Anyone miss their stock 200? (1 Viewer)

[DallasTide]

I've been debating adding a HWM and staying with an OEM+ look or diving headfirst into bumpers and suspension. This thread is giving me food for thought.

No regrets on anything I've done so far (33" tires, spacers, front coil spacer, sliders) but feeling it on the MPGs.

 

[dnh1]

I did. I had one built with a lift and hated it. I kept it one month and got the one I have had for 4.5 years. Love it.

 

[linuxgod]

There are only 3 times I ever regret it and want to go back:

1. At the gas pump
2. When trying to find a garage I can fit into in the city
3. When tracking down a problem (noise, vibration, handling, etc)

I try not to think about #1. Since a lot of our trips are short around town it’s easy to go a few weeks between fill ups. Nevermind that I’ve driven 120 miles between tanks…

For #2 I usually find street parking, or look for a garage that is at last 8’ clearance. And my garage at home has an 8’ door. But it can be a mild hassle

#3 is my biggest risk. But then I get things sorted out and absolutely love driving the truck for a while. And I try to think to myself that unless I was willing to pony up for a new vehicle every 7-8 years I’d have the same issues with any other truck that was >150k miles anyway

 

[TCH2FLY]

When I bought my 200 the plan was to do a moderate build but after driving it for a while I hated the idea of making it less enjoyable on road and taking up more space in the garage. I have a Gamiviti rack for my kayaks and may get still get sliders for peace of mind but that is it.
I'm fortunate to be able to have multiple rigs and realized it would never be able to replace my 80 for hard wheeling (I do go places that lockers/winches/armor are needed) so why spend a bunch of money for "style points" when my tolerance for damaging a low mile, newer rig is low.
A 200 will do things the 80 won't, like easily towing my camper at 10,000' MSL or comfortably hauling 8 people and it will run some moderate (what ever the wife will tolerate) trails with no worries.

 

[spazzyfry123]

I've been debating adding a HWM and staying with an OEM+ look or diving headfirst into bumpers and suspension. This thread is giving me food for thought.

No regrets on anything I've done so far (33" tires, spacers, front coil spacer, sliders) but feeling it on the MPGs.

Any issues with tire rub? How is it daily?

I have an 80 with a fair amount done to it that's strictly a toy that I'm not interested in turning the mom-mobile 200 into. Michelins will need replaced sooner than later - we've put probably 60k miles on them, so thought was a mild lift with some A/T. How do you fair out with the coil spacers (OEM?) and 33s? There is no reason to go nuts with hers just yet with the 80, but what you describe (minus sliders) will meet our needs.

 

[OregonLC]

Is it just me or do others sometimes miss having a stock 200 series after they've modded it? Please tell me I'm not the only one!

Not in the least. I look at stock Land Cruisers with their railcar track width and stink bug stance and actually feel sorry for them. They're the quirky kid in middle school with Kmart shoes and ugly glasses. Incapable both socially and on the football field. Just because there may be brilliance and potential behind the awkward facade, their existence is squelched by appearance and function.

 

[bicycleagent003]

They're the quirky kid in middle school with Kmart shoes and ugly glasses.

I'm glad you're happy with your mods, though I'm with the "quirky kid" you describe. The world is better with so many varieties of people, and I'm very happy not everyone is like me. Cheers.

 

[Madtiger]

Not in the least. I look at stock Land Cruisers with their railcar track width and stink bug stance and actually feel sorry for them. They're the quirky kid in middle school with Kmart shoes and ugly glasses. Incapable both socially and on the football field. Just because there may be brilliance and potential behind the awkward facade, their existence is squelched by appearance and function.

While true, but that awkward kid will later on be more desirable to girls while the muscle head in high school develop small testes and penis due to steroids and no girl will want it when the time comes to populate the earth.

Just in case anyone misses my “analogy”….awkward kid = stock LC. Muscle head = modded LC. Girls = 2nd and later owners. Small testes/penis = mechanical issues and gremlins.

 

[skrypj]

Murphy’s law says…if one remove a bull bar, a critter will jump in front of you and smash your otherwise protected front end.

This happened to my Jeep Liberty CRD and used the insurance claim to help pay for an ARB.

After I got the ARB it was like the deer disappeared off the face of the earth.

 

[Madtiger]

Isn’t the bull bar just magnify your damage and may interfere with crumble zone and airbag deployment??

