Ask an expert

I'm looking for a tow vehicle for a Haines Hunter 5m and have confused myself completely!

Can you help point me towards some vehicles...?

Is SsangYong a good option?

Hubby also could do with a ute, and I would like 3 rows of seats to stop the squabbling.

We are eventually looking to buy 2 vehicles.

Budget combined for both is $40k, and we're thinking to spend most of it on the "family" car, and aim for a cheap runabout for hubby, a ute or something where he can make a mess with his possum traps that I won't worry about!

Jeanette

From the "Ask Jack" archives - 11 December 2009

Historically, SangYong vehicles have not been popular with long term reliability concerns and have not held their values well. A sparse dealer network throughout the country has also been a negative for some.

The parent company in Korea has also been in the news of late for all the wrong reasons with major employee unrest.

From a reliability standpoint the new range may or may not be better, but popularity and resale will still be doubtful, so we would hesitate to recommend one.

Mainstream brands such as Toyota are the safest bet, the Prado being a particularly good option.

Other vehicles to consider may be Hyundai Santa Fe or Mitsubishi Pajero, all of which are available with options of 3 rows of seats.

Regarding a cheap ute, there are numerous options from Toyota Hilux, Nissan Navara, Mazda Bounty to name a few.