So on a totally different topic to what normally gets spoken about here lets talk cars. I recently sold my petrol patrol as it was very thirsty and is too high to put my SUP on when I do eventually get around to picking it up off layby
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After something economical, and my mrs and I have a 18 month old boy as well, we dont take alot of gear out with us as I like to try and pack light, but it has to be able to cart my SUP around on the roof as well.
So I was thinking either something like a subaru, outback or forester, or should I just go with a commodore wagon. There the 2 I've narrowed it down too, so would love too hear if anyone has either of these and what there thoughts are on them, or what sort of car you think would work well in my situation.
Any help would be appreciated guys.
merc vito, mint con', all the bits xx up to a good home, my baby but the wife cant park it, drive it, get her board of the roof without a milk crate...hahaha
Mate go the Subaru top cars,AWD 2 liter = cheap on fuel,rego and room for some gear with the little tacker on board.
Yeah was leaning towards the subaru. But wasnt sure on room, and I heard they need to be maintained, which alot of people who sell havent.
The patrol was just too high to keep putting a board ontop of, that and the mrs didnt like driving it too much. Plus she likes the look of SUP so she wants to come for a paddle and perhaps get her own board as well, so she needs to be able to lift them on and off as well.
we have an outlander which fits three kids in the back (in baby seats), heaps of boot-space and for a soft-roader has reasonable 4wd capabilty (enough to get me onto the back beach at lanclin a few times). Mrs likes driving it as its quite compact , easy to park etc and roof-rack for SUP is nice height (also has a fold-down antennae which is handy for carrying sup..)
been really happy with it
After owning 4WD's since 1985,I just dropped down to a sports wagan 1.8 turbo.
I fill it up every know and then and so much easier to load the boards on top.
Yeah Subi's need to be serviced regularly. I had an L series and absolutely loved it. The only reason why I sold it was because it was too small. Since then I've had a VR wagon, VS wagon and currently now have a VZ wagon. On the open road I get 8.6L per 100kms and that's with a full load. The best thing is that I don't have to put my 9'8 Starboard on the roof. It fits in the car. I've had 2 windsurf boards, 4 sails, 2 booms, 2 masts, 9'8 SUP, 6' surfboard, box of goodies, 5L water bottle, swag, food for 4 days, camping gear etc etc etc all inside the wagon
The reason a lot of Subis are not maintained well is the exorbitant cost of servicing. One of the dearest cars on the road.
If you want a nice car that holds it's value, cheap to service and is economical on Fuel buy a Toyota. Not the #1 car in the world by any accident. The Kluger would be perfect, has a v6 motor from Lexus that has heaps of power but is unbelievably economical. servicing is $180 max for the first 3 years! Take one for a drive, ridiculously nice,
In a past job I had to prepare full cost of ownership reports of different cars and commonly compared the Kluger to Forester and Commodore. They are cheaper to own by a long shot no question.
I don't have one but I would if I could.
Ps a Rav would do the job equally as well and is a bit smaller.
Chopz,
I've got a Subaru. They are great cars. I believe they have the lowest warranty claims on the market. ****'s all over my ButSquisy for quality.
Be wary that they are not that cheap on fuel. The AWD makes them thirstier than a normal 2 litre.
I hade a Corrolla before that for many years. Very reliable and cheap to run. I would probably go there again if i needed to.
Hope this helps.
Suby servicing of a Forester is about $250 every 12,500km. The 100,000km service is about $900 when they are scheduled to replace the replace the timing belt. I would have thought that is a pretty normal/low cost.... ???
9'6 Mal fits inside (of current model, which is a little bigger than previous model). Plus good strong racks.
VYII or VZ wagon acclaim with all the airbag stuff - bigger than the new sportswagon - LPG < $10 per 100k - can fit 3 sailboards, 4 sails, 2 PADDLES, GrommetS boogie board, esky & all the crap associated and 2 SUP's on the roof with the wife and one grommet (in the car not on the roof).
Cheap to service and buy - with the money left over from the purchase price compared to a suby you could buy a new SUP
Its only a car after all.
Have you considered a Nissan Dualis as they now come in the Dualis +2 to make it a seven seater. The standard still has plenty of room, good on fuel economy and quieter than a Rav 4.
Good height to put sup on roof.
Best car I had for this was an '84 XD Falcon Wagon Sports edition in Monza Red. Had the 4 speed manual transmission big wheels/tyres, extractors and orange racing stripes down the sides. Sweet in its day. Sadly died from rust (as Neil Young says "Rust Never Sleeps"). Guess all the salt water from boards on the roof or in the car do have an effect after all.
Now have a Subi Liberty Wagon which is not as big, and is a bit thirsty, but a great car to drive. Got the auto as this is supposed to be better than the manual. Services are expensive but you can do the minor services yourself if you are capable (oil & filters). Still able to put shorter boards inside it but the SUP 10' goes on top.
Agree that VT, VX and VZ Commodore wagons are a great vehicle for the sport. Fantastic fuel economy on trips. Better than their new Sports Wagons.
wagon choccas with windsurfing gear on the way back from Lanno. Ive never seen a fuller car 
I have a 2000 Outback 2.5l (4 cylinder) with 250k on the clock. It purrs and climbs stuff effortlessly. I fly paragliders and I can comfortably climb tracks that X-Trails and Klugers have to back off from. I think the tyres makes a difference.
The Outback is not particularly easy on fuel but it's not bad. About 11 l/100 around town and 8l/100 on a trip. I keep records so I know. I drive smoothly but I'm not a fuel consumption freak. If I put the foot down it goes quick but sucks fuel.
