Winter hack - cheap and reliable

[Patrick Bateman]

I m possibly getting a bit ahead of myself here but here s some background all going to plan we ll be purchasing a house in the near future that s pretty remote. It s all single track roads surrounded by fields for a bit before getting to any main road, minimum a bit over 3 miles.

This is no issue at this time of year but my daily is a Jaguar XKR. It has been excellent on its winter tyres in heavy snow the past 2 winters but that s been on A roads, I foresee issues with ground clearance when sections of these B roads inevitably flood with water coming off the fields. If you ve seen where the air filters are located on an XKR you ll understand my concern.

Two obvious options are the Panda 4x4 and Skoda Yeti but wondering what else I should consider? Price wise we re talking cheap, say £2500 tops.

Fuel economy is irrelevant, must be fairly cheap to repair and be reliable though. Commute will be 20/25 minutes and 11-15 miles depending on route so not sure if that s too short to annoy the DPF/EGR in any diesel or would the piddly 1.3 in a Panda warm up quickly enough?

Now after saying all that, SWMBO won’t want a fourth car in the household but I like to be prepared.

Edited by Patrick Bateman on Saturday 7th June 19:26

[ZX10R NIN]

Grand Vitara:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202505142...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202407181...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202505202...

SX4:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202502129...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202503270...

Trax:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202502259...

Vauxhall Mokka:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202506033...

X3:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202505262...

Freelander:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410165...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202503109...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202505242...

X Trail:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202504231...

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

I had an SX4 Grip (not all SX4 are AWD, the 4 stands for 4 seasons)

It was an extremely capable vehicle.

[Patrick Bateman]

Cheers, I hadn’t even heard of the SX4.

Of everything listed above including Panda and Yeti, which ones would you expect to be cheapest to run from a maintenance perspective? I’m automatically thinking the BMW and Freelander will cost a noticeable amount more than the others,

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

SX4 was cheap as chips. Even when I broke road springs was not expensive.

[Gad-Westy]

No arguments with the panda 4x4 idea. It s why we have one. They re pretty unstoppable. Not bulletproof but fairly simple and cheap to maintain. £2.5k might be tight for the newer third gen cars though there are some around at that sort of money. I much prefer the twinair to the diesel but for a 0.9 it s quite thirsty. An earlier 1.2 car might be more sensible for the budget though. I d imagine you d have more choice and find a tidier car.

Sx4 is a good alternative. Jimny and Terios too.

Edited by Gad-Westy on Sunday 8th June 08:53

[CubanPete]

Citroen C3

[ScoobyChris]

Remember Clarkson reviewing the Panda (can’t remember the trim level) and saying it was one of the few cars that did 0 - hot air quicker than the 0 - 60 time!

Chris

[ADJimbo]

I’m going to through a curve-ball into the mix here. I do apologise…

SsangYong Karando?

Higher driving position, higher ground clearance the the others have suggested. A very, very quick scan on AT would indicate that you’d need to take the cushions off your settee and look for a further £1k above budget but it’ll never fail for you.

As I say, a curve ball suggestion…

[cliffords]

Honda Crv. Old diesel ones now are cheap. They are capable, strong, well built and go anywhere in all wheel drive variants .

[ZX10R NIN]

Patrick Bateman said:

Cheers, I hadn t even heard of the SX4.

Of everything listed above including Panda and Yeti, which ones would you expect to be cheapest to run from a maintenance perspective? I m automatically thinking the BMW and Freelander will cost a noticeable amount more than the others,

The Trax/Mokka & 1.6 Vitara/SX4 will all be cheap to maintain the GM cars will warm up quicker because they have a turbo & be a bit more nippy.

They'll all serve you well, it'll come down to the best example of them that comes up for sale near you.

[Billy_Whizzzz]

Had a yeti for 10 years (running Cross Climates) and it is unstoppable and the most versatile car we’ve owned.

[Wilmslowboy]

If wading is the priority you might want to re-consider theYeti, some google suggestions its only capable of a wading depth up to 25 to 30cm.
Whereas something like a Ford Ecosport is 55cm.

[RoVoFob]

Wilmslowboy said:

If wading is the priority you might want to re-consider theYeti, some google suggestions its only capable of a wading depth up to 25 to 30cm.
Whereas something like a Ford Ecosport is 55cm.

Only pre-facelift versions of the EcoSport. Think later ones had a much lower wading depth, which is worth bearing in mind, if that’s important to you.

[Patrick Bateman]

I'd be guessing on wading depth until we inevitably find out with extended heavy rain. Would assume being noticeably better than a standard saloon without needing to be full on Range Rover would suffice.

If an extra car is pushing my luck then a Range Rover would be the alternative and sell the XKR but I'd rather not just yet.

[A500leroy]

The answer is a Rav4.

[Patrick Bateman]

I see lots of diesels appear for them, can they cope with that sort of commute without emissions issues?

[Nigel_O]

I’ve just replaced my ratty old Panda 4x4 with a shiny Yeti (costing five times as much)

If all you’re looking for is something to do local trips and get up muddy / snowy tracks, the Panda is the solution. If you do regular longer journeys, its lack of power and refinement might be an issue.

If you go for the 169 model, be very wary of rusty rear subframes and sills / floor pans. Subframes are pretty much unobtainable now and the car will likely be a write-off if it fails an MOT on it. Pretty much everything else is fairly cheap and easy to fix. Make sure it actually has red - plenty have had failed couplings and the prop shaft removed.

The later shape (2012 on, designated 312) are more comfortable, with a choice of twin air or turbo diesel lumps. They are probably falling inside your budget now.

Great little cars that really get under your skin