Toyotas in the Woods

slowp said:

FORD BRONCOS? :censored: No way. I've driven one of those clunkers. For several years. A tin can on wheels that is prone to do 360s on ice. A white knuckle lemon....I'd rather chain up my 2 wheel drive Chevy....as you can see, I have strong ant-Bronco emotions.

I putted up and down a road in my first Subaru, that the Bronco had to be chained up to get down safely. I hated the Bronco. Siping the snow tires helped a little, but not much. I'd still go sliding sideways down one hill. I'd tell any passengers what might happen, but not to worry as there were tall snow berms on either side, no traffic and we'd slide gently to the bottom.
Nope, a two wheel drive works better than a Bronco of the 90s for me.

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OK...................I did mention other vehicles after the Bronco in my post. F150's, F250's, and such. You must have lapsed into a nasty Bronco flashback and blacked out.........Crikey...I didn't mean to bring back such tramatic memories...

tarzanstree said:

Excellent description of a yota Bob! (can't rep ya yet). I swore I would never own a "Rice Grinder" til I moved to Southeast Alaska and was replacing Brand new Toyo Tires and Diesel fuel for my 97 f350 crewcab powerstroke, like they were going out of style. My Dad talked me into buying a 84 toyota extended cab 4wd from him, and it was hands down the best fallers rig I had ever experienced. The shot rock roads up there are hell on tires, and truck bodies, and that little yota shined. Every time I would pass one of the other fallers in their "big trucks", to and from work, I would "smile and wave"

Here is my 85 Toyota, Tarzan tree rig that I trust to get me to tree jobs 75 mph down the highway, or to take to the mountains huntin, where I can chain up all four, pull er into low range, and climb a mountain, pushin snow with the bumper!

I had to add a leaf to the rear springs cuz of the weight that I haul in it.

Buy a yota (I am partial to the older ones) and thank us later

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Nice rig. My Southern Oregon arborist buddy swears by his 1983 Yota. The 1979-1985 Toyotas are great rigs. The later ones are still good......but I am partial to the solid front axle style that was discontinued for 1986 (except in Australia, India, and on the African continent....where they continued for years). I'm not a fan of the IFS setup for an off road vehicle, even though the '99 Ranger I had was surprisingly capable. I'd LOVE to be able to get a new example of the solid-axle diesel Toyotas that the Ausies and Africans enjoyed for years....

tarzanstree said:

Excellent description of a yota Bob! (can't rep ya yet). I swore I would never own a "Rice Grinder" til I moved to Southeast Alaska and was replacing Brand new Toyo Tires and Diesel fuel for my 97 f350 crewcab powerstroke, like they were going out of style. My Dad talked me into buying a 84 toyota extended cab 4wd from him, and it was hands down the best fallers rig I had ever experienced. The shot rock roads up there are hell on tires, and truck bodies, and that little yota shined. Every time I would pass one of the other fallers in their "big trucks", to and from work, I would "smile and wave"

Here is my 85 Toyota, Tarzan tree rig that I trust to get me to tree jobs 75 mph down the highway, or to take to the mountains huntin, where I can chain up all four, pull er into low range, and climb a mountain, pushin snow with the bumper!

I had to add a leaf to the rear springs cuz of the weight that I haul in it.

Buy a yota (I am partial to the older ones) and thank us later

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Very nice yota, Tarzan. That roller style bed is what I want to build for my 4Runner.

Blakesmaster said:

Very nice yota, Tarzan. That roller style bed is what I want to build for my 4Runner.

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I copied that off of a buddies manufactured one, and even used his welder to build it...it rules!

tarzanstree said:

I copied that off of a buddies manufactured one, and even used his welder to build it...it rules!

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Cool. Mine needs to be a toolbox style that locks because I often drive around topless but the concept is there. Late model yota's are really the best. I think slowp was asking about a newer stuff though. Maybe we can convince her.

Eccentric said:

OK...................I did mention other vehicles after the Bronco in my post. F150's, F250's, and such. You must have lapsed into a nasty Bronco flashback and blacked out.........Crikey...I didn't mean to bring back such tramatic memories...

