Is a Land Cruiser really better off-road than a Tacoma? My experience says the opposite..

[Ozark_Prowler]

So far for me....weak point has been the 8mm hub studs on the J80. I do run stock 4.10 gears in the diffs with an underdrive 1.22 high range in the T-case, but I also have a 5.3 GM V8 and 40" half sticky black label tires. I wouldn't call the front diff 'weak' at this point. The stock 8" HP front diff is pretty strong going forward....but I do pay attention not to back up with a ton of weight on the front axle nose down or bound up. Do I wish that Toyota had a drop out 9.5" high pinion front diff in the J80 chassis, absolutely.

In any case it was my experience that the heavy 80 series was severely limited with open diffs, more so than the minitrucks which can get by on sheer nimbleness and lightweight on certain obstacles where the big Cruiser will just bog down. I guess an old solid axle minitruck would be the best of both worlds in some ways if you can tolerate the anemic engines in those.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

Oh....and the Tacoma/4runners wheeling with us aren't just popping CVs. They are commonly breaking the front diffs in to lots of little pieces. Being turned one way or the other and pushing on the tire breaks CVs.....both tires straight and any kind of bounce seems to break the front diff. Changing a front diff in those on the trail blows, I would change a front diff on my J80 any day over that.

Are they running 37s or something? I've seen IFS Tacomas and 4runners get through some pretty gnarly stuff on the stock IFS components. Sure they might not take the abuse of a LC but they seem to hold up fairly well pound-for-pound it if you stick to 33s and drive with some mechanical sympathy.

 

[Metcalf]

Are they running 37s or something? I've seen IFS Tacomas and 4runners get through some pretty gnarly stuff on the stock IFS components. Sure they might not take the abuse of a LC but they seem to hold up fairly well pound-for-pound it if you stick to 33s and drive with some mechanical sympathy.

Most of them are running 33-35s in the rocks. They do try and run 37s when snow wheeling.
I wouldn't say they are abusive drivers in the rocks....if anything they are cautious and just trying to tip toe to prevent front end issues.
They are running ARB lockers in the front diff, but use them pretty sparingly because of turning issues.
They break a LOT in my experience.....like so much that the owners got burnt out breaking stuff and stopped coming on trips.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

Most of them are running 33-35s in the rocks. They do try and run 37s when snow wheeling.
I wouldn't say they are abusive drivers in the rocks....if anything they are cautious and just trying to tip toe to prevent front end issues.
They are running ARB lockers in the front diff, but use them pretty sparingly because of turning issues.
They break a LOT in my experience.....like so much that the owners got burnt out breaking stuff and stopped coming on trips.

Well I don’t do much extreme wheeling. But I may eventually end up in an 80 series again if what you’re saying becomes my experience. I plan to keep it light, so maybe that’ll help. Might take the lift off too to reduce stress on the driveline.

 

[bkg]

Well at least it's not too hard to carry spare CVs and replace them as needed. The J80's weak point seems to be the front diff, which is a lot harder to repair on the trail. But yea, the Tacoma and 3G 4runner are light duty daily drivers, not really designed for extreme terrain or sustained abuse on the rocks. Where the IFS minitrucks really shine is on the kind of mild backwoods trails that are beyond the capability of a soft-roader, but not so rough and technical to require a solid front axle and beefy frame.

But most Americans don't know what to make of the solid front axle and recirculating ball steering in the J80. I mean with a petrol engine it's in big-block tow-truck territory in terms of the performance and fuel economy, but it's not really that great for towing. But then a V6 Tacoma gets about the same MPG as a full-size truck without half the payload and towing capacity, so they're both kind of anachronisms.

Perhaps they're more suited to the terrain out west. They'd be perfect if you happen to live in Venezuela where gas is basically free.

if the HP8" is the weak point, it's not much of one, IMHO.

 

[tacollie]

I got pretty good at swapping CVs on my 1st gen Tacoma and 3rd gen 4runner. They don't do well with much lift imo. Oddly enough I had three second gen tacomas and never had to do a single CV.

LC front diff is definitely more stout than the first gen Tacoma front end.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

I got pretty good at swapping CVs on my 1st gen Tacoma and 3rd gen 4runner. They don't do well with much lift imo. Oddly enough I had three second gen tacomas and never had to do a single CV.

LC front diff is definitely more stout than the first gen Tacoma front end.

I have OME springs and Bilstein 5100s, also 17” rims with the Tundra calipers. I want to get it back to stock if possible. Might try to sell the locked and geared axles as well but I’m not sure what to ask for them.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

if the HP8" is the weak point, it's not much of one, IMHO.

