thinking about buying a '97 Land Cruiser...please help! (1 Viewer)

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Hello,

I am a Toyota man. I have a '91 Toyota 4x4 ext cab V6 pickup that has 240K NON-HIGHWAY miles on it. My wife and I just had a baby, and it's time for me to get a vehicle that will be a little more family frienldy than my ext cab pu with 33" tires.

So I really want a '00 to '02 Land Rover Discovery 2.....but no matter how super sexy they look.....well, they're just not good vehicles.

My other alternative is about a '96 or '97 LC. I plan on keeping my Toy pu, and I guess I'll just have 2 toy's. The thing is, I know NOTHING about LC's....other than the facts that they run forever, have ridiculuosly high resale, and DRINK gas.

My mechanic told me I'd be better off buying a '97 LC with 180K miles than a '02 LR Disco 2 with 40K miles......so here I am.

What should I look for in buying? I see a lot of posts about locking differentials...should I get a LC with locking diffs? If I see one I like without factory wood trim on the dash, can I get that added on? Are 1996 and 1997 LC's identical? What is the horsepower and torque rating on the inline 6 cyl. that these years have? What is the towing capacity?

Thanks so much...any advice is greatly appreciated.
 
Your mechanic is right, Land Cruisers are the top of the line vehicle that Toyota makes, and toyota makes good vehicles. Check the 80 series section for 91-97 Land Cruisers and the Lexus LX450. At the top of the 80 series forum is a sticky thread with the faq, in the faq you will find a section for information for people looking to buy an 80 series.
 
above the FAQ there is also an announcement on thinking of buying. Read that and the FAQ below it. There is a section on buying a LC in there. Then come back and ask what questions you might still have.
 
FZJ 80's with lockers can be found and IMHO they worth it. Ever since I saw Lonesome Dove one piece of dialog in that series stuck with me: "better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it." So hold out until one with lockers and snag it. I drove from Pensacola to Cleveland to get mine with lockers, and I love them!

Second, if you want the wood trim, that is some aftermarket stuff that is adhesive backed and sticks on. Over time it sticks less and less. I just removed mine last week and was gonna replace it, but I like the look without it, so I will leave it off.

I don't know where in the country you reside, but if you do not live where they salt the roads in the winter, try to get a truck that hasn't been exposed to that. Like I said, mine came from Cleveland and it has some rust issues.

When looking at Cruisers, drive them and listen to front end when turing in tight right and left circles. If you haer clicking from the front end it needs to have the birfields serviced or replaced. Good luck to you. If you get a Cruiser you will probably love it as much we do.

Best regards,
Wes
 
Welcome Vol fan. If you're in Knoxville, feel free to PM me. You're welcome to drive mine and see how you like it. I could also give you some pointers on what to watch out for.

:beer:
Rookie2
 
Welcome :flipoff2: .

If you want to use the 80 as a kid hauler, then you probably don't need or want lockers. If you want to eventually mod it like your PU, then you probably want to search for a rig that has them.
 
You're going to buy one of these for your wife to use as a kid hauler and end up buying a 2nd one since she won't let you mod/wheel her's.

Experience talking here. I have 2 in my garage for this very reason.
 
Since you're a vols fan, are you sure your wife can fit in a cruiser?

Don't worry about that vol fan, when BHM got his cruiser, he pointed to the 4X4 emblem on the back and asked his wife "you know what that is don't you??", she said... :hillbilly: .... 8??

:D
 
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....other than the facts that they run forever, have ridiculuosly high resale, and DRINK gas.

A vehicle that runs 'forever' would expect to have a 'high' resale as oppose to those that can't....

.... You mentioned :censor: Discovery 2:confused: --> NOT!

The FULL-TIME 4WD takes a toll on the mpg as expected.
I try not to drive her like my Pre-Runner thats for sure...
 
I love my 97. It has both lockers and it's our daily driver/school bus for part of its life and the other is taking the kids out on the trails and using those lockers. It's a great feeling to have those lockers and I use them all the time on the trails. After driving my little Honda to and from work I can't wait to jump in the Cruiser if we need some milk or something from the store. I feel like a sixteen year old that just received his license and can't wait to drive.
 
FZJ 80's with lockers can be found and IMHO they worth it. Ever since I saw Lonesome Dove one piece of dialog in that series stuck with me: "better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it." So hold out until one with lockers and snag it. I drove from Pensacola to Cleveland to get mine with lockers, and I love them!

Second, if you want the wood trim, that is some aftermarket stuff that is adhesive backed and sticks on. Over time it sticks less and less. I just removed mine last week and was gonna replace it, but I like the look without it, so I will leave it off.

I don't know where in the country you reside, but if you do not live where they salt the roads in the winter, try to get a truck that hasn't been exposed to that. Like I said, mine came from Cleveland and it has some rust issues.

When looking at Cruisers, drive them and listen to front end when turing in tight right and left circles. If you haer clicking from the front end it needs to have the birfields serviced or replaced. Good luck to you. If you get a Cruiser you will probably love it as much we do.

Best regards,
Wes


Sure, we need lockers in FLORIDA almost everyday :flipoff2:
 

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