A (2005) Mitsubishi L300, something that dribbled out of the sales brochures in Britain at the turn of the millennium. This is the face lifted model which I'm pretty sure wasn't made available in the UK. As you can see, the cab-over seating position and Leslie Ash bumper treatment make for a comedy front overhang.
Not sure how useful such an addition would have been with a 4x4 Fun*Bus version, a la I.K.B.
Round the back, very little has changed since its launch in 1986, bar some colour coded bumpers and slightly updated tail lights. Not sure whether a LWB was available at launch but this is one, for 'Scatter's spotting notes. Note also that this is a diesel version; more of that later. If little has changed outside, I doubt that anything whatsoever has happened inside. Luxury passenger compartment with bonus foot warmer for central front row passenger:
Aged yet inoffensive dash, though the pointlessly massive steering wheel centre was lol-worthy
No column shift here! Still has the steering column snaking between the pedals, to fend of any rally driving tendencies. Ill-fitting floor mat is a nice addition - I guess the foot rest was a bit of an afterthought and the guys at the waffle mat factory weren't notified.
All the red paint, grey vinyl and exposed screws on the dainty grab handles took me straight back to my Dad's povo-spec 1988 Daihatsu Domino (it didn't even come with the natty wheel trims, which I coveted at the time).
So, I'm sure you're all wondering what it was like to drive? Well, I have to confess that I did a similar thing for a wedding a few months back and had used this very same van at the time but hadn't had chance to take any photos. Back then, the weather wasn't great and as a result, it wasn't too enjoyable. Initially, the susceptibility to cross winds was striking, as was the general feeling of unease which comes with sitting right above the steering wheels and encountering your first high speed bend. It did feel fast, though and the gear change seemingly had a very short throw. Naturally, for such a recent van it came with power steering, which is neither lifeless nor communicative, just OK.
This time (as you can see from the photos) we'd been experiencing a long hot dry spell, the type of which makes driving anything on mostly clear roads enjoyable. It seems to handle better with a full load and acceleration doesn't appear to have been too affected, though naturally I was favouring smooth and steady in these situations. When it was empty though I gave it some beans and on one particular return trip I decided to see how fast I could get it on the long straight in to town; an indicated 145km/h, so not too shabby at all. I even managed to overtake Mrs_Jon in her 205 just after leaving a stop junction when returning it the next day, though she reckons she was daydreaming at the time. Cabin noise was loud in these situations but that's to be expected in something without a bulkhead or any effective sound deadening. Naturally, the stereo was crap despite the modernity of a CD player but then I've managed to take or leave music in my cars (most I've owned haven't had one in when I bought them, or were equally crap and weren't upgraded) so I just switched it off and enjoyed the slight whistle of the turbo, instead. Brimming the tank on return seemed to suggest 27mpg economy, though I was driving more for speed than budget and I reckon it would've made 30+mpg very easily, so not too bad for a brick.
All in all, I reckon I could live with one of these. Our long term desire for a home built camper van could quite easily be realised with an L300 but I've a feeling that the ones within our budget would be far less enjoyable, or rapid. Plus, it only takes one look at a European van before the layout seems hideously outdated. Fellow firemen reckon that drivers don't fare too well in crashes in cab over vans but then if I fretted over such issues, I'd sell all our old cars tbh. What really won me over was the utilitarian yet adequateaspect of it and the feeling that nothing whatsoever would cost a fortune to replace, unlike many new vans. And that's the thing - you can still buy these brand new over here (albeit petrol only)!
http://www.mmnz.co.nz/l300/
RRP seems to start at £15000 but I've seen new ones locally one offer for nearer £120000.
