So, I have seen many posts asking "which vehicle is for me". I just wanted to add my 2-cents as I have had some experience with some of the older Toyota models. I figured I would give a short review of my vehicles so others can save time and money (plus the hundreds of hours researching these vehicles). These are just my thoughts so take them with a grain of salt.
My goal has been to have an inexpensive, reliable, capable vehicle for back country exploration in Colorado. My overland vehicles are older because I'm not willing scratch and break an expensive vehicle. I'm also under 6-feet tall, so interior height is not an issue. Toyotas hold there value so well, I didn't lose very much money when I sold these vehicles.
My first "overlander" was a 1997 80 Series Land cruiser. I then got a 2004 excab TRD Tacoma and now have a 2000 Limited 4runner (Supercharged!). I have a 2003 100 series Land Cruiser as a daily driver (not modded, although I have taken it offroad).
All had OME lifts, ARB bumpers, winches, factory lockers, sliders, roof racks and slightly larger than stock tires.
I live in Colorado and run "kinda hard" offroad stuff. Devil's Punchbowl near Crested Butte and Wheeler Lake near Breck is about max difficulty. Most of my time is traveling in the Colorado backcountry. I've lived out of my vehicle for more than a week in each of these rigs. I also have young kids that go camping, but do not go into the back country with me. Usually it's just two people!
Here are my thoughts on each vehicle.......
1997 80 Series Land Cruiser:
GOOD:
-Good interior room
-Kinda huge. I've had some trouble on some trails due to size. Literally had damage to vehicle simply because of size
-Front and rear lockers.
-It's nice to be part of a cult
-Built like a tank
-Very comfortable offroad
-Pretty good in snow
BAD
-Expensive parts and repairs. Do not let anyone kid you. This is considered a specialty vehicle and not everyone knows how to work on them. Specialty shops are expensive because they are specialty shops. Tacos and 4runners are so common essentially any shop has experience with them.
-Mods more expensive than similar vintage Tacos and 4runners
-Slow as a fat pig. Seriously slow over the passes in Colorado, no really, like old people with walkers accelerate faster. Occasionally dangerous. I spent many dollars to be sure the engine was working to spec because I couldn't believe how slow it was.
-Crazy low MPG. Like 8-10mpg up the highway passes here (at $4/gallon, that's nearly 50 cents PER MILE in gas alone)
-Needs a bigger gas tank. I know the tank is big, but with such terrible mileage, the range is about the same as the 4runner or Taco
I absolutely could not handle paying crazy dollars for gas and parts while driving so slowly up the highways. I mean, 8-10mpg might be OK if cruising at 75mph up hill. I had to drive strategically due to lack of power. It made no sense to me to pay tons in gas and go slow for the 5 hour drip to Crested Butte just to have marginally better offroad capability than a Taco or 4runner. The poor power was especially annoying with friends that would have to slow down to wait for me. So, I did some research, and bought an extended cab Tacoma because I wanted a 6-foot bed to sleep in and the ability to put my bikes in the vehicle.
My final take on the Land Cruiser: Perfect for transporting terrorists across the desert for 20 years in all conditions. Unacceptably slow and seriously expensive for an American doing moderate offroading and exploring (if only we had the turbodeisel......).
2004 TRD extended cab (1st gen) Tacoma:
GOOD:
-Fit all my stuff with a tall shell over the bed
-Awesome offroad. Small, nimble, went everywhere.
-Good MPG--about 18-20 mpg--that's 80-100% better than the Land Cruiser. It's like gas is half-price!!
BAD:
-Damn expensive for an old 2-door truck
-Can't fit 4 people.
-Very basic interior
-Still kinda slow up the highway passes, but felt like a rocket ship compared to the Land Cruiser.
-Can't drive fast in 4-wheel drive due to lack of center differential. Not good in snow even with weight in the back. Land Cruiser and 4runner much better in snow.
-I still want this vehicle (and to be 5 years younger with no kids).
I loved the Tacoma, but needed four seats. I wanted to get a 4-door Taco, but prices are insane here in Colorado. 13-year-old examples with 200K on the clock go for >$10-12K around here. Plus you can't sleep in the back. I found 3rd gen 4runners were about half the price and could fit 4 people with seats up and could sleep (and fit mountain bikes) inside with seats down. Did research and wanted the multimode transfer case, rear diff locker, and supercharger. Found one with decent miles for about half the price of a comparable (non-supercharged) 4-door taco.
My Final Take on the Taco: Great vehicle. 4-door model with supercharger would be awesome but seriously expensive relative to the other vehicles here.
2000 Limited (3rd gen) 4Runner Supercharged!:
GOOD:
-Cheap......for a Toyota
-Great offroad. Small, nimble. Arguably better than the Taco. At the extremes, likely not as good as the Land Cruiser, but I rarely, if ever "get Xtreme" (insert monster truck voice here).
