Is it possible to get one of these hightop TroopCarriers (or reasonable facsimile) in North America?

[RMP&O]

@Christian P. oh wow.. that indeed seems quite random. It has been a topic in a German speaking forum but so far, I haven‘t heard of anyone actually getting rejected at the border. Thank you for the links!

By the way, is there a reason Canada and the US mostly imports RHD cruisers from Japan and Australia? We have a lot of nice LHD Land Cruisers in Europe which fit into the 25 or at least 15 years import rule.

It is easier for people to buy from Australia or Japan from the comfort of their own home. There are a few people importing from Europe but not a lot.

Cheers

 

[battleaxe]

@Christian P. oh wow.. that indeed seems quite random. It has been a topic in a German speaking forum but so far, I haven‘t heard of anyone actually getting rejected at the border. Thank you for the links!

By the way, is there a reason Canada and the US mostly imports RHD cruisers from Japan and Australia? We have a lot of nice LHD Land Cruisers in Europe which fit into the 25 or at least 15 years import rule.

I've been talking to my Dad about it a ton. We both would love some 70 series variants here in Canada, but in LHD. I think really the issue is you have to ship it quite a bit further when you're looking at Europe.

I drove RHD cars for years in Canada, and would probably never go back. I don't miss it.

 

[Victorian]

@Christian P. oh wow.. that indeed seems quite random. It has been a topic in a German speaking forum but so far, I haven‘t heard of anyone actually getting rejected at the border. Thank you for the links!

By the way, is there a reason Canada and the US mostly imports RHD cruisers from Japan and Australia? We have a lot of nice LHD Land Cruisers in Europe which fit into the 25 or at least 15 years import rule.

I was wondering about this too. My first pick would always be a vehicle from Germany. If they just past safety inspection then you know that the vehicle is in fairly good condition. But the big problem is that most sellers in Germany will not reply to inquiries in english. I got that info from the turkish guy I bough my Sprinter from. It took me a lot of begging so he would agree to do business with someone from out of the country. Therefore buyers are looking into english speaking countries (GB, Japan...)

 

[Victorian]

I've been talking to my Dad about it a ton. We both would love some 70 series variants here in Canada, but in LHD. I think really the issue is you have to ship it quite a bit further when you're looking at Europe.

I drove RHD cars for years in Canada, and would probably never go back. I don't miss it.

Let me know if I can help. I have people on the ground in Germany and learned a lot by importing ours.

 

[battleaxe]

Let me know if I can help. I have people on the ground in Germany and learned a lot by importing ours.

Oh cool, thanks for the heads up! I'll definitely keep you in mind.

 

[MattScott]

I would second Christian's comment on the 1HZ Troopy being slow for the USA. We ultimately decided NOT to try and bring ours to the USA due to speed concerns and ended up with an HDJ81 for North America

 

[umpqua]

I plan to take my LHD Troopy to S America. From what I've read some Central American countries will NOT allow a RHD vehicle into their country. I think it would be a real crapshoot and would lead to some animated discussions with immigrations.

My 1990 BJ 75 had well, the 3b engine. When I bought it I drove it up I-5 to Oregon from California. The engine was adequate.....about what I was used to with the 3FE gas. Pretty gutless but adequate. You know, like a Land Cruiser. But.....I have put in a 1HDT and man oh man...what a difference. Night and day. I'm passing people going uphill and if you've been around Land Cruisers you know that's saying something. Pretty much in love with this truck setup.

 

[TonyLC]

I plan to take my LHD Troopy to S America. From what I've read some Central American countries will NOT allow a RHD vehicle into their country. I think it would be a real crapshoot and would lead to some animated discussions with immigrations

This is the main reason I wanted LHD too.
I'm sure there are some report of 'greasing the wheels' to get them to let a RHD rig in, but any unwanted attention over the boarder is generally something to avoid.
Also, driving a RHD vehicle in a LHD country sucks. I did it for two years, never again.

