Please talk me out of buying a discovery??? - NOW - new Prado

[briann532]

OOOPS............

I've been busy procrastinating about the car and tooing and froing.
I was in Passing Alto today and decided to call in at Land Rover and finally do something about it.

Well I ended up on the phone in go home mode and that was that idea out the window.
When I got home, boss lady wanted to have a look at Toyota and try a Prado. Kids in the car ready so off we went.
An hour and a half later, I own a prado............

Guess I may have to join pradopoint now???

Pick it up on Tueday, just got to have the towbar etc fitted.
Boss is happy and I just got home to my rego renewal and 200k major serive is due now, so timing was good.

So now the journey begins......
Where to start first...........
Lots of nights in the man cave me thinks

Cheers
Brian

[Swannie]

Well done mate, what model/specs?
Swannie

[muzza01]

Nice to read some genuine honest opinions on this thread and especially this forum.  This would have turned in to a Toyota bashing landrover thread and vice versa on another forum I am a member of.  I am so glad I joined this forum.
Good luck with your Prado; did you get the diesel?

[briann532]

I actually consider this forum, my religion now................ 

Other than the odd leccie thread going haywire, everyone is up to help, offer insight and banter.

Believe it or not I gave in to the boss only because I see so many people on here with them and not many bad comments about them.

I ended up with a GXL turbo diesel auto in white. Got a towbar added, but stock other than that.
I picked it up for $58,700.......... not a bad deal I don't reckon. 3 year fixed price servicing and 6 year warranty ( 3 on everything then another 3 on some stuff - fine print!!!)

Brand new, 2013 manufactured and plated, not ex demo or old stock.....
I also couldn't believe they didn't try to push for extras. They asked of course, but politely accepted no.
Helpful, caring and nice. These guys are ruining a car salesman's reputation................

If the service department are as good, I'm hooked.

Now to start modding.
Snorkel, dual battery, cargo barrier, UHF, DVD players for kids, 12 volt sockets everywhere, fridge, brake controller, anderson power to rear, bullbar, and of course I'll be searching for one of those glass screens in the chauffeur driven cars to block out the kids!!!!!!!

Looking forward to some comfort, mod cons and good fuel economy.
It will be sad to say goodbye to the patrol. Its been 9.5 years and many miles of love.

Cheers all,
Brian

[D4D]

Well done Brian, welcome to the world of Prado ownership. I'd have a sniff on Pradopoint re the towbar. I know the 120 OE bar was a POS hence I swapped to a HR. I think there is some conjecture about the OE towbar on the 150.

[Brad_m]

Prado is a good buy.
With so many of them on (and off) the roads, we see very few of them in for any sort of major repair work.

If that size of 4x4 was what I was looking for it would be high on the list.

[briann532]

Well done Brian, welcome to the world of Prado ownership. I'd have a sniff on Pradopoint re the towbar. I know the 120 OE bar was a POS hence I swapped to a HR. I think there is some conjecture about the OE towbar on the 150.

Please don't hate me...................BUT........

I'm seriously considering a smartbar. I had one on 2 of my previous 4b's and loved them. They are very forgiving and work really well. (even in an accident)
My only gripe, is they are butt ugly 

I think first mod will be a lift and some airbags to take the drawbar weight of the hawk (about 140 kilo's)

Brian

[D4D]

A smartbar You can't play with the cool kids now

[mr_hilux10]

A quick side track to this thread.....is the turbo diesel engine in the prado the same as the turbo diesel engine in the current model hilux?

[Turbojohn]

Congratulations brian on the new toy! Let the mods begin!

[D4D]

A quick side track to this thread.....is the turbo diesel engine in the prado the same as the turbo diesel engine in the current model hilux?

I believe so but IIRC the lux is detuned.

[oldsalt]

Congratulations Brian - I hope you have many, many trouble free miles in your new vehicle ... I look forward to reading your trip reports. I'm glad this topic didn't sink to the landy vs toyota/nissan
insults that occur on other forums, we all drive what we like and enjoy our time out in the bush.
cheers

[dazzler]

Please don't hate me...................BUT........

