60/62 or 80 for extended expo?

[Soulfly]

Starting to finally plan my dream trip once again after many delays with the first go around, death in the family, another with cancer that just passed, meeting/marrying my soulmate etc! ;p

Was planning the first trip in a Volvo TGB13 but practicality set in! So it's back to the beloved cruiser as it should of been from the get go!

My dilemma is which platform for my wife, our two young 'ens and myself... I currently have a LX450 but I'm really starting to consider a 60/62 series especially once I saw the 12HT/5spd and factory cable lockers that Radd Cruisers has for sale!! I like the simplicity of this series also...

Trip will roughly be Barrow, Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. From TDF to Cape Town up the east coast to my farm in Arusha, Tanzania, cruise around Africa for 5-6 months before heading to Morocco, Rome and then to London where we would ship the cruiser back to the US or either drive it back to Arusha and live there for awhile....

So I would be tickled to hear the pros and cons of each, personal preferences or what have you!! Fire away!!

Also, many thanks in advance for any info you may provide!!

-JD

 

[hawkeye]

That is a lot of driving... I think the 80 is more comfortable.

 

[cruiser_guy]

Simple is good, lots of mods are NOT good. KISS is the best way on any expedition. Think about where you will be going and what vehicles and parts they might have and choose based on that.

You'll quickly forget comfort and the "coolness" factor when you need parts and have to have them airfreighted in!!

We run our BJ60 with a few mods, all of which are reversible relatively easily, but I'm well aware that it could cause a problem at some point. The FJ55 is of course modded but it is also 100% OEM Toyota with the exception of the turbo. We drive from Central America to Canada and back annually.

Baseline whatever you take and keep 100% up on any repairs and maintenance.

 

[bj70_guy]

The 80...



... with a 12H-T

 

[SUUEEET]

KISS

I am also a fan of the KISS principle. Although after saying that I have to explain that I have been thinking of running an 80 series frame with coils and a 60 series body with a 3B/H55. Big fan of manual anything. Don't really trust electrical things. Part of the reason for the 3B

 

[soenke]

Unless you all are used to back packing for long periods I would suggest a bigger car...


An 80 ( or 60/62) won´t sleep two adults and two kids without major modifikations and still would not provide much space inside.

Toyota HDJ 80


Even using two roof-tents you won´t have plenty of storage room for supplies to drive longer distances off the main tracks.

Any Toyota Land Cruiser will be fine, but beware they don´t run the 24V elektrik system neither the 12HT, 3B or 1HD-T in Afrika very often, still I prefer the Diesel for travelling.

Arusha sound good..! and the farm is running well with you beeing in the states?

 

[roscoFJ73]

Simple is good, lots of mods are NOT good. KISS is the best way on any expedition. Think about where you will be going and what vehicles and parts they might have and choose based on that.
You'll quickly forget comfort and the "coolness" factor when you need parts and have to have them airfreighted in!!

.

I couldnt agree more with that advice.
Rigs with bling may also attract unwanted attention in a poverty stricken country

For 2 adults and 2 children you will be cramped if its at all possible to cram everything in.
I wouldnt like to tow a trailer all that distance ,but it maybe the only way without stepping up to a larger vehicle.
I would lean to the 80 for its coil suspension but I cant see it being all that much better than a well prepared 60

 

[Soulfly]

Hello all!

Many thanks for all the info so far!!! I apologize, I've been quite busy but will sit down tonight and comment on all the great suggestions etc offered so far!!

In the meantime, please keep it coming!

-JD

 

[NLXTACY]

Simple is good, lots of mods are NOT good. KISS is the best way on any expedition. Think about where you will be going and what vehicles and parts they might have and choose based on that.

Well hold on. I think listing what the "mod" is is important before listing a blanket statement.

When I started my dual battery, aux fuse panel, inverter, outlets, etc. projects I took into account something that I notice not a lot of folks do. The most common set up is to run all accessories off the main and just use the second battery as a back up. I'm 100% against this. When I designed my system I wanted the auxiliaries to be 100% separate from all vehicle functions. This way IF there was ever a problem with ANYTHING in my electrical work, the basic vehicle functions would be unaffected.

If one of my mods caused a small electrical fire that I can put out, the damage would be limited to the my set up. Basic vehicle function should be unaffected assuming I can get to that fire extinguisher in time

There are other mods that are simply bolt on. Meaning they can also bolt off.

 

[cruiser_guy]

Well hold on. I think listing what the "mod" is is important before listing a blanket statement.

Exactly, and if you read the rest of my post you'll see what I mean. I personally run an Aussie locker in the rear of my '60 but I have the spider gears in the bottom of my spares box just in case. I have a turbo but, if push comes to shove, an exhaust shop can bypass that.

I'd be totally against any mod that is not reversible such as a narrowed axle or any non-OEM drivetrain especially if that requires custom parts to work, things like that which are not easily reversible or parts cannot be found in Outer Mongolia somewhere.

My '76 FJ55 has a 3B engine with a turbo, H41 tranny and three speed transfer case, not the way it rolled off the factory floor but all parts can easily be sourced for it.

 

[1shot1kill]

We sleep with our two GSDs in the 80 and it is doable, but I don't know about kids, as kids usually don't stay put!