Where to start?

[Vincent Garcia]

Watched the continental divide video and really enjoyed it. In that video the hosts are saying that you need a build vehicle!
Any recommendation for someone on a $30 000 budget?

 

[Red_Leaf_Overland]

That's a loaded question.
How comfortable do you feel the vehicle needs to be? how new? how quiet? How capable are you with working on it yourself or fixing something something if anything were to happen? Where do you plan on taking the vehicle? What parts are available for it? .... and so on.

There's really no right answer because it's entirely your preference. Most of the gear on the market is overkill for what most people need.
So that's the question. What do you NEED? Once you know what you need than everything else is comfortable that you will figure out and add over time. I have 1 vehicle that I use for getting further off grid than most, which I have built up over the last 8 or 9 years and I am still tweaking it for my personal needs or wants at the time. And a second vehicle that sees mainly highway or backroads but not much offroad so it has a hitch and some minor electrical goodies bit that's about it.
Also my family has grown over the years so I may bee looking to add something to my fleet with a few more doors but still be very offroad capable.
Basically it's the needs that will take over and build a vehicle. Look past the "wants" for a while.

 

[Billiebob]

Buy a Wrangler and just go.

There are many other choices too but NO, there is no need to build, modify the vehicle. Pure spin and advertizing $$$$ sponsorship to say so.

2 things happen when you do most of the popular mods, yer ego gets a boost as eveyone oohs and ahhs your "investment"
AND those mods to bigger parts create stress beyond what the factory engineers and designers engineered and designed and you end up breaking something you did not "upgrade". ...... so now you spend mire money to get back the reliability you lost with yer "upgrade".

I pick Wrangler because I've been driving Jeeps for 50 years. Theguys with 50 years experience in Land Cruisers will quite rightly say buy a Toyota.

Many great choices but understand MOST "UPGRADES" actually make your overlander less reliable.

ps, I've been on powerline trails in my Wrangler following things like Ford Tempos and 2WD Escapes. They do just fine.

 

[Billiebob]

On a $30K budget, find the best used vehicle you want for under $20K.
Get it inspected, if it needs brakes or ujoints or steering work get that done.
Expect to spend a grand every year keeping it in peak, reliable condition.
And get out there, go overlanding, maybe find a club to join with small egos.

 

[Vincent Garcia]

Thank you Billiebob,
Any recommendations of the vehicle?

 

[Vincent Garcia]

That's a loaded question.
How comfortable do you feel the vehicle needs to be? how new? how quiet? How capable are you with working on it yourself or fixing something something if anything were to happen? Where do you plan on taking the vehicle? What parts are available for it? .... and so on.

There's really no right answer because it's entirely your preference. Most of the gear on the market is overkill for what most people need.
So that's the question. What do you NEED? Once you know what you need than everything else is comfortable that you will figure out and add over time. I have 1 vehicle that I use for getting further off grid than most, which I have built up over the last 8 or 9 years and I am still tweaking it for my personal needs or wants at the time. And a second vehicle that sees mainly highway or backroads but not much offroad so it has a hitch and some minor electrical goodies bit that's about it.
Also my family has grown over the years so I may bee looking to add something to my fleet with a few more doors but still be very offroad capable.
Basically it's the needs that will take over and build a vehicle. Look past the "wants" for a while.

Great advice, I will follow your advices and keep it simple

 

[Red_Leaf_Overland]

Much like @Billiebob I am a wrangler guy. They have plenty of aftermarket. But you either love them or hate them. They are loud, they leak, and they usually need more maintenance because of the solid axles. They are a great platform but they aren't for every

 

[Seamoss]

I love jeeps. I've had several very capable XJs and a couple wranglers including a very sweet CJ5.

My 4Runner is more comfortable, drives infinitely better at highway speeds, has more cargo space, and is at least 75% as capable as my jeeps. As I'm older and wiser, my line selection makes up for that missing 25% for everything I'd choose to do at this point. It's my opinion that if you aren't trailering a toy rig on your way to crawl rocks, the benefits a wrangler provides don't come close to making up for the incredible list of "quality of life" shortcomings.

That being said, you sure can outfit a Jeep for a lot cheaper than a Toyota due to the size of community and the incredibly square lines. Then again, you just recommended not doing much as far as upgrades, so that becomes a moot point.

 

[PCO6]

Thank you Billiebob,
Any recommendations of the vehicle?

Any Jeep will do.

 

[Wellspring]

Want reliability? Any Toyota Pathfinder, 4 Runner or Tacoma will do, but the price to enter that used market game can be a bit high, but deals are still out there it one looks and gets lucky.

 

[Apoclapedia]

30 grand. Damn. Well. Ive never spent more that $1500-$3000 on a truck, then i spend about $6-7,000 on it to get it trail ready. I go out looking for a solid engine, tranny and transfer case. I find the truck. Then it’s usually $2500 on rubber. $1000 for a winch, $2500 for a lift kit. And the last bit on stuff like. Bearings, breaks, filters, fluids, ujoints, snow chains, tow ropes, snatch block, fuel and water cans and away i go. I graduated top of my class from YouTube University. Of the three rigs ive built and ran in the last 20 years i dont think ive spent more than $30,000. But ive spent that much on tools too. Cutting, torches, welders, grinders, lathe, milling machine, 20 ton bearing press, generators, and a wide assortment of hand tools. If you want to save money. Do your own wrenching. Yeah. $30,000 seems like alot for tools. But at $120/hour for shop time. $30,000 is only 30ish days of shop time. And to do the tires, the fluids, the winch install, bearings, Ujoints, lift kit and odds and ends thatll eat up at least a week. And you can make it back by wrenching on other peoples rigs at $50/hr. You spend a year of Sundays wrench on other people’s rigs and youve made most of that back.

 

[Seamoss]

not to mention that if you don't turn your own wrenches, when something inevitably breaks in the middle of nowhere, you're up schitt's creek trying to figure out what the leaky broken thing is.

 

[Apoclapedia]

not to mention that if you don't turn your own wrenches, when something inevitably breaks in the middle of nowhere, you're up schitt's creek trying to figure out what the leaky broken thing is.

Aint that the damn truth.

 

[MMc]

If you haven't been off-roading and overlanding just go. I drove fire roads and such for years in a sedan and camped/ backpacked/ rock climbed /surfed. You do not need a Jeep/Toyota/Bronco to get out and try camping and checking stuff out. With overlanding everything is a trade off. I drive a big full size truck kitted to fit my needs, I don't wheel it hard, (nothing over coffee table sized rocks or jeep tight trails) I don't like wrenching and replacing stuff on it after every trip. Driving 6 or 8 hours to see if I can do a trail isn't for me.

I'll drive 10 12 hours to get some place than post up for a day or 10 and play with my toys and see the place at a micro level. I don't like camping small anymore ether. The idea of spending 30k for something new is pretty ridicules to me. I am WAY over that price now, but I love it. How many times a year are you going to get out? Many here won't admit it but are going 3, 4 time per year, I think some just like the look. There are some that live on the road and have set themselves up for that. This isn't for everybody, does you mate like this stuff? There is a big learning curve with this activity I would start small and see if it's for you and yours.

 

[Seamoss]

If you haven't be off-roading and overlanding just go.

While I do agree with this philosophy in general, I've taken several people out over the years that "hated camping" because of trying, not knowing the basics, and having an absolutely miserable experience. The ease of my setup was enough to convince them to give it another go and a couple of them now go regularly as part of our crew.

There's some middle ground and I can see the logic in paying for a bit of creature comfort if you can afford it.

 

[M Rose]

Watched the continental divide video and really enjoyed it. In that video the hosts are saying that you need a build vehicle!
Any recommendation for someone on a $30 000 budget?

To be clear, the hosts were referring to certain sections of the CDT. My Stock height Bronco would be able to do 99% of the CDT. I’ve done sections of it in Colorado with a Jeep YJ on 31’s and open diffs.
@Kent R was saying he loved his 37” tires on the trail because it kept his Jeep from getting custom body modifications. Sliders helped too. When they were in the mud, selectable lockers and the winches came out to save the day. Are these absolutely needed… not if you have the experience driving, and/or a support vehicle or two with you.

So, you want to get into Overlanding… never been in the back country before, and don’t know where to start…. The CDT is not the trail to start on. Go hit up the “Rubicon”, or head out to Joshua Tree NP to start learning.

30k is a lot of money to invest in the hobby… I might have sunk that much in total over the past 30 years to include every rig I ever owned…. I have only bought one rig specifically for Overlanding… First my rig has to meet my street requirements, secondly is off-road capabilities. After I purchase a vehicle I drive it unmodified for about one year before I do any updates looking for actual week points that need to be addressed. I’ve only ever needed a lift for myJeeps (I’ve owned over 2 dozen in various body styles and packages) and @KRose 4Runner. I’m going to lift my 89 Bronco, but only because it’s a dedicated trail rig that sees 90% dirt and 10%pavement, and I don’t want to see the body get any custom modifications from rocks or stumps… it’s been fine for the past two years but MOAB is coming up in April and I have never been.

Lastly we have a Northwest Conference Call tonight at 7:00 pm Pacific where we will be discussing Overland Setups (geared towards new adventures) Inland Northwest Monthly Conferance Call Nov 21, 2021 - Overland Bound

 

[Kent R]

Watched the continental divide video and really enjoyed it. In that video the hosts are saying that you need a build vehicle!
Any recommendation for someone on a $30 000 budget?

Interesting conversation,
As for my statement that you need a built rig for the CDT, the question really is how built. To make it 2500 miles on that trail you would need a mild lift and good AT tires and spare fuel. Any more would just make it easier on you.

Ive spent 50 years off-roading and gone from stock vehicles to the most aggressive builds, and now back down a bit to a vehicle that can handle what I do. This is the key, build to what conditions you think you will encounter, this might be bone stock or something that is way over the top. I live in the Sierra Nevada foothills of CA. the rigs I build are done with hard trails in mind like the Rubicon or Fordice.

On the video I mentioned that Bob and I were glad we had 37" tires the day we did the video, we where in the desert east of Mono lake encountering washouts from hell. The Gladiators being a little longer than other rigs needed the 37" tires helped with the break over angle.

So if you are new to this sport get a stock vehicle, it will probably be in better condition than a built one. Go out and explore, the rig will tell you what it needs or doesn't.

Adventure is necessary so just get started.

Message me anytime with questions, I don't have all the answers but I usually know where to find them.
@Kent R or email Kent@OverlandBound.com

 

[tjZ06]

There are million and one answers to this question, and the only person that knows which is right for you, is you. You could buy a $5k rig and throw $25k at it. You could buy a $30k rig and not throw a dime at it. Or anywhere in between.

A lot of us will have opinions, and a lot of that will based one what we know and like. I'm no different, I tend to always answer this question with "get a WJ..." but I know they have their drawbacks too (and have been exploring different platforms lately because of that).

First, it's important to know what matters to you:

• What type of trails will you do (are we talking just groomed fire roads, or the Rubicon, or somewhere inbetween)?
• How big is your family/camping crew that needs to ride with you (along with all of their gear)?
• Will your rig be your daily driver too?
  • If so, how far is your daily drive, how much do you care about MPG, and do you have other limitations like a small parking spot at home/work, low-entry garage at home/work, etc?
• How do want to camp, do you want to sleep IN your rig, ON your rig (Roof Top Tent) or next to your rig (ground tent)?

All of these things matter in what might be best for you. For $30k chances are a nice JK Unlimited is the best all-around vehicle. If you get a Rubicon it'll be more capable than *most* Overlanders need, but even non-Rubicon models will do more than typical Overlanding calls for. You can sleep in it unless you're very tall, or of course on it with a RTT. The aftermarket for them is beyond-huge. But a Wrangler isn't for everyone, if you have a long daily road commute perhaps it wouldn't be ideal. Or maybe you just want something a bit different or more unique.

If you can get a 4Runner with the off-road bits (particularly the rear locker) for $30k these days you also can't go wrong. Reliable, very capable, a good medium size vehicle and again a huge aftermarket. I'm not sure how far back you need to go age-wise to get in the $30k range, and what the right trim-level/packages are for those years but I'm sure the Toyota folks around here will know. Sure, at the limits a 4Runner is not as capable as a Rubicon, but most won't push to those limits anyway.

Outside of those two there are a ton of different ways to go, depending on how you answer the questions above. Maybe something more like a cross-over or small SUV if you live in a small apartment building or have other space concerns. Maybe even a hybrid CUV of some sort if you have a long commute. If you have a bigger family, maybe you need something more like a Suburban or Excursion. Or maybe you need a pickup truck around the house, and want it to double as your Overlander too so a full size truck might make more sense. Etc. Etc. Etc.

-TJ

 

[tjZ06]

BTW, where's the video?

-TJ

 

[M Rose]

BTW, where's the video?

-TJ