Heres the story.
I drive approx 30 000km a year thru some snow and roads that have wildlife.
I am looking to buy a suitable comfy car.
It will have to have bullbars fitted.
Would i best to buy a Hybrid Kluger for 80K or an Amarok for the same money.
Also considered a Prado.
Fuel economy it reasonably important but safety is imperative.
All opinions welcome.
Thanks
WWYD-Buy a Kluger Hybrid or Good Ute Or any other options
grabngo on 10/03/2024 - 08:25
Comments
needs to be 4 x 4 or AWD.
Sorry should have noted it
Isn't a Kluger just a jacked up Camry with optional AWD? I'm sure it replaced the wagon version years ago.
Hybrid Kluger for 80K or an Amarok
Who cross shops those two vehicles :/
To be fair, I'm cross shopping an Outback and a Touareg haha
It is definitely a weird mix though
Kluger is going to be most comfortable to drive. Utes can be very bouncy unless loaded, and then the economy disappears. Kluger will handle a lot better than a ute. Hybrid may not be as economical if youre driving highways a lot. They make the biggest difference in stop start driving.
Theres a big difference in utility between a wagon and a ute (Pun intended). Harder to load long items in a ute. More convenient to put dirty/smelly/wet stuff in a ute.
There are plenty more options as well.
"Harder to load long items in a ute"
I once transported a 5 odd m length of steel in back of dual cab, one end at base of tailgate so the steel was sitting around45deg skyward over the cabin. twas only a 2km trip through back streets though. was rather heavy to get on and off too.
more practical though, a 3rd roof rack mounted at back of tub would allow 5m lengths easily
.Agree, and ive done similar but if youve got a long surfboard or a valuable bike it can be easier to get them in a wagon - assuming no back passengers. It depends how often you want to carry stuff like that.
My ute has a roller shutter. Its more secure than the old soft tonneau cover, but cant easily fit as much in the tub. Friend has a canopy on his ute and cant fit his bike in without taking off wheels. All vehcoes are different in their use. .
Get the Kluger.
I believe the current gen amarok is just a reskinned ford ranger - so from a reliability pov (with your kms), i would recommend avoiding it.
The kluger will hands down be a more comfy drive but I’m not sure if it’s a full time or in demand 4wd. On demand is more fuel efficient as the rear wheels are only engaged when the front slip - best to do some research on this to understand if there are any safety implications for snow driving.
As a Ute owner, I recommend not getting one unless you absolutely need it. Considered a Subaru outback?
- bullbars fitted
- roads that have wildlife
- suitable comfy
Comfortable for some….
- bullbars fitted
Utes are sprung to carry a load. If you're not going to carry loads they're not as comfortable as something intended to be a passenger vehicle. You can change the springs to something better suited to just comfort but it's still a bit of a compromise. I say that as someone who's done it.
If it's just for the fact you need 4WD/AWD on occasion either get a Prado or used Pajero (the current Pajero is a totally different vehicle basically what used to be sold under the Challenger name) or something with real AWD which means the Subaru family. They'll be the most comfortable and capable options by a mile.
Neither? A Hybrid isn't the best option if you do a lot of highway driving. I took a Kluger Grande for a day, it was a nice car and all but 85k, long wait and inferior Infotainment (for some reason was about 2 years behind the USA) - Couldn't do it.
I think dual cabs are dumb and most people don't need them, so for that reason I'd suggest an Everest which is just an Amarok but in a wagon. Or something completely different, like an Outback (pretty not great on fuel though), Fortuner (although pretty sure thats about to be replaced)
Maybe try /r/CarsAustralia over on reddit? There is an excess of choice in Australia.
Have you considered a Camry? Heard it's pretty good