Lifelong fans

You won’t easily convince Jaco and Andre to stray from their respective brands. They’re Toyota and Volkswagen men through and through.

Bakkie or bust

2008 TOYOTA HILUX 3.0 D-4D DC AT 4X4

Like the legions of Toyota fans across Africa, there’s nothing that would convince Jaco Wilson from Witbank to let go of his current set of wheels. Except maybe a Land Cruiser. Or as Jaco confesses, a double-cab Land Cruiser 79 turbodiesel V8 to be precise.

I used to drive a Fortuner 3.0 D-4D, which suited my needs for a proper four-wheel drive vehicle, as I used to drive another 3.0 D-4D before that, a Hilux 4x2. I owned it for a little over two years but coming from a bakkie previously I couldn’t get over the limited packing space – especially when it was time to go camping.

Around two years ago I started putting my feelers out there for something else, but the truth is that I was never going to stray from the Toyota stable and settled on this used 4x4 Hilux that I purchased for R220 000. It really does meet my criteria of being somewhat affordable to maintain, ride comfortably and be capable of towing a caravan with ease.

I haven’t needed to add too much to the Hilux to get it up to standard, apart from the canvas canopy. It already had the snorkel fitted when I bought it. I suppose an extra few bucks in my pocket would go toward upgrading the suspension system.

So far, the Hilux hasn’t disappointed me. It’s a great long-distance vehicle with the automatic transmission and cruise control. It tows my Jurgens Xplorer with ease, and the servicing and cost of parts are reasonable enough. The only thing that bothers me is that the transmission makes the vehicle feel lazy around town and it’s slightly thirsty. Speaking of which, the diesel consumption without a caravan averages 11 ℓ/100 km, and the number goes up to around 12,8 ℓ/100 km when towing my Jurgens.

Family matters

2018 VOLKSWAGEN KOMBI 2.0 TDI DSG

When his family grew, and the expansion happened to comprise of two fast-sprouting sons, Andre Warnich from Centurion knew that the situation called for a different type of vehicle. I was quite happy with my Amarok 2.0 BiTDI and drove it for four years, but with two young boys to consider, the usable room inside the cabin became paramount and not so much how much we could throw in the back.

I knew right from the start that the only option for me was a Kombi. The space, fuel economy and fun-to-drive factor, even though it’s an MPV, made it the absolute front runner in my mind. I settled on a demo model that I’ve been driving for six months and paid R550 000 for. It has affectionately been dubbed “Daddy’s van”.

The Kombi really is versatile, as all the generations of Volkswagen’s peoplemovers have been, but something else that really stands out is how it sips fuel. I tow a 2015 Jurgens Penta and the average fuel consumption rarely exceeds 8,7 ℓ/100 km. Without a caravan in tow, the Kombi averages 7,2 ℓ/100 km.

Practicality aside, I wouldn’t mind a Lotus Super 7 as a toy that just I could use to quell my need for speed, though to be honest, with some spare cash available the Kombi could do with a decent set of seat covers.

So far, the Kombi has been a dream, with no issues to report and it’s so perfect for the family and our requirements that it doesn’t really require any tinkering from my side.

Our favourite destination to camp at is undoubtedly Bosveld Oase in the North West province, because there’s plenty of activities that keep not just the boys entertained, but us as parents, too. It’s fun for the entire family and we highly recommend it.