my034runner

Maybe you all have an opinion. Besides my034runner, I also have my874runner. I bought it for $1k and have had plans to swap out the front IFS for a SAS (solid axle swap) and all of the other thing's that it takes to make a pure trail rig. It only has 138k on the original 22re with a 5 speed manual. It's not pretty, but I bought it for a beater, won't care if it rolls, smashes into rocks etc...
We just took in a '96 Crusher (Land Cruiser) here at work. It only has 145k on the original 4.5l straight 6 cyl. Need a new front bumper (ARB) and a major tune up, new belts, hoses, plug, wires, etc... But it already has dual lockers, and of course, a solid front axle. Obviously, my874runner, being much smaller, would be a more- size wise-capable trail/rock rig, while the Crusher is a bigger- albeit capable trail rig as well. The cost of doing everything that I would want to do, would probably be about the cost of buying the '96 Crusher. The Crusher will need a lift, ARB with a winch and maybe recharge the AC.
So, my question is: which should I do, keep my874runner and gut it and build it, OR buy my96crusher and use that for some of the more hard core trails, and preserve my034runner from the abuse that I already inflict on it.
Thanks for your opinions.
Robert


P.S. I'll post this on some of the other forums also, it will be interesting to see what others say as well.

bob200587

I say keep both.

leebee

for the 1k you have in the runner, keep it and get the cruiser. then you can do the trails hard with the runner and in comfort in the cruiser!

lee

tc

HUGE head start with SFA and lockers already in the 'Cruiser. FYI, those elocker thirds in the cruiser are worth ~$1000 each (that's what Marlin and Inchworm are selling them for...)

Or buy the 'cruiser and use the parts to build the 'runner (springs for lift, lockers, etc)