Some new family wheels

With a growing family, the time has come that we buy something a little bigger. Our Toyota Camry’s a great commuter car but not so great for camping, snowboarding, kite boarding and our many adventures into the BC back country. We both knew there was no Dodge Mini Van in our future. We just didn’t want to cave to that trend and besides, they don’t come in 4 wheel drive.

Ever since we moved to BC in 2005 and had a glimpse of the Mitsubishi Delicas and we both knew this vehicle was designed for our lifestyle. It’s not a new vehicle as they’re from Japan and in order to import them, they must be over 10 years old. That was fine by us as we’d rather drive a used car than buy a new one. The whole reduce, reuse, recycle mantra is important to us.

The original Delica model we looked at was a 1990 to 1994 Delica L300 Super Exceed. It’s a 4 wheel drive, 4 cylinder 2.8L turbo diesel van and they look like this one. This photo of course is of a new very mint Delica that are very hard to find. Also, they’re right hand drive which makes them a little different for us Canadians used to left hand drive.

After doing our research and talking to a few veteran Delica owners, we started looking more seriously at the Delica L400. These are the newer models and look like this one below. They’re still 4 wheel drive turbo diesels but Mitsubishi worked out many of the kinks and issues that the L300’s had. They also upgraded the engine and of course the over all look.

After searching for weeks, we finally found one that we liked and will serve as the basis for our Delica project. On the weekend, my wife and I finally purchased our Delica and we’re excited to customize it to our liking and take it on some new adventures.

Here are some pics of our new 1996 Delica L400 Super Exceed.

 

Specifications

• 1996 Delica L400 Super Exceed 4×4, PE8W
• 2.8 Liter Turbo Diesel
• Power Steering, Air Conditioning, Power Windows
• 7 Seater with 2nd Row Captain Seats
• Chrome Bush Guard, Side Steps, Original Alloy Rims,
• Crystal Lite Roof, Power Shades, Sunroof & Tinted Windows

Future Modification Ideas

We’re looking at doing some modifications to our new Delica in the coming year. Mainly we’re thinking of a 2″ lift and some bigger off road tires, a solid roof rack and rear ladder for gear. We’re also looking at some modifications for a bed in the back for camping and a bike rack for shuttling up the mountain for riding the Squamish Mountain bike trails.

Delica Videos

These vehicles are quite impressive and many have put them to some interesting tests. Check out some videos below.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFzGOlJU_to&w=560&h=315]

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWHDAwai_PU&w=420&h=315]

Additional Delica Resources

If you’re interested in more information about Delica’s, here are some resources that I found to be useful and interesting.

• www.delica.ca – An entire website with forum and active community on the subject of Delica’s
• www.delica.ca/Photos – Photo’s of many Delica’s
• www.delicaclub.com – Another forum in Australia
• www.mdocuk.co.uk/forums/ – Delica Owners club in the UK
• rs-import.ca – Dealer: Rising Sun Imports (This is where we bought our Delica)
• www.amazingautoimports.com –  Dealer
• www.silkroadautos.com –  Dealer
• dinoevo.de – Cool project site for a Delica L300
• www.delica.ca/forum/monster-delica-s-8357.html – Some pics of Monster Delica’s