Paisano3352
New member
Hello everyone,
First off I’d like to say this is my very first thread and hope not to annoy you with repetitive questions that may have been answered at nauseum on here. I live in the South Florida area and starting the early stages of an epic road trip with my son who will soon be 14. The plan is to slowly work our way up to a cross country trip and possibly head south to South America in the next few years when he is able to join me in the driving. We’ve been looking for a rig that will be able to sustain a long road trip and obviously handle on and off road situations. My vehicle choices are a 3rd or 4th gen 4Runner, Lexus GX470, or Mits Montero. I’m trying to stay below 5k to 10k price range knowing we’ll want to customize it, do necessary maintenance, repairs, etc as we grow with the vehicle and the experiences we have leading up to the extended road trips.
The problem I’m finding is that I’m coming across mostly dealers or brokers selling junk rigs with the typical used salesmen pitches. I’ve been taking my time looking and have avoided some real headaches and downright scams. This includes a 4Runner with the odometer rolled back 120,000 miles from 240,000!! There is a nice limited 3rd gen with supposedly 100k miles with the rear locker at $9,500. Looks mechanically sound and little rust. Don’t know if to pull the trigger on it or keep looking. It just seems people are starting to get crazy with asking prices on these rigs and I’m trying to budget something where we’ll have money for the unforeseen repairs, maintenance and gradual build. You guys tell me. Any sound advice will be welcomed. The typical jokes are also always welcomed. Also my mechanical skills are very basic and would most likely look to others for necessary customizations. Probably the biggest job I’ve done on a vehicle is replace the valve covers, starters, and things along those lines. Yet, I won’t be afraid to get my hands dirty with my son. I’m amazed at the things you guys do on your own with your rigs. It is inspiring.
Thanks again!
First off I’d like to say this is my very first thread and hope not to annoy you with repetitive questions that may have been answered at nauseum on here. I live in the South Florida area and starting the early stages of an epic road trip with my son who will soon be 14. The plan is to slowly work our way up to a cross country trip and possibly head south to South America in the next few years when he is able to join me in the driving. We’ve been looking for a rig that will be able to sustain a long road trip and obviously handle on and off road situations. My vehicle choices are a 3rd or 4th gen 4Runner, Lexus GX470, or Mits Montero. I’m trying to stay below 5k to 10k price range knowing we’ll want to customize it, do necessary maintenance, repairs, etc as we grow with the vehicle and the experiences we have leading up to the extended road trips.
The problem I’m finding is that I’m coming across mostly dealers or brokers selling junk rigs with the typical used salesmen pitches. I’ve been taking my time looking and have avoided some real headaches and downright scams. This includes a 4Runner with the odometer rolled back 120,000 miles from 240,000!! There is a nice limited 3rd gen with supposedly 100k miles with the rear locker at $9,500. Looks mechanically sound and little rust. Don’t know if to pull the trigger on it or keep looking. It just seems people are starting to get crazy with asking prices on these rigs and I’m trying to budget something where we’ll have money for the unforeseen repairs, maintenance and gradual build. You guys tell me. Any sound advice will be welcomed. The typical jokes are also always welcomed. Also my mechanical skills are very basic and would most likely look to others for necessary customizations. Probably the biggest job I’ve done on a vehicle is replace the valve covers, starters, and things along those lines. Yet, I won’t be afraid to get my hands dirty with my son. I’m amazed at the things you guys do on your own with your rigs. It is inspiring.
Thanks again!