FJ80 or 3rd gen 4Runner. What would be a better expo truck?

[cruiseroutfit]

...I see more Subaru Foresters on dirt than I see built up 80's...the LC's get more time at the mall than anywhere else. Honestly I can't
remember the last time I saw an 80 on dirt...and I am on the dirt often. Plenty of Subies though...

Chalk up one more reason I don't live in Tucson. Can't speak for your travels, but they obviously are the same places Honda Civic's go... glad we are traveling in different places. I'd be happy to give you a list of the places I went in 2013 that a Civic (or Subie) isn't comfortably going if at all

 

[Clutch]

Chalk up one more reason I don't live in Tucson. Can't speak for your travels, but they obviously are the same places Honda Civic's go... glad we are traveling in different places. I'd be happy to give you a list of the places I went in 2013 that a Civic (or Subie) isn't comfortably going if at all

Where I go mostly, the best built up LC80's couldn't go...we just use the 4WD roads as connectors. Rare you see an "expedition" vehicle on them, if at all.

Oh, you know as well as me...most of the people on here could get by with a car.

Just find it funny what some think you "must" have to get out there.

 

[Life_in_4Lo]

Land Cruiser = Toyota's final word on suv vehicle exploration. That is it's mission statement.
Solid axles are simple and durable. Toyota had no intention to make a "rock crawler".
If you want to throw a rock on a map and go there... that's the 80's strong suit.

It's also the last Toyota w solid axles & full lockers in the USA.
Simple and robust, you just maintain it and it goes forever.
The build quality and design are of a standard long gone (like pre-95 Mercedes, that 'overbuilt' quality is long gone in this disposable design world).
That's quite special. At least I think so. It's the only vehicle i've had no desire to sell, and I've had people offer.

4Runner is a great mix with plenty of on-road attributes to make it more car friendly.
4th gen 4Runners are outstanding, and mix great build with capability and similar dimensions to the 80.
(except the low roofline, which would affect taller folk maybe)

I like the 3rd gens a lot. They are great.
But I feel that the 4th gen and 5th gen are the best 4Runners ever.
They mix sporty, lux and offroad into a great package. And, they are very reasonable on the used market.

Whatever you get, don't forget to set aside a few grand for upkeep.
Good luck

 

[98OzarksRunner]

And to say you only need a front locker for rock crawling is ridiculous.

Cheers

Sorry, I wasn't referring to the locker, though that is a good feature. I was thinking of durability - solid axle vs. IFS. Solid axle is obviously stronger, but for a DD that will see the use the OP listed, does it need a solid axle?

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Where I go mostly, the best built up LC80's couldn't go...we just use the 4WD roads as connectors. Rare you see an "expedition" vehicle on them, if at all...

Touche, then again, I don't even know what an expedition is these days. Seems it has gone from weeks in the back country to an afternoon recovery on a local fire road

Nice bike btw, I ride a 450XCW. Far from a proficient rider but I wreck less often You race?


Back to the thread. One vehicle that is really under rated in my opinion is the V8 model 4th gen 4Runners. The 2UZ is an absolute workhorse & solid motor and in the lighter platform of the 4Runner it is a blast to drive imo. Enough motor to do some light towing but better fuel economy than the 80 Series (and 100 Series). I don't know where your budget is but I've seen some in the $12-15k range with moderately low miles, I don't know that you will find an 80 in similar 'readiness' for the same money, i.e. cost + clean-up maintenance. If the $12k range isn't out of bounds, you should get what you want and pickup a 70 Series. Relatively clean and low click BJ74's are in the $12-16k range, obviously the cleaner and lower miles the higher end of the price bracket.

 

[Ryanmb21]

Don't 4runners have more payload than land cruisers?

 

[Clutch]

Touche, then again, I don't even know what an expedition is these days. Seems it has gone from weeks in the back country to an afternoon recovery on a local fire road

Nice bike btw, I ride a 450XCW. Far from a proficient rider but I wreck less often You race?

Bummer...I haven't been on a long trip for quite some time. We are moving to Idaho this up coming summer, where I am going to take about a year off of work...to finally go play and explore.

That is my buddy Bill at Sycamore (note his sandbagger "C" class backgrounds) I do not race anymore.

I have a Gas Gas now, but eyeballing the new Huskies. (errr white KTM's)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KlfP5N6Oo0

Back to the thread. One vehicle that is really under rated in my opinion is the V8 model 4th gen 4Runners. The 2UZ is an absolute workhorse & solid motor and in the lighter platform of the 4Runner it is a blast to drive imo.

Very underrated (I suggested it early in the thread ) I am seeing some around the 120K mile mark around $10K. Will go darn near all the places the 80 will go, plus be more comfortable, and less thirsty. Those 4.7 V8's are a great motor....the 4.0 V6's are great too.

Can be built up quite nicely too.

link

 

[rc51kid]

Thanks for the opinions. This is really what i want to hear about. It sounds like the 3rd gen 3.4 is a pretty good power plant. I was originally attracted to the 4Runner for the MPG. But looking at the 97 80 vs. 97 4wd auto 4runner looks like about 14mpg to 18mpg hwy. Does that sound right? We recently drove to Memphis TN for a marathon. My math shows that the 4Runner would have cost about $145 and the LC about $188. I am trying to decide how i feel about that. It adds up but not really THAT much more.

