You Don't Need To Spend $100K+ on a Sprinter! This Is The Best Off-Road Van You've Never Heard Of

[@TokyoOffroad]

1:10 "In Japan there's not a lot of off-roading". While the land area of Japan may be a lot less than the US, there is no shortage of off-road fun. About 70% of the land area is mountainous and about 60% forested. Most off-road trails tend to be narrow though, favoring motorcycles, or Suzuki Jimnys. The Delica is a popular vehicle in Japan, well suited to family ski and camping trips.

[@MrEnglischjules]

My L400 has winter pack, so 2 batts. But i use my 95 Pajero daily, that also has winter pack. which when sold in UK as Shogun did not have.. (i have rear back axle to fit to mine, as UK spec came with rear diff locker)

[@MrEnglischjules]

i am in England, got one of these, same 4M40 engines.. although mine is a standard rare manual gearbox rather than the auto box. Had it 3 years. torque is good. Sadly they all seem to rust in the same place, you see one small hole but tap away and it turns into a huuuuuge area. Around front wishbone suspension areas and area where rear springs mount. Its why so many are scrapped here, very expensive to get welded up unless you do the work yourself. My daily is a 95 Pajero JDM (Shogun UK, Montero USA) same 2,8 TD engine with auto box ....lifted and other small mods... set up is almost the same give or take for the drive chain

[@crankshaftculture]

Our van is also a MT. Drove across the country to buy it and drive it back. Manuals are all that my wife Mercedes and I drive. Agreed about the rust. We owned an L300 for a while (our first foray into RHD vehicles) and it had a good amount of rust on it. Thankfully this one has hardly any rust and we treated the undercarriage to help prevent it. We also have two Pajeros (a '92 and a '91). The '91 competed in the 2020 Alcan 5000 Rally (5,000 miles in the winter Arctic over a 10-day period in North America) and did very well. Both of them are customized. Glad to meet another Pajero owner!

[@ronzanderwilliams9255]

Unfortunately I have discovered some severe rust on my 95 diesel stick shift. But I decided to embrace the challenge of rebuilding her beams … not going to be cheap

[@popeyerubi1981]

The 4M40 engine is very reliable. I had a Pajero and my dad still uses it until now. He has been all around the country (Philippines) with the Pajero and towing trailer with dirtbikes on it everytime. I hope Mitsubishi brings back the Pajero and the Montero.

[@anthonyramdin1037]

4m40 will last forever once maintained

[@djtesseract3064]

Delicas are surprisingly common here in Canada. I literally just saw one at the 7-11 store about 10 minutes ago. Very high and narrow though due to city streets in Japan being a lot narrower than in North America. I see them being used as delivery vehicles here in right hand drive mode quite often. It's a cool vehicle and has a bit of that Suzuki Samurai/Sidekick compact 4x4 vibe to it. Definitely easy to park though! I like it!

[@crankshaftculture]

Totally true. Our first offroader was a teal Sidekick, so naturally we now own this Delica and two Pajeros. 👍

[@ronzanderwilliams9255]

Very common in BC less in Alberta and seldom seen in Ontario. BC has cheap government auto insurance but Ontario does not and JDMs are 3 times more expensive to insure in ON than BC .

[@djtesseract3064]

@@ronzanderwilliams9255 very true ICBC (Insurance Corporation of British Columbia) based their rates on driver experience and tickets so if you are a bad driver you pay more so NO crappy rates based on parts or engine size that private insurers do. Plus it's nice that I only need to goto one place to get whatever coverage I need. BIG TIP: For offroading ALWAYS get Comprehensive and ALL-Perils umbrella coverages so you are covered in the back country. Some policies even cover the big towing bills if you break down on an old out of the way logging road!

