newbie- 60 or 80 or 100 series?

[SaMingTRD]

Yea- the Taco seems like an ideal choice, however i need a double cab for room for the dog, but that means sleeping in a short box (5ft) when I am 6 foot 3. Access cab wont work, too small for dog to fit in the back but sleeping quarters would be ideal. And the 2nd Gen Taco long bed is the perfect choice, however there isnt as much aftermarket support for them and the most important issue is its way out of my price range. I do like Scott Brady's set up though where he puts all his gear in the truck bed and deploys a RTT over the bed- easier to get in and out of instead of having it pearched on the roof- very trick.

I just figured I could either sleep in the back of a LC or get a RTT and still have enough room for all my gear.

KY state is very rocky with narrow red clay trails and lots of water crossings.

I am a minimilist and dont need many creature comforts to get by, roughing it is half the fun.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

I am a minimilist and dont need many creature comforts to get by, roughing it is half the fun.

If that's really true, then the FJ60 is the truck for you. It's simple, reliable, very large interior, and still lots of parts for it in the Toyota parts train. You could buy a decent one, have the motor rebuilt and 5 speed tranny installed and still be way under $10k. Miles are not the issue with these trucks, rust is the issue. Find a rust free one and enjoy. The motor will go reliably to very high miles if maintained. Try and find a 1 owner truck, and the motor may still be just fine. As an example, mine runs strong at 220k, and one guy in the 60 section has over 400K miles.

Remember too, in this day of expensive fuel, save the cash you might spend on the truck, and put it toward the cost of your travel. Every 1000 miles will cost you $350-400 in fuel alone, so plan for that in your travels.

Diesel swaps get harder with later trucks, so factor in how realistic that plan really is. If you are set on it, again the 60 is a better choice.

 

[sandcruiser]

before you start getting excited about a diesel swap, you might sit down and do some math...

Diesel and gas seem to be rising at similar rates. If anything, diesel is rising faster during winter months.

Any diesel swap is going to cost you at least $5K. Most diesel swaps will net you between 30% and 50% increase in efficiency (I get mid-20's mpg in my hd-t. Most 80's get around 14. Just did a trip with two similarly built 80s, one had a FZ the other a 4BT. The 4BT was getting low 20s when we were getting 15.)

So "best case" you get twice the mileage (and probably some more power) out of the diesel swap. If you do, then you'll recoup your investment of $5K in a mere 2,000 gallons of fuel (which would yield around 56,000 miles). Even if you are drivng the heck out of it, you probably won't actually do 25K miles per year. That's 2.24 years.

If you do the same numbers on a much more realistic scale, you are looking at 4 or 5 years to recoup the investment.

To complicate things more: if you put a diesel into your cruiser you are opening up a can of worms for things to go wrong. Either you use a domestic diesel motor, which means a custom installation with custom parts that will be harder and more expensive to fix in backwoods USA (let alone other countries) or you are going to use a Toyota diesel which will cost a lot more to obtain, will have very very little mechanic support in the USA and will be very hard to get parts for it.

the FZJ motor is pretty ubiquitous in the USA and elsewhere, has great parts/mechanic support, and drives well enough for most expedition type travel (hey, I spent years behind a 2F, the FZJ is a ROCKET in comparison).

If you think you want a diesel conversion, find a good-quality fzj80 with a blown motor or blown HG. Then at least you'll save some $$ on buying the truck.

Keep in mind with all of this: I bought a converted hd-t 80. Love it. Great motor. But hard to justify converting an 80 in the states on fuel savings alone.

W/regards to suspension: I think that a slight lift (2.5 OME) is one of the best investments you can make on an expedition rig. You'll be spending a lot of time behind the wheel, adding comfort for you and reducing wear on the contents is a good thing. Higher is rarely justified, in my opinion.

Before you buy bumpers/sliders/armor... consider the terrain you'll do and the weight of the stuff you are buying. All that weight eventually turns into $ at the pump.

 

[Brian894X4]

Yea- the Taco seems like an ideal choice, however i need a double cab for room for the dog, but that means sleeping in a short box (5ft) when I am 6 foot 3. Access cab wont work, too small for dog to fit in the back but sleeping quarters would be ideal. And the 2nd Gen Taco long bed is the perfect choice, however there isnt as much aftermarket support for them and the most important issue is its way out of my price range. I do like Scott Brady's set up though where he puts all his gear in the truck bed and deploys a RTT over the bed- easier to get in and out of instead of having it pearched on the roof- very trick.

