Advice on buying FJ Cruiser

[Chaitanya D]

2014 and further models of FJ come with a dual tank ( monstrous) - especially useful if you are a kind of person who wants to do full day drives in Abu Dhabi - Wagan/Bu Tais/ Um al osh or Liwa.

Else you will have to do with extra jerry cans for the fuel, not a big difference but you have to consider all aspects with the intention you are buying it for off road and on road.

[Rizwanm2]

30 minutes ago, Chaitanya D said:

2014 and further models of FJ come with a dual tank ( monstrous) - especially useful if you are a kind of person who wants to do full day drives in Abu Dhabi - Wagan/Bu Tais/ Um al osh or Liwa.

Else you will have to do with extra jerry cans for the fuel, not a big difference but you have to consider all aspects with the intention you are buying it for off road and on road.

i would definitely favour this dual tank option for off roading.. its peace of mind when you are offroading..  i heard that earlier models fuel tank is not big enough and range is very limited.  also something to look out for is prior 2010 or 2011 model had some issue in front suspension, which needs to be reinforced to take the off road abuse. 

on another note prado never had rear difflock. only center difflock,  also some prado models have 150L fuel tank. so another plus point for prado.  

if its me i will pic FJ over prado anyday. 😎

 

 

 

Edited November 3, 2021 by Rizwanm2

[Lawrence_Chehimi]

You can never go wrong with a FJC, make sure you buy the models 2011 onwards, as there was some changes made on the engine from that year, previous models had some design flows you can google it.

There are tons of mods that can be added to the FJC easily, from lights to suspension, diff locks etc..

The Prado looks  more like a family car for me..

If you have the budget buy a Y61 for offroading 😃

[Ankit Jain]

Thanks everyone for the great advice. While Prado, Y61, and even Xterra are great options, but for me they don't give a very offroad vehicle vibe/feel when I'm inside and feel like regular saloons, and that's why I never started my search with these cars. I was contemplating between FJC or Wrangler, but having spoken to my garage guy he recommends against Wrangler because of frequent and expensive maintenance issues that I will get with Jeep. Please let me know what you guys think about this as well? 

Another question can a rear diff lock be added as a mod in FJC and if so how much would it roughly cost? 

[Ilya]

When I was looking for a car, before I settled on the JL, I seriously thought about Montero. It's cheap (nearly twice comparing to Prado), capable, powerfull, and looks a lot more modern than Prado or FJ. Put there the offroad tires and you are the king!

[Frederic]

8 minutes ago, Ilya said:

When I was looking for a car, before I settled on the JL, I seriously thought about Montero. It's cheap (nearly twice comparing to Prado), capable, powerfull, and looks a lot more modern than Prado or FJ. Put there the offroad tires and you are the king!

Though i love the Montero Sport, its 3.0 Engine cannot be compared with the 4.0 Toyota engine. The reason it does well in the desert is because of the 8-speed transmission in my opinion and the fact that it's light and based on their L200 Pickup frame.

Power to Weight ratio is not bad, but definitely not like an FJ, Prado, JL, or Xterra.

[Ilya]

13 minutes ago, Frederic said:

Power to Weight ratio is not bad, but definitely not like an FJ, Prado, JL, or Xterra.

Absolutely agree, but much much cheaper, for the budget mentioned here it is possible to find I assume 3-y old cars or so. If price isn't an issue, the new, improved FJ is coming - which is Bronco! (I already spotted it in the showroom)

[JeromeFJ]

The FJ has this unique distinctive look that makes it so special. You may love it or find it ugly, but definitely it stands out. Personally I love it, and I'm very happy with the off-road capabilities. Actually, it was not the real purpose when I bought it, but this car (and @Carnity) literally dragged me into the desert! 

Even if @Frederic was handling a 2WD model for long time, it is definitely better to get a 4WD, if your purpose is off-roading. A-track is a nice feature, but the car is very capable without, and I think it can easily be added. On the road, the car is reasonably comfortable, smooth riding and correct sound isolation, but it is true that visibility to the back and to the side is a real issue. To be considered it your commuting involves crossing 5 lines highways on a regular basis. Consider also that the accessibility to the back seats is limited, with this famous half door. If you have often adult passengers at the back, it can be a limitation.

For me it is the perfect combination of a real off road car that you can also use every day. The dual fuel tank can take 160l so you can comfortably reach a drive in Abu Dhabi, do the drive and come back to Dubai without to worry where to refuel.

[Belal Aldaour]

As an FJ Crusier owner, couldn't be any happier. Confidence that it provides offroad is unbeatable. I also use it as daily commute to work and zero complains. Few downsides, the visibility is poor, and back seats are a bit tight for adults... maybe ok with kids! 

[Ahmed Wagdy]

i agree the FJ is a great off road car, but it has relatively small trunk capacity so if you are planning to go overlanding or few days camping with passengers in the back seat you will have a bit of a trouble to fit all what you need inside, especially if you are including the recovery gear, compressor ...etc. i had to install a roof rack which adds extra weight and compromises slightly the centre of gravity in addition to air noise while speeding on the road.

i think the price range is exaugurated , i got mine little more than a year ago 2012 model xtreme edition with 45K, and it was really in good condition, i doubt the prices had gone that high since then.

on that topic, a friend of mine wanted to by a wrangler, started looking at dubizzle but he found very limited options, of all the cars.

where do we search for used cars nowadays?