[@ronzanderwilliams9255]

@@djtesseract3064 Thanks for the feedback! I’ve been insuring in BC since 1990. I believe all insurance companies base rates on driver experience etc. But Ontario has no government owned auto insurance and the one of the few if not the only one that will insure JDMs is Aviva. My rate in BC 3 times lower , same driver , same experience etc. BC has it’s logging roads, Ontario has the 401 ;-)

[@leederdavid4782]

Awesome. Never heard someone speaking Czech before, Roman - really cool.

[@YackYum]

Fun fact: Roman actually ran into this exact Delica at Overland Expo 2021 and called it a Previa lol

[@crankshaftculture]

We get that a lot at Overland Expo for some reason.

[@AstroVanTribe]

I think these guys would dig on my 4x4 Astro van project.....

[@garretlewis4103]

Cool vehicle. A decent camp setup. The Nestbox is a decent way to go. It would have been interesting to see the bed setup. 👍👍

[@ronzanderwilliams9255]

I have 3 Delicas… a 3 litre gas, a 2.8 diesel and a 2.8 diesel stick … love them all ;-)

[@crankshaftculture]

That's awesome. We've owned an L300 stick and now this, also a manual. And, two Pajero sticks to boot. 👍

[@PistonShack]

Keep your old reliable Delica on the road, this vehicle won't ever let you down!

[@Kenneth_R]

That EGOE Box is about $4500 but is a work of art.

[@St.PatricksTrades2]

former L400 owner. Would repeat 10/10, what an awesome vehicle.

[@sobhi05]

I'm just happy that he called the Mitsubishi Pajero, NOT Montero! 1991 Pajero (manual) was my dad's (RIP) goverment issued vehicle and the first car I learned to drive on in the old country. I have the fondest memories on that beauty. I miss it dearly.

[@phatmeow7764]

i had an Aussie colleague a few years back and they are beyond popular there! You'd think they have a Saint Delica's Day there haha

[@justinkennedy5405]

Quite popular here in Oz!

[@poputchik7251]

Делика рулит! Делика это не машина, это состояние души!

[@DodgeDurango-de5po]

Very unique. Would love to see this at Tumble Weed doing some wheeling!

[@paullaverty3038]

Roman I think this is one of the best videos that you've done and a very interesting vehicle also 1 which I've never seen and I am a car guy and a truck guy Good job.

[@TFLoffroad]

Roman says thanks for the kind comment!

[@MishaAutos]

these cars are HUGE in Europe,shame they dont get that many in the USA

[@scubatrucker6806]

Cool camp setup.😎👍👍

[@BYLRPhil]

That Nestbox cost more than what I paid for my off-roader 😮

[@JamesPhieffer]

That's a very cool little truck.

[@jksof]

Mine has the field and winter pack 2 inch factory lift heavy-duty rear axle no sunroofs extra insulation twin heaters and twin air con

[@monkeyspanner8172]

Great van! Love my 95 L400.

[@sombut415]

How freaking awesome is that… I’d love to do some like that but with Toyota Sienna..

[@NoxNoctisUmbra]

Can't wait to see it in action!

[@Zanderthelab]

I didn’t realize that Roman still knew fluent Czech.

[@BYLRPhil]

I dig it! You can also get a Hi-Ace or a Town-Ace from Toyota, very similar. Cool stuff!

[@ronanrogers4127]

They don’t have Super Select, which any 4WD person will tell you is the best system. These have a locking central diff, you can run RWD, AWD with viscous coupling, 4WH locked, 4WL locked, and you can shift between RWD and 4WH on the fly at up to 100kmh. No comparison.

[@petelattimer6808]

delica wasnt sold in many places as they were deemed too unstable, even in stock form. any of them in places like the UK for example, have been imported from Japan. they were deemed too unsafe (unstable) for the UK, and, i believe, many parts of Europe

[@jeremypatrick8639]

We had some of these as you-drives for alert aircrew when we were deployed to the desert

[@eskanderx1027]

Beautiful car! Wish we could see it in action ..

[@RKmndo]

Mazda MPV AWD, Toyota Previa AWD, Chevy Astro AWD, Ford Aerostar AWD, and VW Vanagon Synchro are similar minivans that WERE offered in the USA. They aren't offered any longer. Most current minivans, like the Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey aren't really set up well for overlanding.

[@TheJohn8765]

Sweet ride. I love Delicas !

[@KL00100]

Put together well.

[@woffordsoverlandjourneys8618]

Very capable van there although it's not as durable as an Astro and also in Astro comes with the g80 locker and mine comes with the front limited slip and 410 gears with a 3-in lift

[@MrEnglischjules]

whats an Astro?

[@99unclebob]

yes Astro vans are capable ,you don't have a rear locker , a G80 option code is a rear limited slip differential , not a locker and they were never sold with a front LSD available aftermarket only, I sold around 200 of them when i worked for GM Canada

[@foellerd]

@@MrEnglischjules Chevy Astro van. Same as GMC Safari.

[@petelattimer6808]

@@foellerd sadly many ouside of America/Canada etc are still no wiser. im guessing its one of those vehicles that sold well there but did very little or wasnt sold outside of those markets.

[@tlarson15]

Camera person made me dizzy

[@chrismak4859]

$7K for that Nest Box is just absurd, build one and save thousands!!! Geez!!!!

[@stageworker23]

I love my delica.. its the best all rounder .. 😇

[@jacksondudes]

my 4m41 common rail swaped delica is crazy good

[@dw6vay933]

Can't find cheap Delica here in Ontario. I want to project one after knowing it's off-road capability

[@joshthompson3865]

I have one in Tasmania, take it fishing and camping at least once a week 😅

[@igotursixx2665]

That is a very cool van.

[@rudolphna54]

Huh, TIL Roman is Czech and even fluent. Not a common language in the US, very cool.

[@ryaninwa5375]

I'm near Seattle and Delicas are big money.

[@WW-wf8tu]

To each their own. Why are walk arounds not being done at the ranch or the office? Sort of odd to keep using this location.

[@Mr-pn2eh]

I think with these being popular mitsubishi might start selling new delicas here in US.

[@michellestratford9753]

I love my Delica! I just have the front tires continuously blinking on the dash gif which my mechanic can't fix. Other than that it's awesome 🥰💖

[@Dragouncz]

Very common problem. Its one of the vacuum solenoids which causes it.

[@82acresfarm]

@@Dragouncz Pajeros have the same problem It can be a vaccum solenoid or the actuator is stuck down on the front axle.

[@feedrate1]

That is bad ass. I love it 😀

[@TOYOTA.Overland]

Delica 4x4 is a great car. Unfortunately, most of the pieces are RHD only. Technically, it is a second generation of Pajero (Shogun).

[@crankshaftculture]

This is a common misnomer. Gen 2 Pajeros are body on frame whereas Delicas (Space Gear/Star Wagon) are unibody. Yes, they have solid rear axles, independent fronts, and similar engine choices, but other than engine parts, but many of the suspension components have different part numbers. All the brakes, except the front rotors, are however, Montero/Pajero.

[@christophecamus3295]

Great looking vehicle 👌 👍

[@KagMag-k4d]

The best off road van ever !

[@SaliksikTV]

What is the model of your nest box Thanks so much for your reply

[@chunhimyeung1781]

Is it possible to have your bumper design plan that I can buy? Thanks. Best looking bumper

[@hi9580]

iCar X25

[@Jay-qq7so]

Nice rig, I’m in the market for one. Is the insurance much different for being a right hand drive? Thx Jay

[@ldmtag]

6:32 cool!

[@Tony-hf9mv]

Dang I see a couple toyota like that keep popping on my searches. Looking to order a transit trail as ford says order banks are open now although my local dealer doesn't know how to order one

[@jasonhowe1697]

the evil spawn of lancer and a l300, I had a teacher in 1993 that had overlander kit on L300 chassis we have Delicas in Australia however not really supported here as a sales vehicle you typically have to import 2-3 and use 2 and 3 as spare parts..

