Looking for Recommendations - Cheap Used AWD/4WD Vehicles
- Thread starter Redmanss
- Start date
I had one that started having problems. The slave cylinder for the clutch leaked brake fluid down the firewall, it got inside on all the fuses in the fuse box. I replaced all the fuses, and the problems went away. Some of them just crumbled. i think the hydroscopic nature of brake fluid caused to hold moister and corrode the connections. I don't know if that is the common problem. Its just what happened to mine. I think it was an 86 or 88.
I lived in Rapid City for 12-1/2 years.
One of the major problems I noticed when buying vehicles, boats and RV's is there isn't any competition in the area.
When I retired from the AF, I decided to trade in my 96 diesel Suburban on a Ford Focus. I figured since I was moving back to Florida, I wouldn't want two 4wd vehicles.
After moving back to florida and seeing the difference in vehicle prices, I could have bought the Focus here for much less and almost give the Suburban away for the same outcome.
Buying used in that area, the 4wd vehicles commanded a premium that could be saved by buying out of state and driving back home.
It's crazy.
Here's a Craigslist grab of Tampa bay from this morning.
https://tampa.craigslist.org/search/cta
Just type in Jeep Cherokee in make, leave model blank.
https://tampa.craigslist.org/search/cta
Just type in Jeep Cherokee in make, leave model blank.
There are a few good ones on the first page! Not the black one with the gansta wheels...
Another vote for Subaru. Their AWD systems are very good in dry, rain, mud, and snow/ice conditions. One reason they are extremely popular with outdoor oriented people in Oregon. The variable differentials, traction control, vehicle dynamics control, and ABS systems function very well thus providing a good level of safety.
What's wrong with the hooptie? That would have been my first choice.
Plus, there's always the likelihood of finding a stashed pistol somewhere while you're cleaning all the drug paraphernalia out of it.
Too good of a vehicle, nearly indestructible & lasts forever.
That explains why in the rest of the world they are highly prized.
There's a reason a lot of technicals are built on Toyotas...especially in parts of the world where PM is a foreign concept.
Hi,
The "paper" reason is they cannot pass USA Emissions requirements but as W54 pointed out....its purely business.
The auto industry here in the USA is based on dealership repeatable sales and the Hilux pretty much rules out a repeatable customer.
I think I will try and import one and see exactly what agency stops it and why they stop it
I can get them pretty cheap and brand new in UAE.
Sincerely,
Theis
Yep, the low sulfur mandate, in the US that would price them so high only selected enthusiasts would buy them so it's not worth it. The discussion that it will happen occurs every year, and every year we're left wanting. I've beat the shit out of Hiluxes overseas, they are tanks and fun as shit to drive, with lockers you have to try very hard to get one stuck and they keep going forever despite being run hard in places where an oil change is considered blasphemy.
Classic Land Cruisers in the US are stupid expensive as they're hen's teeth rare, many go north of $30k. I envy you guys in AUS for what vehicles you have available at good prices, but I'll comfort myself with my AR and Glock collections.
I'm looking at a lot of Cherokee XJ options, seems a '98-'99 with the I6, Chrysler 8.25" rear and high pinion D35 front is a good base build option, more than a few with less than 200k miles available for under $3k. The aftermarket options are one of the biggest "pros" for the Cherokee, although I would probably never put more than a 3" lift and 33s on it.
I'm not in the buying market yet, this is still scouting phase, and I may very well hit up my girlfriend's BIL who is a used dealer in PHX to find me a desert lifespan option to avoid rust issues.
I would never buy a new Jeep Rubicon for $50k and then think that i would buy another one later at 20k miles...... but you are right..... dummies do it all the time!!Hi,
The "paper" reason is they cannot pass USA Emissions requirements but as W54 pointed out....its purely business.
The auto industry here in the USA is based on dealership repeatable sales and the Hilux pretty much rules out a repeatable customer.
I think I will try and import one and see exactly what agency stops it and why they stop it
I can get them pretty cheap and brand new in UAE.
Sincerely,
Theis
Hi,
They do it every single day.
If you want to get a feel for the USA consumer auto market, just look at how many consumers lease autos.......
Now in corporate auto market; leases have some great advantages in taxes.
Sincerely,
Theis
I think I will try and import one and see exactly what agency stops it and why they stop it
I can get them pretty cheap and brand new in UAE.
