Is a 2005 diesel Prado a good buy for a non-mechanic person?

[rabidsoggymoose Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close rabidsoggymoose]

I've never worked on cars and have no access to a garage or tools as I'll be constantly traveling with the car.

I'm also in Australia where mechanics are extremely expensive ($150 / hour).

I currently have a 1995 Mitsubishi Delica that is a complete money pit ($2500 fuel pump, $1500 aircon, etc - labor fees kill it).

So I have some questions:

- Is 350,000 kms still perfectly fine for a 2005 Prado is looked after well?
- Are Prados easy for mechanics to work on? The issue with my Delica is they're very difficult to work on, which increases labor hours by a LOT.
- Would a Prado be a good buy for someone who can't work on their own car in a country where mechanics are very expensive?

[Daniel150 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Daniel150]

Hi mate.
Any vehicle over 200,000km will start to have problems.
The Prado is a good vehicle, but at 20 years old and 350,000km any vehicle is in its twilight years and will need ongoing maintenance.
I find the Prado very easy to work on, but parts can get pricey as with any 4wd.
Really any vehicle older than say 5-10 years can start to need things worked on so it’s a balance between an expensive newer car up front or a cheaper older car that will cost more to keep running.
Personally I wouldn’t buy a 20 year old high km car unless I was happy to do the work on it myself.
But yes, the Prado is a way better car than a delica (or any Mitsubishi) in terms of reliability and quality of build.