If there’s one thing South Africans probably love more than SUVs, it’s bakkies. But things get complicated when you’re stuck somewhere in the middle, having to choose the one over the other. While the heart might be very vocal in reaching your decision, a sober head is required during your research. Vehicles, especially new ones, cost a lot of money and regretting your choice down the line could turn out to be very costly.
A shiny double cab is hard to resist, especially when kitted out to the brim with nudge bar, roll bar and all the usual bells and whistles. It gives you an imposing presence on the road with the added benefit of a superior ride height and where bakkies have lacked in interior comfort and safety in years gone by, their specification levels have been raised considerably in these areas to bring it up to car-like standards.
But all the niceties aside, a bakkie’s main trait is still its ability to carry goods. It is officially classified as a light commercial vehicle after all. And this is where the double cab is quite unique. It’s got room for five people in the cabin similar to a passenger car, while at the same time it can carry a tonne on the back or in typical South African custom, probably three tonnes on any given day.
If you need a vehicle for business purposes that can double act as a family car, a double cab is a straight forward choice. But when you need a multipurpose vehicle mainly for leisure use, as enticing the prospect of a double cab might seem, it is highly recommended that you at least way it up against a medium sized SUV. Especially if you are a city dweller whose daily routine consists of driving to work, school and the shop, as a SUV will offer better comfort for passengers in the back while manoeuvring school bags, lunch boxes, laptops and grocery bags will be easier from a boot than the back of a bakkie.
Ladder frame SUVs share the same platforms as their double cab siblings like Toyota’s Fortuner and Hilux, Ford’s Everest and Ranger, Isuzu’s MU-X and D-Max and the Pajero Sport and Triton from Mitsubishi. Because these siblings share specifications, cabins, engines, transmissions, suspensions and drive systems right through their model line-ups, basically the only difference between the two will be the body style, making it somewhat easier to choose between a double cab and SUV from the same stable.
The headache becomes a lot more severe when you start weighing the double cabs up against all other SUVs in similar price ranges. For instance, if you are prepared to fork out over R700 000 for a top-of-the-range double cab, you are playing in the price range of a premium SUV like a BMW X3 xDrive, Range Rover Evoque or the jam-packed Hyundai Santa Fe. And while you surely won’t load garden refuse or other messy stuff in the back of these fine rides like you would in a bakkie’s loadbox, fitting a tow bar and using a trailer for the dirty work is always an option.
It is important to remember that while you can always fit a canopy at a later stage to increase a double cab’s luggage space, with a SUV you simply don’t have the option of removing the roof down the line. Well not with the approval of your dealership anyway.
At the end of the day your needs will be the determining factor in your decision. Ask yourself exactly what you need the vehicle for and weigh up all the pros and cons of each according to your lifestyle. If you can get the head and heart to agree, well done. If not, good luck.
Main things to remember:
SUV
Bakkie
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