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So why a Mitsubishi Delica Space Gear..?

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In late 2017, when we had finally decided that we didn’t want to spend a large fortune on a luxury overland rig, we started to look around to see what else we could consider, remembering that ideally, we wanted something cheap, easy to maintain, and hopefully reliable. Once you have excluded all the medium to high-end vehicles, you are left with either a car, an SUV, or a van, most of which can be purchased quite reasonably.

We ideally wanted something with Four Wheel Drive (4WD) that would allow us to go off the beaten track when required and ensure that we can get through all but the most challenging off-road terrain. As Fiona often says, we want a vehicle that “will get us out of trouble, not into trouble”.

IMG_4735Modern 4WD’s are generally a sophisticated blend of true mechanical & electronics drive systems that do their magic behind the scenes to get you through or a compromise between mechanical & electronic features that lead to an “All-Wheel Drive” system. Either way, not being a mechanically minded person myself, I was keen on getting a vehicle that was not full of complicated electronics and wizardry, that could possibly leave us stranded in the middle of nowhere if something failed. For these reasons, we started thinking about an older vehicle with a good old-fashioned mechanical 4WD system that could be fixed with a hammer & a screwdriver.

I flirted with the idea of a Land Rover for a short while, (“Land Rover’s; making mechanics out of drivers for the past 60 years”), or an older Toyota Land Cruiser too, (“If you want to go into the desert take a Land Rover, if you want to come back, take a Land Cruiser”), but in the end, both of these options had their downfalls. I did some serious research into a Land Cruiser Troopy for a while, but in the end, it was going to be difficult to find a reasonably priced one in New Zealand to suit our initial budget.

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Around Christmas time, we discovered the YouTube Channel of The Overland Way, a Brazilian/Australian couple that are travelling around the world in a 1994 Mitsubishi Delica Space Gear. Even though these vehicles were never directly imported into New Zealand, (well maybe only a few), I remembered seeing some grey market imports and thinking that they were more mini-van rather than an around the world overland adventure wagon. After doing some research it became obvious that there was more than meets the eye underneath this blobby looking people-carrier.

The Mitsubishi Delica has a tried and trusted Super Select 4WD system that is essentially mechanically operated, (albeit with vacuum solenoids), with a true low range setting, ability to lock the centre-diff and a 50/50 torque-split, and is effectively the same as the Pajeros of the same time.  I consider it a proper old-fashioned 4WD, and with the addition of a solid 2.8 turbo-diesel engine in the range that is pretty robust and should do the best part of half a million KM's if looked after, the Delica's have the makings of a potential adventure camper.

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Add this to the fact that these vehicles sit pretty high, are large enough to seat up to 8 people, the 2 sets of rear seats can fold flat to create a quick bed base, and it comes in a long Wheelbase version, we think we have found our base vehicle.

Finding a long-wheelbase version in New Zealand is akin to something like winning the lottery, so how lucky were we to find one within 3 months of starting to look, for sale in our home city, in good condition with no rust, for a really good price....? We did not hesitate and bought the Delica immediately, with enough money left over to do whatever mechanical repairs were necessary to make this 23-year-old Japanese 'Classic' as robust as possible. Win-win...

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