travelling africa involves always a delicate question: which is the most suitable vehicle for safaris for all sorts of tracks: gravel, deep sand, black cotton soil etc.
is there anybody who has got the clue?
looking forward to hearing wise advise

Good question that is not easy to answer because it depends on the situation and your driving skills.

If you want a ´tracktor´that will get you through all terrain, I suggest the Land-Rover.
Nearly as good, but much more comfortable is the Land-Cruiser.
The old Suzuki Jeep is a cheap and reliable alternative, but you will suffer because it offers no comfort at all (hence the nick name = Kidney Crusher). I guess, today you will find them hard to get anyhow.

Everything else, to me is a fashion toy. From Hummer down to Suzuki Vitara or Toyota RAV, they look like off-road cars, but don´t offer much compared to the two mentioned in the beginning. If you don´t pay attention where you are going, you will get stuck or ruin the car.

Now, do you need a Land-Rover/Cruiser?
If you want to drive around blindly and go everywhere, no matter how muddy it is, yes. During the rainy season, yes. Swampy areas, yes.

If you want to drive around in Tsavo, Nairobi NP, Samburu etc. - no. I have driven around endless times in Tsavo with a normal Toyota Corolla saloon car

However, there is another aspect to consider and that is pot-holes. Especially now, after such heavy rains, many roads are washed away and you will end up with narrow ridges of tarmac standing out high between the soil. In this case it makes sense to have a car that is a little bit higher off the ground than a normal saloon car.

If you do take a cheaper 4x4 car, make sure it has a differencial lock. For those who don´t know what that is, here a short explanation: When you go around a corner with a car, the wheel on the inside of the corner actually stops turning and ´waits´for the outside wheel to catch up because it has a longer way. The stupid thing is, if one wheel is in a muddy whole and spins, the other wheel will simply sit there doing nothing. Hence, you don´t get anywhere. In this case you lock the differencial (Usually a mechanism on the center of the wheel itself where the axle leads into the rim). Once locked, both wheels will turn equally and the one which has grip will pull the other one out of the whole. This is exceptional fun when you have been watching lions for some time and when you want to leave you realize you are stuck and getting out of your car to lock the differencial is your only way out It has happened to me but luckily those seconds outside the car went by with only sceptical looks from both sides
On the other hand you shouldn´t have the differencial lock activated all the time because you will ruin the tires in no time, the dust you create increases increadibly and on the car becomes very noisy as one wheel will be scidding and sliding even on slightest turns.

If you can afford it, I take a Land-Cruiser or Pajero for all Safaris and a Land-Rover if you really want to go into deep mud.

P.S. A Land-Rover is also what we used to drive from Germany to Kenya crossing the Sahara Dessert and the Congo-Basin.

carsten, you are really a gem! an invaluable treasure box!
thanks for all the explanations!
we had a toyota hilux in nambia and the driving was quite okay - even when it was deep soapy mud! but it would not serve the tracks in northern botswana with that deep deep sand!
thanks also for that lenghty explanation regarding this differentialsperre - of course i had heard it but till 5 min. ago i would not have known what it meant!

Welcome, pippa

About soft sand: Usually soft sand is not everywhere, so before you get stuck it is sometimes worth it to get out and walk around a little bit to see where the hard patches are. With speed and a fairly powerful car you can usually get from one hard patch to the next. It also helps to reduce pressure in the tires in such a case.

Of course, all these suggestions are useless, if you are in a national park where you can´t walk around and if you don´t have an electric pump, you better leave the pressure in the tires

I think it depends on how many you are in the car and for what use.

If it is to purchse then I would suggest stick to Japanese as you will get spare parts and better deals.
For general safaris I would also suggest a good 4 x 4 land cruiser with good tyres and grip.

However lets be honest, if you are not really going into swamps, smaller 4x4 will be good as well.

It is a hard question - I think Bwanamich can nswer that best.

Original von Nico
I think it depends on how many you are in the car and for what use.

If it is to purchse then I would suggest stick to Japanese as you will get spare parts and better deals.
For general safaris I would also suggest a good 4 x 4 land cruiser with good tyres and grip.

However lets be honest, if you are not really going into swamps, smaller 4x4 will be good as well.

It is a hard question - I think Bwanamich can nswer that best.

thanks a lot nico and carsten!
i have been thinking of this question for years as in botswana - with often really havy terrain - they mostly use land-cruiser. in kenya and tanzania they often use land-rover. and each and every time when i ask why they decided on this particular brand i get the most bizzar explanations.
that was the reason to put that question here because i knew by my stomach that you get me the right explanations
by the way: i am dreaming of becoming rich so that i can buy myself either car and deposit them in the country of my choice just in order to have it ready as soon as i touch down

thanks again guys - great job!