I just figured I could either sleep in the back of a LC or get a RTT and still have enough room for all my gear.

KY state is very rocky with narrow red clay trails and lots of water crossings.

I am a minimilist and dont need many creature comforts to get by, roughing it is half the fun.

I love Scott's rig too, but I'm not sure how much more mpg you can get out of a taco V-6 auto, especially after all the mods. Maybe still mid to upper teens at best? I'm sure a lot of guys over at expo that run those rigs could say better for sure.

It doesn't seem like the rear of my 80 has all that much room in the back from the front seats to the rear hatch, but maybe it is still 6 feet. I doubt its more though.

A truck tent on a Taco might be the way to go. Here's what I had on my rig. I never did put it to practical use though, so I can't speak for how well it works in the field.

trucktent

But it adds a couple of feet to a 5 or 6 foot bed. I think this would be a great cost effective possibility to add to a doublecab taco, assuming the gas mileage justified going that route.

A RTT would also be neat and would make the rig more versital. You could remove it when you don't need it.

It's a tough call. To be honest, if I was starting over, I have no idea what I'd do. The problem is what's the future going to entail. If gas prices keep going up and stay up, then there's no question that gas powered Land Cruisers are seeing their last days on American roads. But if prices ever do come back down, between now and the next couple of years, might be the best time ever to get a good deal from desperate owners who are trying to dump their 60, 80 and 100s.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

, might be the best time ever to get a good deal from desperate owners who are trying to dump their 60, 80 and 100s.

I agree that these will get cheaper. 80s and 60s are already cheap. Given their age, though, most owners have, like me, fully written them off and anything they might bring is bonus. 100s are tougher because many owners still have payments and so can't really afford to sell or keep. It's a difficult bind for sure.

The best (maybe only) option is to not daily drive these rigs. It's simply too wasteful. Look even here in the classifieds-lots of 80s on the block, and I'll bet the majority are daily drivers. As trip vehicles, though, they are outstanding, and then nearly immune to fuel cost increases. I drove my 80 less than 5000 miles last year. In the final analysis, that's pretty affordable.

100s are approaching the $8-9000 mark already and some FZJ80s are below $5000. These are very good trucks for those prices. Many FJ40 are selling for more than that. The less you pay for a truck, the more fuel you can afford to burn.

For the original poster, the less you can pay for the truck, the more you can travel. In the end it's the trip, not the truck that's the value. If you have the wanderlust, buy a truck and hit the road. Don't sweat the details.

 

[Jacket]

Yea- the Taco seems like an ideal choice, however i need a double cab for room for the dog, but that means sleeping in a short box (5ft) when I am 6 foot 3. Access cab wont work, too small for dog to fit in the back but sleeping quarters would be ideal. And the 2nd Gen Taco long bed is the perfect choice, however there isnt as much aftermarket support for them and the most important issue is its way out of my price range.

Man - you must treat your dog better than some treat their kids. I would think a 60 lb dog would have plenty of room in an access cab. Fold up the jump seats, put down a large pillow, and that's a pretty nice spot for a dog. Then you have 6' of bed space for a sleeping platform, and tons of storage. But there again, my primary travel vehicle is a Tacoma (dbl cab short bed), so I might be biased.... ;p

 

[Jacket]

I love Scott's rig too, but I'm not sure how much more mpg you can get out of a taco V-6 auto, especially after all the mods. Maybe still mid to upper teens at best? I'm sure a lot of guys over at expo that run those rigs could say better for sure.

That's about right. My 4.0 V6 gets 15-19 with all my mods. Best I did stock was 23 mpg; all highway in the summer time. I've spent a bit of time traveling with folks running the 3.4 V6, and it's pretty similar in efficiency (but with less power than the 4.0).

 

[SaMingTRD]

my two cents...

the dilemma's are rising...at this point in time there is not a rig that exists that offers affordability, fuel efficientcy and capability all in the same package. That being said, until that day does come (if ever) I will choose capability over the other two factors. I will die someday so what does it matter if I spend money on a expo rig that guzzles gas? It allows me to get out there in the world, if it can't get me back home safely then whats the point? I know we all work hard for our money and don't want to piss it away, as well as I'm sure we are all eco-conscious since we love the great outdoors, but the reality is when your traveling over rough country we arn't thinking about the price of gas when we are wheeling into the unknown. I mean isnt that the point of expedition travel, to get away from all the stress of the daily grind and come home wiser and less worried about things we have no control over?

