twitchee2

Ive really been thinking about getting a newer 4runner, but between going away to college and the fincial reasons of that, I wont have the funds for a newer runner. I may be getting a older f150, but I would MUCH prefer the 4runner. First off my truck is coming up on 227k. My family has owned the car sense day one and it has religiously been taken car of so the thing still runs like new, still pulling 18-21mpg regularly, doesn't even burn a drip of oil. But that car being that old my sink my idea before i even get started. Please stop me if this is the case and i shouldn't even bother with it, if it seems reasonable continue on reading.

My idea is lift it mildly, get some tires, and re-gear/locker. To begin with, it is a 2wd and its stock with 225-75-15s. I would need new tires/wheels, i was thinking some 285's, and some tundra or taco wheels. My friend's dad owns a trash company and i believe some junkyards, so if my idea seems reasonable ill go check it out and see if i can find a 4runner/taco w/ a locker that i can take. that would kill 2 birds with one stone or would i need to re-gear anyway? For a lift, i think a tundra lift would fit the bill.

Anyway, does this seem like a good idea or even worth it. Thanks. I wont be doing anything soon, just looking at my options and doing some research.

k_southman

What is your intention? Do you want your truck to just look cool? Or are you going to go offroad and want to improve your truck for that? What type of offroad?

twitchee2

I meant to talk about that too. I want it too look good, but i want it to be capable enough to go find some dirt roads and to the beach to go camping and have some fun out in the forests with some friends. I don't need it for anything crazy and i've read a locked 2wd is a a very capable truck and probably more then i would ever need.

amgraham

Coming from someone who has both a 4Runner and a F-150 I work on the 4Runner (an 87 with 274K) much less than the F-150 (an 86 with 115K). So, I really don't think you'd be getting a much more hassle-free vehicle out of the Ford.

That said, it takes a special breed to wheel a 2WD. It can and is done but, like southman said, what exactly to you want out of it? If you're just looking for some mild wheeling capability it should be pretty easy for you to run some 31s without much loss in fuel mileage (sorry, I suck at metric conversions so I don't know what 285s measure out to). If you re-gear and locker it it should be pretty capable, just you won't have the advantage of low range. If you have and automatic that shouldn't be much of an issue though. A manual sucks wheeling in high range though. If you find an e-locker axle in something you could probably swap it in and see how it does with the tires you're running and then re-gear if you feel you need to (dropping a Toyota 3rd member is really easy). A rear locker even in 2wd will help a TON offroad.

If it were me I would save what you would spend on the 2WD and find a deal on a 4WD. There's something to be said for knowing the whole history of your truck though so I would run that as long as I could then decide from there so you can take your time and find a deal. Once again, all comes down to how serious you want to wheel it. Maybe 04RockoTaco will chime in.. he wheels the 2WD.

Good luck man! You're doing the right thing by researching it well before you jump into it.

paxil4x4

Depending on what year F150 your looking at, I would advise against buying anything with a mod motor 97-2001+. everone I know who has had one has have numerous problems. For starters they blow out spark plugs

College is about getting high and laid everthing else forget about.

yotasavg

come on now! i fit my runner in the middle somewhere!

86toysr5

my girlfriend has a 94 f150 extend cab and it blew 171k its the inline 6 (300)
i have had less problems with my trucks out side me breaking the frames.....the new motor has 3k and the fuel pump is bad and it barly goes my 2.7 with 156k has motor get up n go n she even admits it

d0ubledown

dont bother with a 2wd. the bug will bite hard..n you'll end up wishing you spent your bank on a 4X. keep it stock or get a 4wd...THEN start building it up.

cox380

Go with a 2.5 inch spacer lift from ebay for about $100. Put it in yourself. Then put some 31x10.5 tires. Whatever you do don't go with the ford.

twitchee2

all good input. just as a note, the ford is a early 1990 model not sure on the year and its my uncle's truck who is moving to NYC, it will basically be handed down to me strictly for transportation, but like i said i would rather have the runner.

Godzilla

OK well if youre going to college dont piss up too much money on your rig, even if it was 4wd. You want something that will be little cost overall. 285's? C'mon, 265/75/16 (32's) will be more than enough for what you describe. If you can find a toyota locked rear then great. Swap it especially since you dont have to worry about matching the front. But if you cant I dont really see why youd want to spend alot of cash for new gears and a locker. But if you got the cash do it all. Building up a 2wd (and yes, ppl do it and its just as capable blah blah blah) is like rice-ifying a chevy cavalier..

yotasavg

i don't think he could have said it better. i dumped loads of cash into my 2wd pickup. i lost a lot of money when i sold it for the runner and it was still the best decision. don't waste your money. find the most cost effective way to do what you absolutely NEED. suspension lift, lockers, big tires = way more than you need to go camping.

dropzone

iTrader: (6)

Having tried to work on a truck and go to college at the same time I can relate. I would recommend that you try to stash as much money as you can while in school and purchase a 4x4 when you get out. It is surprising what you can find when you have got some cash to negotiate with.
Having owned toyotas for over 20 years (have 3 now) they seem to last for ever as you have seen with your '92 if taken care of. . You could even SAS's that thing down the road. I still see my '84 that I sold 10 years ago (@ about 200K) running around

twitchee2

Thanks for all the input guys. this is why i started this thread to see if it was even worth while, i'm taking your experiences and letting them settle. I think your guys are right and i should just save the money. I think my best option would to go up there, see how it works out then if i need to make some modifications, do it then when i know what i need.

yotasavg

there you go man, now you're talking like you know what you're talking about.

04 Rocko Taco

I'll take this as a compliment amgraham.

I do wheel the 2WD, sometimes I am very proud of it for what it can do, other times I wish I had the 4X, but it is still a DD, so I like it just fine. I agree for now, until you know how badly you need/want it, just get you a spacer lift or something else cheap, and install, and go with a size larger than stock tire, and wheel it like that until it doesnt cut it anymore.

I might can get you a hookup on a spacer lift, just let me know.

twitchee2

The problem is if i lift the truck, its gonna look so stupid becuase of the stock 225/75/15 (28 inchers), if i was to upgrade to 265 i would have to regear anyway because its going from a 28-32, that seems too extreme for the stock gears which i *think* are 3.70s. Am i correct in my reasoning, i think overall its just not worth it.

Photog

If you can get an electric locked rear axle, from a '92 or newer 4x4 truck, with an auto-tranny, it should have 4.88:1 gears.

By the way, you have said you want a newer 4Runner, and that you have a truck.
If you have a truck, what type of wheels do you have? 5 lug or 6 lug?
If it is a 5 lug wheel, your lift options are limited.
What type of lift do you think you can put on it?

twitchee2

exciting news, i might be getting my friends 97 4runner as a graduation/going away gift. that would be sweet. its got 110k, 4x4 /w locker. i really hope i can pull this off.

deserttoy84

If the f-150 is I-beams then build it. You can get like 20 inches of travel in the front for really cheap.