Sincerely,
Theis
Don't get a new one, you won't be able to import & register it, save yourself the hassle. Look for a really good condition used one that is about 25 years old, then you can import it legally & register it without any big issue.
There are quite a few guys importing the Toyota Diesel Troopies from Australia where they get them cheap, bringing them here & fixing them up, then they sell for in the $60k range and up depending on how nicely they have fixed them up & the options they installed.
True for Bellingham......(Western Washtonian, born and raised). Seattle ? Who da fuk knows what you'll see ?
Q
QuickNDirty
Guest
If you go the XJ route, be sure to check for rust.
The XJ I got looked brand-new on the inside and on the bottom, but what I didn't realize was that under the carpet on the front passenger's side and under the passenger seat was a fucked scenario only revealed by pulling up the carpet. Turns out that running the AC caused condensation to drain into the cabin because only a shitty styrofoam gasket was there to keep water out. I removed the gasket and replaced it with copious amounts of RTV, but now I've got a leak on the windshield gasket on the same side that drips into the cabin and will fill that bitch up if I hadn't drilled a hole in the floor where it likes to pool up.
You can check rust around the passenger seat by looking under the plastic guards that cover the seat bolts on the rear of the seat. There's only one phillips screw holding them on. From below, you can poke around the floor pan and transmission housing (where the uni-body forms the shape of the tranny around the shifter and center console) by poking around with the screwdriver. Do the same on the unibody rails especially around where the leaf springs bolt on to the unibody.
If there are more than 2-3 large (3-5") crunchy parts on the floor pan, you see the carpet is red around the passenger seat/seat bolts are rusty AF, OR there is anything crunchy on the rails, I'd pass on the XJ.
NOTE: When looking from below, XJs are blasted with a rubbery sealer that covers up rust even though it's there. That's why I say poke at it with a screwdriver, you'll be able to hear/feel the crunchiness. You'll most likely poke right through a soft spot with about 4-8lbs of pressure.
If it were me, I'd buy her a crown vic for 500 or so and make it look as much like a cop car as possible. Keeps a lot of idiots in check (tons of folks slow down and refuse to pass anything cop-shaped) and they handle collisions better than XJs.
The XJ I got looked brand-new on the inside and on the bottom, but what I didn't realize was that under the carpet on the front passenger's side and under the passenger seat was a fucked scenario only revealed by pulling up the carpet. Turns out that running the AC caused condensation to drain into the cabin because only a shitty styrofoam gasket was there to keep water out. I removed the gasket and replaced it with copious amounts of RTV, but now I've got a leak on the windshield gasket on the same side that drips into the cabin and will fill that bitch up if I hadn't drilled a hole in the floor where it likes to pool up.
You can check rust around the passenger seat by looking under the plastic guards that cover the seat bolts on the rear of the seat. There's only one phillips screw holding them on. From below, you can poke around the floor pan and transmission housing (where the uni-body forms the shape of the tranny around the shifter and center console) by poking around with the screwdriver. Do the same on the unibody rails especially around where the leaf springs bolt on to the unibody.
If there are more than 2-3 large (3-5") crunchy parts on the floor pan, you see the carpet is red around the passenger seat/seat bolts are rusty AF, OR there is anything crunchy on the rails, I'd pass on the XJ.
NOTE: When looking from below, XJs are blasted with a rubbery sealer that covers up rust even though it's there. That's why I say poke at it with a screwdriver, you'll be able to hear/feel the crunchiness. You'll most likely poke right through a soft spot with about 4-8lbs of pressure.
If it were me, I'd buy her a crown vic for 500 or so and make it look as much like a cop car as possible. Keeps a lot of idiots in check (tons of folks slow down and refuse to pass anything cop-shaped) and they handle collisions better than XJs.
Thanks for all that, I will definitely go through it thoroughly for rust. I may just have family down in Phoenix track it down for me, have my girlfriend's brother in law who is a used dealer down in that AO.
As for cop car look-a-like, that would require a gray Silverado (Sheriff and Troopers) or black Yukon (city) for the most part. They're all in 4WD here.
As for cop car look-a-like, that would require a gray Silverado (Sheriff and Troopers) or black Yukon (city) for the most part. They're all in 4WD here.
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