GX470 vs. LR3 (overland rig)

[zelatore]

most rover guys have zero experience with Toyotas and you all are talking from ignorance. :-D it seems to me from reading this post that you are getting butt hurt. As you went on a long rant about how reliable rovers are and how youre not a Toyota fan boy but are a rover fan boy.

Let's stick to facts. In fact, I never went on a 'long rant' about Rover reliability. In fact, I never said anything one way or the other except to point out that one poster in particular was attempting to compare an LR3 to a Series 3 truck - two vehicles literally decades apart. Nor did I ever disparage Land Cruisers. The only negative thing I said about toyotas at all was related to the one Paseo that I did have experience with, and while that vehicle was truly awful, it has about as much to do with a cruiser as a Series 3 truck does with an LR3 - which is why I deliberately left that as a sidebar.

But you've made your point - outside opinions will not be tolerated here. Have a nice day. :wavey:

 

[toylandcruiser]

Let's stick to facts. In fact, I never went on a 'long rant' about Rover reliability. In fact, I never said anything one way or the other except to point out that one poster in particular was attempting to compare an LR3 to a Series 3 truck - two vehicles literally decades apart. Nor did I ever disparage Land Cruisers. The only negative thing I said about toyotas at all was related to the one Paseo that I did have experience with, and while that vehicle was truly awful, it has about as much to do with a cruiser as a Series 3 truck does with an LR3 - which is why I deliberately left that as a sidebar.

But you've made your point - outside opinions will not be tolerated here. Have a nice day. :wavey:

I remember you saying that Toyota reliability is over blown and rover unreliability is over blown

 

[zelatore]

I remember you saying that Toyota reliability is over blown and rover unreliability is over blown

Now that I would agree with. I do suspect the cruiser is more reliable than the Rover. However I don't think it's at the mythic level some have attributed to it. After all, it's still a production mechanical device...things can and do break. On the other hand we have comment about how at 100K miles a Rover would be a pile of junk in the driveway good for nothing but the tow truck. Obviously a ridiculous overstatement. As an example, my LR3 has about 130K miles on it, with the last 3 years being HARD trail miles. It doesn't leak a drop, is on all original powertrain, and though I have had failures they have largely been of my own doing. i.e. substituting cheaper aftermarket parts instead of OEM. I can point you to plenty of other LR3s far in excess of 100K miles and going strong just in my local club.

There is an opinion among non-owners that anything Rover is a disaster. I would just suggest talking to some of the owners of later model trucks (meaning LR3-on) and I think you'll find those old stories are largely misplaced. Is a Rover for everybody? Certainly not, but I get tired of hearing trash talk. Are cruisers good trucks? Certainly. However I think you sell yourself short if you disregard the LR3/4 because a friend's brother's nephew once had a D2 that broke.

 

[toylandcruiser]

Now that I would agree with. I do suspect the cruiser is more reliable than the Rover. However I don't think it's at the mythic level some have attributed to it. After all, it's still a production mechanical device...things can and do break. On the other hand we have comment about how at 100K miles a Rover would be a pile of junk in the driveway good for nothing but the tow truck. Obviously a ridiculous overstatement. As an example, my LR3 has about 130K miles on it, with the last 3 years being HARD trail miles. It doesn't leak a drop, is on all original powertrain, and though I have had failures they have largely been of my own doing. i.e. substituting cheaper aftermarket parts instead of OEM. I can point you to plenty of other LR3s far in excess of 100K miles and going strong just in my local club.

There is an opinion among non-owners that anything Rover is a disaster. I would just suggest talking to some of the owners of later model trucks (meaning LR3-on) and I think you'll find those old stories are largely misplaced. Is a Rover for everybody? Certainly not, but I get tired of hearing trash talk. Are cruisers good trucks? Certainly. However I think you sell yourself short if you disregard the LR3/4 because a friend's brother's nephew once had a D2 that broke.

Well ignorance is bliss I guess. You've never owned one so you wouldnt know right?

