Which Surf or 4-Runner to get???

[Dan & Tanya]

Me and my girlfriend are new comers to the 4x4 world. She owns a little kia sportage which is ok for the light to medium duties we've been putting it through, but im looking for a vehicle that will take me anywhere i want and that i can get plenty of performance bits for. I very much like the look of the '91 to '95 surf or 4-runner, all i want to know is which one is the best to get. any help would be greatly appreciated cause i am really in the dark

cheers

[-Nemesis-]

Basically, the Surfs have more fancy gear in it like electric everything etc whilst the 4Runner doesn't unless you get an SR5.

On the other hand the Surf is a grey import so things tend to be harder to source that aren't common to both models. Be wary of the 2.4L diesel models too i'd steer clear.

I've had my 94 RV6 4Runner for 5 years now and love it. Throw in a locker to compensate for the lack of wheel travel up front and you'll go just about anywhere.

Here's a pic of mine from earlier in the year. In this pic it has 2" spring lift, 2" body lift, 33" Claws, F&R lockers and the lexus V8:



It now has more spring lift, 35's and will be under the knife within weeks getting a custom live axle front end


Here it is at current behind a standard Surf

[plowy]

il get shot buy the surf n 4 runner guys but id have a look at the rest of the toyota range hilux /80 series etc

out of the 2 you like id take the 4 runner as the surf was a import and has e few dramas that go with them

and if you want to take it serious off roading look for the models with leaf spring suspension not ifs
or a coil suspension like a 80


how hard n further do you wish to go in regards to 4wd rock crawling or tourer or just a mud runner
also how hard has the 4wd bug bit too

[Dan & Tanya]

Plowy

well i would really like it to be a mix of everything if thats possible!!! The reasons i went for a 4-runner or surf are basically this, i dont want to spend anymore that 10,000 to buy it, and i want a vehicle that i can crawl from one end of to the other and they look awesome!!! Lets put it this way, that bug had its mouth around my legs when i first went out 4x4ing about 3 months ago and at the moment its about up to my neck and when i get my own 4x4 I WILL BE THE BUG!!!


Nemesis

Your 4-Runner is exactly what i want it looks tough as nails and looks like it will go anywhere. So a live-axle 4-Runner that doesnt have the 2.4 diesel fitted to it. What other motors can you get?


Cheers for the responses guys keep em' comin

[rixrunner]

Go the 4runner..... Had one for 10 years and love it As for the IFS..... sure...... you do not have the wheel travel, but it always gets me where I want to go and they ride heaps better on the road. Although, if you intend to go real hard core there are other trucks that are a better starting platform. That said, I would not trade my 94 SR5 for anything. Especially since I have already ordered my front and rear ARB lockers

They are a nice truck with plenty of mods available.

Ricky

[Yumsylux]

a 4runner/surf is a really good truck. I had a 4runner up until 2yrs ago and wanted a ute. Both cars are really comfortable to drive and use, I had a V6 sr5 "limited" which came with all the gear, (cruise, windows, 6 speaker bla blahdy bla) a surf gets all that standard. The V6 motor was alright, bloody thirsty but I owned a 265 charger before that so economy wasn't too bad at the time. Check out the surf site for things to look for when buying one. (You'll probably find someone to help you) There's some lemon surfs out there, find one that's had it's bugs sorted and you'll have it forever. Both are real good cars. The surf diesel is cheaper than the petrol to run, but make sure you have the motor tested they can cost a fair bit to fix. You'll love both these cars. Just stick with Toyota and keep away from that nissan shit.

[rixrunner]

An LPG conversion fixes the fuel economy issues with the V6 (of course).

[-Nemesis-]

Don't go too much off the common talk about getting a live axle Hilux instead if you want to go "hardcore" in the future. A leaf sprung Hilux is about 1000 times more uncomfortable than a 4Runner. And if you want to get really serious with suspension set ups for real hardcore stuff later, it costs just as much to set up a leaf sprung Lux as it does to convert the IFS 4Runner into a comp spec live axle front.

[Dan & Tanya]

Well i'll be on the road a 80% of the time and comfort is something i would like to factor in when i buy the vehicle, so it looks like an SR5 4-Runner with the 3.0L Turbo diesel engine and IFS front. What exactly is envolved with swapping the IFS front to the live axle? Is it a chassis swap or can i fabricate a new front end to accomodate the live axle?

cheers for all the great responses!!!

