Moved the Fam to Honduras, our 4runner adventures begin!

[HondurasFam]

Hello all,
My name is Ben and I just moved to Honduras with my wife and 13 month old baby girl! We are full time missionaries and will be in Honduras for 2-3 years working on learning Spanish and working in orphanages around the country.

The reason I joined this forum is to get expert advise and council on how to move forward with my search for the right 4runner for our family. I have done a good amount of research on what kind of suv is best for rugged terrain and 4runner keeps coming out on top. I am excited to be apart of the community as I love tinkering with cars and trucks and talking about it.
I have 0 experience with 4x4 vehicles, my only car knowledge is with Honda cars and s10 trucks (slammed style).

It turns out that 4runners are not that hard to find here in Honduras!
Now from what I have read the best year for used and on rough roads is a 99 4runner. So I will start with that as my target and see what the community advises. The roads in Honduras are horrible, potholes everywhere and in our current town only three roads are paved. We live in the mountains at the moment so a lot of steep rocky dirt roads to travel on. The majority of our road time will be on paved pothole infested roads and then maybe once a week on mountain dirt trails leading up to remote villages and orphanages.

Any advice and help would be greatly appreciated, I have the time and dedication to become an expert with 4runners as well. My goal is to know this vehicle inside and out so that if we are ever in a difficult situation I can get us out of whatever it is safely.

Thanks in advance for the help! Excited to learn about the 4runners and to be an owner of one soon!

 

[preacher35]

Hello all,
My name is Ben and I just moved to Honduras with my wife and 13 month old baby girl! We are full time missionaries and will be in Honduras for 2-3 years working on learning Spanish and working in orphanages around the country.

The reason I joined this forum is to get expert advise and council on how to move forward with my search for the right 4runner for our family. I have done a good amount of research on what kind of suv is best for rugged terrain and 4runner keeps coming out on top. I am excited to be apart of the community as I love tinkering with cars and trucks and talking about it.
I have 0 experience with 4x4 vehicles, my only car knowledge is with Honda cars and s10 trucks (slammed style).

It turns out that 4runners are not that hard to find here in Honduras!
Now from what I have read the best year for used and on rough roads is a 99 4runner. So I will start with that as my target and see what the community advises. The roads in Honduras are horrible, potholes everywhere and in our current town only three roads are paved. We live in the mountains at the moment so a lot of steep rocky dirt roads to travel on. The majority of our road time will be on paved pothole infested roads and then maybe once a week on mountain dirt trails leading up to remote villages and orphanages.

Any advice and help would be greatly appreciated, I have the time and dedication to become an expert with 4runners as well. My goal is to know this vehicle inside and out so that if we are ever in a difficult situation I can get us out of whatever it is safely.

Thanks in advance for the help! Excited to learn about the 4runners and to be an owner of one soon!

Wow, that's very bold and selfless of you to uproot your entire family for Honduran missionary work. God bless you! Now, that being said, I am partial to 4th gens, however, you need to choose a model that you are sure that you can obtain parts for down there.

 

[HondurasFam]

Yeah we love what we do!

Oh I forgot to mention my budget ha!
So we have around $6000 to spend on the 4runner initially.
I have seen 1997-2000 all selling for around $4500-$7000.
I have started to read the guides on this forum and it looks like my best choice would be a 5 speed 4x4 option model from 97-00. I have heard that 99 is the "best" overall option for the higher clearance and quality. Any encouragement or wisdom on if this is good for my described situation and location would be helpful.
Thanks!

 

[MN4RNR]

Welcome Ben. MK 84'-88' in Africa. Best years of my life I think. Amazing to live in someplace so different from what most people get to experience. We were a Toyota/Land Rover organization back in that day. Look back in my introduction post and you will see the Land Cruiser we drove most of the time is still running today!! Enjoy the search, enjoy the experience you get to have. Best wishes to you and your family. Stay safe and God bless.

 

[HondurasFam]

Oh man you must of had an amazing time growing up in Africa!
Thanks for the encouragement!

I have an updated find to see what the community here thinks, I see a few Diesel engine options for 4runners here in Honduras. Any thoughts on a Diesel model, most of them are 3.0 liter engines.

 

[HondurasFam]

Here is one of the best and closest ad I've found so far thoughts on this?
vendo o cambio toyota 4runner 1998, motor 340... -- Clasificados.st - Honduras
It is in spanish so here is the translation (the link is so you can see the pics):

vendo o cambio toyota 4runner 1998, motor 3400 v6, mecanica, 4x4, a/c, retrovisores y vidrios electricos con sunroof,Lps.160,000. negociable

"Sell or trade Toyota 4runner 1998, motor 3400 v6, manual, 4x4, a/c,
automatic windows and mirrors with sunroof, $7600 US . negotiable "

I think I could get them down to $6000 which would be at my budget level.

 

[ben550]

Hello all,
My name is Ben and I just moved to Honduras with my wife and 13 month old baby girl! We are full time missionaries and will be in Honduras for 2-3 years working on learning Spanish and working in orphanages around the country.

