What Rig to Get?

  • HTML tutorial

Overland _RD

Rank I

Contributor III

154
Dominican Republic
First Name
Elvis
Last Name
castillo
So I'm debating on which of these two Pajeros below to choose from, they both have a winch and snorkel but the Gen2 has a Toyota 3.4 5VZ FE engine from the 4Runner, lift kit and roof rack, I like the way the Gen3 looks and drives.

Can anyone tell me the Pros and Cons for these vehicles, maybe a fresh set of eyes will help me choose better. Thanks in advanced.


99 Montero.jpg2002 Montero.jpg
 

Pathfinder I

1,212
Canada
First Name
Craig
Last Name
PereferNotToSay
Hard to say without more info on the two rigs, and I'm not familiar enough with the platform to know the specific pros and cons. However, the Gen 2 one has me looking with a raised eyebrow. The mods look a bit too far from stock, which makes me wonder what was that vehicle used for? I am also curious as to why it has a Toyota engine. If that's just what they come with, then fine, but if it's a swap -- what happened to the old engine? If the swap was because of a serious deficiency, did that deficiency impact the rest of the rig? If it was because of mileage, does that mean the rest of the rig is very high mileage too? And if the swap was not because of a deficiency but because of a hobbyist, do you trust that the work was done properly?

I tend to think that vehicles that come already heavily modded are looked at with a suspicious eye. My reasoning is as follows: I know how I use my vehicle when I am overlanding. I beat the crap out of it. It's well loved and cared for, and I know I take good care of it mechanically, but I also know it's had a hard life. The classic saying of "Rode Hard and Put Away Wet" applies -- my rigs are never "put away wet", but they are still very much "rode hard", and that to me means there is more wear and tear on it. It also means I modified it to make the "rode hard" a little less difficult, and those mods are the minimum necessary to be able to do what I want to do with it. So, when I see similar vehicles that are lifted 6+ inches with spacers or wider axles too, I wonder "Geeze...if My rig is modified this way, and can do all that stuff, what the heck is THAT guy doing with his monster truck that makes those mods a good idea?"

A vehicle with a lift kit or lots of other aftermarket stuff is likely going to be in one of two categories:

1) They are a mall crawler going for looks, in which case the odds are good that the accessories they added are not super high quality and are more for "show" than for "go", so you'll have to spend a bit to upgrade them. Some of these accessories may be poorly designed, and put a great deal of stress and wear on things like U-Joints, so be cautious.

2) It's a vehicle that has been upgraded with good components because that's what it needs to be useful to it's owner - - which means lots of potentially tough miles on the vehicle.

The exception to this of course is buying a modified vehicle from a reputable builder or 4x4 shop. (AEV, Autograph Overland, etc.)

Based on the limited information you have, if I had to pick one, I'd pick the one on the right, and again that's just based on the photos. The one on the left appears to have a very wide front axle, and a much more narrow rear axle, which will make driving in some situations very annoying as the rig won't handle very well. The one on the right looks like it just has bigger tires fitted.
 

MidOH

Rank IV

Off-Road Ranger I

1,298
Mid Ohio
First Name
John
Last Name
Clark
Ham/GMRS Callsign
YourHighness
Is there anything in the DR that even requires a lift?
 

Overland _RD

Rank I

Contributor III

154
Dominican Republic
First Name
Elvis
Last Name
castillo
Hard to say without more info on the two rigs, and I'm not familiar enough with the platform to know the specific pros and cons. However, the Gen 2 one has me looking with a raised eyebrow. The mods look a bit too far from stock, which makes me wonder what was that vehicle used for? I am also curious as to why it has a Toyota engine. If that's just what they come with, then fine, but if it's a swap -- what happened to the old engine? If the swap was because of a serious deficiency, did that deficiency impact the rest of the rig? If it was because of mileage, does that mean the rest of the rig is very high mileage too? And if the swap was not because of a deficiency but because of a hobbyist, do you trust that the work was done properly?

I tend to think that vehicles that come already heavily modded are looked at with a suspicious eye. My reasoning is as follows: I know how I use my vehicle when I am overlanding. I beat the crap out of it. It's well loved and cared for, and I know I take good care of it mechanically, but I also know it's had a hard life. The classic saying of "Rode Hard and Put Away Wet" applies -- my rigs are never "put away wet", but they are still very much "rode hard", and that to me means there is more wear and tear on it. It also means I modified it to make the "rode hard" a little less difficult, and those mods are the minimum necessary to be able to do what I want to do with it. So, when I see similar vehicles that are lifted 6+ inches with spacers or wider axles too, I wonder "Geeze...if My rig is modified this way, and can do all that stuff, what the heck is THAT guy doing with his monster truck that makes those mods a good idea?"

A vehicle with a lift kit or lots of other aftermarket stuff is likely going to be in one of two categories:

1) They are a mall crawler going for looks, in which case the odds are good that the accessories they added are not super high quality and are more for "show" than for "go", so you'll have to spend a bit to upgrade them. Some of these accessories may be poorly designed, and put a great deal of stress and wear on things like U-Joints, so be cautious.

2) It's a vehicle that has been upgraded with good components because that's what it needs to be useful to it's owner - - which means lots of potentially tough miles on the vehicle.

The exception to this of course is buying a modified vehicle from a reputable builder or 4x4 shop. (AEV, Autograph Overland, etc.)

Based on the limited information you have, if I had to pick one, I'd pick the one on the right, and again that's just based on the photos. The one on the left appears to have a very wide front axle, and a much more narrow rear axle, which will make driving in some situations very annoying as the rig won't handle very well. The one on the right looks like it just has bigger tires fitted.
Thanks for the reply, I appreciate all your input.