Another 'Should I Buy This Vehicross' Thread

[Hurst]

Hi - I was going to hijack Fuddy Muckers thread but thought it would be easier to start a new one.

I’ve been looking to change my fairly bog standard car but have been bored rigid by the usual uninspiring choices. Yesterday I spotted an ad for a VX (http://www.cgtrading.co.uk/). It ticks none of the boxes I set for myself when deciding what I needed and yet there is something about it that has pricked my curiosity and that in turn has led me here!

Basically I have some queries about the car that’s for sale and some about owning a VX in general and thought you might be able to help? I've never owned a 4x4 before so this is all new to me!

In terms of this particular one, it seems to look quite nice from the photos (I tried to see it yesterday and talk to the garage about it but it isn’t being stored on site and no one was available to talk to me) but I’m not sure what to make of the fact that it was supposedly stored for 4 years and then registered here. It seems a bit odd but I know nothing about importing cars so perhaps it’s not unusual? My second main query about this car is the price - £6,000 is probably more than I’d really want to spend on a car which is 11 years old, especially as it would be replacing a car that is newer, notwithstanding its low mileage.

More generally I’m a little concerned about what its like to own a VX. Realistically I know consumption won’t be great and the running costs generally will be high such as road tax, insurance but I’ll be prepared to live with that to own something just a little bit different. My main concern would be how reliable they tend to be and whether the maintenance costs are going to be crippling – I can’t do it myself so would need to take it to a garage, assuming I can find one to handle the work.

Sorry to prattle on but any help/advice would be appreciated.

[crotchrocket]

Hi mate,

The garage you are looking at has sold Vehicross' for a long time and the owner deals in them. He has had a few himself as far as i can remember. The ones he has for sale at the moment have been there for a long time, he is definately holding out for a good price on the ones he has. TO be honest with you i paid 3900 for mine from a dealers, and others have paid down to 2500 quid for a private sale, 6000 seams alot especialy if it has been standing for 4 years, thats not necessarily a good thing.......at all!!! It would have to be perfect.

Which one is it your looking at??

As far as owning one, the garage owner should be able to point you in the direction of a good repair shop in the area as he must have maintained his. They share the same engine as the Isuzu trooper and the Vaxhaul Frontera B so parts are available but can be pricey bue to the age of the car and the engine not being in production any more. Infact it was replaced by the 3.5l found in the newer US versions of the Vehicross.

Fuel consumption depends on how you drive of course and what mods you do to the VX....if any. mine got around 18 -22 mpg as standard on the country roads and motorway etc. However i am running 32" tyres and a free flow exhaust and drive daily around london and my scan guage tells me i average 9mpg !!!!!

Insurance wise it IS a grey import and as such the premium is higher. I use Adrian Flux as they specialise in those. My insurance is 660 fully comp which is more than my 350bhp 300zx was. It is worth it though!!!

Another thing, i hope youdon't mind being stared at as the Vehicross gets alot of attension!


Best thing to do is go mand have a good look and a test drive. Read up on here about the variouse functions of the TOD system and things to watch out for (is there a buyers guide on this site???? ) and use the prices they are selling else where to bring the price down if you really like it but as i say, they have been there a while so its not going to hurt to make a low offer.

I believe the garage owner is a member on here although i cant remember his username

[crotchrocket]

Hey, that VX has a couple of nice goodies on it with the imitation front skid plate, stainless steel grill 'teeth' , front bra, clear indicators and the rare yakima roof racks!!!

[VX KAT]

WOW, wouldn't it be kool to find a place over on this side that had sold so many VXs and had actually owned one also!

"lady owner"...too funny..:laugho:

[kirk hilton]

Personally I wouldn't, because there are a couple on Autotrader including a black one for 5650 (which is high but again it is a dealer) which was originally and recently owned by this guy 20 miles away. He's a real fan of the VX and the black one was his second in 10 years. He had to sell it quick as he became unemployed and needed the money to retrain. He say that when he's back on his feet he'd buy another. If your interested I have his number so you could find out about the truck and poss get it cheaper from the dealer.

[kirk hilton]

.. PS I know you're in Brighton and the guy selling Craig I think (who is a member of the forum - inactive) is in Hove so I understand it being local is very attractive. I believe Alan Bradley has also thought of buying from the Guy in Hove but after a conversation with the seller, Alan thought better of it. It you really want one get to know the subject in depth. I waited 6 months until a good one came along, tried several in that period, and eventually flew down to Southhampton and then drove it back to Manchester. There's a guy on the forum who flew to Spain and drove his back to Scotland.

[alanbradley]

Yeah. If its the burgundy one I looked at it before it went to Hove and didn't like the seller ("for a mate") then. He was just too evasive. Of course, that could just have been my spider-sense running overtime...

A

[Sprey]

Hmm if its the silver one your looking at, At the top of the page could it be a possible 175ltd?


Another thing that Crotchrocket mentioned about a buyers guide i dont think there is one?

Might be a good time to start a thread on one but of course would we have to have Jdm and Usdm ones?


For the fact of people steering at the vehicross when your driving its soo true! I must admit i kinda look for people to look these days :p:bwgy:

[kirk hilton]

I'm pretty sure the silver one is not a 175 limited edition. It has leather seats which might suggest a 175 but I remember that one of the Hove VX had leather seat put in (from a US VX). I'm also pretty sure none of the 175's were produced in Silver - as there was a choice of 25 'krazy' color none of which were silver. The real test however is 175s came with a nnn/175 red and silver metal keyring (which most owners in JPN glue into the central console).

