New to me shitbox Thread

I’m looking to spend about $4,000 on a used shitbox that’ll get me to work and back (will only have to drive it to work and back maybe 4-5 times a year) which is about a 700 mile round trip. I’ll also be using it as a daily commuter, going maybe 70-100 miles a week during my off months from September to early may. Would $4,000 get me a decent 4WD SUV to do this in? I was thinking about puck related or a RAV4.

Don't get a 02-05 Explorer, literally the worse vehicle Ford has made in modern history.

What would be a better option for $4k?

I drove the shit out of my salvaged 2002 mountaineer. Besides 2 transmission repairs, and fuel pump, nothing significant broke on it. Had it since 2009 with 80k miles til 180k miles

Two transmission repairs could be considered pretty darn significant

How much did it cost to repair?

>>Never left me stranded
>>only ever had to do small maintenance stuff
>>bulletproof drivetrain
>>no lowballers, I know what I got

Why do you need 4wd?
Why do you need a SUV?
Get something sensible

$1300 at a ghetto mechanic. he 2nd time around he did it for $800 cause it was a year after his warranty was up.

Absolutely, but buying a 4Runner for thousands more is not 100% invincible from major breakdowns. The 3.4L and 4.0L blown headgaskets and their transmissions slip going from 2nd to 3rd just like Explorers too.

I live in the mountains and routinely get 2.5 feet of snow, otherwise I’d just get a civic.

Just get a civic for 3k.

Four second gen Explorers.

What about a Subaru forester SG for 6k or under?

Fucking this. One of my favorite junkyard things is looking at mileage on these. This one was like 280k if i remember right. Body was actually pretty good

Honestly this.

I had a 98 and 00 5.0 AWD and wow it was SUPER capable in the snow.

I had good michelin M/S tires on it and was able to into snow filled ditches and right back onto the road to get around idiots in soccer mom vans that had wrecked

Pretty sure that if you got an AWD 2nd gen explorer it would also come with a rear LSD which just made it that much better.


I sold my 98 with 240k miles on it for $1700 and got a 2000 with 95k miles for $2200.

>5.0
>4R70W
>Mechanical AWD, 100% reliable.
>Rear LSD
>From the era that you can fix literally any problem in your backyard and parts are so common every parts store has anything you need.

The only real downside is the fact that its about the most efficient model you could get. Youd be doing well to get 17-18 MPG highway, I got 20-21 with torque monster headers. If you get on it in the city then 10-11 MPG is possible.

I've owned three of them now, two being 5.0's, good engines for sure.

This one has even made me money
>torque monster headers
Damn, those are hard to come by nowadays

1996-2006 Tahoe Yukon, suburban or pickup. These are reliable, parts are cheap and they are easy to work on. They are also cheap to buy. Gas mileage won't be great, but it's a trade off for reliability and an inexpensive vehicle.

civic with snow tires.

...

A ford second gen explorer?

I may also need to go on some unkept roads.

Guy that makes them actually made some more recently and is even taking orders on his website now. In the last week he posted on the explorer forums saying this.

Super comfy for a 700 mile ride

X2 did a 300 mile trip in mine about a week ago and it was so comfy. I have an 04 z71 tahoe. As long as you maintain it it wont let you down.

why? where do you have to be if roads are impassable?

Similar with my 97 Explorer. 4.0 V6 with 4WD but less work than yours.

From 80k to 170k, it needed front wheel bearings, pads n rotors, alternator (10min job on that thing), one O2 sensor, and finally at 170k the power steering pump went out.

If you can deal with the 12-15 mpg, it was a great car. You still see a lot of those things on the road despite being 20 years old,

Get a 90s Suburban.

I’m a wildland firefighter.

Fires in the snow?

No, fires when I’m not on a call. I live in the mountains and small fires pop up where I am, so I’m called in to assist the crew as a fireline medic.

I heard the transmissions go out on those, is that true? Thought about getting one next year but they are high miles in Iowa. What's a max amount of miles for a Tahoe if you were to purchase one?

Id say 150-170k

This. They routinely get up to 250k, but you have to take care of them.

How “new” of a 4Runner could someone get with $4,000?

bought a 98 buick regal gs with 71k for 4

What's the highest trim on these? Looking into this gen

R8 my new shitbox. 250,000 miles, tachometer sometimes goes the wrong way, and it reeks of mold. Still runs strong tho.

ask me how i know you're a nigger.

probably a 1892 model with 600k miles

I saw a 1992 on craigslist for $15,000. It had 210,000 miles on it, along with some mechanical issues. Some fucks got a lot of nerve.