New member - yet without delica.

[the chicken]

Hi Delica-forum

I'm new here and have a few questions i hope you can help me with.

I'm living in DenmarK (Europe) and i driving a Suzuki Samurai:



It is equipped with everything from rollcage, OME, WARN 8274 winch to a 230V AC power supply.
I'm using it for offroad-competition and adventure travels with my girlfriend.

BUT, it is micro-size and we live in a tent on the roof - and it would be a bit more comfortable with a bit bigger car and a bed inside

So we are looking for a Delica (in Denmark it's called Shogun) but they are not wery poppular in 4wd here, so i found this terrific website

Is the Delica suitable for hardcore offroad-driving? (when equipped with winch, 2" lift and maybe 31/32" tyres) - i know it has a higher center of gravity, but is it capable without a ton of mods?

My Samurai have parts for 14.000$ and i can't afford this kind of rebuild on the Delica.

Sory for my bad english - hope you understand

[wetcoast]

Hello friend... Are you sure you mean Delica? I always thought the "Shogun" is the Mitsubishi Pajero....


Shogun Evolution

[delicabits]

maybe try one of the uk sites closer to you for information on the delica or shogun.

[Stiful]

Hello.. We have quite a few cars and one of them is a 1300cc 98 Suzuki Sierra with a 2" lift.



I also have a 97 Delica..



There is no way my Delica will go where the Suzuki will go so if you are thinking of a Delica as a replacement you need to decide weather you want comfort luxury and a competent 4x4 or do you want to be unstoppable. We are members of the Suzuki club where we live and have been on outings in the state forest with them and those little buzz boxes are amazing.There are a lot of videos on youtube of delicas off road so have a look there. Here are a couple to get you in the right place..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eprmfvQfEDs&feature=fvw .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaAV1zNU ... re=related

Cheers..ps.. your English is good... :0) .

[Green1]

Is the Delica suitable for hardcore offroad-driving? (when equipped with winch, 2" lift and maybe 31/32" tyres) - i know it has a higher center of gravity, but is it capable without a ton of mods?

The centre of gravity on the Delica is quite low, it only looks bad because the roof is so high, but the weight isn't in the roof. (there are many pictures of the delicas at 45% side slope and still right side up.)

As for off-road ability, it is often said on the UK forum that the L400 delicas are about the same as a land rover discovery, (assuming similar mods) and the L300s are a bit better. a 2" lift with larger tires is considered about "ideal" for a delica.

I think a lot of it depends on how much abuse you are willing to put it through, granted I haven't tried any off-roading in the L400 yet, but my initial impression is that if your primary concern is hardcore offroading the L300 would be a better fit. they aren't as fast, or as fancy, but they have that rugged-go-anywhere attitude.

[the chicken]

Thanks for all the fast replys

Wetcoast wrote:

Hello friend... Are you sure you mean Delica? I always thought the "Shogun" is the Mitsubishi Pajero....

Yes, what you call Delica L-300 has quite a few names here: Shogun, Cosmos, Space Gear and i believe space wagon...

In Denmark we pay 180% tax + 25% VAT on a car - so they are VERY ekspensive here - but you can buy a car with yellow number-plates and it will cost a lot less - but then you can't have seats in the back - its only for cargo.
(+ you have to pay about 2000 USD a year in tax to keep your number plates!)

Thats why they have so many names i guess, there is so many different models - without windows in the back, seperated cabin and so on.

So yes - it is the L-300 Delica i'm thinking of :)

Stiful wrote:

There is no way my Delica will go where the Suzuki will go so if you are thinking of a Delica as a replacement you need to decide weather you want comfort luxury and a competent 4x4 or do you want to be unstoppable. We are members of the Suzuki club where we live and have been on outings in the state forest with them and those little buzz boxes are amazing.There are a lot of videos on youtube of delicas off road so have a look there. Here are a couple to get you in the right place..

Nice to hear from a fellow Zuki-owner (very nice cars you have!)

Hmm... I allready have 3 cars, so can't afford one more - wich makes it a very difficult choice!

I'm really into offroading, and would'nt trade that away for comfort - but again, it would be nice driving around in a small 4x4 offroad-camper like the Delica... hard choice!

Green one wrote:

I think a lot of it depends on how much abuse you are willing to put it through, granted I haven't tried any off-roading in the L400 yet, but my initial impression is that if your primary concern is hardcore offroading the L300 would be a better fit. they aren't as fast, or as fancy, but they have that rugged-go-anywhere attitude.

