Last week at work I was asked a very interesting question, one that I had to think about, and it was asked by somebody who is not a wheeler...

What influenced me to go with a toyota???
I actually helped a friend at work about ten years ago do a v8 swap(way back when it was not popular) and some odds and ends, and really kinda liked what i saw, so bougt one back in 91..

So, what influenced you guys to build the rigs you have now and why???

Cuz I like S10's. Cuz everyone gives me shiat about them. So what if I gotta swap axles, motor, tranny, X-fer case... the Jeep guys do the same swaps!

I used to be a Ford only fan, driving my big F50 with swampers. Then I went to a local playground with a friend who wheeled an 85 toy, and her friends who also wheeled toys and they rocked. They could climb suff my truck couldn't and they fit through the trails much better. Plus when they got stuck (In WA it is inevitable, you will get stuck) anyone could pull them out. I knew a toy would be my next rig. So when I moved to Cal. I bought my 85 toy and the rest is history.

dad works for toyota, we always had em, and i like them. that and it was dirt cheap, 500 bucks and i drove it home

I wanted a short wheel based truck that was different. Everyone else had a Jeep or Rover -- I looked for a FJ40. Got my first one at 15....that was 4 Cruisers and almost 20 years ago. Time flies when your havin' fun :D :D

Shouldn't this be under the Toyota section:question: :flipoff2: :flipoff2: :D

I started wheeling with a Bronco II and my buddy had an S-10 stretch cab. I ended up getting rid of the BII and buying a car. A year later I was looking for a Jeep or Toy truck, found a deal on the Toy, haven't looked back. :D:D:D:D:D.

Before I ever thought I'd get into hard-core wheeling, I was bouncing around in Toy's...I loved them...However when I first saw a 1993 Land Rover Defender 110 I just knew I had to have one...Then I looked at the price...Then in 1994 I read about the LR D90...I sold my 4 Runner and the rest is history. I've got soooooo much emotional investment in the 90 now, that I just can't part with it. Even though it means that I'm going to do a dana 60/70, King coil-over, 42 TSL combo under her...Lot's of purist on D90 board call me F'in insane to chop a perfectly good D90 into an "extreme" crawler, but like I said...It's because I love Rovers...And it's MY truck! :flipoff2:

--D

My first wheeling experience was in a Jeep so that biased me a little, Then I read up on all the history that Jeep has and how there a million different things a person can do to modify a jeep. I also realy liked the body style, it is very orginal and people can automaticly tell what u drive. And finaly I like the short wheel base and I like the variety of models I had to choose from.

I did my Jeep because I already had it. I did the s-10 because I thought it was original at the time but now they're popping up everywhere.

my buddy owns a junk yard and had a toyota in it. and i needed a trail rig. free is good.

Well, I know I may get flamed for this one, but when I bought my jeep, my intentions were to use it for getting around well in the snow up here in the mountains that we get during the winter.. I thought the 30" AT's would be plenty LOL :) Well.. Ive had the Heep about 2.5 years, and I aint done yet. Im very attached to this thing, and I don't think there is any way I could sell it. I never thought Id be wheelin the jeep, and wanting axle swaps, tranny swaps, motor upgrades and so on, but I guess thats how life goes :)
Scott :grinpimp:<><

in my case, i wanted to build the best offroad and most dependable vehical i could.

that really left only one choice-:D

Toyota

a couple of years afo my dad bought a zuki for parts for his and sence my VW dune buggy snapped in half i started building the zuki......needed a rear d-shaft and a front end need rebuild.....so 12" of lift later and a set of 33" i had my off-roader......now with my second zuki the buildup started again....and also cause they are cheep to find(300$ can) and lifts can be done with a couple pieces of square tubing and a welder(SPOA)......ya can't go wrong.....o yeah and easy on gas....lol....

A slow steady progression to smaller rigs got me to my Jeep. After the last build up's I told the wife I'd keep this one cheap though. So only mods it gets are because something didn't work right after a couple of times. I was going to get a Sami, but there wouldn't have been room for me, the wife, and our son once you load in all the wheeling gear.

plenty of room, just take out the back seat and put in a bucket seat, and you got lots of room

I got mine because I wanted to be able to haul a bunch of camping gear and my motorcycle at the same time. I've always been a toyota fan, so for me there was only one choice. When my buddy bought his 85 runner I told him I would buy his truck off him.....well he's been kicking himself ever since. It's been 10 years and he still tells me he misses his old truck.