[@sundevilkdaddy]

This…is…awesome!

[@paulmakumbi8005]

These run very good I have one in Africa

[@PureNewZealandOutdoors-tn3bc]

What a beast of a delica

[@Shinrin_Yoku_Delica_Adventures]

I love my Delica

[@plus790]

Cool machine. Need to improve the departure angle to match the impressive front though.

[@healer81]

Its probably more capable off road than the sprinter but I guess its not a fair comparison because the sprinter is a lot bigger and really not meant for legit trails

[@JOHNJ0HN9111]

Love the van and what he has done to it

[@crankshaftculture]

Thank you!

[@brandongoberdhan6335]

We need to see his pajero 😅

[@crankshaftculture]

Ha!

[@MrALEG213]

What front bar is that?

[@avoumvakis]

coastal off road bumpers

[@davidsteinhour5562]

500 miles for 30 gallons of diesel is pretty disappointing. A Sienna AWD with a JOR 3.5" lift kit would have similar ground clearance and tire fitment to this rig (although no low range), but get about 5mpg better AND has fantastic parts availability. AND it's easier to service. AND it'll comfortably do 85mph+, where a Delica struggles with 70mph. Shoot, a healthy Suburban can get better MPG than that and it's not costly diesel. If I wanted to go slowly and drink fuel in a mid-engined overland vehicle, I'd build out a Pinzgauer. I think these Delicas are a rad concept and they sure look great, but the reality seems a bit lackluster.

[@edwardpeters4700]

Andy! Showing off the JDM goods

[@paulpetraitis2130]

Not too impressed with the van but all the stuff done to it is very impressive!

[@johnsykes706]

18mpg seems a little high, I think you may need a tune up.

[@fahmitl]

good bro .... adventurous

[@TheNotimprezed]

Mileage is much worse that I expected from a small turbodiesel.

[@TheNotimprezed]

@@C10sRule yeah but its worse than my 5.0 F150 leveled on 33s.

[@TheNotimprezed]

@@C10sRule stock my truck always returned about 21mpg. My commute is highway and I usually set the cruise at 65mph and would routinely travel 700 miles on a 36 gallon tank, but would always be filled by about 32.5 gallons. The stock tire was a dynapro atm at about 32". The front level and 33s has only dropped about about 1.5 mpg, the truck still goes 620-640 miles on a tank, again needed between 32 and 33 gallons to fill.

[@MrEnglischjules]

yup. I have the L400 but my daily is the Pajaro, same engine, running gear etc. and its pretty pretty poor really.

[@robertogonzalez290]

13:10 how to catch a hipster off guard

[@Brinn-tergalactic-planetary]

Damnn I wish mine was this clean but dude you can easily do a setup for $2k-3k + a fridge legit just copy a setup like this instead of buying it

[@damilolaakanni]

I'm not sure if Sprinters are great offroad. At least they don't look like they are. Plus, you don't really need to spend $100k on a new Sprinter, there are used ones you could find for less than half the price of a new one.

[@dominicgreen115]

What's going on with the camera work?

[@mistert1097]

That must have been a long slow ride across the country

[@crankshaftculture]

Actually, it wasn't too bad. It happily cruises at 70 and has passing power, compared to our Pajeros and former L300.

[@douglaslorin739]

​@@crankshaftcultureHave you ever had an opportunity to drive an L400 with an automatic transmission and compare it to your manual example?

[@crankshaftculture]

@@douglaslorin739 No, I haven't. Only my manual one.

[@etteyafed]

“Don’t buy a $100k sprinter, just buy this much smaller, very old, also fairly expensive,and extremely rare, mitsubishi minivan instead.” Yeah sure dude I’ll get right on that plan.

[@David.D3]

These vans are fairly expensive, are right hand drive, and most come in manual. Most Americans can't do that. I think an AWD Astrovan/Safari is rhe best budget van.

[@NoxNoctisUmbra]

You can always buy an older Toyota minivan.

