Yep. Doing some work on it now in preparation for BaT. It's a really nice driver or candidate for a build. The paint job is decent at best and will limit the value of the truck, but it looks good enough to leave as is and enjoy. Don't know why I said it was a '88 up there, it's a '91 Hunter
Awesome, thanks so much for the details. I was aware of the GX/Prado chassis, and am considering those but my wife thinks they look too much like a mom cruiser (which I kind of agree with). I do really like some of the GX Expo builds out there and think they look really good with bumpers and bigger tires. I've driven and towed with my parents 4runner quite a bit and they really just aren't for me, not going to pay the ask for one of those.
I'm totally ok with the parts costs, I'm a 100% DIY guy and just got out of e70 X5 M ownership... Not scared of anything that the LC is going to throw at me as far as maintenance and repairs. As for the size, it's not really a limiting factor but the wife just complains about peripheral visibility problems in our e53 when driving around town (small windows) and doesn't want something that's impossible to park. She was DD'ing my e39 m5 happily for a while, but now that we've moved into downtown Charlotte the traffic on her commute sucks for a manual trans... I leave for work @ 5:15AM and go against traffic, so the e39 is great for ripping down I-77 in the mornings.
I think $15k is the top of my budget, also forgot to mention that I am dead set of grey interior, which seems to be way more common in the LX. I've found that the pricing on IH8MUD is much more reasonable that Craigslist, lots of options in the $11k-13K range.
Ok hundys are going to excel in spades at what your looking to do with it. Yes its bigger than a T4R, but your wanting more capability out of it pulling a loaded car wagon. Buddy will tell you a V8 4th gen ( 96% of 120 series) is capable of it. Hes right, but its PUSHING the limits of what you can do with it, and stopping is going to be your bigger worry.
To continue the GX series is the only way to get a true Prado Chassis land cruiser in the US the 120 and 150 series. The 4th and 5th gen T4R's are about 96% one and most of the Non LandCruiser parts are more cosmetic and interior bits and bobs. Yes the GX's are a little odd looking but all the good parts out there that fit on T4R's or Prados from Oz or europe will fit by and larger both stock and upgrades.
Now that thats out of the way. The Hundys dont forget the Lexus LX470's are great trucks, I say that about an SUV, because they are built like a truck. IIRC the 5spd was 1st available in 04 but you might be right and it might have been 03, so by going that new your going to avoid teh biggest weakness of the breed. That was the front diffs in 98-2000 units. The other shortcoming is the GM like torsion bar IFS set up, while it works great for a tahoe or a mild duty work truck, its not good for a go anywhere off road exploring rig. Hence why Yota went to coilovers for the 200's ;) But since you seem to want to stick to major roads, and getting to the camp site for the bike tour, a good set of MS AT tires in the next size up and you should be good to go. As far as wife driving it, yes they are a little bigger than many other options out there, but they are far smaller than last couple generations of Tahoe/Yukon and I see people that have no business driving things that big piloting them all the time. If she does not like it buy her a F30 BMW and you keep the LC, it will take time to get used to it if your used to smaller things, but they are well worth the learning curve
They are a timing belt power plant so be mindful of that when shopping, yes parts cost a lot for these rigs, and as a LC guy I suggest going with OEM or proven upgrade parts when needed, as they dont need parts that often. They are one of the few modern vehicles in the marketplace that were built to take an ass kicking every day and last 30 years with basic care, Like all yotas watch out for all the common rusty spots, and if your looking at the LX's the auto leveling suspension is nice but, costly to repair, so most of the time its a good excuse to swap to something more LC like :) I am going to warn you now, you will be hooked, and you will be planing mods and trips to try out your new mods soon. You will not want to drive anything else.
You should be able to find a sub 200k 04ish+ in good shape for your budget, with out issue I have been hawking your local market since labor day since I was working in the Roanoke VA area. Plenty of decent hundys but I am 80 series guy through and through.
Decent looking option in the DC area based on the pics
nice pearl white 06 LX with 125k on for a a touch over the top of you budget in ATL I almost took one of my sundays off to go look at this one but I would rather have another 80
They are out there.
To continue the GX series is the only way to get a true Prado Chassis land cruiser in the US the 120 and 150 series. The 4th and 5th gen T4R's are about 96% one and most of the Non LandCruiser parts are more cosmetic and interior bits and bobs. Yes the GX's are a little odd looking but all the good parts out there that fit on T4R's or Prados from Oz or europe will fit by and larger both stock and upgrades.
Now that thats out of the way. The Hundys dont forget the Lexus LX470's are great trucks, I say that about an SUV, because they are built like a truck. IIRC the 5spd was 1st available in 04 but you might be right and it might have been 03, so by going that new your going to avoid teh biggest weakness of the breed. That was the front diffs in 98-2000 units. The other shortcoming is the GM like torsion bar IFS set up, while it works great for a tahoe or a mild duty work truck, its not good for a go anywhere off road exploring rig. Hence why Yota went to coilovers for the 200's ;) But since you seem to want to stick to major roads, and getting to the camp site for the bike tour, a good set of MS AT tires in the next size up and you should be good to go. As far as wife driving it, yes they are a little bigger than many other options out there, but they are far smaller than last couple generations of Tahoe/Yukon and I see people that have no business driving things that big piloting them all the time. If she does not like it buy her a F30 BMW and you keep the LC, it will take time to get used to it if your used to smaller things, but they are well worth the learning curve
They are a timing belt power plant so be mindful of that when shopping, yes parts cost a lot for these rigs, and as a LC guy I suggest going with OEM or proven upgrade parts when needed, as they dont need parts that often. They are one of the few modern vehicles in the marketplace that were built to take an ass kicking every day and last 30 years with basic care, Like all yotas watch out for all the common rusty spots, and if your looking at the LX's the auto leveling suspension is nice but, costly to repair, so most of the time its a good excuse to swap to something more LC like :) I am going to warn you now, you will be hooked, and you will be planing mods and trips to try out your new mods soon. You will not want to drive anything else.
You should be able to find a sub 200k 04ish+ in good shape for your budget, with out issue I have been hawking your local market since labor day since I was working in the Roanoke VA area. Plenty of decent hundys but I am 80 series guy through and through.
Decent looking option in the DC area based on the pics
nice pearl white 06 LX with 125k on for a a touch over the top of you budget in ATL I almost took one of my sundays off to go look at this one but I would rather have another 80
They are out there.
I'm totally ok with the parts costs, I'm a 100% DIY guy and just got out of e70 X5 M ownership... Not scared of anything that the LC is going to throw at me as far as maintenance and repairs. As for the size, it's not really a limiting factor but the wife just complains about peripheral visibility problems in our e53 when driving around town (small windows) and doesn't want something that's impossible to park. She was DD'ing my e39 m5 happily for a while, but now that we've moved into downtown Charlotte the traffic on her commute sucks for a manual trans... I leave for work @ 5:15AM and go against traffic, so the e39 is great for ripping down I-77 in the mornings.
I think $15k is the top of my budget, also forgot to mention that I am dead set of grey interior, which seems to be way more common in the LX. I've found that the pricing on IH8MUD is much more reasonable that Craigslist, lots of options in the $11k-13K range.
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