4x4 truck selection (help!)

[lynchpin]

ive been looking around for a good 4x4 that i can take off-roading, but i still need it to be my daily driver. What ive found was:

Zuki Samurai - Small and cheap sounds good for an off-road project. How much am i looking to spend on this to make it off road worthy but yet still safe and dependable on the road?

Toyota Pickup (83-85) Dependable all around good trucks, but not cheap, i heard this is the best year for these trucks because of rust issues and 85 was the last year for the solid axle.

Jeep CJ - known for off-roading.

Between these 3 choices what would best suite my needs? I am on a limited budget, but dependability and performance are leading factors. Comfort is not to much an issue.

[wjjeeper]

If you have an alternative form of transportation go with the CJ. Literally no end to the mods you can do and always fun to drive open aired. But I'm biased.......

[turboMiata]

They all have pros and cons. Your situation is one of compromise and I think you have summed up the pros and cons pretty good. Irrespective, you're gonna have to spend some coin to make any truck off road worthy.

Since it's a daily driver, I'm assuming it's gonna be on-road 90% of the miles. So find a vehicle that is reliable first and well maintained. Then just slap on a good set of tires and off you go. Personnally, I'd go for the following, whichever comes up first.

- toyota (if i can find one without major rust problems - good luck!)
- cj (easy to find)

[Gonthro]

check out www.4wheeler.ca they will be able to help you better (local calgary wheeling site), people love sami's because they too are VERY customizable.

[ole dsm]

at this day and age u can do anything to anything, its just a matter of $$$

personally i would go with a toyota
not that expensive
ok on gas
easy to work on and easy to lift(solid front axle truck)
lots of parts out there
tones of info on DIY tweeking
small enuff to fit on most trails]
reliable
strong axles
bullit proof engine
fun lil trucks

ok i'm a lil biased cuz i own a 83 4x4 short box, over 320,000km's on the chassis and its second motor runs better and is easier to work on then any jeep i've ever owned.

i highly recomend them as best bang for the buck!

[brncojay]

I'm a little biased, but i would def. go with the Samurai. Extremely cheap and easy to build. I bought mine for 1300 U.S. and it already had a 4" lift and a pair of lockers, you can find already lifted ones on ebay everyday. Plus parts are cheap, the only drawback is the speed. If you dont mind cruising below 50 Mph eveywhere you go, then the Samurai is by far one of the best offroading vehicles ever produced.

[5.0]

Jeep no doubt about it

First off teh samuri is cheap but just a peice of junk! not ment for off roading

Seond the Toyota is a good truck and even though its the good year they still rust like nothing eles

third the jeep is the best out of the bunch even tho its more than the samuri it is much better qulity and duriblity does not rust like to toy and is one good off roader becasue that is was jeeps were orgianly made for. They started out offroad and then still kept the off road style truck but as years went on made it more adative to the road which is was you are looking for!

hope this helps!!

[lynchpin]

yeah im leaning toward the CJ because it can hold more people then the toyota, and rust is a bitch too.. But which is cheaper to mod out from stock? The Toyota or the Jeep? And which is cheaper to do this to?

[brncojay]

the samurai was not meant for off-roading?, what are you talking about, where did Jeep get the design for the original, read up on it and you will realize that Suzuki's were around long before jeeps. True they do rust, but they are soo cheap and the parts are much much cheaper than any Jeep part you can find.

4" lift for suzuki-under $200
same for a CJ-well over $300

and to reiderate



J ust
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P ocket

[5.0]

no offense to you but look at it then look at the jeep! to the plain eyeyou can see which would be better off road. sure maybe suzuki does have a good history for off road but they didnt make the samurai for that type of thing

[brncojay]

ok looking at a jeep, crappy axles, crappy suspension design, stolen ideas.

looking at a samurai, short wheelbase, can go just about anywhere, way way underpowered, but light as shit, so it sits on top of everything, i have had mine for 2 years, and ive had a CJ too, i have gotten the CJ stuck, whereas the samurai has gone in the same places, even worse, and never ever gotten stuck.

oh and whats not to understand about a jeep thing, i think its pretty easy to comprehend, they suck

[Gonthro]

Originally posted by 5.0
no offense to you but look at it then look at the jeep! to the plain eyeyou can see which would be better off road. sure maybe suzuki does have a good history for off road but they didnt make the samurai for that type of thing

hate to tell ya but jeeps were orginally built as military vehicles for transporting people through the desert... not fer mud.

[5.0]

I know they were not but for mud but they were built for off road! what was the samuri bulit for? haha, jeeps do not have crappy axles in the first place and i can tell you right now the axles in the jeep are way better than in the sami. and sure lifts might be cheaper but who cares if you want to do some good 4x4ing any man in his right mind would put the majority of his money into the suspention and lift. IMO sami looks like a pos and to me it looks like it was meant for the typical high school girl joy riding around in the city with her girlfriends, maybe thats why you like it! (that was for talking shit about jeeps) over all CJ would walk all over the sami, any jeep in that case would ruin!

[BuknBronco]

Jeeps are great, they have so much potentail for upgrades. But if you go with an SUV, get something that is actually built on a truck frame, F150-Bronco, Chevy-Blazer, Toyota-4runner, and I hear alot of good things about samurais but they are so damn ugly.

[mrbojangles]

And then it all comes down to the driver...

[brncojay]

actually look at a jeep before you talk shit, the jeep axles are junk, ask anyone that knows anything about off roading, the first thing they do is swap out the axles, because they are shit.

Oh, and for little girls crusing highschool, just watch the movie Clueless and see what that dumb bitch drives, oh yeah thats right, a Jeep.(thats for being an ignorant piece of shit)

[BuknBronco]

I hope your not talking to me

[brncojay]

no buckn, not talking to you, talking to 5.0, who for some reason changed his signature from the jeep thing

[dalton1984]

hey brnco jay why dont u buy some thing stock then make it cool.... look at me i bought some thing that was lofted and i claim im the shit..... imo u are probly some over kid that talks shti on everyone and get all your facts out of mags...... u loser jeeps are way cooler then u and so is jessie james u suck fagggggggg

[method]

"read up on it and you will realize that Suzuki's were around long before jeeps."


jeeps were around for ww2 dude.