 

[Klierslc]

As an example, my LR3 has about 130K miles on it, with the last 3 years being HARD trail miles. It doesn't leak a drop, is on all original powertrain, and though I have had failures they have largely been of my own doing. i.e. substituting cheaper aftermarket parts instead of OEM. I can point you to plenty of other LR3s far in excess of 100K miles and going strong just in my local club.
.

Substitute all of your 100k figures for 200k figures and this could have been about Land Cruisers....

How many 300k LR3s are out there? I am sure there are a few, but the GX has an identical drivetrain to a 100 series and there are a lot of those that have smashed through 300k...

 

[zelatore]

Guys....you seem to think my comments in defense of the LR3 are somehow an attack on cruisers. Not so - I've never said anything bad about them. Plenty of people think very highly of them. Just because I prefer product X doesn't mean product Y is terrible. I happen to prefer Smith and Wesson revolvers to Ruger ... doesn't mean Ruger makes crap handguns. But if a Ruger owner wants to diss S&W with no first hand experience I'd feel obligated to suggest a second opinion might be in order.

RE: 300K LR3s, I don't know any personally but yes there are some with very high miles running around on places like DiscoWeb. They first appeared in '05 and most of them in the US seem to be in the 100-150K range these days. (mine is about 130K) Given a typical US driver with 10K/year mileage that makes sense. They were sold as 'luxury' vehicles and did not have the utilitarian variants some of the cruisers had (a drawback in my eyes but not to the public at large) so you don't tend to see them racking up huge miles since they are often only one of an owner's multiple vehicles.

 

[MTSN]

I'm no toyota fan and if asked would of course favor the Rover, but not at the point of claiming the toyota was junk. I've never owned one myself so I'm not really in a position to comment.

(The wife did own a toyota long ago and from my experiences with it it WAS junk, but it wasn't a cruiser, it was a Paseo. Rather different.)

Trying to extrapolate some sort of relevance of a modern Land Cruiser to an ancient Paseo...

 

[MTSN]

Guys....you seem to think my comments in defense of the LR3 are somehow an attack on cruisers. Not so - I've never said anything bad about them. Plenty of people think very highly of them. Just because I prefer product X doesn't mean product Y is terrible. I happen to prefer Smith and Wesson revolvers to Ruger ... doesn't mean Ruger makes crap handguns. But if a Ruger owner wants to diss S&W with no first hand experience I'd feel obligated to suggest a second opinion might be in order.

RE: 300K LR3s, I don't know any personally but yes there are some with very high miles running around on places like DiscoWeb. They first appeared in '05 and most of them in the US seem to be in the 100-150K range these days. (mine is about 130K) Given a typical US driver with 10K/year mileage that makes sense. They were sold as 'luxury' vehicles and did not have the utilitarian variants some of the cruisers had (a drawback in my eyes but not to the public at large) so you don't tend to see them racking up huge miles since they are often only one of an owner's multiple vehicles.

How many LRs built in the last 30 years have you seen that have racked up nearly half a million miles on the original drivetrain that are also off road rigs?

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/1999-100-series-mild-expedition-build-465-000-miles.959377/

Oh and there's the 2007 Tundra that has over a million miles on it (shares most of the same drivetrain as the 200 series LC).

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2016/08/an-up-close-look-the-million-mile-toyota-tundra.html

Can't forget about the basic Sequoia and Tundra that drove around the world covering 80k miles and 69 countries, but sure Toyota reliability is totally overblown and exaggerated. :ylsmoke:

http://theworldbyroad.com/drive-around-the-world-expedition/

 

[toylandcruiser]

How many LRs built in the last 30 years have you seen that have racked up nearly half a million miles on the original drivetrain that are also off road rigs?

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/1999-100-series-mild-expedition-build-465-000-miles.959377/

Oh and there's the 2007 Tundra that has over a million miles on it (shares most of the same drivetrain as the 200 series LC).