Yea-my dog is my wingman, goes everywhere with me- more loyal than any girlfriend I've ever had. He catches me food, guards my home/property and is a best friend- he desirves the extra room of a double cab for sure. Plus if I removed the seats in a DC it leaves one side for him and the other to install a fridge/freezer.

 

[joshoisasleep]

...there is not a rig that exists that offers affordability, fuel efficientcy and capability all in the same package...

Two words... Suzuki Samurai. Although, not so comfy for long trips... especially if you're over 6 ft...

 

[Lucy_FJ55]

Why not travel in style?!

 

[AdventureBuddies]

I don't know if you need another opinion, but here are my thoughts since I was in your same situation with your same goals last year. I opted for a 96 or 97 FZJ80 for the following reasons, in order of importance:

Airbags, ABS, availability of parts in the most number of countries around the world, comfort, diff locks, availability of mods.

The airbags and ABS were important to me because I have traveled all over the world and I know how people drive. No matter how good of driver you are, the bus driver in the opposite lane on a narrow mountain road is probably hopped up on coca leaves and has a big sign in his bus that reads "God drives this bus" (which is sort of an excuse for driving like a maniac.) I'm not paraniod of accidents, but if I can get a rig with some modern safety features, then I might as well.

After 6 months of searching, I ended up with a pristine, rust-free 97 from an original owner with almost all of the major mods done. It was way cheaper to buy it already built up than it would have been to buy a stock truck and buy all the mods.

As for the mods you need, I have been in Central/South America many times as well as the other continents and I can tell you that the locals manage to get by with two-wheel drive compact pickups and sedans with bald tires. You can do that trip in a VW camper if you want. For me the lifted, modified, locked truck is because I want the ability to go everywhere regardless of rainy or dry season though I know that most of the time I'll be on paved or graded dirt roads.

 

[a.mus.ed]

FWIW, when I was recently looking for a truck I found that 80's are the cheapest of all the trucks mentioned (60, 80, 100, Taco). The 60, 80, and 2001-04 Taco could all be had in the <$10k range, at least here in AZ, and some 80's were listed as low as $3k - I didn't find any 60's that cheap.

I ended up with an 80 for just under $10k - lowish mileage and babied mechanically. I couldn't be happier.

 

[Hank]

You mentioned you didn't want a manual transmission. An Fj62 from 88-90 is fuel injected, has an overdrive automatic and is still dirty simple to keep running in the boonies.

That being said. I have what I would consider one of the best riding 62 series cruisers around at the moment. It's a bit tall but I like challenge wheeling also and locally the height is a must.

Still, after my whole ONE expedition experience I would not hesitate to steal Woody's 80 "Gretchen" and take it to the corners of the earth before I took my 62. This is assuming all reliability issues and maintenance are the same. The 80 IMHO is better suited for the task. If it wasn't for the other people lined up ahead of me to use "Gretchen" I'd have stolen it long ago. Comfort comfort comfort. 9ersgirl and I were in that thing for 7 days straight up to 16 hours at a shot (except for fuel stops which were plentiful at terminal velocity.) My body could never take that in my Fj62. The 80 is every bit as capable or more than my 62 to do challenge wheeling also. Especially since Woody already dented it and scratched it.

 

[Cruiserhead05]

It seems as though the opinions are split between the 60's and the 80's.

I'm going to throw a vote in for the 80 series. While i have spent a decent amount of time behind the wheel of both fj60's and fj62's, i really believe the 80 series is the best bang for the buck for the reason listed below.

You say you're from Kentucky and eventually want to explore out west. This means you'll undoubtly be spending a decent amount of time behind the wheel on large open highways. I dont know how much you care about comfort but the 80 will certainly ride better at 70mph+ and most likely get better mpg doing it. Also, if you plan to get into higher elevations, keep in mind the fuel injection of the 1FZ wont be bothered by it, while there is a chance you may notice issues with a carb'd truck like the fj60.

Lastly, if you're like most who get into cruisers and/or wheeling, the mild expedition style wheeling you want to do now, may grow into more technical/harder wheeling. A locked 80 will certainly serve as a better platform if you choose to do more difficult wheeling. If you choose to add front and rear diff locks to a 60 series, it's going to cost you!

 

[Topmounter]

I recently replaced my 62 with a 100 and have no regrets. There's quite a bit of piece of mind in having airbags, anti-lock brakes and full-time 4WD on modern road-ways. I wouldn't hesitate to buy an 80 that fits into your budget. Considering the deals you can get on 80's, a 60/62 or older cruiser would make a great project vehicle, but not as your first cruiser AND your primary vehicle (in my opinion).