kings spring lift, a snorkel, 225/75r16 Kumho KL71 muddies, and a skidplate. I'll then call it a day.

The problem with an SH is they're more expensive to start with (Resale for NZ-new Subbies is high) and then I'd still have to fit a custom ($$$) gearbox to get it to the Vitara's level offroad. And then my approach/departure would still be crap, etc etc.

Sorry guys! I'll stick around here, I like the culture.
 
Test drove the Suzuki tonight. It was actually an AUDM imported one! Wasn't that impressed, was pretty gutless for a 2.4L and sounded like a diesel at low revs. Agricultural at high revs. I needed 3000rpm to accelerate at the same pace as my Foz using 2000rpm...
Gearshift was awful, hopelessly vague at only 84000km! And over a cm of play in the shifter in all directions.
Clutch and throttle were ridiculously light, no feel at all. Had to learn the positions and drive from memory.
Brakes and stereo were good and handled alright though.

Feels like a very solid car, all up. Would need a lift and I'm unconvinced about the fuel economy. But then the diesel version has a godawful reputation for unreliability.

Ground clearance isn't great. I measured 23cm under the rear diff. My Foz has 28 with Kings.

However, the low range is AWESOME. Very low. If I could get a Forry with 2:1 I'd be on it!

I think I'll test drive an SH and go from there - there's one that popped up for sale today in my price range (barely).
 
x2 on the luck.

At the end of the day, except maybe for Australia with its enormous areas apparently covered exclusively by unpaved roads, it is usually MORE important how the thing drives ON road.

Your dilemma is not fundamentally different from what I am thinking through right now for myself:

Two inch lift vs staying with just 0.5" spacers. This, in turn, is a little bit like my OB vs 4x4 thoughts. I am NOT into this as a sport. I do not go off-pavement to "conquer" trails and "defeat" obstacles. Are the 5-10 trails a year where I will fully benefit from a 2" lift worth getting the lift, considering that half of those I would be able to pull off anyway, if much less easily (building rocks frequently, perhaps using some bridging devices/ramps over ledges, sweating it out, substantial risk for minor damage, more than negligible risk for major car damage)?

Honestly, when I think of it this way the idea of getting a 2" lift is almost laughable.

Then, again, I do not go off-pavement much where I live because the terrain here is no different from what can be seen from paved roads. I only go off-pavement in areas where I cannot realistically get more than a few times a year.

If I lived in those areas, I would have been much more inclined to do the lift or get a 4x4.
 
Keep the SG. Pull motor and gbox. Do timing belt, valve cover seals and anything else that takes your fancy. Probably a water pump and radiator + hoses. Fit up an SF gearbox with a new clutch. Put a KAAZ diff in the rear. Refit it all and you're done. Next level would be to locate a DCCD and bolt it to the back of the SF box. After that maybe build your spare SG dual range box with a front LSD and an SF or better low range.

If you ever decide to move on the keep the gearbox and rear LSD for the next car.

BTW I love my KAAZ, wouldn't waste my time considering an R180 and playing about with a locker.
 
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