-Climbs the passes no problem at speed. No annoying downshifting
-Quieter and more comfortable than the Taco. Better interior too.
-OK MPG. I get about 16-19mpg depending on conditions.
-Fits four people no problem.
-Multi-mode transfer case. In winter, I just put it in four wheel drive and go wherever and lock the center diff if I need it.
BAD:
-Smaller interior when compared to the Land Cruiser. I put a roof top tent on and have no problem fitting everything two people need for a week in the back country.
-Small gas tank although not much worse than the Land Cruiser (due to such poor MPG) Do not use the gas gauge at all, at any time, for any reason. Light comes on and its only 2/3 empty. Known problem on these vehicles.
I've had this vehicle for awhile. There are other vehicles that are better, but you will pay serious dollars for it. I would love to have a 4th gen Trail Edition, 5th Gen Trail Edition, or any 4-door Taco but these vehicles are literally 3-5 times the price.
My Final Take on the 4runner: Great combination of size, mpg, and ability for a (relatively) cheap price. My vehicle for the next 5-years.
Finally, I wanted to review my 100-Series Land Cruiser
2003 100-Series Land Cruiser:
Good:
-Big on the inside
-Very comfortable ride. This really is a luxury vehicle. The 4runner feels like a mildly nicer Taco
-Built like a tank
-Allegedly very capable offroad. I take mine only on easier stuff, but I've seen them do amazing things.
Bad:
-This thing looks gigantic and feels gigantic compared to Taco/4runner--never a good thing on tight trails and tight switchbacks. By far the biggest downside. I can only guess the damage on some trails.
-Poor mpg. I'm getting about 10-13 mpg in the mountains. People say "not much worse than the 4runner." At about 30% less mpg you are talking about ~$1.25/gallon more expensive (at $4/gallon) to run the Land Cruiser!
-Still sluggish up the hills, but a faster slug. Better than the Taco.
-Expensive. I'm not willing to trash this thing offroad. It's just too nice!
-Just like the 80 series---expensive parts and maintenance.
-Mods more expensive than similarly old Tacos/4runners.
My Final Take on the 100-Series Land Cruiser: I really like this vehicle, but cannot justify the expense when I'm gonna trash it. It also feels really huge and imagine that I would scratch the heck out of this thing on the tight trails. I pinstripe my 4runner and can imagine how this would trash the LC.
So, for me a 3rd gen 4runner is the perfect combination of speed, fuel efficiency, and capability at a cheap price!
My goal has been to have an inexpensive, reliable, capable vehicle for back country exploration in Colorado. My overland vehicles are older because I'm not willing scratch and break an expensive vehicle. I'm also under 6-feet tall, so interior height is not an issue. Toyotas hold there value so well, I didn't lose very much money when I sold these vehicles.
My first "overlander" was a 1997 80 Series Land cruiser. I then got a 2004 excab TRD Tacoma and now have a 2000 Limited 4runner (Supercharged!). I have a 2003 100 series Land Cruiser as a daily driver (not modded, although I have taken it offroad).
All had OME lifts, ARB bumpers, winches, factory lockers, sliders, roof racks and slightly larger than stock tires.
I live in Colorado and run "kinda hard" offroad stuff. Devil's Punchbowl near Crested Butte and Wheeler Lake near Breck is about max difficulty. Most of my time is traveling in the Colorado backcountry. I've lived out of my vehicle for more than a week in each of these rigs. I also have young kids that go camping, but do not go into the back country with me. Usually it's just two people!
Here are my thoughts on each vehicle.......
1997 80 Series Land Cruiser:
GOOD:
-Good interior room
-Kinda huge. I've had some trouble on some trails due to size. Literally had damage to vehicle simply because of size
-Front and rear lockers.
-It's nice to be part of a cult
-Built like a tank
-Very comfortable offroad
-Pretty good in snow
BAD
-Expensive parts and repairs. Do not let anyone kid you. This is considered a specialty vehicle and not everyone knows how to work on them. Specialty shops are expensive because they are specialty shops. Tacos and 4runners are so common essentially any shop has experience with them.
-Mods more expensive than similar vintage Tacos and 4runners
-Slow as a fat pig. Seriously slow over the passes in Colorado, no really, like old people with walkers accelerate faster. Occasionally dangerous. I spent many dollars to be sure the engine was working to spec because I couldn't believe how slow it was.
