Why do YOU have a 100 series?

[GunninIt]

Long story. Durability and reliability. Something I wasn't getting out of the vehicle at the end, requirement a replacement, hence the LX.

Bought a brand new Jeep Grand Cherokee in 2014. Had the new and awesome 3.0 Ecodiesel. Was fairly excellent over 4.5 years of ownership, although it had its limitations. Fuel economy was amazing. Tech was fairly decent. Comfort wasn't bad. I had it loaded to the nines, with the air suspension, rear LSD, and all the other bells/whistles that were commensurate. It on-roaded beautifully. It off-roaded decently. The biggest limitations were related to the EGR/DEF/DPF systems. The system REQUIRED that you drive at "highway speeds" every so often when the DPF was nearing full. Well, living in Southern California, even weekends presented a challenge for highway speeds. If you didn't do this quickly enough, the vehicle would brick itself in limp mode and you would be stuck. In 4.5 years, that only happened once, and we were close to the dealer. I was always a bit worried about what would happen when I was off-road, in a remote area and that message came up. You have no way of running a manual cleanse of the DPF, and couldn't force a regen before hitting the trail. I swear I had no fingers nails left.

Well, similarly to VW, FCA got itself into some trouble with "cheating emissions." They decided to "fix" the EGR/DEF/DPF system, which was the complete opposite. Instead, I was getting a notice that my "DPF was almost full, drive at highway speeds" almost every 60-90 miles. It became so burdensome and worrying that we stopped driving it for fear that light would come on and our car would brick when we were running simple errands. By the time we offed the Jeep, it was completely useless and untrustworthy.

Gas mileage and updated tech aside, I've never been happier than in the LX. It's been a year, and it's been a great year. I wouldn't hesitate to do it again and again.

Jeep

And the LX

 

[ZREM]

Started with an FJ62, loved it. Family grew, income grew, knew I wanted to stay in a LC and knew I wanted to tow a camper eventually. That ruled out the 80, and the 200 was not doable $$$$. Found a 100 that had a mild build and lots of preventative maintenance, pulled the trigger 5 years ago. Love it.

Next step is either a 200 or a Rivian if I can be patient. I change my mind every week about what's next, lol.

 

[Porter]

Old tech, has knobs for HVAC, old style radio (with Grom upgrade), can drive over pesky medians whenever I feel like it. I can see EVERYTHING when I'm driving. I've made at least two semi high speed "go arounds" when I otherwise would have rear ended a vehicle-instead, driving off road, back on road, no damage...whew. Seventeen years of ownership, I can pull stuff off, repair, crank it up and it works like I know what I'm doing. 350k and counting. IH8driving anything else.

 

[silver02accord]

I had always wanted one. Every time I saw a 100 series (or older) on the road I practically broke my neck looking at them. Everything else is just icing on the cake.

 

[FJ62INTX]

Just stopped at a neighborhood estate sale (very cool story for another time) this past weekend with my dirty Thundercloud '06 100 series with 243K miles on it (rust free from Texas).... the sale was being run by a very nice couple in their mid-30's who had just bought a house literally full of everything owned by the previous owner....

I noticed the Red Range Rover out at the curb when I pulled up.... The first thing the wife said was, "please, sell me your Land Cruiser!".... to which I kindly responded that I don't plan on selling it..ever. She said "that figures, sounds like everyone else I have asked with that model" . They had recently been to the Range dealer several times in the last 2 years and the husband said the dealer was getting $2,000-$3,000 out of them every time, every 3-6 months and he was sick and tired of everything failing on it at such low mileage (less than 100,000 miles). They had read and heard about the 100 series Land Cruisers from others and decided to start looking locally in Denver. I told them to stop looking here and look down in the Southern states.... although, now I would worry about hurricane/flood damaged cars... Geez.

With my 2.5 ARB/OME lift, 34 inch tires, and everything all stock, it does pretty good all the time for me, on and off road. I have been up some VERY steep inclines and through some really rough stuff, way up in the Colorado mountains, but not for fun, but instead, for my work.

The only things I hope to add eventually when money allows: Metal front bumper, front and rear lockers, and a winch, just in case I overestimate the vehicle, which hasn't really happened yet....

 

[rc50cal]

I'm a Cruiserhead in the purest form. I started driving a Land Cruiser at 17 and have never NOT owned a Land Cruiser for 33 years. I've had many of them (40, 60 and 70 series) and after selling my beloved FJ62 after going too far on the modifications, I picked up my first 100 in 2007. By then, I was priced out of the 80 series (which were at the time in high demand and commanding premium prices) and needed something really comfortable and somewhat presentable as a daily driver. That led to another 100 purchased the following year (his and hers), and then another 100 for my oldest son and a 200 for my wife to replace the 100. The next one will be another 70 series since I'm now priced out of my first love, the 60 series, and likely priced out of the 40 series as well (my work and lifestyle don't support projects/major restorations so I'd either have to buy nice or pay to make nice).

I believe the 80 series is superior to the 100 only in ONE aspect, and that is rock-crawling. I live in Central TX where the rock crawling opportunities are limited, so all the other benefits of the 100 shine for me. I love the engine, the power to weight ratio, and because my 100s are early models, the relative simplicity.

I am in the search for one more 100, preferably 99-01, with a GRAY interior and from a rust-free state. Time to build the next project!

Here's a picture of the girls, The Melon (brown 100), Aretha (white 200) and Luna (white 100). I think we space for one more!

View attachment 2456779

I really wanted an 80 series, but my wife needs to occasionally drive my vehicle. The 100 was a better fit for her. Still lust after 80s though. My neighbor has one with probably 400k miles on it and I stop and stare and think about offering to buy it every day!

 

[AlkalineOm3n]

After owning multiple BMWs (still have one, just sold another) and driving a 2001 BMW 740iL as my daily for 8+ years and just shy of 250k miles - I simply just wanted something dependable and comfortable that I could rack miles out without issue. I also started camping a lot more, and inevitably wanted to do some lighter trails while out camping.

Ultimate goal was to have a paid off vehicle that I could put tons of miles on (accomplished!), while having it be a support vehicle for carrying tools/moving/towing things/go anywhere.

 

[01gxr]

Because I needed a car that will do what ever I need it to do and still be reliable and comfortable

Ps: 100 series did come with hid (at least some options in the middle east) but for whatever reason it had them on the high beam only ( yeah a landcruiser flashing at you in your sedan is something that even your worst enemy won't wish on you)

 

[manh3]

Because I'm too poor to buy a 2016 LC200

 

[DuckLN]

My Grandad is a wwII vet and bot a nissan and another nissan. I figure if he is over the Pearl Harbor thing then I too can buy a Jap made vehicle. I appreciate the longevity and that the components in the interior don’t fail without warning.

 

[white_lx]

Missed my HZJ75 after a move overseas and the LX470 was the closest vehicle available here at the time.

 

[Jram100]

I just lucked into it being that my dad bought my current 100 3-4 years ago w 240k mi. He wanted something bigger, so I took it off his hands for $5k.

I knew i liked LC’s but i knew next to nothing about them.The only mods at the time were a set of ko2’s, but it had the rear diff lock, of course. However, it needed work-and I needed to get to know the Land Cruiser.

Cv’s, steering rack, and plenty of other projects/mods later I have a vehicle I just love driving. Most of my days off are spent behind the wheel of my 100, both on and off road.

Its a labor of love, and this vehicle will always give more to you than it takes.

 

[98whiteLC]

My parents had one when I was a child and we used it for every family vacation. Many many memories come to mind when I open the door and step inside. Also got a great deal on it, so it was a win win!

 

[CanyonLX]

My parents had one when I was a child and we used it for every family vacation. Many many memories come to mind when I open the door and step inside. Also got a great deal on it, so it was a win win!

Growing up my parents had a 60. I remember driving to our cabin and looking through the rusted floors to the moving road. The truck never died, it nearly crumbled from the rust, but it never died.

 

[G FORCE]

I was in need of a reliable, comfortable rig that wouldn't depreciate as much (or at all) compared to other SUVs out there. Mine is pretty much a pavement princess with some snow action for winter activities and light off-road fishing access. It mostly hauls people and golf clubs but I'm very happy with it thus far. I also like "different" vehicles and I don't see too many 100s these days.

 

[sacman]

We bought my wife's 2016 200 series in 2017 for a screaming deal at a Cadillac dealership where it had been traded in for a (gasp) Escalade XT after only 19,000 miles. I've often thought about what would possess the previous owner to do that, but since it was our good fortune that they did, I'm still grateful.

When I bought my 2003 LX 470, my highschool buddies all talked trash about me not getting an Escalade or a Lincoln Navigator. Almost a decade has come and gone by and I'm still driving mine while they are all back to honda accord. Go figure

 

[freewill1968]

I’ve owned my 100 for about a year and a half now, and I’m to the point where its time to decide if I want to continue pouring cash into upgrades for offroad/overland use.

So far, I’ve accomplished the basics: the vehicle is baselined, lifted, and tires and wheels are sorted. Now mods get more spendy.

While the 100 serves all of my needs and more in civilization, I sometimes wonder if its the best platform for the kind of terrain I want to tackle.

The 80 series has really been capturing my imagination more recently, and Ideally I could own both.

I guess I’m reaching out to other 100 owners so I can try to be reminded of what makes it one of the best vehicles available.

get both

 

[Goldcountry]

I got a 100 because it seems like it was built for me. With the roads and trails i have to drive. It gets me where i have to go in comfort. I tried driving luxury suvs like an Acura mdx. I just kept breaking them. I was constantly in the shop. Go through a suspension in a year, no joke. I got my 3/4 ton 4x4 diesel truck stuck and a guy in a tundra dragged me out. I noticed how many old land cruisers, 4 runners, tacomas, tundras i passed on the road. It was my mechanic that was sick of my s*** said " i got the car for u". Now he doesn't get to make as much $ off me, but he also doesn't have me hassling him about when my car is going to be ready to be picked up.

 

[Porter]

Because I can set my clock at the time change in 3.5 seconds, driving 70mph while listening to Van Halen. My wifes Acura, not so much.

 

[Kofoed]

I had a 4Runner and 40 series. I wanted something something that I could drive long distances, see lots of dirt, some rocks, and be able to sleep in the back. While I really like the 80 series, the anemic engine killed it for me. Pulling a steep grade at 7000 feet is hard enough with a 4.7L V8