BajaNomad

Used Vehicle for Baja-Suzuki Vitara?

bluesnart - 3-6-2013 at 01:00 PM

Hello
I am looking a purchasing a used vehicle for future trips to Baja.....does anyone have any experience with the Suzuki Vitara....I know it has a small amount of storage but I plan to travel light.....and or can anyone suggest a vehicle....I'm on a tight budget

bajaguy - 3-6-2013 at 03:23 PM

I have a 2000 Chevy Tracker 2 door..........

Just use it for around town errands. Drove it on a long trip once, never again. they are fun for what they were designed for, not a lot of highway travel

BlackBelt4dan - 3-6-2013 at 03:41 PM

We have a 2002 Suzuki Grand Vitara, V6, four door with 100900 miles on it.

About 25% has been off road in Arizona, Nevada, California and Oregon rock hunting and Ghost Towning. 25% have been road trips of 2000-3000 miles and then the rest city driving.

I can not say enough good about its Quite comfortable both on and off road. With the low range in 2x, I can actually crawl large rocks with the hwy tires. Never been stuck or bogged down.

Any other questions, let me know. Chuck...

chuckie - 3-6-2013 at 03:46 PM

Great Vehicle..had Chevy Tracker (same thing) 300,000 + before the tranny went out...Many trips to Baja, 2 to Alaska...

paranewbi - 3-6-2013 at 07:15 PM

Have a 94 Suzuki Sidekick with 235,000 on it...all original except the radiator (230,000) and Altenator (234,000). driven it all over Baja, dirt, including old Gonzaga road...no A/C installed...only regret. Drive it everyday 50 plus miles. Seems to be a lot of them in La Paz.

Suzuki

J.P. - 3-6-2013 at 07:49 PM

We bought a really nice Sammy when I retired It was a lot of fun in Baja. We used it for a tow car for a few years it filled the bill there but it was definately not a road car.

edm1 - 3-7-2013 at 11:41 AM

IMO, Suzuki 4x4s are well-made offroad vehicles. Here's my '96 X90 side-by-side :-)





[Edited on 3-7-2013 by edm1]

bluesnart - 3-7-2013 at 08:38 PM

Thanks for all the great information it will certainly help...

Islandbuilder - 3-7-2013 at 09:11 PM

How are you guys doing with fuel economy? I've been thinking about a Suzuki/Geo/Tracker as well.
It looks like there are lots of sites with add-ons. Anybody done many mods, or driving them pretty much stock?
Thanks.

chuckie - 3-8-2013 at 05:00 AM

Mine was pretty much stock except for a performance chip, and Rancho Shocks...mileage driven conservatively was around 20 on road. After about 200,000 miles I swapped out the seats. Weak point was transmissions..the first one went away at about 180,000, the second (used) died at around the 300,000 mark. Very expensive from the wrecking yards, and almost impossible to find....Best utility vehicle I have ever owned. Mine was a 2000 with the 2 liter 4 banger motor...

paranewbi - 3-8-2013 at 05:42 AM

Mines the 94' sidekick, gets 25 on average, do my own excel sheets for all my vehicles so pretty accurate. Maybe 60% freeway. 4 banger, 5 speed manual, roll windows up by hand.

Exact copy of mine in Coronado I pass by everyday...would love to pick it up as a second one! They seem hard to find here in San Diego and some guys have told me they make crawlers out of them.

Saw a lot of em on the Malecon in La Paz last time there...wonder if they pass US standards.

chuckie - 3-8-2013 at 07:20 AM

I think Baja is where all the old Samuaris, Trackers and sidekicks come to die....kinda like the elephants graveyard..

Pescador - 3-8-2013 at 07:56 AM

You are right Chuckie, that was the big problem with Cash for Clunkers. The US buys new cars, but when then get a little old and worn out, they head south. Make great cars where there is no need for emissions and people use them for another 100,000 or more and then when they finally die, they end up in the junk yard for parts, and finally, they end up as scrap which is loaded on trucks and hauled back to the US for smelting. Sure looks like a great cycle of Supply and Demand.

Islandbuilder - 3-8-2013 at 11:26 AM

Great information, thank you. I'm thinking of buying one as an alternative to my 15/17 mpg F-150 as a daily driver, and then let it evolve into my "leave it in Baja" rig if and when we're able to make the move.

Craigslist and e-Bay are good places to look for them, but the prices are all over the place. My hunch is that they are becoming almost fad-popular and some folks know what they have and some don't.

Chevy Tracker Mods

bajaguy - 3-8-2013 at 12:21 PM

I have a 2000 Chevy Tracker, 2 door softtop.

Put 1" wheel spacers on to widen the track, added 235x75-15 tires on Suzuki white spoked rims and added a 2" lift kit.

Works perfect for a run around vehicle, we leave it in the garage with a battery maintainer when we go to the US

Baja Tracker.JPG - 3kB

Islandbuilder - 3-8-2013 at 12:35 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by bajaguy
I have a 2000 Chevy Tracker, 2 door softtop.

Put 1" wheel spacers on to widen the track, added 235x75-15 tires on Suzuki white spoked rims and added a 2" lift kit.

Works perfect for a run around vehicle, we leave it in the garage with a battery maintainer when we go to the US


Nice!! Exactly what I'll be looking for. Thank you!

Island.....

bajaguy - 3-8-2013 at 12:58 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Islandbuilder
Quote:
Originally posted by bajaguy
I have a 2000 Chevy Tracker, 2 door softtop.

Put 1" wheel spacers on to widen the track, added 235x75-15 tires on Suzuki white spoked rims and added a 2" lift kit.

Works perfect for a run around vehicle, we leave it in the garage with a battery maintainer when we go to the US


Nice!! Exactly what I'll be looking for. Thank you!





The wheel spacers (Spydertrax) widen the stance for increased stability. The larger tires and lift increase clearence for the topes and potholes.....and the white spoked wheels look cool!!!

What is not showing in the photo....I added a front brushguard from a Nissan P/U (modified by my local off road guy so it bolts onto the frame) and added a 2" bolt on receiver hitch to tow small trailers....also use a hitch step from Harbor Freight. The brush guard and hitch step protect me from parking space damage to the grill/lights and the spare tire/tailgate.

Ton of info

bajaguy - 3-8-2013 at 01:27 PM

Here

http://www.zukiworld.com/