Vehicle for weekender use

Can be expensive to repair, especial the imported gray market ones (turbo diesels in that era).

Have a look at Patrol GQ's or Toyota 80 series.

Regards Richard

All Forerunners/Surfs have been IFS since 1986, and the SR5 Hiluxes about the same time. Lower spec Hiluxes have solid front ends until about 1996.

They have a common problem with overheating, generally its the heads that go. They are as slow as the Hilux and aren't as economical as you would expect. Nice comfy 4x4 and pretty capable too.

I had an earlier Hilux which, although uncomfortable, was a fantastic truck and took a lot of abuse and kept going. It even survived a 3.5L Rover V8 conversion with standard running gear! If I needed a cheap old 4x4, they would be on top of the list.

Had one, Aftermarket turbo. Not bad, but agree with the comment on them being expensive to maintain. Things just kept breaking. Replaced it with a 60 series Landcruiser. 1985. Almost as frugal on diesel and much lower overall running costs because everything is heavier built. If you aren't going to work it hard off road, your 4runner experience might be better than mine.
The electric back window is a bummer. You have to lower the window right down to drop the tailgate. If (no, when) the electric motor jams up, or dust clogs up the siderunners) you are stuck with the window either up or down. If up, you can't get into the back. Real problem if you have a cargo barrier and all your gear is locked in the back. Seen a couple of 4runners where the back window had to be smashed to get access. We learnt to keep the siderunners as clean as possible and lightly lubricated to take the strain off the motor.

I have a 92 DX 4Runner with a 2.8D no turbo. Yes its a bit of a slug, but an extremely reliable slug. You do notice the lack of power when buried deep in the rear in sand but it still copes OK. On a 15 day trip from Adelaide to Fraser Island & back last year we averaged 11.2 l/100km. Not bad since 9 of those days were 100% off road in sand. Car did not miss a beat, did not run hot, did not use oil, though my mate's late model 40K+ 4WD had a couple of minor hiccups.

The rear window is an easy fix and you can actually open the tailgate quite easy. It's not the motor so much that packs up but the window/wiper control relay system. I had an autoelec rewire mine because it wouldn't open with the key when I got it. New lock and $20 bucks later it works a treat. Like someone else said, keep the glass track clean and lubticated with silicon spray. The Surf has a habit of overheating but I believe the solution is a bigger radiator and a smaller fan pulley (so I've been told). Gen 2 4Runner has IRS.

Biggest negative is the small cargo area but if a well designed storage unit is installed you can fit lots of gear in.

But like all cars there are crappy ones.

I have a 92 DX 4Runner with a 2.8D no turbo. Yes its a bit of a slug, but an extremely reliable slug. You do notice the lack of power when buried deep in the rear in sand but it still copes OK. On a 15 day trip from Adelaide to Fraser Island & back last year we averaged 11.2 l/100km. Not bad since 9 of those days were 100% off road in sand. Car did not miss a beat, did not run hot, did not use oil, though my mate's late model 40K+ 4WD had a couple of minor hiccups.

The rear window is an easy fix and you can actually open the tailgate quite easy. It's not the motor so much that packs up but the window/wiper control relay system. I had an autoelec rewire mine because it wouldn't open with the key when I got it. New lock and $20 bucks later it works a treat. Like someone else said, keep the glass track clean and lubticated with silicon spray. The Surf has a habit of overheating but I believe the solution is a bigger radiator and a smaller fan pulley (so I've been told). Gen 2 4Runner has IRS.

Biggest negative is the small cargo area but if a well designed storage unit is installed you can fit lots of gear in.

But like all cars there are crappy ones.

I would recommemd the fourrunner in 2.8 diesel or 2.4 (22r) petrol. both are very long lasting motors if serviced. The 2.4 surfs are more trouble
I loved my 22r runner, only sold it because it lacked legs when towing. The new owner is very happy with it as well.
I had the rear window problem like everyone else and replaced the radiator in 100000ks.
Cheers Pete

Thanks for the input everyone.

Louie............I get the feeling you are trying to tell me that your model was / is twice as good as the rest.