delica vs toyota hiace, liteace...

[username]

i'm looking for a new vehicle and leaning towards getting one of these jdm vans. the delicas and various toyotas seem compairable though the toyotas are a bit cheaper.
are the delicas a superior choice?
i'm guessing they are seeing as there are several delica fansites and none for the toyotas that i have yet come across..

cheers

[delicanuck]

Hi, er.. Username,
Given that this is a Delica user forum, I think any opinion is going to be tilted generally in the Delica direction, fair or otherwise.
Having said that, when my old van started to die, I made a list of the features I wanted/needed and then I happened to stumble onto Mark's Delica and common sense left me. At least so it seemed at the time, but having had my Delica for a few months, I've not yet seen another vehicle as well suited to my needs. My Delica is bigger on the inside where I need the space and smaller on the outside making it easier to drive, than anything else I've seen. Having a big engine hood out in front of me has always been wasted space in my mind. Its really quite good on bad roads or off road with better ground clearance than cars with e.g. smaller tires like the Toyota vans. I think a Delica is a bit higher off the ground than a Toyota so its harder to get in and out of. It likes BioDiesel just fine. I have added a trailer hitch so I can haul my camping gear or tools. Also, I've heard that Toyota diesels have had problems with cracked heads.
I think you have to start by making a list of what things really matter to you, then go drive some cars.

[Green1]

personally I didn't like the look of the townace... but that's just personal preference, and there are at least 3 townaces in Calgary that I've seen driving around... my first impression is that it doesn't seem as much of an off-road vehicle (if that's what you're in to)

from a practical side, I've heard that the engine in the townace is not as reliable as the one in the delica, a common problem for them is cracked heads, which is not very common in the Delica, that said, I have to admit that my delica is currently out of commission due to a cracked head...

from the "community" stand point, the Delica seems to have much better community support (sites like this and others worldwide) however the toyota may not need as much support as it probably shares many parts with the old toyota vans that are still common in Canada, whereas the Delica doesn't mimic anything Mitsubishi made widly available here.

in a lot of ways it's going to boil down to personal preference, there is no one vehicle that is the best for everyone, that's why there are so many different types on the road, try some out and see what you think.

[josh]

The toyota's tend to overheat when run for a longer time at higher rpms... example: driving long distances at highway speeds.

Josh