I have started to see some 4th gens that i would buy for around $8500-9500. But i have also found a few older (not so nice) 3rd gens cheap. A local guy has a 98 4runner with 177,xxx miles and 4WD for sale. It has a ripped up front seat and the interior looks a little dirty. But the body looks pretty straight. he says it drives and shifts well with a clean title. He is only asking $3,300. I am sure it needs a lot of servicing. But for the money saved with it i could easily do new suspension, brakes and coolant system. Even a well maintained one with 120,000 will need some of that stuff but the usually cost several thousand more. This one has got me looking a little more at some of these "rougher" 3rd gens for cheap that need a little love. Obviously the trany needs to shift smoothly and the engine will need good compression for it to be a good deal. I dont mind replacing parts that were out but i dont want to rebuild a bottom end.

 

[fireball]

I would base your decision on what you want the final build to look like. We started building up our 3rd gen, but with 2 kids, an 80lb dog and a penchant for not packing light, we easily overloaded it for anything longer than a 1-2 day trip. We got a great deal on it, but it's lived its life in the NE so didn't make a lot of sense to drop lots of $$ into it. If you think a relatively stock 3rd gen will meet your needs then I think it's an awesome choice. If you're planning on F&R bumpers, winch, skids, and loading it full of stuff then the 80-series is IMO better suited.

So we got a 100-series and am in the process of building that up and I believe we made the right choice for us. It'll handle the extra weight better and is big enough to fit us and all of our stuff comfortably.

Funny though, I prefer wheeling the 4R because of it's smaller size and lighter weight. And your comment about MPG is spot on, not that big of a difference. Our 3.4L 4R gets 15-18mpg. The 100 gets 13-15.5mpg.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Bummer...I haven't been on a long trip for quite some time. We are moving to Idaho this up coming summer, where I am going to take about a year off of work...to finally go play and explore. ...

Perhaps we need to change that, depending on where you land in Idaho you'll be within a days travel of many of our local adventures, both on 2-wheels and 4. I'm hoping to do a Utah Converse on 2-wheels, basically the identical route we did for the UCEIII trip: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/48929. Depending on how/when we do it, a sag truck may be wise but takes a bit of the appeal out. Course if you have any vehicles 80's and older you need to be joining us for the Relic Run and Retro Ramble events, I don't think we have had an Idaho participant in a few years?

 

[Box Rocket]

With similar SUV bodies I would go with the 80 series everytime over the 4runner. All of my reasons have already been mentioned. In addition, build quality if the cruisers is so much better and the cruiser will feel tighter after many hard miles than a 4runner will.

 

[p nut]

Thanks for the opinions. This is really what i want to hear about. It sounds like the 3rd gen 3.4 is a pretty good power plant. I was originally attracted to the 4Runner for the MPG. But looking at the 97 80 vs. 97 4wd auto 4runner looks like about 14mpg to 18mpg hwy. Does that sound right? We recently drove to Memphis TN for a marathon. My math shows that the 4Runner would have cost about $145 and the LC about $188. I am trying to decide how i feel about that. It adds up but not really THAT much more.

3.4L is a great engine. I've had a few and never have been let down. If I were single or +1, I would get the 4Runner. LC is great, but 4Runner doesn't give up much, if anything at all, in capability. Better MPG, cheaper acquisition cost, cheaper maintenance, cheaper mods, etc. all favor the 4Runner. BTW, I got 21-22MPG on the freeway on a consistent bases (100% stock). 32" tires took it down to 19-20MPG. Look for a 99-00 Limited or Highlander.

That said, my 100 LC is far more comfortable on long trips. Seats are fantastic and riding a larger vehicle over rough roads does quiet down the chatter. Plus, passenger and cargo capacity is welcome as well (family of 4).

 

[Milo902]

May I suggest spending some time behind the wheel of each? While I haven't ever driven (or even sat in) a land cruiser of any vintage, I would guess they drive quite a bit different than a 3rd gen due to size, weight, & suspension design. All the vehicles suggested in this thread are going to be solid choices, go drive a few, and get the one that puts the biggest grin on your face. Isn't that what really matters?

 

[bkg]

May I suggest spending some time behind the wheel of each? While I haven't ever driven (or even sat in) a land cruiser of any vintage, I would guess they drive quite a bit different than a 3rd gen due to size, weight, & suspension design. All the vehicles suggested in this thread are going to be solid choices, go drive a few, and get the one that puts the biggest grin on your face. Isn't that what really matters?

best suggestion in this thread.

 

[4D55 Performance]

Get the Landcruiser. People will take you more serious and respect you more. It's all about looks. No, in all seriousness I would get the Cruiser because it is the flagship SUV. It.s a great ride. If I was looking at the 4runner I would consider other SUV's like the Montero, Xterra and Trooper. I think there is more value in these other models. I would keep an open mind.

As for the Cruisers, they are great rides. I have had two LX450's and loved them both. They are not perfect and they have their short comings, but so do most rigs. Just like everyone else I could give you my opinion about which is best but I believe it just depends on you type of offroad use. For me, neither is ideal for my needs at this time. I like rides with lots of headroom and legroom and both are lacking in these areas.