 

[eltoyomoto]

The Troopy is a dream adventure rig. Have you all seen the @Liveworkwander

I recently imported a Hilux RV from japan. Rhd, fun to drive around

 

[rohat]

Short answer yes it is possible. Since you are in Canada, it needs to be 15 years or older.

However if you are in Quebec, then you cannot register a RHD vehicle in that province. If you are elsewhere you should be okay, but hurry up because B.C. is looking into closing that door too.

We did just that. We flew to Sydney, bought a pop-top HJ75 and drove it all over the world for years then sold it to a friend in Belgium. It just got sold to Greg Miller for his Land Cruiser museum in Salt Lake City. I think it is getting here like this week. I thought about buying it back, but did not for 2 reasons - I want a LHD because of Central America restrictions, and I want the 1HZ engine. Even though I had almost zero problem with the 2H, it is a very old engine by now, even by African standards.

Budget about $15K to $40K for the truck, then another $5K for shipping and you should be in the right ball park.

However one last piece of advice...these are slow trucks. If you are looking for something for North America, I don't think it would be my first choice. They are extremely reliable, but you're not going to have much fun crossing the Rockies in the slow lane or trying to keep up with traffic on Highway 5 on your way to Baja. My friends have one in South America right now (www.wanderlibre.com), and I travel with them with my 4Runner 3rd Gen, and I couldn't believe how slow I had to drive...

But if you are looking to go explore Africa, then there is no better choice.

Interesting... Thanks for sharing your experience. I saw the Wander Libre vehicle for sale and thought it perfect but that speed issue is well, an issue. What Land Cruiser (or 4x4) vehicle would you suggest would be better for world travel for longer road trips? I'm thinking Europe, SA, Asia.

 

[Christian P.]

Interesting... Thanks for sharing your experience. I saw the Wander Libre vehicle for sale and thought it perfect but that speed issue is well, an issue. What Land Cruiser (or 4x4) vehicle would you suggest would be better for world travel for longer road trips? I'm thinking Europe, SA, Asia.

Hello!

Did they put their vehicle for sale officially? I know the owners (Jim & Sheri) very well and their truck is one of the best out there, no question.

However another option for you could be a Tacoma or Hilux. These would be a bit more highway/mountain friendly.

 

[alia176]

Sub'ing to this thread, merely for curiosity! A Troopie does fill a lot of the check boxes for sure!

 

[rohat]

Hello!

Did they put their vehicle for sale officially? I know the owners (Jim & Sheri) very well and their truck is one of the best out there, no question.

However another option for you could be a Tacoma or Hilux. These would be a bit more highway/mountain friendly.

Love the Tacoma! I was thinking that a Land Cruiser would be more accessible for parts etc in more parts of the world. Hilux may be sensible the answer. Opinion on diesel or petro?

 

[nickw]

View attachment 474878

I 'think' this is my dream vehicle. They are relatively common in Australia, but I have never seen one here in Canada. What is the closest thing to this in North America? I like the reliability, the ruggedness, the compact overall dimensions, and the extra height. I can visualize an interior build that would fit our needs perfectly. But I have never run across anything like this while searching Craigslist and Kijiji here.

In Canada, we have access to 2003 and older JDM cars. There are loads of Land Cruisers on there, but no TroopCarriers from what I can tell (are they unique to Australia?). Sorry for all the questions, I'm new to this and trying to get my head around the gap between the practical vehicles you see in Oz, and those that are available here.

I know this is kind of a stretch, but I've always thought a good replacement is a 3/4T domestic truck, smaller cab + short bed, or std. cab + long bed:


with a commercial style topper with rear barn doors, sim to this....you can get custom built with windows but a taller model:



A buddy of mine has the tall commercial shell on a Long Bed truck, it's awesome, two dirtbikes in the back, or on dirtbike and a cot or no dirtbikes and a sleeping / cooking arrangement would be pretty easy and sim to that Troopy...IMO.

But in doing that you get very close to just stepping up to a camper like a FWC or Scout.....which is a slippery slope since that starts to deviate quite a bit from your original intent.

 

[nickw]

This is a clean option that gets the bar doors + headroom sim to a Troopy on a domestic platform: