Family of 5 - ski, road trip, camp needs

[slipkid13]

I also escaped the Subaru life—where, despite it being the 'official state car' of Colorado, we were constantly harassed by bro-dozers with mud tires and ego issues. Switching to a 200 Series was a revelation. Suddenly, the road respect is real; the only people who dare tailgate me now are Mini Cooper drivers, which is just adorable.

The 200 is so aggressively boring to look at that LEOs treat me like I’m invisible. The only people who say positive things about our 2008 are those who know about Land Cruisers—and I do get a lot of compliments, more like regret, when they say, "I wish I bought one" as if I'm some type of auto therapist.

There are 327k miles on this beast, and I've seen it all: from the thick rains of the South, the Everest-frost-biting winters in Michigan, the soul-crushing heat of Texas summers, and the Colorado snows where it's my mission to drive over every snowbank the plow team leaves behind. I’ve driven it through streams and endless 4x4 roads, passing $100k-perfectly-polished-blinged-up Jeeps while the driver stares in disbelief, wondering why what they saw in a commercial didn't equate to reality. Even far scarier is that I’ve taken this thing into Costco parking lots—I can personally testify this rig is 100% Karen-proof.

No one ever believes this thing has the same 5.7L heart as a Tundra. It’s hilarious watching people in those new 2.4L Land Cruisers try to figure out why I’m getting 20–21 mpg, silent at 1400 RPM's, with enough gear to colonize a small planet. Most of the maintenance is doable (but hire someone to change the starter, just sayin') and getting top tires doesn't require you to cash out your 401k.

It’s been a total game-changer for our family. We ripped out the 2nd row and half the 3rd, leaving the other half for our 10-year-old, who spends every mile narrating Star Wars battle tactics and brainstorming how to build a new Death Star that won't be destroyed by a single X-Wing. If you want reliability, durability, longevity, and a rig you'll never want to sell—and one your neighbors will constantly offer to buy from you—welcome to the club.

why I’m getting 20–21 mpg,

I call bull****

 

[jl199986]

Minivan is best solution. It also makes an appropriately responsible car for teens to drive. Not sporty, but it holds all the friends.

My first car was a Celeste green Econoline with a heavy duty suspension and seatbelts for 12. We’d bring the party anywhere we wanted. Responsible only because I couldn’t accelerate fast enough to get in trouble. 3 bench seats less so.

 

[Supra Turbo]

Not really surprised at the mpg. My rig consistently got close to 19-20 mpg highway when it was on stock everything.

Even now with heavy 34s and a lift, it will read 17mpg on longer stretches, cruise control set at 60mph.

 

[RT Cruiser]

Not really surprised at the mpg. My rig consistently got close to 19-20 mpg highway when it was on stock everything.

Even now with heavy 34s and a lift, it will read 17mpg on longer stretches, cruise control set at 60mph.

Funny how "common sense" needs a permission slip on this forum. Meanwhile you're getting 17-20 with 34s and a lift, I'm getting 20-21 while driving like Mr. Colburn from Driving Miss Daisy.

Hey, did you, or do you own a Supra? What year? I had a '92 - not full of zest but very comfy.

 

[coleAK]

Funny how "common sense" needs a permission slip on this forum. Meanwhile you're getting 17-20 with 34s and a lift, I'm getting 20-21 while driving like Mr. Colburn from Driving Miss Daisy.

Hey, did you, or do you own a Supra? What year? I had a '92 - not full of zest but very comfy.

In the LX I drive like Mr. Colbern, rarely over 60 mph start slow, stock set up, stop slow and on the highway best day ever I get 16 mpg. Most of the time more like 14-15, 12-13 mpg in town. Yakima box on the roof I’m more like 13 mpg, towing my camper 8-9 mpg.

 

[RT Cruiser]

In the LX I drive like Mr. Colbern, rarely over 60 mph start slow, stock set up, stop slow and on the highway best day ever I get 16 mpg. Most of the time more like 14-15, 12-13 mpg in town. Yakima box on the roof I’m more like 13 mpg, towing my camper 8-9 mpg.

Maybe you're driving heroically. Air temp = air density = mpg, and Alaska's atmosphere is basically sabotaging you on purpose. But you're in beautiful, quiet, non-gentrified Alaska. Mad respect.

Send campsite photos — which probably means wherever you want to go unlike CO where many former "undesignated" campsites are being blocked off or requiring a permit.

 

[Supra Turbo]

Hey, did you, or do you own a Supra? What year? I had a '92 - not full of zest but very comfy.

Yep, multiple of each MKIIIs and MKIVs turbos, from stock to 1200hp++. Along with a number of LHD SC300s / RHD Soarers and an Aristo. I love my 90s Toyotas. IMO, peak Toyota.

