What should i buy / look for. $12k for an offload vehicle...

theres a lot more cheaper jeeps out there than tacomas, but if your spending 12k I would be buying a rubicon if getting a jeep

 

I would get a tacoma for reliability over a jeep any day.

 

Jeep wrangler 95-06 or a older 4runner

 

rather have a tacoma as well but harder to find

 

Buy my Toyota.....and be done.

 

The first one we bought was in 2001 - so inflation aside.... 92
Wrangler with 45K miles - 4.0L with manual tranny. Totally stock and prestine. That cost us $6700. Built it up only to have it totalled while driving home from work.

The next one we bought was in 2004. It was a 94 with 80K miles on it - 4.0L with manual tranny. Totally stock and in great shape. That cost us $6500. Sold it 2 years ago.

 

Now you're getting the hang of it.....
I have no idea what gas mileage Wranglers get...as I didn't care. It was a trail rig and...... why think about it?

 

Most all of them have the D35 - except the TJ's if you can find one that was optioned with the D44. Rare...

Honestly? If this rig is gonna be a true offroad rig....I'd ditch both the D30 & the D35 and put Dana 44's (from a Grand Wagoneer) in. That's exactly what we did with ours....Dana 44's front & rear, ARB's, 4.56 gears with 35's.

The older Rubicons...Meh....the Dana 44's they have in them aren't what you expect them to be. They still have 5 on 4.5lug pattern. The front - is a Dana 44 pumpkin only. From the inner knuckles OUT is still a dana30.

 

Well i like the idea of it being this extreme offroad machine, but in reality, it's an hour and some change to the mud hole and i doubt i'd go every weekend.

If i'm looking for something to have some fun with, but rely on daily as a ride to work (granit, if it breaks i can walk), would i be wiser to go with the taco?

I still wunna be able to roll with you guys lol. I can see me taking the badges from my 09 taco and putting them on my jeep lol..

I didn't like the jeep forum. Taco people are just cooler i think..

*sigh* decisions suck.

I like the idea of spending less on this vehichle. I saw some awesome jeeps @ 11-12k but then the thought of slinging that through some mud stirs the tummy a bit. With a 5k taco i wouldn't be so sad if i broke something. Part of me thinks a supped up Taco would be cooler than a supped up jeep since everybody supes up their jeeps.

Someone go buy me a vehichle so i don't have to think anymore mkay? thanks!

Keep the advice coming, some of it only confuses me further, but i'm kind of learning things as i go here.

Thanks,
Flashy

 

Buy my taco.

 

If you go the Jeep route, only look at the 1997 or newer. The TJ's are the best!!! I'm an old long time 4wheeler and believe me they are best.

 

Solid Axle Toyota 85 with efi.

 

YES - look into a 2001-2004 and make sure the frame is good.

You're kind of in the same situation my husband and I were in back in 1999.

We bought our first tacoma (96), it was 3 years old and we didn't plan on doing any offroading (at that time). We started offroading and continued to offroad mild/moderately for 3 years. The truck had a mild 2" lift, 32" mud terrains, and no lockers. We had a blast!!!

After 3 years of beating up on the tacoma (and wanting more extreme offroad stuff), we decided we needed another rig. So, that's where we kept the tacoma as the daily driver and bought a jeep as a separate offroad rig.
We built that Jeep (the 92) with dana 44's, ARB's, 33's (at the time), roll cage, etc, etc. Drove that to the trails (90 minutes one way) for a couple years. Then...... sold the tacoma, bought a Dodge RAM and a trailer and towed the Jeep to the trails for the next 5 years or so. Went on long distance offroad trips, etc.

Sooooo.... I guess what I'm saying is .... since this is your daily driver for now.... GET A TACOMA. Don't make plans to wheel it on an extreme level (atleast not yet). Get some offroading & mechanical skills under your belt. Over time - you can decide to buy another vehicle specifically for the trails. You could decide to buy another vehicle to build as a trail rig OR buy another daily driver and build the tacoma as your extreme offroad machine.

Building an extreme rig and having it as a daily driver is not a 'comfortable' drive for daily usage. You can fine tune them for a more comfortable drive (expecially on the highway) but it'll get EXPENSIVE. It's far easier to have an extreme offroad rig that you only have to drive on the weekends...

I loved wheeling with the 96 - but as soon as you want to venture into the extreme trails....You really gotta have a solid front axle. The jeep we built was frigin awesome and I wouldn't change a thing.... It would handle driving 70mph on the highway and it cost a lot of money to get it that way. I still wouldn't want to drive it to work everyday. A tacoma will get you to work comfortably and be more reliable for you and still wheel mild/moderately.

(sorry, I'll shut up now)

 

To be honest, i greatly appreciate your advice. With that in mind, i think i will roll back to my previous choice:

http://www.wilsonmotorco.net/vehicledetails.aspx?VID=130842509

Unless i can find one better before then. Seems like a nice little starter rig aye?

Let me know your thoughts!

Thanks,
-Flashy

 

http://charlotte.craigslist.org/cto/2198190962.html

 

I say go for the v6 regular cab. They are fairly rare, and you could dump just a little money into it for a fairly capable truck.

 

Any TJ that was a factory Rubicon has D44 front and rear and came with lockers.

A D30 is not a bad axle and can be built just as stout as a stock D44.

 

A regular (non Rubicon) TJ did not come with a D44 unless it was optioned that way (and only the rear). The Rubicon didn't start until 2003.

The Rubicon Dana 44's had Dana 30 outters - which makes them weaker than a D44 with D44 outters (A TRUE Dana 44).

Sure, the Dana 30 can be built to be as stout as a dana 44 but that's as far as you're gonna get. If you start with a Dana 44 ( a TRUE Dana 44), you can upgrade and make it even stronger.

 

Again, I can't stress enough about the frame thing. Make sure it's got a solid frame.

Think of it this way....You buy a 1st gen, spend about $5,000 in initial maintenance, repairs, & upgrades.... and a couple years down the road, discover the frame has suddenly started to rust a lot faster than you originally thought......to the point its not safe. Look at all that money & time you put into it and now, you gotta start all over again.

Focus on a 2001-2004 if you can swing it in the budget. If not.... and since you live in GA, hopefully the frame rust isn't as bad down there. But whatever you consider (aside from all the other checks & driving it), have a Toyota dealer inspect it first before you buy.

 

I found a 2000 tacoma in awesome shape but its only a 4cyl. Any thoughts on that vs a 6cyl?

Has 150k miles, mud tires and a lift. Asking $7900

- From the droid.