Safari Vehicles in America

[JG26Irish_2]

Like the OP, while off hunting in Africa, I fell in love with the PH's bad ass Toyota Land Cruiser pickup. V8 turbo diesel, 6spd, beast. I wanted one. Was disappointed to learn that it was nigh on impossible to get one. Fast forward a few months, and I stopped by to examine the new Toyota Land Cruiser which is now on sale in the USA. More disappointment. A 4 banger turbo wheezer with hybrid, like it did not weigh enough already?? Sorry but no. My current hunting truck for years has been a 1995 Isuzu Trooper with V6 and 5spd manual. A very capable truck in its own right but it was getting long in the tooth. Right before Xmas, I purchased a nice Toyota FJ Cruiser V6, 6spd manual which was pretty much loaded with most of the options. The Snowmaggedon hit about a week later and man am I glad I got this thing. It is a beast and very capable. My wife got to do a week long test of a 2025 Tacoma while her SUV was being repaired and while I was gone most of that time, I did get to try it out and the 4 cylinder turbo engine does not impress me when compared to the FJ's 4.0 liter V6. Took the FJ on its first hunt last weekend in KY for a late season tree rat hunt with friends. There was still snow every where and The FJ ate it up without spinning a tire. Pics of the FJ and the ZuZu attached below.

 

[BigSteve57]

Like the OP, while off hunting in Africa, I fell in love with the PH's bad ass Toyota Land Cruiser pickup. V8 turbo diesel, 6spd, beast. I wanted one. Was disappointed to learn that it was nigh on impossible to get one. Fast forward a few months, and I stopped by to examine the new Toyota Land Cruiser which is now on sale in the USA. More disappointment. A 4 banger turbo wheezer with hybrid, like it did not weigh enough already?? Sorry but no. My current hunting truck for years has been a 1995 Isuzu Trooper with V6 and 5spd manual. A very capable truck in its own right but it was getting long in the tooth. Right before Xmas, I purchased a nice Toyota FJ Cruiser V6, 6spd manual which was pretty much loaded with most of the options. The Snowmaggedon hit about a week later and man am I glad I got this thing. It is a beast and very capable. My wife got to do a week long test of a 2025 Tacoma while her SUV was being repaired and while I was gone most of that time, I did get to try it out and the 4 cylinder turbo engine does not impress me when compared to the FJ's 4.0 liter V6. Took the FJ on its first hunt last weekend in KY for a late season tree rat hunt with friends. There was still snow every where and The FJ ate it up without spinning a tire. Pics of the FJ and the ZuZu attached below.

View attachment 661521View attachment 661522

I hang out on 4x4 and overlanfing forums. The consensus is that the new 300 series Land Cruiser is a disaster.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Like the OP, while off hunting in Africa, I fell in love with the PH's bad ass Toyota Land Cruiser pickup. V8 turbo diesel, 6spd, beast. I wanted one. Was disappointed to learn that it was nigh on impossible to get one. Fast forward a few months, and I stopped by to examine the new Toyota Land Cruiser which is now on sale in the USA. More disappointment. A 4 banger turbo wheezer with hybrid, like it did not weigh enough already?? Sorry but no. My current hunting truck for years has been a 1995 Isuzu Trooper with V6 and 5spd manual. A very capable truck in its own right but it was getting long in the tooth. Right before Xmas, I purchased a nice Toyota FJ Cruiser V6, 6spd manual which was pretty much loaded with most of the options. The Snowmaggedon hit about a week later and man am I glad I got this thing. It is a beast and very capable. My wife got to do a week long test of a 2025 Tacoma while her SUV was being repaired and while I was gone most of that time, I did get to try it out and the 4 cylinder turbo engine does not impress me when compared to the FJ's 4.0 liter V6. Took the FJ on its first hunt last weekend in KY for a late season tree rat hunt with friends. There was still snow every where and The FJ ate it up without spinning a tire. Pics of the FJ and the ZuZu attached below.

View attachment 661521View attachment 661522

Those FJs are notoriously hard on gas. Riding in one I felt like we were driving through a culvert. Blind spots everywhere. My daughter's 4-Runner is bad for that too. Windshield to door posts are very thick. The visibility out my Envoy is I think the best of any vehicle I've owned. Thin posts and the hood is literally invisible.

 

[Tanks]

...

Some of the most desirable Lexus overlanders get horrendous mileage

My new GX 550 gets 14 in the city and 20 on the highway. So, not that great.

 

[Tanks]

View attachment 661033There was a beautiful vehicle at SCI that I was admiring…

Yeah, Heidelberg restorations they start at about $250K and go up. I looked at them seriously a year or so ago before passing.

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

Those FJs are notoriously hard on gas. Riding in one I felt like we were driving through a culvert. Blind spots everywhere. My daughter's 4-Runner is bad for that too. Windshield to door posts are very thick. The visibility out my Envoy is I think the best of any vehicle I've owned. Thin posts and the hood is literally invisible.

How old is your daughter’s 4runner? We just bought one and it has excellent visibility IMO

 

[Buckums]

partial to the Land Cruiser. here is my triple locked 94 hunting buggy.

 

[Kurt Swanson]

This is our 2014. I’m still search for an OEM brush guard which is rare as hens teeth. It’s like new.




Not our 08 TTE, but they were a limited edition and identically painted and equipped:

Rookhawk,
I didn't know that you had an FJ! I've owned my 2008 since 2010 and wouldn't trade it for anything.
Kurt

 

[Bandera]

All we own is off road type vehicles.
The 2005 Honda CRV has 89000 miles on it.1” lift and upgraded tires. It is towed behind the motorhome.
We have taken it a lot of places by picking the proper line and careful driving. We have been asked how did you get that in here? Anymore I answer by helicopter. The Honda gets an average of about 27mpg

The 2009 Hummer H3, this is my wife’s vehicle. It does not get dirty very often, but it has proven very cape off road. About 15 mpg.

The 2014 Jeep Wrangler, is also towed behind the motorhome. 110,000 miles on it averages 19 mpg on the hwy,

 

[CBeck]

How old is your daughter’s 4runner? We just bought one and it has excellent visibility IMO

Hell, my ‘94 has good visibility

 

[Hombre]

My (used to be mine) 1985 HJ75. Right here in Texas. Originally from Australia, completely rebuilt with all OEM Toyota parts. Elephant skin seats from Zim. Still crying that I sold it.

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

Hell, my ‘94 has good visibility

Yea I should’ve asked what it was exactly. Seems like blind spots are not a problem with the 4Runner. IMHO

 

[CZDiesel]

Just opening up a thread to a.) Show what we did, and B.) to hear what you might have done. I know there's a lot of nice safari/hunter style vehicles out there, but very few in America. I'd love to see Rovers, Yotas, and anything else that you might be driving.

It all started with my fascination regarding the reliability of the African Land Cruiser Pickup. Those vehicles were never sold in the USA and fully tricked out they are a fortune, $80k-$100k new. Of course you can't import a new one, but I think you can bring in a 25 year old one which would be bastardized into a 4 door cab at best case since they didn't make them like that in the 1900s.

What I realized is the CLOSEST thing we have in America to Africa is the Toyota FJ Cruiser that was sold here from 2007 to 2014. (worldwide production ended in 2023) These things are bulletproof and have a slang name of "jeep recovery vehicles". They really can do things typically associated with Jeeps, but they can do it without having to drop $100k into a whole new drive train thanks to their bulletproof engine and gearbox.

So we set about getting a few FJs, perfect for places that require daily 4wd. This is when we learned about their legendary 500,000 mile reliability, that they have the highest resale price in America of any car, and that their frames rust out so you have to be mighty selective.

Our two FJs are daily drivers: a 2014 last model year, all options, highest HP engine, loaded vehicle with 60,000 miles. (it's in Sandstorm, roughly the same tan as the Toyotas in Africa. Our second is a rare bird, a 2008 Trail Teams Edition (classic white like many of the landcruisers) with 125,000 miles on it. We've done some restoration on these vehicles, particularly getting the frames absolutely perfect and doing custom interiors, updated infotainment, backup cameras, bluetooth, apple carplay, etc.

What we love about them is what I loved about the African bakkies, they are so ridiculously simple. Every knob is simple. Every part is easy to install. Every service activity is something I can teach a kid to do themselves.

The best part is sort of the worst part, cost. A good one sells today for more than its original MSRP 15 years ago. The good news is that those kept in good condition are free to own as your depreciation from use rarely outpaces appreciation of their value.

What are you all driving? FJ40s? Range Rovers? Land Rovers? 4runners? Old Landcruiser SUVs?

Adipose, I had a very similar JK setup like yours. I spent a small fortune on replacing most of the suspension, bumpers, installed the winch, snorkel, re-geared the differential's etc etc.

It would creep through almost anything. But was almost useless on icy roads. A $500 front wheel drive car with Bologna skin tires performed better on ice. Between the suspension, the relatively lightweight and the wide mud tires. If you hit a bump while on ice it disrupted the suspension and you could lose traction and spin out.

Oddly enough I would drive my front wheel drive car most of the winter on Icy roads. If the snow was deep and traffic was slow the Jeep excelled and was in its happy place.

So I built an off-road beast then wondered why it didn’t do so well on pavement

But as you know a Jeep is one of the few American made vehicles that hold or increase in value. I had a guy that bothered me for a couple years to buy my rig. So I finally relented at a great price for me and he was happy to pay. One of the few vehicles I’ve driven for a few years and made money on.

Yep, those little Jeeps don't have the weight to work on ice and snow even in 4x4. My little S10 size Jimmy worked "okay" but I would say it's about the minimum weight for a wintertime 4x4. What weight it did have was evenly distributed and of course the wheelbase is longer than Jeep. Longer wheelbase = more stable and much more comfortable to drive.

I think if someone developed a 4x4 that was primarily front wheel drive, that would be ideal. Front wheel drive cars are very good for winter driving, especially encountering icy bridges in early morning. Rear wheel drive pickups tend to lose control of the front end and jackknife. And bridge is the worst place to lose control! No ditch to escape into. Either get hit by oncoming vehicle or go into the drink. I learned a long time ago to always let off the gas and coast through to the other side, even if in 4x4. And anyone driving with cruise control in winter conditions better have their life insurance paid up!

Sorry guys dont mean to rain on your parade or be disrespectful but first there NO Land Cruisers that has the same capability in any type of environment as a Jeep Wrangler!
Second Wranglers are not only awesome in snow and ice but again cannot be out performed when someone knows how to drive it correctly.
How am I so bold to say this? Well first a Land Cruiser couldn’t get out of the staging area of a lot of the places I have wheeled my Jeep! I’d love to see one try to get a quarter of the way up Holy Cross and that’s an intermediate trail!
Second on the snow and ice issue. There is this silly little club called Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery. I used to be active in it until my legs started to go. We would go all over the state and rescue people when they were stuck and in very serious danger. Local authorities would reach out for us to handle some of these also as they did have the vehicles or experience in doing so. A lot of these are winter rescues where a silly Toyota owner gets WAY over their head and cannot get out. The club is made up almost exclusively of Jeeps? We have pounded through over three feet of snow just to get to pure ice shelf roads for rescues! The Jeeps ALWAYS make it through!

Colorado 4×4 Rescue & Recovery – We Recover the Rockies

www.co4x4rnr.org

 

[RLL]

My new GX 550 gets 14 in the city and 20 on the highway. So, not that great.

Maybe, but that v6 twin turbo is a win over the toyo motor/battery, even with TX fuel costs!

 

[roverandbrew]

Sorry guys dont mean to rain on your parade or be disrespectful but first there NO Land Cruisers that has the same capability in any type of environment as a Jeep Wrangler!
Second Wranglers are not only awesome in snow and ice but again cannot be out performed when someone knows how to drive it correctly.
How am I so bold to say this? Well first a Land Cruiser couldn’t get out of the staging area of a lot of the places I have wheeled my Jeep! I’d love to see one try to get a quarter of the way up Holy Cross and that’s an intermediate trail!
Second on the snow and ice issue. There is this silly little club called Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery. I used to be active in it until my legs started to go. We would go all over the state and rescue people when they were stuck and in very serious danger. Local authorities would reach out for us to handle some of these also as they did have the vehicles or experience in doing so. A lot of these are winter rescues where a silly Toyota owner gets WAY over their head and cannot get out. The club is made up almost exclusively of Jeeps? We have pounded through over three feet of snow just to get to pure ice shelf roads for rescues! The Jeeps ALWAYS make it through!

Colorado 4×4 Rescue & Recovery – We Recover the Rockies

www.co4x4rnr.org

My bone stock LR3 routinely had to recover jeeps when I was out running my dogs around Mount Rosa. I do agree on the importance of driving correctly.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Recovery of a Suzuki Samari..........

Recovery of a Jeep......

Recovery of a Range Rover.......

 

[WAB]

Sorry guys dont mean to rain on your parade or be disrespectful but first there NO Land Cruisers that has the same capability in any type of environment as a Jeep Wrangler!
Second Wranglers are not only awesome in snow and ice but again cannot be out performed when someone knows how to drive it correctly.
How am I so bold to say this? Well first a Land Cruiser couldn’t get out of the staging area of a lot of the places I have wheeled my Jeep! I’d love to see one try to get a quarter of the way up Holy Cross and that’s an intermediate trail!
Second on the snow and ice issue. There is this silly little club called Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery. I used to be active in it until my legs started to go. We would go all over the state and rescue people when they were stuck and in very serious danger. Local authorities would reach out for us to handle some of these also as they did have the vehicles or experience in doing so. A lot of these are winter rescues where a silly Toyota owner gets WAY over their head and cannot get out. The club is made up almost exclusively of Jeeps? We have pounded through over three feet of snow just to get to pure ice shelf roads for rescues! The Jeeps ALWAYS make it through!

Colorado 4×4 Rescue & Recovery – We Recover the Rockies

www.co4x4rnr.org

Well, growing up in Canada we had jeeps and FJ forty land cruisers. In my experience it was typically the FJ pulling the jeep out of a mess. The FJ is a much more strongly built vehicle than a jeep from the frame up. With a six, the powertrains were similar. The V8 jeep was a disaster, overheating seemingly at will.

 

[fourfive8]

Remember, these vehicles must look the part.

Including but not limited to: snorkel, at least 4 inch lift, big aggressive noisy tires, bed and roof rack for gear and tent. Massive front winch in custom cow-catcher guard and skid plate with miles of cable and snatch blocks. Axes, shovels, handyman jacks, Pulaski’s and at least two GI style gas cans and two spare tires strapped on sides or top. Extra winch with cable and multiple clevises for rear pull. At least a couple of Yeti cooler and Moab stickers. All of course wrapped in custom, thick, flat, “Diaper-drip Tan” paint. And guaranteed to get at least 8 MPG on the highway or urban boulevard.

 

[BB416]

Love he thread, seeing everyone’s off road transportation. Here’s my 1965 series 2a 109 station wagon and my 1980 unimog 416 Doka.
Brian

 

[rookhawk]

Sorry guys dont mean to rain on your parade or be disrespectful but first there NO Land Cruisers that has the same capability in any type of environment as a Jeep Wrangler!
Second Wranglers are not only awesome in snow and ice but again cannot be out performed when someone knows how to drive it correctly.
How am I so bold to say this? Well first a Land Cruiser couldn’t get out of the staging area of a lot of the places I have wheeled my Jeep! I’d love to see one try to get a quarter of the way up Holy Cross and that’s an intermediate trail!
Second on the snow and ice issue. There is this silly little club called Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery. I used to be active in it until my legs started to go. We would go all over the state and rescue people when they were stuck and in very serious danger. Local authorities would reach out for us to handle some of these also as they did have the vehicles or experience in doing so. A lot of these are winter rescues where a silly Toyota owner gets WAY over their head and cannot get out. The club is made up almost exclusively of Jeeps? We have pounded through over three feet of snow just to get to pure ice shelf roads for rescues! The Jeeps ALWAYS make it through!

Colorado 4×4 Rescue & Recovery – We Recover the Rockies

www.co4x4rnr.org

I don’t mean to cast shade on your favorite 4x4, but having owned a massive amount of them I will say this. Specifically to the modern renditions under the control of stellantis, they have ruined every single vehicle from Jeep to Dodge to Ram. They all have the same build quality of Renault and Fiat.

Irrefutably, they have made the lowest quality, least reliable vehicles in their peer group. They slashed the amount of workers doing assembly and QA. They forced a flawed emissions tech, MDS on the market. They removed the robust engines and transmissions that made them famous. Some of the storied Jeep lines are the lowest sales volumes with highest days of inventory (over 300!) of any 4x4.

Even fanatical Jeep folks on this forum I know personally have $125,000 jeeps, having been forced to gut all suspension and powertrain to create a reliable modern offroad vehicle. The original car is but a shell like a monster truck.

Comparing a CJ5 to a Stellantis pile of junk is no comparison whatsoever. Don’t get angry at me, get angry at a feckless European firm that has destroyed some of the most admired American brands.