yes in town at least. I was all set to but a 3 litre (much more grunt also), but heard from several people that the 2.4 was better as far as maintenance and reliability also. (3 litre is cambelt, which also means extra cost at 100,000k or whenever it would be due).Fuel consumption was really the deciding factor for me.If we did a lot of travelling or long trips would have looked at the 3 litre though.
pepsi24,
Apr 3, 12:13am
The 3L we're looking at has already had the cambelt done. It will be used to travel around the Nth Island a bit to do markets, but will also be used for around Auckland for daily use.
mugenb20b,
Apr 3, 2:06am
When!
pepsi24,
Apr 3, 2:38am
The vehicle has done 88.000k and it's just been done.
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 4:11am
Neither are a good vehicle if you are concerned about fuel consumption.
asa50,
Apr 3, 4:54am
We got the 2.4, between 8-9km/l around town
extrayda,
Apr 3, 6:16am
I don't think most people buy them for fuel consumption.In saying that, ours (2.4) is very similar to my 2.5l Cefiro Station Wagon.Definitely better on medium/long trips than short though.
fordluva,
Apr 3, 6:37am
we just bought a 2.4 and gas mileage seems very good, the 3.0 has a few downsides, they are a bit on the thirsty side around town, they have a cambelt as opposed to the chain in the 2.4 and I was told the 3.0 transmissions arent that reliable, that said they are generally a couple of k cheaper (obviously harder to sell although that could also be a downside further down the track).
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 7:19am
Its one of those things if people are happy paying $26 per 100kmaround town (which is usually the sort of running these vehicles do) then thats all good. Thats what the 2.4 costs BTW.
I just see so many that don't take it in to consideration or don't realise there are options that cost half that to run.
BTW, if its only doing minimal milage it really dosn't matter, but if you are clocking up a bit using this as the daily runner then its worth some thought.
extrayda,
Apr 3, 8:23am
I didn't find any realistic options (in the same price bracket) to carry around 6 people on a regular basis, plus some luggage, plus the occasional extra person (3 of these people are tall).
pepsi24,
Apr 3, 10:29am
Thanks everyone. I was on here a while ago asking about the Estima. It's for my sister who will be selling her art at markets around the Nth Is. But this will be her only vehicle,so she will need to use it for day to day trips also. She's been panicking about making the wrong decision for quite sometime. She's not keen on a van because she wants a bit of comfort while she's traveling. She'll have the back seats taken out to put all her stuff in.
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 10:34am
Did she ever take a luxury Euro van for a drive! I still think she is crazy looking at trying to turn one of those Estima's into a vehicle it is not designed to be when there are purpose made vehicles for the job. that cost half as much to run. I don't understand what kind of comfort you would get from an Estima that you can't get on a high spec Mercedes etc.
At the very least I would have thought it would make more sense to consider a flat floor people mover with seats that are designed to be clipped in and out.
Up to you of course but it seems like an attempt to re-invent the wheel through going on pre-conceptions, instead of actually looking into vehicles designed for the exact purpose required.
pepsi24,
Apr 3, 10:36am
Well aren't Estimas designed to carry 7-8 people!. I don't see the difference between that and carrying 1 person with some stock in the back!.
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 10:43am
The thing with the Estima is you make big compromises in terms of economy and weight in order to carry those back passengers. There is also a lack of the much more economical luxury european people movers in NZ.
However you can easily buy a luxury Euro van which is just as comfortable and quiet to drive but costs half as much to run, and its been designed to have gear loaded in and out etc.
If you really want to pay twice the running costs and re-invent the wheel go for gold but it just seems nuts to me.
pepsi24,
Apr 3, 10:47am
So what models do you recommend!. What is a luxury euro van!.
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 10:53am
Mercedes Vito is always good value for money and a place to start. BUT you need to watch the spec carefully as they are available with full leather and opulent luxury right down to the sparse and bare courier special.
