The owner of a well-known offroad touring company was complaining recently about the vehicles some clients bring along for his expeditions.
His company specialises in 4x4 journeys into the far-flung regions of Mozambique, Botswana and Namibia. Instead of tar, they face sand dunes, mud, rivers and boulders. So why do people turn up in vehicles that would have trouble mounting a steep pavement?
"Because, when they go to buy a 4x4, they don't know what to look for," he grumbles. "They make a purchase based on the advice of a salesman who's probably never been offroad and whose main concerns are his sales commission and clearing a slow-selling model off the floor."
Buying a new vehicle in SA today is like being a child in a sweet shop. With so many to choose from, and all looking so good, it's hard to make the right decision. Now the world's major manufacturers have all returned to SA, car buyers have the choice of almost 900 models and variants.
Offroad buyers can take their pick from nearly 150. Little wonder that the inexperienced should feel a little confused. Their state of mind isn't eased by marketers who variously describe their vehicles and drive systems as estates, recreational vehicles, sports utilities, 4x4s, permanent four-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive.
What they have in common is an ability to travel offroad. The difference, is how far off the road you should take them.
Ian Nicholls, sales and marketing director of Delta Motor Corp, which builds and/or imports Isuzu and Suzuki vehicles, says most marketers split the 4x4 leisure market into two categories: bakkies and recreational vehicles (RVs).
Bakkies have been transformed from their original role as bone-shaking workhorses. Double-cab versions, particularly, are home to all manner of mod cons. Manufacturers have even introduced automatic transmissions.
Even so, they generally fall short of the creature comforts of RVs. Many RVs are not so much offroad vehicles, as luxury cars with offroad capability. Few manufacturers don't have products in this category. Brands include Range Rover, Honda, Subaru, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Jeep, Kia, Renault, Hyundai, Daihatsu, Pajero, Nissan, SsangYong, Suzuki, Volvo and Toyota.
Nearly all RVs are imported. Don't assume their designers had African-style conditions in mind. Some may be ideal for ice and snow in their home markets, or even some grass and mud, but that doesn't mean they'll conquer the Namib or Zambezi valley.
Some will do so without a murmur. Others have neither the ground clearance nor the engine range to cope with extreme conditions.
Having said that, it's surprising what a vehicle is capable of, if the driver knows what he's doing. During a 4x4 trip to the Free State this year, a provincial education inspector edged his Audi A4 into a convoy of specialist 4x4s travelling through the Drakensberg foothills.
The track was steep and rocky, but the "intruder" made it through without difficulty - much to the chagrin of a couple of people in the convoy, who felt the Audi's progress somehow diminished their own offroad skill. The difference was that while they bounced over obstacles, he drove slowly round them.
Of course, that doesn't work everywhere, which is why it is so important to know what you're looking for when buying a 4x4. Most RV buyers, says Nicholls, base their decision on style and looks. "The typical RV buyer is trendy and image-conscious," he says. "The actual 4x4 capability is often the last thing on his mind. The vehicle will be chiefly for urban use, with maybe a bit of gravel."
RV sales account for about 7% of the total SA car market. Within the sector, according to Nicholls, there are 23 makes and 99 derivatives, which works out to an average market share of 1%, or 14 sales a month.
Considering some makes, such as Jeep and Land Rover, count their monthly sales in the hundreds, it's a particularly fragmented sector.
Trends in the RV market show that more than 50% of sales are of automatics and 47% are diesel. More than half RVs sold are classified as compacts.
Buyers with real 4x4s in mind have different considerations.
"When a true 4x4 guy comes into a dealership, the things he talks about are ground clearance, approach and departure angles and difflock," says Nicholls. "His main concern isn't how the vehicle looks, but whether it will perform."
Most customers in this category, he says, are looking for bakkies. Those with a longing for extra comfort and performance may opt for Jeeps, Pajeros and Prados, but bundu-bashers generally want plain practicality. So they opt for Land Rover Defenders and 4x4 versions - increasingly double-cab - of locally built bakkies.
One can understand why. Not many people will deliberately risk damaging or stranding a R500 000 vehicle, particularly if it's likely to happen hundreds of kilometres away from help. Admittedly, it's almost impossible these days to find a new 4x4 that will give you change out of R200 000, never mind R300 000, but there are limits.
Buyers also need to consider whether their choice of vehicle will have easy access to services such as repairs and spare parts. An FM colleague once bought an expensive imported 4x4, had an accident in the second week, then had to leave it garaged for nearly three months while he waited for a spare part.
The message for all 4x4 buyers is straightforward. Don't be seduced by pictures of expensive vehicles on mountaintops. Be sure what you want the vehicle for. Ask around. Depending on where you plan to go, you may not even need a 4x4. You may be surprised where you can go with a 4x2 and difflock. Before taking a dealer's advice, be sure he knows what he's talking about. If necessary, contact a 4x4 club, or one of the offroad driving academies, and ask for practical advice.
The owner of the offroad company quoted at the head of this article, has a simple message for people who turn up for his expeditions in an unsuitable vehicle: "Here's your money back. Now go home."
Buying the wrong 4x4 is an expensive mistake.