 

[skrypj]

One thing I will say is that I believe the LX570 specifically makes for a better platform to moderately modify without sacrificing virtually anything. When done right, the AHC system can mask a lot of things.

 

[skrypj]

Isn’t the bull bar just magnify your damage and may interfere with crumble zone and airbag deployment??

AFAIK ARB's bumpers are actually crash tested and properly function with air bags and crumple zones. At least per Australian standards. That may be true of some of the other big name brands like Ironman and Dobisons but not sure.

There were a few guys on the jeep forum who smoked deer with them and nothing happened except some chipped paint.

 

[Madtiger]

AFAIK ARB's bumpers are actually crash tested and properly function with air bags and crumple zones. At least per Australian standards.

There were a few guys on the jeep forum who smoked deer with them and nothing happened except some chipped paint.

Yeah i like ARB because they are actually crash compliant…one of the reason i have ARB slider on my LC.

 

[DallasTide]

Any issues with tire rub? How is it daily?

I have an 80 with a fair amount done to it that's strictly a toy that I'm not interested in turning the mom-mobile 200 into. Michelins will need replaced sooner than later - we've put probably 60k miles on them, so thought was a mild lift with some A/T. How do you fair out with the coil spacers (OEM?) and 33s? There is no reason to go nuts with hers just yet with the 80, but what you describe (minus sliders) will meet our needs.

I went with BFGs which stiffened up the ride but I actually liked it. I felt like I was driving grandpa’s Cadillac with the Michelins mine came with. Yes the coil spacer is OEM and the wheel spacers are Bora. Had mild rubbing but it massaged out easily.

I love the stance now compared to before. The truck sits completely level. The tires are flush with the fenders and actually fill the wheel wells. The 200 looks like it skipped leg day with stock tires imo.

 

[clrussell]

I often debate this myself. Currently have a built cruiser and I don’t think I would build another one to the extent this one is.

Although I’ll say for what it is it’s damn comfortable and drives fantastic, you won’t modify a Jeep to this level and have the drive ability a 200 Does.

I have a set of oem wheels, and a 60% set of 275/70r18 KO2 I’ve really been thinking of putting on my 200 to see what’s it’s like. But with 4.88s it’ll be a race car

 

[W4632018]

I went with BFGs which stiffened up the ride but I actually liked it. I felt like I was driving grandpa’s Cadillac with the Michelins mine came with. Yes the coil spacer is OEM and the wheel spacers are Bora. Had mild rubbing but it massaged out easily.

I love the stance now compared to before. The truck sits completely level. The tires are flush with the fenders and actually fill the wheel wells. The 200 looks like it skipped leg day with stock tires imo.

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Nice tires, 285/65/18? You mentioned mpg, how much did you lose?

 

[DallasTide]

Nice tires, 285/65/18? You mentioned mpg, how much did you lose?

275/70/18. I've lost probably 1.5 MPG over stock, but it's hard to bifurcate how much of that was because of the tires and coil spacer vs the pedal commander and heavy foot.

 

[PhuckItImDone]

I think about this occasionally, but since I've modified everything else, it's sorta the norm. It was my first brand new vehicle, first Toyota, so I enjoyed it for a bit and then things just started happening.

 

[X5TOLX]

I went with BFGs which stiffened up the ride but I actually liked it. I felt like I was driving grandpa’s Cadillac with the Michelins mine came with. Yes the coil spacer is OEM and the wheel spacers are Bora. Had mild rubbing but it massaged out easily.

I love the stance now compared to before. The truck sits completely level. The tires are flush with the fenders and actually fill the wheel wells. The 200 looks like it skipped leg day with stock tires imo.

View attachment 3637106
View attachment 3637107

Spacer size? Looks great!

 

[normal]

I do sometimes regret all the mods I've put on my vehicle. I went full send without thinking about it too much. If I could go back, I'd keep my heritage bone stock and I'd pick up a rust free 80 and build that out instead, but keep it much more mild. Agree with the overall sentiment that you don't really need most mods. I might just do tires, a hidden winch, and a roof rack.

That being said, my fully built HE is extremely functional, it's not my daily, and it provides me with convenience and peace of mind when out exploring.

I did keep it stock for a year before slapping all the mods on, and I think the only way to appreciate a stock or lightly modified vehicle is to go too far with mods first. Once you've tasted both, you can appreciate the way a vehicle is tuned and dialed in from the factory.