Best Starter Overland Rig?

Going to go away from what everyone else has been saying, an outstanding overland vehicle imho would be a GMT400-platform truck or suv ('88-2000 GM). You can find everything from 2-door Tahoes to crew cab long bed 4x4 3500s. They are everywhere, dirt cheap, mechanically reliable, and the aftermarket is enormous for them. And they are tinkerer-friendly, and you can get up on your mechanic skills by fixing the "factory mistakes". Admittedly, I am biased since I own one, but I know guys on other forums that have used them for overlanding with great success.
 
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TrailBlazerZ71 said:
Going to go away from what everyone else has been saying, an outstanding overland vehicle imho would be a GMT400-platform truck or suv ('88-2000 GM). You can find everything from 2-door Tahoes to crew cab long bed 4x4 3500s. They are everywhere, dirt cheap, mechanically reliable, and the aftermarket is enormous for them. And they are tinkerer-friendly, and you can get up on your mechanic skills by fixing the "factory mistakes". Admittedly, I am biased since I own one, but I know guys on other forums that have used them for overlanding with great success.
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This is a good one as well.. That era GM product is a solid choice.
 
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I cut my teeth with the good ole xj, plenty of advice out there for em so long as your good with Google. And they were what I taught myself to wrench on. After 2 years I dove head first into converting a 2k coil pack auto xj to a 1998 distributor 5speed and pulled it off with out a hitch, they're just that simple. Plus used parts are plentiful.
 
I agree with a lot of people about the 4runner. I feel the maintenance is easier and cheaper than a jeep. The room inside is pretty decent. 1sgt gens have a removable top the 22re and 3.4l motors are bombproof. The aftermarket support for those is nearly as large as the heaps. Go Toyota. [emoji869]
 
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Misfit_Cruiser said:
I agree with a lot of people about the 4runner. I feel the maintenance is easier and cheaper than a jeep. The room inside is pretty decent. 1sgt gens have a removable top the 22re and 3.4l motors are bombproof. The aftermarket support for those is nearly as large as the heaps. Go Toyota. [emoji869]
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Im lookin for one myself now just for somthing new. The Cherokees were just really straight forward for me when I started not having much mechanical experience
 
Misfit_Cruiser said:
Hard to beat the simplicity of the 22re
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I hadn't dug that far cause it's not infront of me. Though I could tell you damn near everything about the xj haha and probably what size socket if you give me a min to think. I like the narrow track the early tacos runners and the xjs have. If i cant find a good deal on a yota I might snag a ranger honestly. Im not really brand loyal, more so what the vehicle is capable of stock and they're all great rigs. It just boils down to preference imagination and ingenuity
 
Lindenwood said:
I really miss my Samurai l. Honestly, if it provides enough room, it might be a good option. They are insanely easy to work on, and their relatively low prices would allow you to buy a $2500 vehicle and have a shop put $3000 into guaranteeing it ran well (and even out of an apartment, you could easily do a lot of that work yourself, and save the rest for tires and other mods).

Of course, you would largely be limited to pretty primitive camping either solo or with one other person, haha. "Samurai" and "Overland" and "Comfort" certainly don't belong in the same sentence! lol.
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Never underestimate the Mighty Little Sami!1125160919.jpg
 
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New to the forums, so just chiming in. Has anyone mentioned a Gen 3 Montero? After buying it and doing initial maintenance it will be near the top of your price range, however, it has a decent amount of cargo room, interiors are nice, can seat 7 (adults in the back jump seats will hate you), very capable in stock form, and very refined on the street and highways. I don't own one, but I've been researching, looking and waiting patiently for one to pop up. If you can swing it, get an 03-06 which have the stronger motors.

Aftermarket isn't as generous as it is for Jeeps and Toyota's but it is another option.
 
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In case you haven't seen it in your searches, TrailRecon on YouTube just started a build on a Jeep XJ. Here's the link: . Might be helpful for you as you move forward.
 
Really depends what kind of overlanding you want to do and more importantly where?

A lot of people in the group i run with here in UK are all mostly Land Rover based, we tend to have a mixture of Discovery's and 110 Defenders (or in one case a 101)

If you are looking for lots of space with places to put kit and its only say 2 people, a 110 is ideal, if you have a small family of 4 - 110 is still alright but it starting to get a bit of a squeeze, so a 130 would be better to stow a lot of stuff,

With a bit of luck in the new year I'll be moving from my Disco 1 to a 110 (if I find one the right price.. and condition..) lol
 
The land rovers require so much maintenance and are usually over priced. The vehicles I would look at are
90s f series trucks/ suvs
90s Chevy trucks/ suvs
90s Toyota trucks and suvs
Late 90s early 2k jeep ZJ's (V8) XJ's and WJ's (V8)
Late 90s early 2k duragos with V8
Early 2k 4 door S-10 w/ 4.3L
Early 2k ranger with 4.0L

Be realistic if you plan to take this vehicle international look more into Toyota. If your are staying in the states any of those can work.





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I am wanting to buy a new overland rig but I am currently brainfarting my life away with all the options, I want a Landcruiser and they are out there but what years are good and do I want a 40th Anniversary version, I am pretty mechanically inclined (MSIE) so I can do the work to make it my rig, but what should I be looking for, thanks for any information you can give. Right now looking at Landcruisers 80s/100s that can seat 7 and preferably have CDL, likely will get new lockers front and rear either way.

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TrailHawkZ71 said:
Going to go away from what everyone else has been saying, an outstanding overland vehicle imho would be a GMT400-platform truck or suv ('88-2000 GM). You can find everything from 2-door Tahoes to crew cab long bed 4x4 3500s. They are everywhere, dirt cheap, mechanically reliable, and the aftermarket is enormous for them. And they are tinkerer-friendly, and you can get up on your mechanic skills by fixing the "factory mistakes". Admittedly, I am biased since I own one, but I know guys on other forums that have used them for overlanding with great success.
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I would second this and toss in the GMT800 especially 03-05 huge improvements in these years. I see the prices coming very close to what you are looking for. Tahoe/Silvarado/suburban Z71 have pretty decent 4wd systems along with the g80 locker.
 
For the price, platform, aftermarket parts, and shear reliability it's hard to beat an XJ or LC (80 or 100 series), or really an Toyota; 4Runners and Tacos. You will come into one issue with LCs, they hold their value and only high milage models will likely be available in your price range. That being said is high milage really high milage on a Toyota?:D

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Thanks everyone! I've altered my plants, and now I'm thinking of selling my current vehicle, and purchasing a 4th gen 4Runner, and doing a 3 inch lift. I love the Jeep, but I spend a lot of time in remote southern Utah, and I'm looking for more reliability.

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My delima is I didn't know about the HD package when I bought my LR4 and it doesn't have it. I'd like to have it but they are even harder to find now. And the process of selling and buying without losing a lot of money is tough. Traction control does a great job so it is more than adequate but I keep waiting on mods in case I change my mind. Ugh. Are we ever satisfied with our vehicles?
 
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