Hello all! My name is Randin, AKA PadaD, and I'm new 'round these parts! We (me + wife + 2YO) are moving to Costa Rica in about 7 weeks and so we'll be ditching the Prius C in favor of a capable 4x4. On our last trip down to Costa Rica it was the rainy season, we'd rented a stock 4x4 Mitsu Outlander that performed OK in most situations considering the *edit* all-season *end edit* tires and surprisingly low ride height, but was hardly up to the task of the more pothole-laden areas, it struggled to keep cool on mountainous trails, and did very poorly in mud - we got stuck and had to come back the next day with shovels and boards and dig ourselves out. My mom mentioned she was in the market to replace her '00 LX470 so it seemed like a no brainer that we buy the LX off her and ship it down to CR as our primary rig. But I want to make sure it's the right decision before I pull the trigger, so I'm all ears to everyone's thoughts & experiences!
My needs: needs to be capable in a variety of environments, heavy rains & rocks in mountain terrain, extremely large and plentiful potholes, lots of dirt roads, deep mud, some water & possibly sand. Bonus points for interior cargo space, exterior cargo space, towing capacity, reparability, cost efficiency. We do lots of exploring, but less on the camping front so I'm not interested in tent or shower systems yet.
About the LX470: 2000, bone stock, stored in a garage, meticulously maintained at the dealership, 220k miles mostly freeway, no off-roading history. The car has lived in VA it's whole life, so it's experienced "real" winters, but lived a pretty sheltered life otherwise. It seems the CD/Tape deck doesn't work and that 1 side mirror won't auto fold-out. Hopefully those aren't indicative of larger electrical items.
A few important questions before we can commit to the Lexus though, here's where I'm hoping the community can weigh in:
Ok, that's probably enough to digest so I'll stop typing. Looking forward to your thoughts and inputs!
My needs: needs to be capable in a variety of environments, heavy rains & rocks in mountain terrain, extremely large and plentiful potholes, lots of dirt roads, deep mud, some water & possibly sand. Bonus points for interior cargo space, exterior cargo space, towing capacity, reparability, cost efficiency. We do lots of exploring, but less on the camping front so I'm not interested in tent or shower systems yet.
About the LX470: 2000, bone stock, stored in a garage, meticulously maintained at the dealership, 220k miles mostly freeway, no off-roading history. The car has lived in VA it's whole life, so it's experienced "real" winters, but lived a pretty sheltered life otherwise. It seems the CD/Tape deck doesn't work and that 1 side mirror won't auto fold-out. Hopefully those aren't indicative of larger electrical items.
A few important questions before we can commit to the Lexus though, here's where I'm hoping the community can weigh in:
- They do not have Lexuses... (Lexi?) in Costa Rica, but they do have a lot of Land Cruisers (& Prados if that makes a difference?). Knowing that at least 1 major piece is Lexus specific (height control system), do you think it's realistic to repair/support the LX in a Toyota specific environment, especially under fairly rigorous conditions? I've replaced things like head gaskets, rotors, and radiators before, but would likely heavily rely on 3rd party mechanics more than your super technical enthusiast to get started
- I believe that if you go pretty far into suspension mods, the Lexus specific pieces get replaced, right?
- Performance & heat - From my limited experience and research the key obstacles in Costa Rica are mud, heat, and maintenance. If I take care of my rig, these factors should be conquerable, right? Open to any input on your experiences in Costa Rica / Central America / whatever
- Mod cost vs benefit - Fuel is expensive, mods should be functional but I also want to be able to get myself out of basically any situation. Being stuck is a terrible feeling. It would be nice to get started for less than $5000 in mods, but it sounds like it's $4000 just for bumpers so I'm not exactly holding my breath. I'm sure I'm misprioritizing or missing something all together, remember I'm a noob
- Necessary - Shovel, Traction Boards, Mud Tires... 33" probably?
- Nice to haves - Roof Rack, 2.5"? Lift, Sliders, Under carriage protective spray stuff?
- Maybe overkill - bumpers, lights, winch, tailgate storage conversion
- Probably overkill - snorkel, the rear bumper/gate with gas cans and ladders, lockers? (that's a thing for this vehicle, right? lol)
- Car cost - Import Tax is 80% of the car's Costa Rican value, and it looks like this car will be valued at appx 11,000 USD meaning a tax of around $9000. From what I've seen from the classifieds, this type of vehicle would easily sell for $15,000+, provided it's maintainable in Costa Rica (e.g., #1 above). That being said, if anyone things it's possible to get an equivalent rig for equivalent costs, I'm all ears!
Ok, that's probably enough to digest so I'll stop typing. Looking forward to your thoughts and inputs!
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, how will you feel when the babied carpets, wood veneer, and fancy leather will get covered up in mud etc? I'd rather go with something I can hose off.