I'm seriously considering a smartbar. I had one on 2 of my previous 4b's and loved them. They are very forgiving and work really well. (even in an accident)
My only gripe, is they are butt ugly 

I think first mod will be a lift and some airbags to take the drawbar weight of the hawk (about 140 kilo's)

Brian

Good on you. 

My question is always do you REALLY need one at all? Can the coin be better spent?

[briann532]

Yes I really do need one.

I tow through a lot of scrub and bush and I don't mind scratching a bar, but scratching duco isn't on.......

I also need to mount a winch, antenna and possibly some lights. I would assume new standard lights are pretty good though.

I have also had a few meetings with skippy that I wouldn't want to have without a bar.
This is my primary reason for going the smartbar. They do tend to "absorb" the energy of a roo hit. Where a steel or allot bar doesn't.
I have had a couple before so I know they work.
Its just getting past the "ugly" factor

[achjimmy]

Congrats Brian

The Prado is a good thing, and it's great to see Toyota doing decent pricing on them now (thanks to Mitsibishi & Jeep pricing more than Toyota being generous!)

Look forward to your mods.

[Wazza2]

Well done Brian. Hope you enjoy your new toy as much as I enjoyed getting my gxl 150 last year.

Std headlights are pretty good. A big improvement over the 120 std lights. The fact you can tweak the alignment whilst driving means you can always get the best from them regardless of load.

Have fun with the mods and yeah, check PP if you want lots of ideas

[BigJules]

The 5 Day Sale has some good deals. I saw that great price for Prados and wished I was in a position to do something this weekend myself.

Well done Brian.

[dazzler]

Yes I really do need one.

I tow through a lot of scrub and bush and I don't mind scratching a bar, but scratching duco isn't on.......

I also need to mount a winch, antenna and possibly some lights. I would assume new standard lights are pretty good though.

I have also had a few meetings with skippy that I wouldn't want to have without a bar.
This is my primary reason for going the smartbar. They do tend to "absorb" the energy of a roo hit. Where a steel or allot bar doesn't.
I have had a couple before so I know they work.
Its just getting past the "ugly" factor

All makes sense.  Pity they cant do them in a colour to match the paint!

[BigJules]

If had just bought a 150 I'd be making an offer on the deluxe ARB bar in the for sale section.

[GeoffA]

A smartbar You can't play with the cool kids now

What he ^ said.......

[GeoffA]

If had just bought a 150 I'd be making an offer on the deluxe ARB bar in the for sale section.

....and him ^ too......

(might be gone, though......unless you've already got it)

[stunik]

Oh Brian, was loving this thread as I am planning an buying a Disco. All the fruit and way better value than a cruiser. I have had a Pajero and a Prado, now a Hilux SR5 but when I sat in the LR I thought this is it. When you were talking about spending enough to buy a Disco I was disappointed to hear you settled for a Prado.
Are you concerned about the lack of clearance inside the rear wheels where the suspension hangs?

Stu.

[briann532]

Stu, I have no concerns over the playdos ( or prada for the ladies) ability.

I've been in a 4b club for so long I have forgotten life without it. I have learnt to drive properly through or around things that are going to break my car.
Also these days I', a lot tamer with my kids in the car.
We really only use the 4wd to get to the places we need to go, not to tackle mountains or bogholes.

I too would have loved the disco and intended to buy one.
The boss lady preferred the prada and it is actually her daily driver.
I also wasn't opposed to the $25k saving by buying the playdo
That buys me a hell of a lot of fuel. It also gives me toyotas relatively good resale value.

All in all I think I'm happy with it. Time will tell.

  [Still would love a disco 4 ...............) 

[briann532]

If had just bought a 150 I'd be making an offer on the deluxe ARB bar in the for sale section.

Looks like someone else had the same idea..............
Its gone pending payment. 

[Chris-Vi]

Well done Brian. You will love it. They are great vehicles. We love our 120 and it was the best investment we made.