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Editor’s Note: We love scouring the internet for reasons to spend money we don’t have on cars we daydream about owning, and these are our picks this week. All prices listed are bid amounts at the time of publishing.
When it comes to off-roading and overlanding, it’s easy to fall into the trap of over-romanticizing old Land Rover Defenders, Ford Broncos and G-Wagens. But in reality, trucks like early Defenders are horrible to live with. The idea of a bare-minimum interior is nice at first, but after you try to have a conversation with your buddy riding shotgun for the first time but can’t hear him over the transmission whine and old-school engine and keep belting your elbow on the naked metal door, it quickly loses its appeal. Oh, and that’s before it starts leaking oil on to the hot manifold, sending fumes into the cabin, causing your eyes to constantly tear up. There’s a reason all the old Defenders you see online are refurbished, rebuilt or completely rest-modded — just sayin’.
If you’re really looking to get into the overland or off-road lifestyle, an already modified, affordable, slightly banged up Toyota Tacoma is what you want. There’s nothing on it so fragile or expensive to fix that you’ll constantly worry about scratches — if something does break, modern parts are cheap and easy to find. A used truck like this 2002 Toyota Tacoma TRD is the pragmatic man’s overland rig.
What We Like: This Tacoma has been banged up over its lifetime and seen its fair share of miles, but that just proves how tough these trucks are. At least the truck has been looked after maintenance-wise, having recently received new belts, brake rotors, filters and axle shafts. As far as modification and upgrades go, it has all the basics you’d want for an simple off-roader, like a three-inch suspension lift, transmission coolers, a bed-liner, rear rack and all-terrain tires. This Taco sure won’t win any Concours awards anytime soon, but it’s most certainly ready to play in the dirt as soon as you are.