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Traumatized forever when it comes to those heaps. Memories of chaining up the back tires with frozen fingers, then calling out on the CB, then listening, then heading slowly, down a steep grade hoping nobody was on the way up, hands are now sweaty, I'm telling my toes to relax (skiing trick) and soon pushing in the clutch and thinking "Let 'er buck" and freewheeling on down the grade. Freewheeling because it kept the back end in the back.

Traumatized after listening to the talk about a Patty Sandwich as I'm coming down another hill, there is a shovel walking down in front, and a loaded log truck on the way behind, and we are on "The Beaver Slide".

I think I have blocked out other Bronco memories. Oh, there's the story of alarmed looking passengers. We headed out on a sub zero day. After getting into the woods, one said (and these are higher ups) , "I'm sure you have a shovel and chains." And I got to reply, "Yes, that's the good news. The bad news is that the window won't roll down when it is this cold." There was a permanently installed screen (headache screen) between the backseat and the back area where the gear was kept.

That's enough. I have good Subaru memories. Some good Ford pickup memories and even some good Chevy Silverado memories in the making.

I was having a look to see what might be around the other day and came across this gem. Rare, low miles, asking too much even if it is rare, maybe so ugly you need to look at it through only one eye to see the beauty, but a special gem no doubt. In Washington:

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.j...ssion=&max_price=&cardist=2226&standard=false

hammerlogging said:

I was having a look to see what might be around the other day and came across this gem. Rare, low miles, asking too much even if it is rare, maybe so ugly you need to look at it through only one eye to see the beauty, but a special gem no doubt. In Washington:

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It shouts, "Yuppie Scum beware!". Is that extra cab room natural? Or was it added on?

This is at the edge of the ultra secret huckleberry patch. One of the few I can get to with only one scrape the bottom waterbar on the main road, and a little hike in. To get to this pond, you have to go through some thick brush and blowdowns.

371groundie said:

ive had good luck with rangers. im on my second. nothing wrong with the first one when i got rid of it, just wanted the extended cab and got a deal. i dont trust automatic transmissions. so ive always gotten the 5spd. kept up on general maintenance and theyve treated me well. i started with a ranger in college so it would fit in the parking spots on campus, took it to the woods as a forester, then a logger, now an arborist.

my first truck was a reg. cab with a cap. it was nice to lock the cap but with the regular cab everything was in the bed. my extra clothes were always cold in the winter, and smelled like saw gas. now i have the extended cab with a rack and toolbox. saws go in the box, ropes and gear go in the extd cab with the guns, fishing poles, etc. i can still haul another person and some wood in the back.

thats my two cents on little trucks, but i know two guys who have tacomas in the woods everyday and have had 0 problems.

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Another vote for 4x4 Rangers. Mine will go just about anywhere and came stock with 31" tall tires (245/75/16). The 3.0 V6 is a good way to go with the 5spd. I get 22mpg back and forth to work and still have enough torque to pull lots of wood around.

My '97 w/ the 6 cyl is awesome. But get good, big, high-flotation tires--just replaced 'em on mine last week and I am sold on wide, aggressive-tread design. We go trout fishing/camping, I pull a trailer loaded with firewood and the kitchen, and I have a camper shell to secure everything else. Getting around in the woods is great. It's 4WD, of course...

purdyite said:

My '97 w/ the 6 cyl is awesome. But get good, big, high-flotation tires--just replaced 'em on mine last week and I am sold on wide, aggressive-tread design. We go trout fishing/camping, I pull a trailer loaded with firewood and the kitchen, and I have a camper shell to secure everything else. Getting around in the woods is great. It's 4WD, of course...

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'yota or ranger?

purdyite said:

...But get good, big, high-flotation tires--just replaced 'em on mine last week and I am sold on wide, aggressive-tread design...

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'cept in the snow.

.

joecool85 said:

Another vote for 4x4 Rangers. Mine will go just about anywhere and came stock with 31" tall tires (245/75/16). The 3.0 V6 is a good way to go with the 5spd. I get 22mpg back and forth to work and still have enough torque to pull lots of wood around.

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Yep. That 3.0L V6 is the engine I had in my '99 Ranger 4WD. