Advice with pickup purchase

Hey everybody. I recently totaled my truck. I am looking for a nice 1st gen tacoma or pickup for a project truck. The point of this thread isn't a WTB thread, but more of a 'Can I get some advice thread'. I'm not too familiar with the pickup suspension. I know of it a little bit from my stepbrothers '88 pickup, but I was wondering how hard it is to install a LT kit on an 89 yota. I have a buddy who would be willing to sell me his for around 1k and I'm wondering if it's worth the investment or if I should go with something a little more familiar like a first gen taco. Mind you, the yota for 1k is a pretty sound truck all around.

 

My only thought is, did the 89 pick ups have torsion bar front suspension? I think the 4wds did, and I dont know if that makes a huge difference in what you are planning, but i think that would be a major difference when thinking about it or a first gen.