We are talking roughe abuse: deep rivers and angels which requires the co-driver to hact as counter-weight on the side of the car

In the spring we drove a 48hour offroad-competition in Poland - the avarage speed was 6,3 km/h (4 mph)

I know the Zuki are nearly unstoppable couse of its light weight and small size - and i know the Delica won't be the same - but in the youtube videos it looks ok offroad-competent

[Green1]

obviously to do what you want you aren't looking at a stock vehicle no matter the make and model. However an L300 with some mods could still do you well, add a 2" lift, some bigger tires, stronger bash plates on the bottom, a snorkel, all that sort of stuff, and I think you'll find they're the most capable mini-van you'll ever see.

[the chicken]

That sounds good

I also thought a bit about bying a Volvo Valp (3314 or c202)


But they are old, noisy and have no comfort at all - on the other hand they dont need a lot af mods. (and they look so cool and adventurous ) - and then i came up with the Delica.

But 2" lift, bigger tires and winch isn't so expensive, so maybe the Delica could be a nice compromise...

Nice with fast, serious answers - thanks

[wetcoast]

In Denmark we pay 180% tax + 25% VAT on a car - so they are VERY ekspensive here - but you can buy a car with yellow number-plates and it will cost a lot less - but then you can't have seats in the back - its only for cargo.
(+ you have to pay about 2000 USD a year in tax to keep your number plates!)

Wow, socialism is worse than I thought...

[jessef]

We are talking roughe abuse: deep rivers and angels which requires the co-driver to hact as counter-weight on the side of the car

The delica's and pajero/shogun's are not the best vehicles for 'rough abuse' offroading if you are going to be driving over very unstable/sloped terrain.

The rear-end suspension is well setup for articulation that will allow a good amount of movement before the body rolls over, but the front end unfortunately is setup as IFS (independent front suspension) that is very limited in down/up wheel travel.

Many many offroader/fabricators over the past 30 years (beginning on early Toyota's) have been swapping out the whole front suspension/axle/shafts of the IFS vehicles (Toyota pickup/4runner/Pajero/Montero/Shogun/Delica,etc...) in favor of either a full axle or a floating axle to increase the wheel travel articulation to match the rear.

By having the front and rear of the vehicle articulate to extreme angles, that vehicle is able to maneuver over and around many obstacles/slope/hills that would normally have flipped or rolled that same vehicle with IFS.

The L300's are great offroad. But that term 'offroad' is different for everybody. For you, it may work or may not. Youtube and the russian delica ru site is a good place to find some extreme modifications to make the L300 into a versatile offroad machine.

[Elanzer]

hello Green1:
I haven't figured out all the variations of Delicas yet and I'm getting the impression there are many. Anyway, I have a question for you since you own a L400 delica good for off-roading. What about highway driving at 80-100 kpm? Will any Delica (dependent on aggressiveness of tires) make this speed easily. Ideally I want something for minor 4-wheeling, but mainly to drive on highways.

Also, I was wondering if one Delica model is more comfortable than another in terms of drivers seat options. Can one get a power package on the drivers seat or can one adjust seats manually to get a variety of configurations?

Thanks if you have time to answer.

[Green1]

What about highway driving at 80-100 kpm? Will any Delica (dependent on aggressiveness of tires) make this speed easily. Ideally I want something for minor 4-wheeling, but mainly to drive on highways.

The L400s do this with ease, the L300s will do that speed as well, but not up steep mountain highways.

Also, I was wondering if one Delica model is more comfortable than another in terms of drivers seat options. Can one get a power package on the drivers seat or can one adjust seats manually to get a variety of configurations?

the driver's seat in both L300 and L400 slides back and forward, and reclines. they also have an adjustable lumbar support (though that may be an option, I've had pretty high end vehicles, so I can't say if that's on the lower models as well.
The seats are entirely manual on both L300 and L400, and neither one has any control of either height or seat tilt.
L400's also have the option of heated front seats (not available on the L300)

The L300 seat is higher up from the floor and is more like driving a semi-truck, the seating position is very similar to a chair at your kitchen table with your legs much more straight down and the steering wheel almost horizontal.
The L400 seat is a bit lower down and is more like pretty much every other car/pickup/etc you're likely to try in that your feet are out in front of you on the pedals and the steering wheel is more vertical.

Personally I found both to be quite comfortable on long drives. (though I have only just got the L400, so I haven't had a chance to really try it on that many drives, but it was comfortable on the trip from Vancouver to Calgary