-Crazy low MPG. Like 8-10mpg up the highway passes here (at $4/gallon, that's nearly 50 cents PER MILE in gas alone)
-Needs a bigger gas tank. I know the tank is big, but with such terrible mileage, the range is about the same as the 4runner or Taco
I absolutely could not handle paying crazy dollars for gas and parts while driving so slowly up the highways. I mean, 8-10mpg might be OK if cruising at 75mph up hill. I had to drive strategically due to lack of power. It made no sense to me to pay tons in gas and go slow for the 5 hour drip to Crested Butte just to have marginally better offroad capability than a Taco or 4runner. The poor power was especially annoying with friends that would have to slow down to wait for me. So, I did some research, and bought an extended cab Tacoma because I wanted a 6-foot bed to sleep in and the ability to put my bikes in the vehicle.
My final take on the Land Cruiser: Perfect for transporting terrorists across the desert for 20 years in all conditions. Unacceptably slow and seriously expensive for an American doing moderate offroading and exploring (if only we had the turbodeisel......).
2004 TRD extended cab (1st gen) Tacoma:
GOOD:
-Fit all my stuff with a tall shell over the bed
-Awesome offroad. Small, nimble, went everywhere.
-Good MPG--about 18-20 mpg--that's 80-100% better than the Land Cruiser. It's like gas is half-price!!
BAD:
-Damn expensive for an old 2-door truck
-Can't fit 4 people.
-Very basic interior
-Still kinda slow up the highway passes, but felt like a rocket ship compared to the Land Cruiser.
-Can't drive fast in 4-wheel drive due to lack of center differential. Not good in snow even with weight in the back. Land Cruiser and 4runner much better in snow.
-I still want this vehicle (and to be 5 years younger with no kids).
I loved the Tacoma, but needed four seats. I wanted to get a 4-door Taco, but prices are insane here in Colorado. 13-year-old examples with 200K on the clock go for >$10-12K around here. Plus you can't sleep in the back. I found 3rd gen 4runners were about half the price and could fit 4 people with seats up and could sleep (and fit mountain bikes) inside with seats down. Did research and wanted the multimode transfer case, rear diff locker, and supercharger. Found one with decent miles for about half the price of a comparable (non-supercharged) 4-door taco.
My Final Take on the Taco: Great vehicle. 4-door model with supercharger would be awesome but seriously expensive relative to the other vehicles here.
2000 Limited (3rd gen) 4Runner Supercharged!:
GOOD:
-Cheap......for a Toyota
-Great offroad. Small, nimble. Arguably better than the Taco. At the extremes, likely not as good as the Land Cruiser, but I rarely, if ever "get Xtreme" (insert monster truck voice here).
-Climbs the passes no problem at speed. No annoying downshifting
-Quieter and more comfortable than the Taco. Better interior too.
-OK MPG. I get about 16-19mpg depending on conditions.
-Fits four people no problem.
-Multi-mode transfer case. In winter, I just put it in four wheel drive and go wherever and lock the center diff if I need it.
BAD:
-Smaller interior when compared to the Land Cruiser. I put a roof top tent on and have no problem fitting everything two people need for a week in the back country.
-Small gas tank although not much worse than the Land Cruiser (due to such poor MPG) Do not use the gas gauge at all, at any time, for any reason. Light comes on and its only 2/3 empty. Known problem on these vehicles.
I've had this vehicle for awhile. There are other vehicles that are better, but you will pay serious dollars for it. I would love to have a 4th gen Trail Edition, 5th Gen Trail Edition, or any 4-door Taco but these vehicles are literally 3-5 times the price.
My Final Take on the 4runner: Great combination of size, mpg, and ability for a (relatively) cheap price. My vehicle for the next 5-years.
Finally, I wanted to review my 100-Series Land Cruiser
2003 100-Series Land Cruiser:
Good:
-Big on the inside
-Very comfortable ride. This really is a luxury vehicle. The 4runner feels like a mildly nicer Taco
-Built like a tank
-Allegedly very capable offroad. I take mine only on easier stuff, but I've seen them do amazing things.
Bad:
-This thing looks gigantic and feels gigantic compared to Taco/4runner--never a good thing on tight trails and tight switchbacks. By far the biggest downside. I can only guess the damage on some trails.
-Poor mpg. I'm getting about 10-13 mpg in the mountains. People say "not much worse than the 4runner." At about 30% less mpg you are talking about ~$1.25/gallon more expensive (at $4/gallon) to run the Land Cruiser!
-Still sluggish up the hills, but a faster slug. Better than the Taco.
-Expensive. I'm not willing to trash this thing offroad. It's just too nice!
-Just like the 80 series---expensive parts and maintenance.
-Mods more expensive than similarly old Tacos/4runners.
My Final Take on the 100-Series Land Cruiser: I really like this vehicle, but cannot justify the expense when I'm gonna trash it. It also feels really huge and imagine that I would scratch the heck out of this thing on the tight trails. I pinstripe my 4runner and can imagine how this would trash the LC.
So, for me a 3rd gen 4runner is the perfect combination of speed, fuel efficiency, and capability at a cheap price!