[Dan & Tanya]

hey nemesis what front end is yours?

[-Nemesis-]

There's no such thing as a factory SR5 Turbo 4Runner unfortunately, I don't think at least. But there's plenty of aftermarket kits available.

As for swapping to a live axle it all depends on what you want to use, going leaf spring is fairly basic. The biggest part of the job is cutting out all the old IFS junk.

With diff locks though you will go 95% as far as a twin locked truck with a live axle (one that's well set up that is) with the IFS. The only real downside is the comparitive strength of the IFS diff and cv's etc. If you don't drive like a lout you won't have dramas. I made my IFS front end last nearly a year with lockers and a quad cam V8 by driving it well, and I still followed all the other big trucks.

I'm doing the solid axle soon, but only because i'm now at the point where the front end is holding me back and i'm just getting into comp work.

[crunch]

The 2.4's in the surf are the not-cool motor. A 2L (2.4) in a runner is fine. You'll find most mecho's see more drama's with the 2.8 than they do the 2.4.

Runners are great, I'm on my second. I prefer the old shape (with the removable canopy) but thats just me. Any runner will help you get your legs, and will be a step up from the spootage anyway. A big fark off step

[Struth]

I've said it before and I will say it again.
get a SR5 4Runner.

Electric everything and well built as well. V6 has more than enough go and the low range gearing is quite good.

Mine has 2" sus and 2" body lifts running 33" claws. It's no 80 series or Patrol but unless you want to do comp type stuff it will get you just about anywhere. They have excellent on road manners and don't suck too much juice, about the same as a falcon.

I doubt you would take one outback (I wouldn't) but for local or east coast work no probs.

have fun, Struth.

[-Nemesis-]

I doubt you would take one outback (I wouldn't) but for local or east coast work no probs.

Why not? There's no reason why you wouldn't, they're solid trucks. The only tweak they really need is a bigger fuel tank or auxillery tank.

One thing with the V6 4Runners over the similar aged Hilux's and diesel 4Runners is they have a stronger driveline. They have a bombproof gearbox and a bigger rear diff 3rd member.

[sniper]

pfffft V6
go the 2.8 diesel and turbo it
I had one, turbo DIY kit cost around $500.

If you go surf get a KZN130 this is a 3.0TD very quick.
A bonus with the surfs is dome come out with a rear wheel carrier and all the frilly electric bits.
Bonus with the 4Runner, no electric on the motor so very, very reliable, and it aint scared of water.(2.8D)

You will be very surprised how far a 4Runner/surf can go.


this was mine
http://www.toyotasurf.asn.au/
as always, try this site

[mudmacaca]

If you got 10 grand to spend you can turn any early model 4runner into the shiznit rig.
Glad your choosing a 4runner i got my 88 model for 2grand put a 3" body lift and 35s under it and she goes places its worth 3300 now. It will cost about 2000 for a live front end about 500 for extended shock mounts and shocks/shackles for the rear and another 500 each for lokrite looka's.
Its a 4y petrol and if the engine shit its self they cost 1300 bran spanking new from sump to rocker cover cant go wrong. The only problem with mine is it has a carby and on the steep shit the fuel bowl empty's out but a gas conversion or fuel injection will fix that. But if you have 10grand you would have change for a ecotecV6 conversion and to also get it enginered.
Have fun mine used to be a tourer untill someone took me up some rocks then it was all over.
If you wnt to check out some sick 4runners go have a look at www.pirate4x4.com

Nemisis how easy did the alloy V8 go in and cost. Does it have the low down tourque. If you have a thread on it show us the way would'nt mind reading about it

[-Nemesis-]

Check out 4WDmonthly forum in the Build Ups section, both myself and Twisty have full builds of our conversions into 2nd Gen 4Runners.

The conversion is not 'easy' but it's not too hard. The cost factor would be fairly high though as you'd need a stronger gearbox (like a V6 4Runner one) on top of everything else.

The low end torque is not as good as some V8's, but it's still heaps better than the V6 that was in it. The full noise result with a few revs though puts those other standard V8's to shame.