My Subarus tend to do something expensive every 4-5 years. Mine has dropped a power steering pump ($1700) and there's a bit of a leak on the head gasket that has been quoted at just under $3k for a replacement and reconditioned head. It's still pretty cheap for a reliable, plush car that literally will go anywhere.
I can fit my 9' SUP along the passenger side. Three kites, two kiteboards and stuff in the back under the luggage curtain.
The new model has more back seat room but a little less luggage space.
Have driven a Subaru Outback (3 years old, purchased new) quite a bit and whilst it is a great car it is quite thristy and there seem to be a few little problems creeping in. Last drive the power for the display lights and radio didn't connect until I restarted the car and interior lights don't always work either. Also seems to be a few spots on the roof where the paint is cracking.
The last Commodore that I owned was a VX (Lumina) wagon, and it was great. Stacks of room and great on the highway. Servicing price seemed a little bit over the top (serviced by dealer), but generally it was a great car and surprisingly economical to run. Have borrowed a later sedan (Berlina), and is also good and stacks of room in the boot and not that expensive for the country drives.
Have currently got a Toyota Prado (Turbo Diesel) and love it - but I think that is a whole other thread.
So back to your question - I'd go for the latest model Commodore Wagon, with lowest kms that fits into your budget.
Not really interested in starting up the whole Ford Holden debate, but I've noticed that the ford wagons are significantly longer on the inside these days. I threw some roof racks on my ford and hardly ever use them: eg. other day I fit a 10 foot sup and an 8'8" sup inside the car and still had room in the front for two, and room in the back for heaps more stuff. I imagine economy on fords and holden wagons are comparable but correct me if i'm wrong.
I didn't read every reply so sorry if this has already been answered...
I noticed CMC mention the Kluger, I have one and they are fantastic, just don't expect it to be light on the fuel. We usually get around 500ks to a tank (70lt).
I also have a VW transporter, which has an extra seat for my 2yr old son. This is the best vehicle I have ever owned full stop. It is cheap to run, 900ks from a tank of fuel (80lt i think) I fit my 9ft and wifes 10ft boards inside along with all my windsurfing gear. And it runs so well.
I have also owned a Subaru in the past, great little cars but expensive to service!!!
I have had a commodore as well, They seem to be getting better all the time with the S2 VE looking quite economical for it's size.
If you were looking at something to fit the bill well and be very economical I would take a look at the VW Passat Wagon. With a new version coming out soon I would imagine there will be some cheap 2010 plated cars around.
Hmm VW Transporter, bought a new T5 with 4 motion, 2.5 turbo diesel, thought I'd keep it forever, ordered an unusual colour and had to wait to get it from Germany. After 41/2 years and 72000k started to have big problems. Serious rear diff whine, clutch judder which is a known problem with the rubber mounted flywheel and the real clincher was coolant leaking into the oil. The coolant leak was again a known problem with the oil cooler leaking internally - $500 part but $2.5K to pull the whole front of the van off to get to it. VW didn't want to know about any of it as warranty.
Quote to fix the whole lot - more than $6k but maybe up to 12k depending on what they found with the diff and the coolant leak.
Commercial vehicle crapped out with 72,000k, better than books servicing, never any real weight in it and I drive very carefully. Took it to a non dealer VW specialist and his comment was that they recommend their clients sell their VW's before they come out of warranty, he suggested I get a Toyota!!
Traded it in on a new Subie wagon, got crucified on the trade in but got rid of it. Never buying another VW that's for sure, read a lot about all the problems with T5's on forums, heaps with the same problems I had.
We have a Subaru as the family car it is a good compact car, enough room for the shortboards inside but the sup goes on the roof
Got a Falcon wagon which is LPG and can fit the 11'6" inside it...Love the size of the inside
Unreal on fuel, did a trip from Byron to Sydney with 3 boards on the roof and 4 people and still had enough gas to run around for a couple more days and at 57c per litre you wont get more economical or better for the environment ...IMO
Just got the new GT liberty wagon. Fits 3 9' sups inside with room to spare and will also get you to the beach quicker than everyone else!
my car does it all so practically & is sweet for the coast roads as well !
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I have a Jeep Wrangler 4 door and I allways grab the keys to my wifes 07 Subaru liberty wagon when I go for a SUP. Its so much easier to get the boards on the roof, drives better and does the same L/100km and my diesel Jeep.
This is our 2nd subaru. The other was a 05 wrx hatch that I loved as well. It went hard, good on fuel, safe and a wagon. Short of an Audi RS4/RS6 ($150-250k!!) there are not many wagons that can keep up with a little moded subie. My next car will be another subie for sure.
Its also one of Top Gear's favorite cars!!
What people forget to think about when they buy cars especially new ones is what are the real costs of owning the car.
Most people just see purchase price, repayments and fuel.
What about insurance, depreciation, tyres, real maintenance costs (not just the book starting price that is added to if they need a sparkplug) registration etc. Some cars simply hold their value while others dont.
At least do yourself a favor if you buy a new car and take a look at how much it will cost you to own for 3 years. Purchase price + all expenses minus what you can sell it or trade it for at the end. There is a very simple accounting reason why most business and government dept drive Toyotas. They cost less to own, are never off the road and hold their value.
Don't believe me check tools like the NRMA website etc.
P.S I drive a Ford delivery van, it's free.
Mazda 6 turbo diesel wagon in 6 speed manual.
Good size inside, good roof bars, and fits my Thule racks well.
Drives amazing, even off the beaten track. I have three sons and we manage to get our camping/ skating/ beach gear in quite well. And the roof is low for putting boards on and off.
And we get about 1000km from a $70 tank fill on a run.