The reason I joined this forum is to get expert advise and council on how to move forward with my search for the right 4runner for our family. I have done a good amount of research on what kind of suv is best for rugged terrain and 4runner keeps coming out on top. I am excited to be apart of the community as I love tinkering with cars and trucks and talking about it.
I have 0 experience with 4x4 vehicles, my only car knowledge is with Honda cars and s10 trucks (slammed style).

It turns out that 4runners are not that hard to find here in Honduras!
Now from what I have read the best year for used and on rough roads is a 99 4runner. So I will start with that as my target and see what the community advises. The roads in Honduras are horrible, potholes everywhere and in our current town only three roads are paved. We live in the mountains at the moment so a lot of steep rocky dirt roads to travel on. The majority of our road time will be on paved pothole infested roads and then maybe once a week on mountain dirt trails leading up to remote villages and orphanages.

Any advice and help would be greatly appreciated, I have the time and dedication to become an expert with 4runners as well. My goal is to know this vehicle inside and out so that if we are ever in a difficult situation I can get us out of whatever it is safely.

Thanks in advance for the help! Excited to learn about the 4runners and to be an owner of one soon!

First off congrats on the move. I grew up on the mission field with my parents (Colombia South America 80's-90's, Dominican Republic 90's-00's) Great times. I know exactly the road conditions you are talking about. A 4runner is a great choice for the mission field. We had a camry wagon and a toyota van. both good. We went a lot of places without the 4wd but it would have been nice to have. I know the 4runners are everywhere down there.

A good friend of mine down there (another missionary) had a 1990 kc1500 truck and a 91 jeep cherokee both 4x4. we took those things everywhere up into the mountains, crossing rivers, through flooded sugar cane plantations on mud trails, onto the beach, etc... they were beat up and held together with miscellaneous parts and duct tape but they held up too.

I know a lot of guy on here will cringe when i say you could also look at a nissan xterra or frontier... both of those are pretty good too. the main thing is with toyotas and nissans due to their popularity the parts are plentiful.

Is your wife ok with driving a manual? If not it might be good to go with an automatic. There are enough distractions/dangers on the road down there without throwing the added duties of shifting manually. I know my mom never drove our manual van for that reason. It was hard enough for her dodging the motorcycles and uncovered manholes.

A 99 would be a good option. I had a 2001 here in the US and it was a great vehicle.

Keep us informed on what year/model you get... we might be able to send some parts your way so you can do some good initial maintenance...

Best of luck to you!

 

[HondurasFam]

I appreciate the encouragement once again!
So cool to find two mk's so fast on this site ha!
Here is an ad that was posted today, looks like a great deal for what it is!
It is a 98 thought and I do like the 99 style more but this one is diesel!

Toyota Runner 1998 Honduras | toyota runer 1998 3.0 turbo diesel

 

[ben550]

I appreciate the encouragement once again!
So cool to find two mk's so fast on this site ha!
Here is an ad that was posted today, looks like a great deal for what it is!
It is a 98 thought and I do like the 99 style more but this one is diesel!

Toyota Runner 1998 Honduras | toyota runer 1998 3.0 turbo diesel

That diesel looks like a possibility have you looked at it in person? How flexible is your budget? You stated you wanted to stay around $6000 USD/127,000HNL... is 155,000 doable or are you going to negotiate? Is your budget restricted by the mission board or support? Are you only looking in Tegucigalpa or are you able to look in other cities? I looked and found a few nice looking ones... but they might be too $$ for what you're looking for.

Toyota Runner 2001 Honduras | Toyota Runner 4X4 2001 Vendo o Permuto 185000

Toyota runner 2001 Honduras | toyota runner 2001

Here's an older one that might work

Toyota Runner 1996 Honduras | Vendo o Permuto Toyota Runner

One big thing to consider is you dont want to get one that looks too nice... an american family driving around the countryside down there in a $$ suv could draw unwanted attention if you know what i mean.

Another option i'd look at is an Nissan Xterra. They are considerably cheaper and are another good tough truck.

Nissan xterra 4x4 2002 Honduras | Nissan Xterra 4x4 excelente condiciones negociable

 

[HondurasFam]

Yeah on the diesel I would try to get him to come down on the price and go just a little over budget to get it. Our budget is a mix of how much we have saved through raising support and how much our agency will release at a time because of taxes we can not get too much released all at once.
I am trying to get an older vehicle for the very reason you mention about gringos in nice suv's
Toyota 4runner is older but the quality is not lost for these kind of roads.
Nice finds, but most of those older postings I call on are sold they just dont update the site.
I did think about the xterra, but I have read too many bad reviews about their reliability.

 

[ben550]

Any luck on finding a vehicle? Did that diesel work out?

