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[May 2009 Winner]

May 2009 Winner
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[landsailor]

hi guys

can anyone tell me which is the best 4x4 to get,  i have driven & owned landrovers,range rovers, mitsuibishis & toyotas in the past, all had good points & bad,

i am in the dark when it comes to your home bred 4x4's  how do they compare to some of the things i have used in the past,

also how do you rate landrovers, do any of you even use them ?

many thanks
ian

[khaoskustoms]

well, I would have to say that Jeeps have the largest following, are easiest to get parts for, lot's of modifications easily gotten, really good all round wheelers, but, so are most Toyotas, pickups or 4 runners.  You can buy pretty much anything you want for a late model Dodge, Ford or Chev truck.  But not so with the Dodge, Ford, or Chev suv's, lifts and accesories can be pricy for these.  Supposedly the H3 Alpha is a capable little rig, haven't yet seen one, so can't comment for sure.  80's era Chev trucks are very cheap to repair, maintain, build and have very stout drivetrains.  But some full size truck's don't allways fit on the trail, well, they could fit, but wouldn't really be "treading lightly."  Pre I-Beam Fords are same as the Chevs.  Although, many guys have lot's of success with the Ranger's and Bronco II's with the I-Beam IFS.  Guess it depends on what you plan to do with the rig.  How "different" you want it to be, etc.  Just my 2 bits.

Stephen

[Kapt. Kangaroo]

Well, Time to put in my 2cents

The best truck to buy is the one that best suits what you want to do. I have owned a bunch of different models now and really it all depends on how much time and monies you want to put into it. For me it is my BlaZeR-2. It fits the family in it. It makes on the narrower trails. It actually handles offroading fairly decent in its stock form. It will require a lot of custom parts. It has IFS in the front (which will need to be removed) which has made me have to learn another style of driving. When this truck is done it will definitely be a Custom Rig. No one else will have one like it. I also have a Jeep TJ, it to is fairly capable in stock format, this rig will be a out of the box build. Most everything for this is available from the aftermarket. It will not be the custom job that my BlaZeR-2 will be. If your looking for something to build (Project) to what you what than i would recommend some thing like my BlaZeR-2, but have time and  money waiting. If you want something that you can easily get parts for defiantly go for the Jeep (Not saying that you can't custom build for this rig either, Just the aftermarket has so much it doesn't make sense.) All 4x4 are will have there ups and downs. Eg: fullsize trucks have size issues, But they can handle larger tires with less lift and have more power in there stock form.

It will all depend what you are looking for in the long run, and how you want to get there


-Joe-

Disclaimer: This is my opinion and if I have offended anyone that was not my intention.

[landsailor]

i am looking for something that will cope with most normal things off road and get me to places most people do not see, yet i also want to be able to take the family as well in some comfort,  not looking to change much from stock other than good rubber, winch ect,

in the past i have being windshield deep in water & chassis deep in mud in stock trucks and always got myself out in the end and after a clean did the shopping on the way home, lol

[t2c1]

You could try a 4dr JK, 4dr XJ, Toyota 4 runner(87 as the solid front axle I believe). Depends what you want to spend.

[Lildevil1]

Land rover LR3 is the best out there for a vehicle that'll do all you are asking of it, and it'll do it all very well... but you will shell out nearly 65k to get one....

on a lower buck, the 4-runner or pathfinder are good rigs too.

I'm a jeep enthusiast, and we all know what'll get you home at the end of the day, but kids don't fit well in the back seat of a TJ after their 7th birthday....

[landsailor]

the lr3 is a good bit of kit but also overpriced, do you have LR defenders 90/110 over here or the LR discover200/300,

i have looked a jeep over in the uk, always seemed to cost a fortune to repair, not sure if its any better in canada.

also i can not seem to find many diesal engined 4x4s, we have lots from 2.5 3.2 lts in the uk but most trucks i can find in Canada seem to be v6 or v8 petrol  any reason for this ?

[Toy Jeep]

Jeep stands for "Just Empty Every Pocket". North Americans had some trouble with small diesel's in the 1980es and this killed the small diesel market. LR defenders and discover have a cultish following. there is a land rover club in Edmonton.

[landsailor]

many thanks for the the info on the landrover club, 

i must say i have been spoilt over the years with landrovers, for the last ten years or so i have being given a box fresh top of the range defender and sometimes discovery to play about with in the mud for about a month each year,  best of all i never had to clean it when i sent it back.

i love the way the heated seats dry out mud, lol

[Jeepin DG2]

I would beleive the cost of Jeep parts in canada would be cheeper then land rovers.   --also there is way more Jeeps on the road the rovers up here.

With that said I LOVE 4 dr defender 110's  That would be a cool choice.

I think 4 dr sidekicks are a smaller choice that might not be too bad --week front axle thoe I beleive.

Also I like smaller pickups ----I have a 4 dr V8 Dakota there is LOTS of interior room and a 5'6" box out back for whatever you want to throw back there,  And they are smaller then the full sise trucks out there.

[landsailor]

it makes me chuckle when you describe a small pick up, other here in the uk that discreption would be classed as a large oversized truck driven by the devil himself with the sole intention to destroy mankind and if you took it to any town and parked it up, after five min's it would be covered with anti pollution anti 4x4 stickers,

[t2c1]

Then you don't want to see his wheeling rig!!

[Crazy_YJ]

It depends on how hardcore you wanna get.  If you, like myself, are useing it for an adrenaline rush, get a Jeep.  If you just wanna play in the mud, get anything you want, we will get you out.  LOL

[01SAHARA]

If you are looking for info on availability of after market parts for a Land Rover in Alberta talk to "KIN" (Kevin) on the Four wheel Stampeders Site or He is also often on the Calgary Jeep Association site. He runs a Land Rover fairly hard on lots of trail runs trying to keeping up with the jeeps, near Calgary. He may have some good input for you as he has invested in lockers, winch, front bumper ....etc. for his. As far as Land Rovers on the trails his sees lots of trail time.

If you want to build your vehicle up for the harder trails then look at a Jeep, locally you will have a wider selection of parts and helpfull expertise to chose from.  However, a TJ will not fit a family well. I would love to have a new 4 door Wrangler since with the TJ, I have, I always have to leave a few of the family members at home.

just my 2cents worth.

Welcome Ian and good luck with the move.


Blair

[Blinkinlights]

Another option is one of the Toyota Land Cruiser 80 series. You need to bring one up from the US but they can be had with solid axles and factory lockers front and rear for around the $5000-10000 mark. Don't get me wrong, I love the Jeeps and have sunk a lot of money into my Waggy but it depends on what type of vehicle you want...a trail/expedition rig that you can easily take your family camping or a trail/mud rig that'll go through any deep hole. Sure you can meld the two but i was really impressed with what parts are available and what people have done with the 80's.

Here's one on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.ca/Toyota-Land-Cruiser-4x4-3RD-Seat-NO-RESERVE-1OWNER-RUST-FREE-SERVICED-NONSMOKER-LEATHER_W0QQitemZ370025660015QQihZ024QQcategoryZ6443QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Here's an expedition one:
http://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/199407-dmc-south-america-expedition-rotw-write-up.html

And here are some parts that are available:
http://www.sleeoffroad.com/


Good luck on your decision.

Greg