[sniper]

Why buy an GEN I, I sold my GEN II for 5K with 2" suspensio, 2" body lift, rebuilt gearbox 5speed, rebuilt 3L motor with turbo, rebuilt rear diff with tightened clutches, as SR5 (minus power windows)
I followed all my mates with there pootrols and cruisers and went just as far. Give it a locker and see how much further it will go.

[mudmacaca]

The gen 1 looks better

[sniper]

each to their own on that one then. I much prefer the GEN II look.

[mudmacaca]

Thats true

Mind you there is a gen 2 with 2" body and 2" suspention (probably just wound up torsions) and front and rear air lokkas for 6700 in the local rag in this end of the world be worht buying just for the lookas but they got shite diff ratios (V6),
I got 4.8s

[Dan & Tanya]

hey i been looking for a descent 4-runner but they are so hard to find in good nick!!! How about a dual cab hi lux?

[rixrunner]

Keep looking for the 4runner.... They are around

[mattyd]

Keep looking, they are everywhere in Sydney.

Just last week there was a 1995 model 4runner RV6 (that's the 3 litre V6 engine, no electric windows or mirrors, just standard) for sale at a Tempe 2nd hand car dealer for $4999. Apparently it lasted on the lot for all of 2 hours after trade in though :(. I missed it.

One thing to be wary of, some of the engines in the RV6 have 'issues'. My RV6 (in my 95 model) managed to run dry of oil (my fault for not checking its oil level, but then I did put in 2 litres of oil only 4 weeks before my big drive), and when I got home from my big drive (bathurst to the murray river basin and back) I had managed to do the bearings in the engine. That is all I know so far. I am sure there is more to fix, but I can't afford to pull it apart yet and check. I am constantly wondering how it used so much oil in the first place.

There are plenty of stories around about head gaskets going, so just keep that in mind, but looked after properly with regular maintenance they are fine.

Otherwise they are very reliable.

I love my car, and can't wait to be able to spend some money on it to fix it's little problems.

Matt

[rixrunner]

There are plenty of stories around about head gaskets going, so just keep that in mind, but looked after properly with regular maintenance they are fine.Matt

The head gasket was an issue that is covered by the "Toyota Customer Care Program". Mine went at about 80,000k's which I was told was very late. I did not pay a cent to get it repaired... all covered by Toyota (although I did put in a new clutch while the motor was out) The bill was around 7 or 8 grand as it was a full top end rebuild. The car has not missed a beat since and I am about to click over 200,000 and I am running LPG(dual).

There was also a recent recal with the steering arm. I was blown away that there was a recall on an 11 year old car. Anyway... check that that is done (sticker in the d/side door jamb) and get the car details and check with Toyota if the head gasket has been done.

Don't let this turn you off....... they are great trucks.


Ricky

[Yumsylux]

gday there.
I saw a 3.0L TD surf for sale in this month's 4x4 trader going for $10700. These babys have all that comfy shyte that you want and the 3.0LTD has the wonderful 1KZ motor that's also in the prados. Have you considered a Prado? They're not bad vehicles either, a little bit pricey but they're damned good and a lot newer. We don't seem to see many Prado owners in the forum. Probably because they are typically the "soccer and school" mum's choice of vehicle. But they're also pretty good offroaders. Better put my kevlar jacket on after saying that.

[mico]

There was also a recent recal with the steering arm. I was blown away that there was a recall on an 11 year old car. Anyway... check that that is done (sticker in the d/side door jamb) and get the car details and check with Toyota if the head gasket has been done.

Don't let this turn you off....... they are great trucks.


Ricky

yours must be a late model one mines 15 year old and they still covered me with the steering recall

[rixrunner]

yours must be a late model one mines 15 year old and they still covered me with the steering recall

Its a 94 and it was covered by the recal. I'm just saying i could not beleive after such a long time there would be a recall.

Here is a pic of my truck

[-Nemesis-]

I see the the wheel on the back, what sort of rear bar/carrier you got mate?

[rixrunner]

It's a kaymar

I have found it to be a good bar and I am very happy with it. I got it because I put the tank underneath when I converted to LPG.

I will post a pic from the rear when I get a chance over the weekend.

Ricky