 

[ben550]

Yeah on the diesel I would try to get him to come down on the price and go just a little over budget to get it. Our budget is a mix of how much we have saved through raising support and how much our agency will release at a time because of taxes we can not get too much released all at once.
I am trying to get an older vehicle for the very reason you mention about gringos in nice suv's
Toyota 4runner is older but the quality is not lost for these kind of roads.
Nice finds, but most of those older postings I call on are sold they just dont update the site.
I did think about the xterra, but I have read too many bad reviews about their reliability.

When my family was looking for a car down there we had a gold 1995 4runner park in front of our house with a 4sale sign... i was stoked! but they were asking too much and we didnt have the money to get it... so we bought a 1994 camry wagon instead... i always wished we had gotten the 4runner tho. I wouldve loved to have the 4runner as a teenager at the time.

 

[HondurasFam]

Hey,
The 98 diesel is on my #1 choice at this moment but I have to see if the owner would be willing to wait for me to get the total funds released. I called him and he seems nice and understanding but not sure if he will wait until November. So I am still going to keep looking at other options until then. I am taking this time to browse the "builds" and tutorials on this site. I even created a nice budget item list of future tools to invest in. Will have to work out the shipping details for the tools and specialty parts in the future as well.
I do know that whichever runner I get, basic function will be the priority and then I will focus on upgrades for more extreme function.
Thanks for checking in! I may need some assistance with parts stateside when the time comes

 

[HondurasFam]

Shipping

Just found out today about shipping to Honduras, turns out there is a great company in Dallas & Houston Texas that ships in 30 days to Honduras. It only costs $1.50 per pound! So any of you in or around Texas who enjoy shopping around for parts through craigslist, junk yards and sales, let me know if you want to help this family out!
I am purchasing a few tools and having them shipped so that I can work on my 4runner when I get it in November.
How cool would it be to be a part of feeding, helping and taking care of street kids and orphans! I could post videos and pics of the 4runner being used to help the poor kids in Honduras. So if anyone is interested in helping with or just flat out donating parts and such stay in touch!

 

[HondurasFam]

Change of Plans

Alright well it saddens me to say this but I think we will not be looking at 4runners for our future
I have had a TON of people say that it is a bad idea primarily because toyota brand vehicles are the #1 stolen vehicle and by stolen I don't mean parked somewhere and broken into, more like at a stop light you are pulled out of your vehicle.
So given all the accounts and advice of the locals and missionaries here I have decided to look at alternatives to toyota.
I would like to hear from 4runner pro's, what is the next best thing to a 4runner? The main thing I want is a 4x4 that is family friendly and quality is the key to my decision making. Any advice is welcomed here and once i get some feedback i will probably not post on this forum any more, since it will not be 4runner related.

 

[3rdgenT4R]

Alright well it saddens me to say this but I think we will not be looking at 4runners for our future
I have had a TON of people say that it is a bad idea primarily because toyota brand vehicles are the #1 stolen vehicle and by stolen I don't mean parked somewhere and broken into, more like at a stop light you are pulled out of your vehicle.
So given all the accounts and advice of the locals and missionaries here I have decided to look at alternatives to toyota.
I would like to hear from 4runner pro's, what is the next best thing to a 4runner? The main thing I want is a 4x4 that is family friendly and quality is the key to my decision making. Any advice is welcomed here and once i get some feedback i will probably not post on this forum any more, since it will not be 4runner related.

After reading your OP, that is the first thing I thought....you'll get jacked....I would probably try to get something that is non descript....kinda looks like a POS, but is in good mechanical condition and suites your family needs....maybe an older AWD /4wd wagon......I really can't think of any SUV that would not be a target....jeeps, blazers, bronco's ect....I would think all are desirable to a thief! I am sorry to hear your dilemma but last thing you want is to knowingly put your family in danger or have a hostage situation....good luck!

 

[ben550]

Alright well it saddens me to say this but I think we will not be looking at 4runners for our future
I have had a TON of people say that it is a bad idea primarily because toyota brand vehicles are the #1 stolen vehicle and by stolen I don't mean parked somewhere and broken into, more like at a stop light you are pulled out of your vehicle.
So given all the accounts and advice of the locals and missionaries here I have decided to look at alternatives to toyota.
I would like to hear from 4runner pro's, what is the next best thing to a 4runner? The main thing I want is a 4x4 that is family friendly and quality is the key to my decision making. Any advice is welcomed here and once i get some feedback i will probably not post on this forum any more, since it will not be 4runner related.

1997-2001 Jeep Cherokee, Nissan Xterra, montero sport

Why not look at a van? something non descript. not exciting but very useable. you can load up lots of stuff, people, even sleep in it on the bench seats if needed. It also has decent ground clearance for the rougher roads. My family lived in South America for 16 years all with 2WD vehicles. Sure we got stuck a few times but never anything too bad.

The van would be a good choice.

If you are not going to have a firearm with you it'd be smart to keep it low profile with the van and not an attractive 4x4.

 

[momo.75]

Welcome to T4R.ORG!.....:yo: