Convince me to buy an 80 in 2023 for my family of 7. (1 Viewer)

[Lka1988]

Afternoon guys....it's been a while.

My fiancée and I are seriously contemplating trading her paid-off 2015 Highlander for something a bit more capable... Like a Land Cruiser. However, since I sold my 80 in 2012, I'm well aware of how prices on these got stupid, especially during covid. We have a 2008 Sienna that handles family hauling duties, so we aren't losing any capacity by trading the Highlander.

Obviously I'd love to own another 80, but my fiancée and I have 5 kids together (two in carseats and one in a booster) and as such, passenger safety plays a much bigger part in my vehicle choice than whether it has a solid front axle or not.

Sooo....

I'm torn between having my dream truck (which my fiancée fully supports), vs going for a 100 series (despite being arguably safer and more powerful, with more interior room).

Halp

 

[bhsdriller]

Was going to say buy a Sienna but your sig already lists one

No other comment can't think of any plusses for an 80 and 5 kids

 

[Lka1988]

Was going to say buy a Sienna but your sig already lists one

No other comment can't think of any plusses for an 80 and 5 kids

Yeah we already got the kid-hauler thing down haha. Our requirement for a second car is that both cars have to be capable of hauling all the kids. I posted in the 100-series section as well, and I may just go that route simply because the middle row in the 100 is a 60/40 split bench instead of 50/50 (like the 80), which makes it *much* easier to access the third row with multiple carseats. I mean, I grew up with my 80, my dad handed it down to me (sorry dad), so I know all about how much of a pain it is to get back there with multiple carseats.

 

[Francis K]

Get a more modern Toyota, a 26 year old truck is not a viable family transport vehicle. Nothing to do with the truck itself but simply that there is a higher chance of it leaving you stranded, not higher than a different make that's for sure but more than a newer Toyota.

For your purposes my suggestion would be a GX.

 

[bhsdriller]

I only have 1 kid in a car seat and the 80 is usually our third choice to drive lol

 

[Lka1988]

Get a more modern Toyota, a 26 year old truck is not a viable family transport vehicle. Nothing to do with the truck itself but simply that there is a higher chance of it leaving you stranded, not higher than a different make that's for sure but more than a newer Toyota.

For your purposes my suggestion would be a GX.

I've looked at a few GXs, those are definitely in my mind as well.

We've already got a 2008 Sienna that's more than capable of handling anything we throw at it as far as family goes, and it has a 2010 engine with far fewer miles than the chassis.

 

[Lka1988]

I only have 1 kid in a car seat and the 80 is usually our third choice to drive lol

I can imagine haha. I only had one kid when I sold my 80, but I'm pretty sure it was my ex-wife who convinced me to sell it. Ah well, such is life.

 

[jpoole]

5 kids!

For my uses the main benefit of an 80 over a 100 or more modern alternatives is the relative simplicity of the 80. Simplicity is important for me because I plan to keep the 80 a long time and I do all of the service and maintenance work on my cars and want to keep the time and costs to a minimum. The math on which option is best will vary a lot depending on who is doing the maintenance/service work, how you want to use the vehicle (local vs. long trips, etc.) and other budget and goal considerations. If you don't do your own work and want to take your kids on long trips I think you need to look for much newer vehicles than even then older 100s.

We have 2 kids and the 80 wasn't much worse than our more modern cars during the car seat phase, once I figured out seats that worked well in the 80, etc... You can probably make the car seat and small kid phase work but with 5 kids it's always going to be tight and the lack of shoulder belts for the middle seat(s) is a safety consideration that may cause worry, etc.. Once your kids get older/larger they will obviously not fit as well and not be as eager to climb into the 3rd row seat.

You'll be best served by a mini van at this point or something with 2nd row captains chairs and 3 proper seat belts in the 3rd row.

If it were me I'd be looking for a budget mini van that was new enough to be low maintenance and old enough that the wear and tear of kids didn't bother me. Use that van for your essential and distance travel and everyone will be more comfortable on those trips, etc.. With the extra $$ I'd get the best 80 I could afford and use it for my personal travel and for family adventures. If you can use the 80 for family fun trips, from getting ice cream to camping and outdoor adventures, your family will quickly associate it with those trips and will love it accordingly. Forcing the kids to squeeze into the seats for every boring, long or mundane trip will highlight it's weaknesses and could lead to rejection of it by the family over time.

edit: I originally confused your sienna with a sequoya so was thinking you didn't have the mini van slot filled. Since you have that filled already the math is a little more complicated. Perhaps a sequoya so that you really can be comfortable as the kids grow? Maybe the budget mini van plus 80 still makes sense? With something as old as the 80 though you really will have to commit to figuring out how to make it work with 5 kids, and you'll need buy-in from the whole group. An 80 only makes sense in my opinion if it's a non essential family vehicle, you will do all the work on it and also be the primary/sole driver. I'd say it's a hard no on the 80 if the wife will be using it as her primary car unless you are ready to spend more than it's likely worth to get a nice one and/or baseline the crap out of it plus everyone else is super sold on the idea.

 

[ttFJC]

i will always validate others desires to make poor financial decisions on the internet.

 

[ozarkmud]

While a smaller family, we were in a similar boat. On paper, a first gen Sequoia should've been great. Lots of room, good engine, etc. In reality, the handling was pretty terrible and it's not nearly as durable for gravel roads. Build quality was so disappointing.

The 80 series, if maintained, is very durable, reliable, and trustworthy. It's also very safe. I can't speak to the 100 series, but I will say this is a case that we thought the 80 series might be impractical, for for us it's ideal. If we lived just off the highway we might consider something else, but for us it's pretty ideal in a lot of ways.

I will say, the 3rd row is great but does leave you with very little room. You might have to use a cargo box on the roof, and/or trailer or cargo box on the hitch.

I personally have a mild preference (overall) for the FJ80 over the FZJ80. FJ80s thankfully are a little cheaper overall (to purchase, anyway). But with 7 people inside, the extra power of the 1FZ could be nice.

 

[Marco Lau]

I have 1 dog...and the 80 is perfect. 5 kids...you need an Excursion...

 

[jpoole]

You might have to use a cargo box on the roof, and/or trailer or cargo box on the hitch

It's hard to imagine regularly moving 7 people in an 80 without one or both of these. We love our large rooftop box and use it pretty regularly with just 4 folks in the 80. The hitch get's used more for bikes than cargo though we do both depending on the trip/cargo.

5 kids probably justifies the "Sprinter" van types of rigs. Those can have enough space behind the 3rd row for a lot of gear and you can add a hitch for overflow as needed.

 

[dan1554]

Even in a 100 it sounds very tight. Get your fiancée to drive and buy one of each.

 

[PIP]

We have 3 kids 5, 12, and 16. We love the 80 series. Kids can bring a friend or two and there's enough room for gear in the back. My kids all love the backseats. They fight to sit back there.

Two carseats and a booster does sound tight though.

I would not put a 100 over an 80. 80 has a higher build quality that really shows as these things age. 80's are a classic and I doubt will ever decrease in value going forward. 100 series are not the same thing. They don't have the same following.

 

[AgentOrange]

I have to ask what you intend on using the vehicle for. This is a similar discussion my wife and I had looking for a bigger vehicle for her. She only needed something to do light trails, camp and do road trips in that had more space than an 80 series offered. Interior wise, the 100 series wasn't much bigger. So we went with a Sequoia knowing that it would need a bit more work to make it feel as sure footed as a Land Cruiser off the pavement, and it's worked out wonderfully

 

[Devils Paw 80]

Afternoon guys....it's been a while.

My fiancée and I are seriously contemplating trading her paid-off 2015 Highlander for something a bit more capable...

Why?

I see you're in Utah. That's a good reason in itself, perhaps. You could always rent a Jeep for an occasional Moab excursion. With so many kids there probably won't be much of that in your immediate future.

Keep the Highlander if it works for 5 kids, forget about a 100, buy an 80 as a third vehicle when finances allow.

 

[Lka1988]

Why?

Because I want a Land Cruiser. Specifically something that has 7+ seats.

I see you're in Utah. That's a good reason in itself, perhaps. You could always rent a Jeep for an occasional Moab excursion. With so many kids there probably won't be much of that in your immediate future.

Her dad has a Honda Talon that he lets us use periodically, but it only has 4 seats.

Keep the Highlander if it works for 5 kids, forget about a 100, buy an 80 as a third vehicle when finances allow.

We already have an 8-seater Sienna for family-hauling. We'd like to go on harder trails, but the Highlander can only do so much, even if I lift it and install more aggressive tires.

 

[Lka1988]

I have to ask what you intend on using the vehicle for. This is a similar discussion my wife and I had looking for a bigger vehicle for her. She only needed something to do light trails, camp and do road trips in that had more space than an 80 series offered. Interior wise, the 100 series wasn't much bigger. So we went with a Sequoia knowing that it would need a bit more work to make it feel as sure footed as a Land Cruiser off the pavement, and it's worked out wonderfully

You know I haven't thought about the Sequoia. That's a solid vehicle on its own, but it's pretty big.

 

[Lka1988]

edit: I originally confused your sienna with a sequoya so was thinking you didn't have the mini van slot filled. Since you have that filled already the math is a little more complicated. Perhaps a sequoya so that you really can be comfortable as the kids grow? Maybe the budget mini van plus 80 still makes sense? With something as old as the 80 though you really will have to commit to figuring out how to make it work with 5 kids, and you'll need buy-in from the whole group. An 80 only makes sense in my opinion if it's a non essential family vehicle, you will do all the work on it and also be the primary/sole driver. I'd say it's a hard no on the 80 if the wife will be using it as her primary car unless you are ready to spend more than it's likely worth to get a nice one and/or baseline the crap out of it plus everyone else is super sold on the idea.

Yeah a lot of people seemed to have missed my signature - I already have a Sienna that does family hauling.

i will always validate others desires to make poor financial decisions on the internet.

You. I like you.

I have 1 dog...and the 80 is perfect. 5 kids...you need an Excursion...

Yeah but then I'd have to own a FORD. Not doing that again.

It's hard to imagine regularly moving 7 people in an 80 without one or both of these. We love our large rooftop box and use it pretty regularly with just 4 folks in the 80. The hitch get's used more for bikes than cargo though we do both depending on the trip/cargo.

5 kids probably justifies the "Sprinter" van types of rigs. Those can have enough space behind the 3rd row for a lot of gear and you can add a hitch for overflow as needed.

Nah, I'm done with other car brands at this point. Like I mentioned in other comments, we already have a Sienna that handles family hauling duties.

Even in a 100 it sounds very tight. Get your fiancée to drive and buy one of each.

Try stuffing 7 people in a Highlander.

We have 3 kids 5, 12, and 16. We love the 80 series. Kids can bring a friend or two and there's enough room for gear in the back. My kids all love the backseats. They fight to sit back there.

I grew up with my former 80. We *hated* that backseat. When my dad gave it to me after high school, the first thing I did was rip out those seats and replace it with a super basic wooden storage platform (see my ROTW from like... 14 years ago)

Two carseats and a booster does sound tight though.

Yeah it's really tight in the Highlander. We have a Sienna as well though, so no issues there.

I would not put a 100 over an 80. 80 has a higher build quality that really shows as these things age. 80's are a classic and I doubt will ever decrease in value going forward. 100 series are not the same thing. They don't have the same following.

I don't disagree with you. However, in my many years here, every "80 vs 100" debate I've seen is like watching rich people argue over which $5000 wine is better when everyone else is drinking $50 wine (Tahoe, Expedition, etc). Yeah, the 100 has IFS, but it's still the absolute beefiest IFS I've ever seen on any full-size vehicle.

 

[Lka1988]

While a smaller family, we were in a similar boat. On paper, a first gen Sequoia should've been great. Lots of room, good engine, etc. In reality, the handling was pretty terrible and it's not nearly as durable for gravel roads. Build quality was so disappointing.

That's my big concern with the Sequoia. Having already owned an 80 in the past, it's honestly a really high bar for any other vehicle to meet. Not even the Highlander has the same build quality as my old 80, and it's 24 years newer.

The 80 series, if maintained, is very durable, reliable, and trustworthy. It's also very safe. I can't speak to the 100 series, but I will say this is a case that we thought the 80 series might be impractical, for for us it's ideal. If we lived just off the highway we might consider something else, but for us it's pretty ideal in a lot of ways.

Well, technically speaking safety-wise, the next model of any particular vehicle is going to be better engineered for safety compared to its previous generation. The biggest reason I want an 80 is because of the solid front axle. But at this point, the safety risks (A-pillars always cave in on rollovers, basically zero side protection until 1996, one or two airbags at most) are already outweighing the benefits of that.

I will say, the 3rd row is great but does leave you with very little room. You might have to use a cargo box on the roof, and/or trailer or cargo box on the hitch.

Yep. I grew up with an 80. We absolutely *HATED* that backseat. Luckily I'm the oldest so I never had to sit back there.

I personally have a mild preference (overall) for the FJ80 over the FZJ80. FJ80s thankfully are a little cheaper overall (to purchase, anyway). But with 7 people inside, the extra power of the 1FZ could be nice.

Ayyyy same! The 3FE is just awesome for what it is. No-nonsense, not enough power to break itself... Mine had 280k+ before I sold it.