I got into my Rovers after having a Nissan and a Chevy. I decided I wanted something with a full soft top and jeeps not only didn't have enough room inside, but I'd have to swap out most of the drivetrain to get the V8 I wanted and have strength to turn decent size rubber. At first, I was looking for a Scout or an Early Bronco (right size, V8), but on the East coast there's not much left of the older rigs due to rust. When I started looking at newer stuff, I came upon the Rovers and realized I could get an awesome wheeler out of the box. I've been wheeling the heck out of them ever since and they're a joy to drive. There may not be an overwhelming selection of accessories, but I can get what I need.

-John

XJ

I've always been a big Jeep fan and lots of my first wheeling trips were in my buddy's bone stock XJ. I got it because it was relatively cheap, reliable, had plenty of room, lots of power from the 4.0, and at the time not everybody had them. I felt pretty good crusing around with my lifted XJ among the bone stock. The trail capabilities of it really surprised me. I had no idea how far you could really push them. Anyway, less than 2 years later here I am, with more unfinished projects than I know what to do with.

I wanted something different this was '91 and basically everything on teh trail was a jeep or a Toyota pickup. So My choices were Sami, EB, Scout or Cruiser. I wanted something that was more or less ready to wheel since I didn't have any real experience with axle/motor swaps, and I sort of wanted a V8. I was looking at cruisers and EB's mostly I didn't know anyone who wheeled a sami and I was afraid axles etc might not be that strong. I ended up with an EB.

There it was sitting in the used car parking lot. It was a freshly painted black 83 cj7. It had a hard top and 33" tires. I was in love.
I was originally looking for a cruiser but this jeep was pretty. I went and test drove it and the steering sucked, the motor leaked oil by the quart, and the hoses were a mess. I took it home and started working on it. Soon I realized that everything need attention, but by then I had the bug. Now 2.5 years later, the only drivetrain component that is stock is the T-case. I am debating on going to a 4 runner though. I need the room for the family.

Oh and my daughter wants a sammy cause they are cute!

I always wanted a toyota!! When I first started high school, 1984, there were some seniors that had a couple of yotas that were all tricked out. After that I wanted one!! :D Since then I have had 2. An 85 p/u and my current, a 89 4Runner.

I got my first yota (an 86) for 100 dollars partially disassembled with a blown head gasket. Got it back together and in the process learned to cut valves and seats, assemble a head, and the top half of an engine for that matter. Beat on it for 8000 miles and sold it for 900 dollars. Bought an 87 runner for 500 and sold it for 1600 and bought my 84 for 1500 last march... I believe im gonna keep this one for a while. Cant bust em:D

-j-rOd

ever sinc ei saw the toyota xtra cab in back to the future i have wanted one. that was long before i could drive!:flipoff2:

i found a tan one in the summer of 2000 drove it and had to get it! its an awesome truck that takes a beating!:nuke:

When I sold my '83 Ranger, I was hatin' life. I had blood, sweat at tears into that damn truck, and probably close to 3 billion wheeling hours.
Fast forward 3 years, 2 cars and a 2wd pickup...

Wow. Sweet jeep. Is for sale? W00t! Mine!

=D

Bring on the D60's and the exo-cage, baby.

-J

Cause it's what the Bank let me Finance :nuke: :flipoff2: :flipoff2:

aaron

I had a CJ5 (that took up seven years of my life modifing) that grew to be to small.
Then I needed something bigger and to many of my wheelin buddies had scramblers(not that theres anything wrong with it).
So I found the Jeepster and the rest is history:D

Man good question Crash. I hated Jeeps for a long time. I liked the looks of them but the ol man bought two fj40s new and my best friend has an fj40(Tankota). I was into hot rods for years until I kept riding with my buddy(Tankota) on 4x4 runs and helped him work a little on his rig. I had full sizes that we hammered in mud holes but never a trail rig. I was at work one day telling a carpenter about wanting to find a clean fj40 to build and he said I have a cj5 for sale!!!I said how much and it was $1300.00. I said whats wrong with it and he said he couldnt get the soft top to fit it must be the wrong one and he had to sell since he was reporting to jail in a couple weeks for 8 months and had no where to store it. So the rest is history. i am looking into building a toy now though, since the jeep is about as done as its value will allow. I generally have a hobby or one car/truck for about two years and I think the jeep is getting old hat so on to new territory and all kinds of info to learn. I like many enjoy the fabrication more than the wheelin so I want fresh meat.

