FJ Cruiser vs tacoma

toyota should bring the landcruiser/hillux to north America

 

Bought an FJ new in '06. Made totally in Japan and was an excellent vehicle. Turned out I couldn't get by w/o a six ft. bed so traded it after a year. Been missing the uniqueness of it ever since.

 

I will just have to drive both....too bad I was not loaded and could just own a Jeep, a Taco, and a FJ. My excuse would be I need a Jeep, a truck and a SUV to cover all bases hah...

And if I was really loaded, I think the old Bronco's are a great compromise between a Jeep and FJ...short wheelbase, stout axles, hard or soft top, plus you can stuff hopped up V8s in them

 

I have an FJ Cruiser now but they never made a Bronco I wouldn't love to have. I've driven two of them in over 12" of snow and it was a piece of cake. One of the best trucks ever. I think I've driven every vintage 70s 4x4 but the various permutations of the Bronco made during those years were probably my favorites next to the old classic Land Cruisers not to mention the classic IH Scout. And they used to make some great Jeeps back then too. In 1973 I was what they used to call a "shag boy" at my local Jeep dealership which pretty much meant I got to unplug the toilet when somebody took an overenthusiastic dump. All in Colorado which used to be the greatest state in the Union back in the 70s!

 

Has Toyota officially stopped making the FJ? Or do they have plans to bring it back in the future?

 

They are still being made and are available in Japan. Not sure if they plan on bringing it back to the US.
http://toyota.jp/fjcruiser/?padid=ag001_i_carlineup_search

 

FJ's are also extremely popular and still for sale in the Middle East especially the United Arab Emirates like Dubai and Qatar. There are a huge number of YouTube videos of guys out there doing some insane 4 wheeling in some serious sand dune country but you have to speak and write Arabic to understand the commentary.

My bet is that Toyota will revise and eventually bring the FJ back to the North American Market.

If they don't and my FJ get's wrecked the only other possible choice would be a Tacoma. Why would I be hanging around here otherwise?

Best truck in the world in my opinion.

I just got off the phone with my car leasing guy concerning leasing a 2017 TRD Pro. He said it could be done but would cost more than I'm willing to pay at this point.

As soon as the 3rd Gen TRD Pro becomes generally available the FJ is going to have to work very hard to maintain its place in my garage.

I just wish they were going to make it in Inferno. I might end up getting a 2015 Taco just to get that color and keep the FJ as my daily driver.

 

They are done worldwide after this year.

 

Toyota didn't get to be where they are by pissing of customers world wide.

I'll bet you a week's pay the FJ will be back in a few years.

The Supra would be too but the competition in that market is formidable.

The competition in the serious off road market is practically non existent and everybody and their sister is making some bland "SUV" that you can't even drive over the curb without blowing out your front suspension.

The demand is only going to grow as it becomes more and more difficult to find a road to drive your 500hp sports car at greater than 30 mph without getting your picture taken and a $250 ticket.

Wanna bet?

 

Elsewhere maybe, here, nope, with the new CAFE rules and standards being updated, it is far more financially lucrative for Toyota to sell Land Cruisers [the expensive ones] and Lexus 470s [or whatever they are up to now] and cheaper but better selling 4 Runners that appeal to a larger US market then another FJC type vehicle with a short wheelbase [remember, wheelbase length will be figuring into fuel mileage standards] that would need to be US certified crashwise and sell in the 4 figures or low 5 figures. Yota isn't stupid and unless they start fresh from the ground up as a Jeep Rubi/FJ40 type vehicle, sales will never be enough to pay for the costs.

Course Yota is also dumb, they had the FJC 4.0 which is the engine they should have tweaked for the 2016 Taco IMHO.

 

Point well taken in which case I will have to get a TRD Pro Tacoma when I finally wreck my FJ. I can only base my opinions on videos but it looks like it has the potential to be the best truck Toyota ever made. I am still torn between waiting for it to hit the market and starting some more major upgrades on my FJ. I wish I could afford both but on one income no way. I'm not in the top 1%!

In my opinion it is the TTUE of Tacomas and I can't think of a vehicle I would rather have that I can afford (other than my FJ) than the TRD pro.

I only wish they were expected to have more low end torque and that there will eventually be one in black available. So far it looks like white, concrete and red.

 

I was just reminiscing over the 3 Jeeps I used to own when I was younger. Both Toyota and Jeep ought to be commended for making the best 4x4 vehicles that ever hit the dirt or the pavement.

They say the worst wars are civil wars; wars between brothers.

I say let's prove 'em wrong. If I was still a Jeep owner I would thank God for Toyota and as a Toyota owner I thank God that Jeep is still producing some of the most amazing 4x4 vehicles in the world.

Heaven help us if either of them should ever decide to turn into Honda. Otherwise I would have to start spending $70k on Ford Raptors and never be able to find a parking space.

 

Reading this thread made me think about looking for a FJ. The prices being asked (Western Washington) are more than original MSRP for those vehicles. And they have more than 20,000+ miles. Talking $ 35,000 on up. Unbelievable. You can buy a new Taco for those prices.

 

You're not going to be able to buy a TRD Pro Tacoma for anything like $35k. More like $41k. As an economist my understanding of economic theory suggests that the introduction of the TRD Pro Tacoma should drive the price of FJ's down. But it ain't happening.

Two things: the 4 Runner TRD Pro actually seems to have been associated with increased FJ prices and in my neighborhood when a bunch of high end apartments recently came on line my rent went up by an unprecedented amount.

The explanation for this is complex and I would be dishonest if I said I had it fully figured out. When there are only a few manufacturers of a certain thing what happens to prices depends on what each producer thinks the other will do with their prices. Right now we are in a tight oligopoly for serious 4x4's and apartments in Dallas.

I expect rents to continue rising during the next year and my 2014 FJ to completely stop depreciating. It's almost a total wash except when it comes to the day when I trade the FJ. And I expect it to change seriously next year, especially in the apartment market when all of the units that are coming on line around me are ready for occupancy.

My monthly payments will go up somewhat but I expect to be able to get a Tacoma TRD Pro for roughly the same payment as I am paying right now if I should decide to go that route, which is very probable, and I expect rents to start dropping precipitously in 1 1/2 years

Thank God Toyota is seriously upgrading the Tacoma regardless of the disagreement I get from my brothers on the FJ Forums.

And I'm still betting the FJ is going to come back in some way shape and form before too long. I still think it's a bit of a stretch to call the 4 Runner TRD a serious off road vehicle especially if you considered the FJ to be too wide compared to the best Jeeps.

To make a long story short I'm glad I got a 2014 FJ with off road package when there were less than 10 of them left in DFW but I'm glad Toyota is doing some incredible work on the Tacoma.

I would rather have both!