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2016/08/an-up-close-look-the-million-mile-toyota-tundra.html

Can't forget about the basic Sequoia and Tundra that drove around the world covering 80k miles and 69 countries, but sure Toyota reliability is totally overblown and exaggerated. :ylsmoke:

http://theworldbyroad.com/drive-around-the-world-expedition/

We need a like button on this forum

 

[ChadHahn]

When I was planning my trip to Namibia I was looking on the internet for a place to rent a truck and I found this site. http://www.bushlore.com/Vehicles.asp Here is what they say about the Toyota Land Cruiser 78 - 4X4 Bushcamper:

Prominent Features

The most respected 4x4 safari vehicle in Africa with a user friendly camp and combined safari setup for the ultimate overland vehicle
Comfortable, spacious vehicle with excellent off road performance and good on road performance
Good ride height for game viewing
Excellent 4x4 capabilities - front and rear diff locks
Uncompromising reliability, excellent choice for remote travel
Excellent dealer representation in Southern Africa back up support)
Durable, lightweight and practical aluminium canopy
User friendly camp option
Large comfortable bed
Drawer system for easy packing and accessibility
Retractable Awning
60L Fridge
Cupboard, built in basin and convenient storage space
Tent floor lifts to allow standing/changing space in rear cabin
Pull out stove and prep table with neat kitchen


Here is what they say about the Defender:

Prominent Features

Permanent 4x4 with centre diff lock and very low range option
Romantics choice for Safari (looks good in the photos)
Excellent ride height for game viewing
Very practical with good load space
Rugged vehicle with basic finishes, no airbags, moderate air conditioning, reasonably reliable and more for practical, open minded persons
Bushlore extensive equipment and practical camper option

So according to them, the Land Cruiser is the most respected 4x4 safari vehicle in Africa and the Defender looks good in pictures.

Chad

 

[texascrane]

cost $15-16k . Either way I go the rig will be getting the off road/overland treatment with off road wheels, lift, lights, rack, armor, skids, locker, full size spare, and snorkel. Which should bring me up to $20k.

:wings: :wings: :wings: :wings: :wings:

hold on... let me catch my breath...

:wings: :wings: :wings: :wings: :wings:

ok.... whew... Your cost estimate is off by an order of magnitude. What you've listed there will bring you up to $30k+ easily.

 

[bentonrover]

He did ask the same question in the rover section. Only looking for advice. My advice well since you have the LR3 is to borrow a GX for a couple of days or wheel with someone who has it. I myself have a 06 D3. Pretty reliable. Just over 104k. Will it break? Yes it will no different then my FJ62 with its issues. Granted it is 26 years old. Good luck with your search and more importantly enjoy it. Or just get a Honda Element and cruise the mall.

 

[Mr. Monday]

:wings: :wings: :wings: :wings: :wings:

hold on... let me catch my breath...

:wings: :wings: :wings: :wings: :wings:

ok.... whew... Your cost estimate is off by an order of magnitude. What you've listed there will bring you up to $30k+ easily.

I realize that I could spend $5k on suspension alone but I was planning on doing bilstein 5100 up front with new springs and trick the rear air suspension since fourwheeler.com seemed to have pretty good luck with that on the rubicon trail. Front bumper will be $1300, skids will be under $100 (cutting board), sliders will be $400, Gobi rack & ladder will be $1500, used 17" off road wheels/tires will be around $1000. I decided not to do the rear bumper until I see how bad the gx470 departure angles are, and if I do end up doing a rear bumper I would build it myself since all the rear bumpers on the market have a spare tire carrier which I don't like because it wouldn't work with the gobi ladder, is a hassle when opening the rear door, and adds unnecessary weight since I can attach a spare to the roof rack or purchase a fold down tow hitch spare carrier.
These are the primary things I want to do immediately and are within my $5k accessory budget. Eventually I would add lockers, dual batteries, lights, refrigerator, roof tent, and upgrade the suspension further, but I don't think that adds up to $30k+.

edit: Seems like I can get an 05' GX470 under 100k miles for 13k so I might bump my budget up to $7k and do ARB front and rear air lockers right off the bat. Or a rear locker and a rear coil conversion.