Need advice! Second vehicle..land cruiser or sequoia..or someting else?

[Dan.3]

Let's not forget the wife needs to navigate in it. Suburbans are a handful in any parking lot and same with the excursion, not to mention they are epic piles of crap. Drive one with over 150k on the clock and compare to the Toyota and there is no comparison. The Toyota will easy for her to drive and park.

Just because you cant drive one in a parking lot doesnt mean she wont be able to :flipoff:

I never found a suburban or a 15 passenger van to be all that more difficult to drive 1st gen sequoia. I have seen a lot soccer moms in my area driving suburbans. If he needs it to be easy to drive for her, I dont think he would be looking into something bigger than a 4runner.

The GM drivetrains are pretty good except for the 6.2 diesel that they put in hummers for a while. If they werent, then nobody would be swapping them into their cruisers or 4runners.

I cant same the same with the for excretions. I dont have any experience with them, but from what I have read, the reviews are not favorable.

 

[IanB]

I found my 80 series had about 20-30% more interior and cargo room compared to my 3rd gen Hilux Surf, it has to be about 3 inches wider from door to door inside! Definitely a lot more room inside.

We just picked up a GX470, and I find it to be somewhere in the middle. It's the same platform as a 4th gen 4Runner, which is definitely bigger than a 3rd gen as well.

 

[zooroadbaja]

I disagree with this, my LX450 feels like it has WAY more interior room than my 4runners did.

Just going on edmunds and pulling up measurements this is what I got:

Front Leg room 4Runner with 3.4" more

Front Head room Land Cruiser with .7" more

Rear Leg room 4Runner with 1.3" more

Rear Head room Land Cruiser 1.3" more

Rear Hip room Land Cruiser 8.2" more

Rear shoulder room Land Cruiser 5.4" more

Like I said it's not a huge difference in size you get more width and a little less leg room

 

[02SE]

I had a 94 FZJ80. The extra space was not that significant over the 3rd gen.

I owned a '95 FZJ80, and later my '97 4Runner. I owned them side-by-side for several years. The reason I sold the Landcruiser, is that I never felt as comfortable in the drivers seat of the Landcruiser, as I did in the 4Runner. The LC felt more cramped for legroom, then my 4Runner.

There was a bit more room width wise in the second row of seats in the LC vs the 4Runner, but the drivers seating position just didn't cut it for me.

 

[white_n_slow]

 

[chris360hawks]

Is this really an upgrade over the Sequoia? I don't care about simulated wood grain and other luxury upgrades.. More of a keep-it-simple guy.

I like the GX because it is bigger than a 4th gen 4Runner on the inside, but not as big as a Sequoia. Also it has a nice 4x4 system with a manual transfer case and center diff lock. It also has rear air suspension and adjustable dampening in the suspension. The interior is also a lot nicer than a 4Runner, and it has the same stout drivetrain as a Sequoia/Tundra. It is pretty much the nicest luxury 4x4 SUV you can get, I'm sure the new wife would love having a Lexus. They are roughly the same price as a used Sequoia, good bang for the buck.

 

[IanB]

I like the GX because it is bigger than a 4th gen 4Runner on the inside, but not as big as a Sequoia. Also it has a nice 4x4 system with a manual transfer case and center diff lock. It also has rear air suspension and adjustable dampening in the suspension. The interior is also a lot nicer than a 4Runner, and it has the same stout drivetrain as a Sequoia/Tundra. It is pretty much the nicest luxury 4x4 SUV you can get, I'm sure the new wife would love having a Lexus. They are roughly the same price as a used Sequoia, good bang for the buck.

The GX470 should really only big bigger on the inside than a 4th gen 4Runner in terms of head room due to the raised roof, they are otherwise pretty well the same vehicle (exact same drivetrain as a V8 AWD 4th gen). The headroom is nice, but it doesn't help you carry more people or cargo. The interior is very nice though, no question about that.

 

[shadow247]

Now that I have looked at it again, the Sequioa seems like a good choice too. I like the idea of a Toyota over Chevy, although I'm not too sure on the long term reliability of the V-8 Engine past 250k miles.

 

[nyvram]

i'm seeing local 'one owner soccer mom' early 2000s sequoias for around $8k with 150-200k miles on them. the mileage doesn't scare me that much since its a toyota and honestly i'm just looking for a reliable road-trip vehicle that i can mod up

thanks for all the advice.

oh and regarding that photo a few posts up..kinda funny since i've been seriously considering getting my son (who is 15) an m1009 when he learns to drive as a fun vehicle for dad & son

 

[psraff]

Wow, I'm kind of disappointed. By looking at pics, I thought FZJ80s were quite a bit larger on the inside then our 4Runners. I was even researching them and thinking of picking one up this summer to add a second car to the family. I've got two kids that will be driving soon...

 

[Dan.3]

the mileage doesn't scare me that much since its a toyota and honestly i'm just looking for a reliable road-trip vehicle that i can mod up

Unless you can do your own fab work, good luck trying to mod a sequoia. Its only been done by a few people. If your trips involve places with off road parks and trails then you will have to suck it up with the 4runner or get an 80 if you want to keep it toyota. Otherwise, mod the 4runner and keep the sequoia stock.

 

[LittleCaesar]

Check Atlanta on Craigslist and Autotrader for good used ones (less than 100,000 miles, <$10,000) rather than Nashville, which can be rather pricey for their first gen Sequoias.

I know someone who has modded a GX470. It looks/rides great, but the Lexus parts aren't cheap.

 

[nyvram]

Unless you can do your own fab work, good luck trying to mod a sequoia. Its only been done by a few people. If your trips involve places with off road parks and trails then you will have to suck it up with the 4runner or get an 80 if you want to keep it toyota. Otherwise, mod the 4runner and keep the sequoia stock.

i should point out i'm not thinking offroad mods; more of the interior and exterior mods to make the vehicle more enjoyable..you know like installing LED lights, swapping sound sytem etc.

 

[nyvram]

Check Atlanta on Craigslist and Autotrader for good used ones (less than 100,000 miles, <$10,000) rather than Nashville, which can be rather pricey for their first gen Sequoias.

I know someone who has modded a GX470. It looks/rides great, but the Lexus parts aren't cheap.

thanks! will do. thats a short drive.

 

[ironhippy]

Just going on edmunds and pulling up measurements this is what I got:

Front Leg room 4Runner with 3.4" more

Front Head room Land Cruiser with .7" more

Rear Leg room 4Runner with 1.3" more

Rear Head room Land Cruiser 1.3" more

Rear Hip room Land Cruiser 8.2" more

Rear shoulder room Land Cruiser 5.4" more

Like I said it's not a huge difference in size you get more width and a little less leg room

That is probably all true, I have a different perspective because the first thing I did with my land cruiser was remove the second and 3rd row seats.

With the back seats removed, I have way more space than I did in my 4runner.

However you are correct, if you are talking about actual head/leg room, there isn't a whole more.

 

[nyvram]

Check Atlanta on Craigslist and Autotrader for good used ones (less than 100,000 miles, <$10,000) rather than Nashville, which can be rather pricey for their first gen Sequoias.

then again..maybe not

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...owcaseOwnerId=601601&captureSearch=true&Log=0

 

[A.Wilson013]

In for the pictures promised in the first post.

I can match a woman to a vehicle, need to see the woman though.

 

[nyvram]

In for the pictures promised in the first post.

I can match a woman to a vehicle, need to see the woman though.

lol..ok hold on..

updated: ignore the ugly guy

 

[LittleCaesar]

Here is one per example, but is more than $10,000, but not by much.
2005 Toyota Sequoia Limited 103k


Trying to find a 4wd Sequoia will be harder.....

 

[Glock_19]

Do you need seating for 8? The Highlander seats 7 and would handle well while getting better MPGs.