[@Shauburbs]

I got one for 14k with 22k miles in auto. So no complaints here haha. Right hand isn’t hard to get used to either.

[@stageworker23]

Got mine for 2k .. sent another 1.500 it and its a beast 💪

[@BYLRPhil]

I’d rather have this van than a Sprinter any day of the week…

[@kierancasey1135]

Everyone and I mean everyone outside of the US knows about the Delicia great 4x4 but will leave you in the bush when the engine blows it’s the fatal flaw with them

[@tombryant4518]

Yep! It’s not a matter of IF the head will fail on the diesels, but WHEN.

[@kiwionarope]

Any 4x4 will leave you in the bush if the engine blows...

[@yolandaschartner9345]

I didn't know. What about the gas-powered delicas. Do they also have this flaw?

[@renflo86]

Bad ass!

[@OleNasty79]

Want to see it hit the TFL Tumbleweed course

[@EnjoyFirefighting]

of course you don't need a Sprinter, but thatfor you get only a very compact van

[@damilolaakanni]

You could just get a used Sprinter if you feel you need one.

[@tallll70]

krtek heard everything

[@ryzen397]

i like it

[@spec24]

No need? Really? Sorry, but you can pretty much get the same effect doing this with any SUV or truck. People buy $100K+ Sprinters because you can actually live INSIDE of them, not outside of them.

[@ruimachado8560]

I'l say JEEP should build a van on the Gladiator Frame....just sayin' ...

[@williamsweet2253]

We have… 😂

[@AgentXRifle]

Buying parts is a bitch and with an offroader you kinda want parts to be available…

[@MrEnglischjules]

sure the Monero is the name for the US spec Shogun/Pajero. So a lot of parts are available.... oh and people use the internet today, to get parts that have to come from the other side of the planet, which isnt that hard to do now

[@chris-gh4cd]

Perfect van for those lonely 5’3” kings who watch too much anime

[@Shauburbs]

I’m 6’ and my girlfriend, me, and two 80lb dogs fit fine. They’re a decent size van in person.

[@30smsuperstrat]

Do you know the payload on this? Don't know. Don't care. We're overlanders. 😆

[@phillip.9524]

They are not big in Australia you see them every Blue moon…..🇦🇺

[@Qwiv]

To bad States are Banning that vehicle specifically

[@petelattimer6808]

they werent sold in the UK either because they were deemed too unstable. i believe many parts of western Europe hals didnt sell them. you CAN get them, but theyre all imported from Japan. i knew a guy who imported them and the pajero/Shogun with the 2.5 diesel engine, and EVERY SINGLE ONE had to have the injector pump removed and refurbed to get them to run as they should and get through the UK annual MOT emissions test.

[@crankshaftculture]

It's only Maine that is outright pulling registrations on them. I actually was the person who broke the story on this. - Andy

[@Qwiv]

@@crankshaftculture what happened with Rhodesia Island?

[@Qwiv]

@@crankshaftculture they are also illegal in California, but due to the 39 year rule.

[@crankshaftculture]

@@Qwiv Last check, Rhode Island was pulling kei car regs, not Delica. Some DMVs mistake Delicas for kei cars until they see them in person.

[@fraserhenderson7839]

why drive when you can just blather on...

[@lutomson3496]

Stop insulting our intelligence lot of us have heard and seen these and their is 4wheeling in Japan more idiocy and arrogance by TFL

[@Kaywonlee]

Go to home depot and grab wood and shit and build them lots cheaper than 7 grands. Jesus this is super commercialized B.S.

[@vikoffroader3374]

The owner of it is full of himself

[@crankshaftculture]

I am? 🤣

[@martinmyers1461]

Lol no actually he’s not. One of the nicest people I’ve ever met.

[@brickcollect6627]

@@martinmyers1461 hey Martin, I am from Canada and I have a JDM Toyota Alphard which I just imported recently. I am now looking for a place where I can customize my bumpers just like you did it. Would you mind to give more details about it? Thanks