Well.... to keep up with the 'benders, you just don't have a choice.... :)

I picked my Toyota because you can look any were and see a Jeep on a trail, but not to many Toyotas. And since I have always driven Toyotas it only made since to pick it for my trail rig as well. Plus up in this area you get a lot of the Jeep guys that like to give you the old "that toyota cant make it thru that" so it is always nice to walk thru it and continue down the trail. :D

Originally posted by Ziptide Toy
Plus up in this area you get a lot of the Jeep guys that like to give you the old "that toyota cant make it thru that" so it is always nice to walk thru it and continue down the trail. :D Hahaha hehehehe hahaha..... Yeah... :D
ain't it da' truth ?

probably because everytime I saw a 79-83 toyota I bout creamed my pants. They are the most beautiful truck I have seen so far. Plus they wheel awesome, and I am a crawl ratio freak, and loved the easy daul t-case ability of toys.

Originally posted by Scout Dude 64
Shouldn't this be under the Toyota section:question: :flipoff2: :flipoff2: :D

ONE WORD ....... JACKASS!!!!

well when i was 17 i bought a jeep because "chicks dig them" after beating it up like kids do and then flopping it i started a teardown. now 10 years later it runs again but is still a mostly stock pos( but real purdy:flipoff2:)in the meen time i got the jones for another rig ond doing glamis alot i knew i wanted something with power and smooth suspension. thats when i came across a ad for this '92 bronco so i called just for kicks. well i knew i wanted a 351 auto with leather which it had so i asked him if there was anything else he could tell me about it and he says " it has some sort of turbo type thingy on it". so i jumped in the car drove to BFE and turns out it had a vortech supercharger, jba headers, possi front and rear (now has front arb) 4" rancho so i bought it there and then. now i went from sand to rocks and to tight trails and no longer have this preaty truck. i guess i should start putting $$$ into the heep.

DAMN, I am impressed, first chance i have gotten to check after hackin on DSI's rig, and I am impressed... Keep it up, makeing for really interesting reading...

Originally posted by Ziptide Toy
I picked my Toyota because you can look any were and see a Jeep on a trail, but not to many Toyotas. Not any more. I'm simply amazed by the number of Toys I see at gatherings :D:D:D:D.

Well I knew I wanted a street legal trail rig and it had to have rear seats since I take my boys wheelin/camping whenever posible. It was to be my first pretty hardcore wheeling rig. I had owned EB's before so I was really looking for an EB or an early Blazer, ...but damn those have gotten REALLY $$$, maybe even a Scout which aren't very expensive but hard to find around here.

After a month or so of fruitless searching I saw a posting on a local mailing list for an 85 efi 4Runner with f/r lockers, marlin crawler and other stuff :D. I wasn't real familiar with Toys, but I knew what a crawler was, the general Toy rep and I had just read the 4wheel & offroad 1st ultimate adventure article about how the Toys had kicked ass. I thought the $2500 price must have been a misprint, but emailed the guy who was about 60 miles away. He was wanting to get back into fast motorcycles and was getting out of wheeling...said the body was all beat up was why the price was so low.

Perfect!...I had to really scramble to beat out some other people, including tracking the sellers phone #/address down on the internet. (he stopped responding to email, which I corectly assumed meant another buyer was in front of me!) But I showed up at his door 2 days later with a tow rig and after waiting on the guy with 1st dibs not to show I towed it home that afternoon! It's been a great truck.

Originally posted by crash

So, what influenced you guys to build the rigs you have now and why???

I had a friend in HS with a Scout II that we had a lot of fun in..

After HS I caught myself stopping at car lots and looking at Jeep's.. which lead me to see the price tag on some of the used POS's. $3500+??

The Scout came up for sale not long after.. so instead of a $3500 CJ with a 6, 3spd, and D30/AMC20.. I scored a SII for under half that with a V8 and Dana 44s..

Then I bought another.. and another and...