 

[sedole]

I'm near RT Cruiser and have also gotten around 19-20mpg a number of times when I was 100% stock and also with 285/65/18 tires. Granted this is not something I'd get every single road trip, but enough to where I knew it wasn't just a one time fluke. This was both reflected by the computer readout and hand calculations at fill-up time. I keep up with traffic but I'm not a super aggressive driver 90% of the time in this rig. My wife used to complain about my driving scaring her when I had my modded mazdaspeed6 and would weave through traffic. Now she complains that I drive like an old man haha.

Now that I'm not stock I get nowhere near that lol but still pretty good. Daily commuting which is 9miles of highway and about 6 miles of suburb streets I'll get 13-14mpg depending on how many mornings of the week I run late. Longer trips I'll get 15-16mpg. That's with 2.5" lift and skinny 35s. I anticipate losing another 1-2mpg when I add a bumper up front.

I do notice that if I use 91 I'll consistently get 1mpg better than when I use 85. Numbers above are with 91. I live at 6,200 feet.

 

[Heckraiser]

Key part of @RT Cruiser 's story: Lake City to Highlands Ranch, that's a net 3k ft elevation loss. I too have achieved 20+mpg in my rig with 4.88 gears, 35x12.5 Mickey Thompsons and loaded for a trip. Key points: Steamboat to Denver - similar net elevation loss, AND most importantly, I was really paying attention to my driving style to see what I could get Oh yeah, and I did remove my stock roof rack after extensive wind tunnel testing

 

[bloc]

In my experience thin air really helps mileage in these rigs. I routinely drive from near sea-level up to the Rockies and can reliably add 2-3mpg just by doing the same speeds at those altitudes.

Most people regard 20 as a pipe dream in a 200 because they’ve not come close to that. For tons of reasons. I think it’s safe to say the vast majority of people should not expect to get that kind of mileage.

Digging around the real-world listings on Fuelly.com should give someone a realistic expectation. There are a lot of people averaging 14…

 

[jasonshiwoo]

Rough country fridge. Looks like they don’t offer them anymore. It’s just a rebrand fridge I’m sure. Fits absolutely perfect behind the 3rd row.

Rough Country 45L Portable Refrigerator / Electric Cooler (12 Volt | AC 110)

Rough Country’s 45L Portable Refrigerator / Freezer (12 Volt | AC 110) is the ultimate accessory for any adventure. Rough Country's portable refrigerator plugs right into your UTV or vehicle with a DC power cord, and allows you to control the temperature with a cooling range of -4° to 68° F. The...

theyotagarage.com

Just to let you guys know, the Dometic CFX5 25L fits perfectly behind the 3rd row.

 

[RT Cruiser]

Key part of @RT Cruiser 's story: Lake City to Highlands Ranch, that's a net 3k ft elevation loss. I too have achieved 20+mpg in my rig with 4.88 gears, 35x12 Mickey Thompsons and loaded for a trip. Key points: Steamboat to Denver - similar net elevation loss, AND most importantly, I was really paying attention to my driving style to see what I could get Oh yeah, and I did remove my stock roof rack after extensive wind tunnel testing

Fair point. Got 18 mpg to Lake City with the bumper bike rack. Round trip averaged 19.5.

And as @bloc said, and I hope my point landed despite my best efforts to explain it: high altitude = thin air = higher mpg. Simple physics, poorly explained by a guy whose expertise is more in the financial world than auto mechanics.

 

[whatdude17]

Yes, that can be true. It sound like the road trips you are taking aren't super long and hard to know if you are camping or staying in hotels/vrbo's. 2 of my kids are almost teens and 2 are younger. Young kids need a lot of gear too with diapers and car seats and booster chair for eating and extra clothes for messess As with all things, there are compromises to be made and you have to chose what your priorities are and work around the limitations. It sounds like you want a 4x4 SUV with room for gear. A 200 series will work well if you put all 3 kids in the middle row and gear in the back with ski gear on the roof. This will give you plenty of room for gear. Will the kids be as comfortable? No, but this is a compromise. If they need more room, than you can use 1 3rd row seat extra passenger space, but then there is the compromise on gear space. Maybe you will have to slim down on what they take if they want the extra room. If you need more room for passengers and gear than you are left with finding a larger vehicle. You could do a 4x4 sprinter or do a 4x4 conversion on a passenger van, but I have no idea how they handle snow and it will definitely will be harder to maneuver in the city/parking lots.

I looked at a suburban and excursion to see if that would work and I didn't feel that it provided enough room for the trips we take when we needed to use the 3rd row on the land cruiser so we ended up with a full size van knowing I would be limited by lack of 4x4 and by aproach/breakover and depart angles. It was a compromise we had to make.

My brother has 3 kids that are getting to the teenage years. He wanted a larger vehicle for road trips. I tried to get him into a 100 series because there was one close by him for a great price. He drove my 80 series a bit and wasn't impressed and didn't jump on the 100 series when it was available. He eventually decided on a 2nd gen Sequoia and loves it. I took a look at it on a trip we did this past week and I wasn't impressed. I am glad he likes it and can see how it works for him but for me it doesn't pack as well as the LC and doesn't have the rear tail gate which I find super helpful for trips. Would the sequoia be more comfortable for the kids? Yes. does it have more modern amenities? Yes. Those were things he wanted and were higher on his priority list so it works for him and he is happy.

I guess my point here is that you have to chose what your priorities are, what your actual use case is, and what you can not compromise on and go from there. Try and drive the different vehicles you are interested in. See if your kids fit, and if they can be in a middle row for 8-10 hours or if that would be a deal breaker. See if your gear will fit. Think of all the different types of trips you plan to take with the vehicle and find which one could actually do them all or if there are certain types of trips you have to quit doing and if that would be ok. Only you can make those decisions. I know that for me, an 80 seires with 3 kids even if they were teenagers could work and 200 series would probably be more comfortable for them and would work too.

Keep us posted on what you end up choosing.

Thx for sharing your experience in the LC and your brother's w/ the Sequoia. I'm set on using 2nd row bench for the kids to sit 3 across on road trips (skiing, camping, vacationing). If the vehicle I choose has 3rd row, that would be a bonus, as it can be used for daily driving and some separation. But I want to be able to occupy the rear cargo w/ 3rd row down (or removed if LC). Plus add the box on top and we should be good to go. My plan is to find a LX/LC and a Sequoia locally to feel them out.

Really appreciate everyone's posts on this topic. I'm sure it's a common one and there's no real right answer. Just prioritize what's best for us and then make it work.

 

[CharlieS]

Sounds like you got what you needed.

My recipe was 200 series, three across the second row, remove the third row seats, and install cargo boxes (my favorite are the Trekbox), plus use a large Thule box on the roof for gear.

The only person who loses out a bit is the person in the middle second row seat.

If you choose, you can run a fridge on a tilt/slide (we used the Alucab one) or drop slide and still have plenty of room for cargo boxes, or luggage (we used a combination of Wolfboxes and soft duffel bags).

We've used a hitch mounted carrier when we needed extra space. Like on a hunting trip where we wanted to carry several coolers to haul meat out. We have a cheap steel one, but there are some nice aluminum ones available that I'd consider now if I was in the market (Pakmule? maybe).

I am also of the minivan. = divorce tribe, in case it helps understand why I make the 200 work.

Lastly, my personal experience is that the 200 is a great winter vehicle. I know some comments above have a different point of view, but they may be dealing with more extreme conditions than we do in Vermont.

 

[coleAK]

Maybe you're driving heroically. Air temp = air density = mpg, and Alaska's atmosphere is basically sabotaging you on purpose. But you're in beautiful, quiet, non-gentrified Alaska. Mad respect.

Send campsite photos — which probably means wherever you want to go unlike CO where many former "undesignated" campsites are being blocked off or requiring a permit.

This weekend while fishing for Sockeye.

 

[CharlieS]

This weekend while fishing for Sockeye.

View attachment 4175467

Is that snow on the mountains in July! Wow.

 

[DesertRider]

Is that snow on the mountains in July! Wow.

We've actually had a few dustings of snow on the peaks this summer. And yes, still plenty of snow on the mountains and in some of the valleys. Hiked to Rabbit Lake last weekend with the kids, a whopping 3150' elevation. Still a fair bit of snow and some ice on the edges of the lake

 

[coleAK]

Is that snow on the mountains in July! Wow.

Alaska, the middle patch is a glacier. Also we had a brutally cold winter (even for us), broke the record for coldest November, February and April, overall 2nd coldest winter on record. At my house we had ~60 days straight of below 0F, I don’t think we had >10 days where it got above 10F between Nov 1 and May 1. snow didn’t even start melting until late May, we skied 3 weeks ago.

 

[gasman4u]

Alaska, the middle patch is a glacier. Also we had a brutally cold winter (even for us), broke the record for coldest November, February and April, overall 2nd coldest winter on record. At my house we had ~60 days straight of below 0F, I don’t think we had >10 days where it got above 10F between Nov 1 and May 1. snow didn’t even start melting until late May, we skied 3 weeks ago.

OT: How do you keep your pipes from freezing with this cold of temps?

I’ve heard of well heads freezing when they’re not dripped overnight in the lower 48.

 

[coleAK]

OT: How do you keep your pipes from freezing with this cold of temps?

I’ve heard of well heads freezing when they’re not dripped overnight in the lower 48.

Homes are built for this up here. Pipes come straight up through the foundation, none of mine run up exterior walls. For my well head it’s ~10’ underground with an access. I bury the access with peat moss in the fall then at the first snow bury that under snow so it stays under snow all winter. Knock on wood, I’ve never had well issues or frozen pipes.