[alterastro]

Hiya and welcome to the forum.

Its the green one for sale yes? I have seen that one as I went down and had a look at it when I was considering getting a second VX :bwgy: It is very nice and is genuine 25,000 miles I believe. The Owner, Clive, is very knowledgeable about VX's and if you have a chat to him he is very helpful.

The only bad bits is the price - £6,000 is very high, especially considering both myself and several others have paid around £3000 for ours. Clive will take an offer, but when I talked to him he would only go to £5000, saying he was in no rush to sell and was happy to wait for someone will in to pay. There are two others on eBay, higher mileage and still £5500.

The only thing wrong with it is where is was stored for several years, it was in a garage that had a leak and water was dripping on the driver's side front wing. This has caused a bit of staining and eaten throught the coating, so if you decide to buy, that could be a negotiating point. Clive said all his cars are given a full service before they go out. It would probably be due a cambelt change too, so go for that!

Hope that helps!

Nick

[Hurst]

Cheers guys, thats all really helpful stuff. It is the green one that I was interested in. It appears to be the only one he has got left. From what I understand he (Clive) has stopped dealing in them now and has moved on to selling alfas.

I will try and go and have a look at it this week if I can - the low mileage is an attraction but by the same token I know thats no guarantee of reliability (I'm assuming the isuzu engine is pretty good in that respect it would be my only vehicle so reliability is a bit of an issue for me) but it seems to be commanding a very hefty premium £1500 to £2000, which presumably is nearly a months worth of fuel for one of these things!!

Kirk - I am not averse to travelling for the right one and the black one appears to be in Hertfordshire so not a million miles away, if you have got the number of the previous owner that would be great. The black one certainly looks very nice and dare I say a nicer colour than the green one!

[Woodsman]

I've had my VX for 3 yrs now and have put 35k miles on it with few problems. Servicing is easy- think Trooper. Body bits are hard to find. Most of my costs are for basic sevicing but have replaced front discs and the silencer. Fuel costs are high but the engine really pulls. I get insurance from Farmers Union for about £300. Problem areas are well documented on this site: dodgy egr valve, sticky windows, camera not working.
Also watch out for shock absorber bushes and rusted out bumperbar (they can come off in your hand). Do make sure you get windscreen replacement on you insurance (£1000ish).
Don't forget, Clive is a used car dealer, he won't respond to questions with difficult answers. But you can get the right questions from exploring this site- and you can always get it checked out by a garage you trust if you get a warranty from him.

I don't regret buying mine, unlike some previous cars. Definitely one to keep esp as it hauls all my hobby stuff and takes it anywhere whatever the conditions.
Good luck!

[kirk hilton]

Kirk - I am not averse to travelling for the right one and the black one appears to be in Hertfordshire so not a million miles away, if you have got the number of the previous owner that would be great. The black one certainly looks very nice and dare I say a nicer colour than the green one!

Crotch Rocket would certainly agree with the colour. I'll try to contact Tony the owner b4 the dealer to see if he's happy 4 me 2 forward his number 2 u. If he is I'll send u a private message. OK?

[alanbradley]

Problem areas are well documented on this site: dodgy egr valve, sticky windows, camera not working.
Also watch out for shock absorber bushes and rusted out bumperbar (they can come off in your hand). Do make sure you get windscreen replacement on you insurance (?1000ish).

I've had every one of those (including bumper bar rolling around inside the cladding and an £860 windscreen on my insurance) do I get a special sticker or something? ;)

The thing is, I still think its great.

A

[Woodsman]

Yeah, So do I !!"

[Hurst]

Well, I finally saw and drove my first vehicross yesterday and definitely think it would be a lot of fun to own one.

I didn’t actually get to drive the one that is for sale – its in storage, under a cover to keep it clean and as the weather was so poor yesterday the dealer wasn’t keen that I take it out but I did drive his own one so have got a bit of an idea now. I’ll need to go back and have a proper look at the things you’ve all mentioned and drive it of course but assuming no problems it will come down to money and whether a deal can be done.

Basically he’d sort out an MOT but there are a few things I would also want him to sort out before I’d have the car. He did volunteer the fact that the cambelt should be changed given the age of it rather than mileage (but he didn’t think the tensioners needed to be touched) and that an oil change wouldn’t hurt, so I’d want him to sort out those two things. There is also the marking on the paintwork on the driver’s side caused by the rain when it was stored, I’d want him to get that done as well – it’s not a large mark but it does detract from what is otherwise a car in pretty good nick cosmetically. I think I could probably persuade him to throw in a nose bra (?) and some roof bars as he vaguely mentioned them as being available. Where I’m really struggling is what is a fair price for all that – Is £6k reasonable for that package, in view of what others have said there might still be a bit of room for manoeuvre?

[alterastro]

Personally I think £6k is too much. Apart from the mark it is in very nice condition and very low mileage, but bear in mind I got mine in almost immaculate condition with less than 50,000 miles for £2.5k. The Cambelt is worth close to £1k. I got a bra on eBay for £30 and the roofbars do set you back about £300 if you can find them. I guess it depends how badly Clive wants to sell, but if you are prepared to pay, go for all the items mentioned and offer something less than £5k and be prepared to haggle.

Good Luck

Nick

[FuddyMucker]

Help... Whats a :confused: nose bra :confused:
I may have one but I still don't know what one is...
Ebay item number?

[alterastro]

Lol - Its a bonnet protector....

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/thumbs/IMG_34611.JPG (http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=16635)