Well first off I really don't have a problem with any other vehicles. I had a trooper for a while and was more capable than most give them credit for.
Next 4x4 was a 79K5. My wife promply pryed the keys out of my hands becase she and the Ferd we had didn't get along and she still drives the 79. I was trying to get her to let me replace it with a Sub but she just won't part with it now. It has some trail rash but Crate engine Built to the hilt second gear chirping TH350. Loaded on the options. Power everything and even the A/C still will freeze you out. Looked a long time for it. Was set up just the way I wanted other than the Gov lock. Had 3.73 gears even. That 79 has been through Tellico and out of the box a K5 is pretty capable. Parts are dirt cheap and can get just about anything you need anywhere.
My needs pretty well excluded Jeeps (wranglers, CJ's) due to the size. I have wife and 2 kids so it just wasn't going to work.
Toy's are about the same reasons. Love FJ40's but just not enough room for a family of 4, and camping gear.
Also wanted something with pulling power. I on occasion need to move stuff and again the smaller vehicles just are not good tow rigs.
My 75 K5 fell into my lap. Pres of the club knew I was looking for another 4x4 since the wife took over the 79. New member had the 75. He got it as a project and lost interest. I bought it for $1 and drove it home. Loved the full convertable top. Like that in Nov I can put a hard top on it. Love that it can move any of my other vehicls if the need arises. Does pretty good off-road. now that it has 4.10 gears, Detroit in the rear and a lockright in the front. Yeah it's wide and I have taken my fair share of busted tail lights but hay! I only paid $1 for it LOL.
When I trash it beyond repair I'll concider something like a 40 again. May even look at a XJ. Probably reclaim the 79, Cut the roof off to make it a full convert like my 75 and buy the wife something else to drive.

I've had 2 Jeeps, but was getting sick of having to replace everything inorder to have a decent rig that won't break easially. Also, Slickrock in Moab can get hella steep real fast, so having a longer wheelbase is a good thing. Those things and picking up a clean, locked up, regeared 85 Toy pu for a good price sold me. As previously mentioned, inexpensive DEEP gearing in a Toy is easy! Its my next mod!

Scrambler:

I will always wheel a "topless" vehicle. i love the full size K-5's, but HATE body work.. and it seemed that all k-5's with the full removable top were so far gone or too expensive.. so a LONG time ago (1985) i bought a cj7, without knowing a thing about them.. i went through several jeeps (much easier to throw them out and buy another for less than $1000 than to fix em) untill a friend took me to moab in (1989?). i was hooked. i got out of the mud for the most part and started rockcrawling... kindof..

i saw how well the 'yotas did off road, and decided wheelbase was where it was at, but there was NO WAY i was driving POS import when there were so many POS domestics to be had, so i ended up with a scrambler.. in a roundabout sorta way..

but i love folding the windshield down, taking off the top, and having a 360 degree view of the areas that i only get to once or twice a year.

that, and its SOO much easier to pull the 7 bolts that hold the entire front clip on a CJ on when your doing motor swaps than to climb inside a lifted yota. no room in those little things.

besides, i like nothing more than coming up to a pack of yotas, being told that the way ahead is impassible, id better turn around,and tooling right on by them and on up the trail. sometimes i even stop to help them, or offer a beer.... but more often than not theyre sitting around talking about "straight axle swaps" or v-8 conversions.. or how many transfer cases it takes to get a 22R to turn a 33 inch tire........

Got a toy because the first time I went since I was a kid was with a group of toys and I was impressed. ( as a kid dad had a 67 scout with a buick v8 and it took us everywhere in Nevada ) Picked an 88 toy that needed a lot of work and helped a friend put it together ( I drank a lot of beer and learned a few things by watching him ) Go ahead and flame, just got my first rig finished and taking out for the first time this weekend. Hey it's all about having fun and getting away from it all and seeing what the hell you can do. So flame me, fawk it, as long as I get the chance to do it. :D :flipoff2:

First time I went "wheeling" was in a friends D90 and I was hooked. couldn't afford a d90, but they just looked like expensive Jeeps to me. Started looking at YJ's and CJ's. This was just after the TJ came out and everyone was saying it was a yuppy jeep. Well YJ's and CJ7's looked the same to me except for headlights, and I didnt want a yuppy Jeep, so that had me looking for 5's. Found one on the way home from school one day and ended up buying it. Still got it today.

I have always dug the looks of the LJ's
and the fact that they are tiny is also a plus..( I just had to learn to suzuki size all my 'wheeling gear :D )

Wow, nobody has piped up about having a HUMMER yet :D

Originally posted by crash
Wow, nobody has piped up about having a HUMMER yet :D
Most hummer drivers are to elite to hang here. Becides they suck on most of the stuff we run. Hummer club here on the east coast quit going to Tellico because they got so tore up. They had to make their own trails that were wide enough no to be ripping off $800 heated mirrors.

Originally posted by crash
Wow, nobody has piped up about having a HUMMER yet :D

I got a HUMMER last night..........
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O-wait....... you were talking the truck.......:flipoff2: :flipoff2: