To be honest - No.
I fought tooth and nail all the haters who had never driven one or would ever consider a vehicle built in the last 10 years. It's the best we could have reasonably expected Toyota to build. We asked for a lot of stuff they knew didn't sell all that well and they gave us most of it.
The wife really liked it and we bought one.
After two years I don't like very much of it at all. It's a cave. It only has two windows that open. Making them 48 inches long doesn't make it better. It buffets like crazy unless you open both windows. The sills are too high. The windshield is too far away. The overhang makes it so you can't see the traffic lights unless you're 200 yards back from the stop line. We've cracked the w/s three times already. The doors are so huge you can't park in a normal parking spot without holding the door half closed. Then you have to do this stupid dance to try to hold that door while opening the useless half doors that swing all the way open by themselves. Then you're trapped.
My wife bought it for the dogs. The plastic back and big back door would be good for our big dogs. They hate it. No air, no windows and no traction. They LOVE my CM Tundra.
The windshield seems always filthy. We go through a gallon of wiper fluid a week. The oil filter location is retarded. The rear window size and lack of vent is way past retarded. Want to talk about the rear lights or the plastic bumperette things?
And mine doesn't have any inner fender cracking issues.
It does off road well and it does have all those things we asked for; short wheel base, short overhangs, great off road manners, old school styling (albeit "influenced" rather than real good looks)
All that being said the wife really does like it and she spends 12-15 hours a week in it. We've got almost 50,000 miles on it and it's never been to the dealer. (The Tundra needs to go in for the 4th time in 19,000 miles for its 3rd bumper.) The drive train is excellent. It gets pretty OK mileage for a brick.
If I had to do it again I'd get that all that in a 4Runner.
As for a great out of the box wheeler - I've owned and wheeled the wee out of an 80 series. The FJC is no 80 series.
DD. She got it for xmas this year and lets be real here...it was the replacement for her Land Turd Disco 2...so as the fool who turns the wrenches around the house, of course I am loving it. Two biggest cons we have are the rearward lack of vision and no window openings available in the back for the boy to stick his head out and frighten people.
