Friend is looking at a Daiatsu Sporttrak, knowing the knowledge base here is exceptional thought I'd try here rather than rec 4x4. Anyone know of the things to watch for on these apart from the obvious rust areas/ emulsified oil/ oil leaks and so on. I don't recall ever having heard a bad word about them. I think if memory serves that they are part time 4x4 ?
John H Ta !!
The main leaf of the rear springs is known to fracture for no apparent reason. One of mine fractured at 30,000 miles of unstressed use i.e. driver only, unladen and no off-road work. Daihatsu quoted £340 for a replacement spring - supply only, not fitted.
My only other problem was the battery - it is so small that the alarm kept flattening it even though the vehicle did at least two 10 mile journeys every weekday plus two or three hundred each weekend. I got through 3 batteries in 3 years - all under warranty. Through my constantly complaining about the battery, I persuaded the dealer to fit a higher output alternator. As anticipated, it did no good because there was nothing wrong with the original one, but it did ensure that I wouldn't need to touch the alternator once the vehicle was out of warrantee. Without disassembling the vehicle it is physically impossible to even touch that alternator - a brilliant design!
There isn't room under the bonnet to fit a larger battery.
I sold my Sportrak when it was 6 years old and there was no rust anywhere. None of my three Daihatsus have ever had a single oil weep let alone a leak - exactly the opposite to my Series III that had nothing that didn't leak! Still, that Series III did some hard work and took me to places that I haven't been to since so I'm not complaining. There's nothing wrong with a few oil leaks as long as you watch the levels - it was banging my shin on the greasy tow ball that annoyed me!
The Sportrak is a bit low on power when carrying four adults - noticeably so compared to driver only mode. When fitted with suitable tyres it is very capable off-road - as experienced on Daihatsu test days.
It is rear wheel drive until you select 4 x 4.
HTH
Fred
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