You must think I’m crazy to have traded. But he did give me some extra goodies on top so I bit. I am kind of regretting it now that I have to deal with this knock sensor issue.
Also I have to fight to get it into 1st and R when it’s cold. I’m hoping that’s the Marlin Crawler short throw kit (another thing I wanna get rid of) and not something with the actual gearbox.

 

[bkg]

You must think I’m crazy to have traded. But he did give me some extra goodies on top so I bit. I am kind of regretting it now that I have to deal with this knock sensor issue.
Also I have to fight to get it into 1st and R when it’s cold. I’m hoping that’s the Marlin Crawler short throw kit (another thing I wanna get rid of) and not something with the actual gearbox.

Honestly, it’s not a trade I would have ever made. Worrying about the most popular front diff in Toyota solid axle/solid axle swap use as the weak link is misplaced concern..

I hope it works out. Based on your comments thus far, you traded known issues for potentially expensive unknowns.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

Honestly, it’s not a trade I would have ever made. Worrying about the most popular front diff in Toyota solid axle/solid axle swap use as the weak link is misplaced concern..

I hope it works out. Based on your comments thus far, you traded known issues for potentially expensive unknowns.

Well honestly the LC was a lot rougher cosmetically than the Tacoma, and the Taco also had a lot more new parts on it, including basically the whole suspension, so I thought that made it a fair trade. From past threads I thought you were more of a minitruck than a LC guy but I could be wrong.

Also I can only afford one vehicle right now so the Tacoma is at least somewhat more practical for me while still retaining decent off-road capability. And I wasn't off-roading that much in the Cruiser anyway since I was afraid of getting it bogged with no lockers.

I'm hoping the 3.4 will be solid after I fix the knock sensors, and that the shifting issue will be fixed by taking out the short throw kit. I know any used vehicle is a bargain, but for all I know the old 4.5 in the LC could've thrown a rod or blown a head gasket next week and left me dead in the water as well. Kind of a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation I guess.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

Most of them are running 33-35s in the rocks. They do try and run 37s when snow wheeling.
I wouldn't say they are abusive drivers in the rocks....if anything they are cautious and just trying to tip toe to prevent front end issues.
They are running ARB lockers in the front diff, but use them pretty sparingly because of turning issues.
They break a LOT in my experience.....like so much that the owners got burnt out breaking stuff and stopped coming on trips.

On second though, I think it might be the constant traction of Moab that's really hard on those IFS drivetrains. Plenty of people around here trail their IFS minitrucks without any major issues, but maybe they're better suited to the terrain out east with more slick conditions. If I lived out in Utah or something then yea I would've just kept the Cruiser.

 

[bkg]

I am a mini truck guy. I’ve owned dozens in different variations and currently own 2 tacomas and two 4 runners. I’ve also owned multiple SAS’d trucks with HP 3rds…

I hope you are right that it’s a simple knock sensor and short throw shifter kit delete… just do thing eyes while open and don’t let yourself make excuses for issues. Your work effort seems to keep growing with every post, and fromprevious threads, I know that you don’t want to be bogged down by continual fixes.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

I am a mini truck guy. I’ve owned dozens in different variations and currently own 2 tacomas and two 4 runners. I’ve also owned multiple SAS’d trucks with HP 3rds…

I hope you are right that it’s a simple knock sensor and short throw shifter kit delete… just do thing eyes while open and don’t let yourself make excuses for issues. Your work effort seems to keep growing with every post, and fromprevious threads, I know that you don’t want to be bogged down by continual fixes.

From what I’ve researched the knock sensors don’t effect the engine other than regarding timing a bit so hopefully it safe to drive while I source the parts.

 

[Arktikos]

Well honestly the LC was a lot rougher cosmetically than the Tacoma, and the Taco also had a lot more new parts on it, including basically the whole suspension, so I thought that made it a fair trade. From past threads I thought you were more of a minitruck than a LC guy but I could be wrong.

Also I can only afford one vehicle right now so the Tacoma is at least somewhat more practical for me while still retaining decent off-road capability. And I wasn't off-roading that much in the Cruiser anyway since I was afraid of getting it bogged with no lockers.

I'm hoping the 3.4 will be solid after I fix the knock sensors, and that the shifting issue will be fixed by taking out the short throw kit. I know any used vehicle is a bargain, but for all I know the old 4.5 in the LC could've thrown a rod or blown a head gasket next week and left me dead in the water as well. Kind of a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation I guess.

So you traded the 80 for a Taco? I'd like to see photos of the new rig.

 

[Ozark_Prowler]

So you traded the 80 for a Taco? I'd like to see photos of the new rig.

I wanna switch to 265/75/16 tires. Might take off the Tundra calipers too while I'm at it.

I'm undecided what to do with the spare diffs with 4.88s and lockers installed since I'd be over-geared for 31s, but it is enticing to finally have true 4wd on the other hand.

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