Hello there, mr. Kilmer.
I live in Serbia and there is not many Toyotas or Lexus' around here, other than RAV4. Not counting the sedans and hatchbacks and all that other city vehicles. Talking about SUVs. What would you suggest as the next best thing for European? Other than Volvo, those things arent cheap. Is Volkswagen Touareg a good choice? What about Opel Mokka( they say it carries Isuzu engine that is indestructible)?
And one other question. Is it smart to go off-roading with automatic transmission? I see a lot of Toyotas and Jeeps and other cross-country vehicles with off-road tyres and gear, and than they have an automatic transmission. Isn't that kinda counter productive?
Thanks in advance!
Greetings from Serbia
The 1.7L diesel from Isuzu with a manual transmission is quite reliable -
https://autospruce.com/amp/1-7-cdti-engine-problems-reliability/
Only get the diesel Touareg if it comes with a manual transmission. Run away from the DSG transmission as they have extremely poor reliability.
Check out Matt’s Off Road Recovery on YouTube.
Ok. I just found good-looking Lexus RX 300 for 5500 bucks... Quality automatic transmission service in Serbia is rare, though.
On other hand, theres Touareg 2.5 ccm with manual transmission and air suspension for 4500 $.
They both have about 250000 miles on them. Any advice?
What year are they?
2005 both.
If they have 250k miles and not km, I don't believe Lexus has much life left. Touareg is probably diesel. There are some info about engine
https://mlfree.com/en/2-5-tdi-engine/
Perhaps @dan has some experience with those cars
I agree with @g-t .
I’d just avoid both, maybe the Tuareg can be a fun toy (not something you should drive daily) although 400k km is A LOT for that engine…
Got it. Thank you.