You may find that Vito's that have left the factory in mini bus form are what you are looking for in that they will have the nice bits and sound proofing.
But have a look at the VW and Fiat options as well. Again the level of trim varies but you have somewhere to start.
Engine wise you want something running a common rail diesel, that will give you car like acceleration and power with total running costs around half that of the Toyota.
The key thing here is to get your sister out and driving these things before she makes her mind up on pre-concieved ideas.
The other thing I would look at seriously is a Renault Espace, they come up from time to time, are a people mover, more luxurious than the Toyota but they have seats that unclip and often the common rail diesel engine as well.
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 11:05am
At the end of the day if she still wants to pull the seats out of an Estima thats all good, go for gold. The main thing is to actually sit down and do the math on running costs and most importantly DRIVE some of these Euro vans. BTW, if she is still looking for something she can sleep in you can get high top ones that you can stand up in and also smaller models if she dosn't need that much space. Delivery vans like VW's Caddy are lovely wee things to drive and much less effort to lump around the city than an Estima yet may provide all the carry space that is required. BTW, the Caddy may be out of the price range but there are loads of others around like the Doblo, Kangoo and even the Holden Combo depending on exactly what she wants.
extrayda,
Apr 3, 12:36pm
mellisa2000 - I was actually passing comment on Jazz's statement about other options.Have you owned an Estima! I did spend quite a lot of time looking at both the 3.0 and 2.4 before buying one, so am commenting from experience.People usually buy a people mover because they need one - it's not most peoples dream car ;-)
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 3, 11:02pm
LOL, carefull fish, you might get a hankering to buy a Multipla if you stay on this path.
Not meaning to heckle here but the Hiace, Regius etc are not going to be that much better unfortunately. in terms of running/ownership costs anyway. Unfortunately they are a bit like the Corolla and Suzuki Swift in that they are over priced in NZ. Then you have the issue of them running the old fashioned Diesels which are not really economical or convenient to run and have a nasty appetite for cracking heads. There are also safety issues with some of those too.
Not wanting to knock your support, its appreciated but in my opinion poster 1 may as well capitalise on the availability of under-priced quality Euro vans in NZ at the moment. Unfortunately when it comes to Diesel, Japan is just not in the running in that price range, not their fault it just comes form Diesel cars being banned in Japan for so long they are a decade behind in development.
BTW, the difference in running costs are huge. As a very rough guide assuming poster one does the average amount of running for a typical New Zealander the Estima is likely to cost around $80 a week to run whereas an economical Euro Diesel will come in around the $40 mark. Thats fairly rough and ready math because we don't know specifics but the general trend is likely to be similar.
jezz43,
Apr 3, 11:31pm
wasnt the 2.4 estima supercharged! or was that just the older model! i have a 92 a few years back, 2.4 supercharged and it went pretty well. with or without people
mugenb20b,
Apr 4, 12:02am
Yes, that's the old obsolete model. The new front wheel drive Estimas are totally different vehicles.
craig04,
Apr 4, 2:48am
Dude, most people sleep lying down. I would rather sleep in an Estima (with seats removed) than a Transporter. Nothing wrong with the transporter, but at least the Estima would have a little more insulation and with carpet etc, it would be warmer.
thejazzpianoma,
Apr 4, 2:55am
LOL at the sleeping lying down. It depends on the transporter and if she is actually going to sleep in it or not. I only vaguely remember that as being a requirement from the original post.
If a Transporter/Ducato/Vito etc has left the factory in mini-bus spec it should be just as insulated etc as an Estima. Personally though, even if I got one that wasn't I would happily throw some insulation in the back if it meant half the running costs. While I was at it I would set up the back with art holders, storage for camping etc and anything else that was needed.
clark20,
Apr 4, 8:05am
We have had both at work , we took the V6 to 200K , and the motor and box were still good, it was smooth and quiet, and I always preferred it to the 2.4 which are a bit of a slug. Only thing is the 2 x V6s we had started to pink on takeoff, so we started running them on 95.
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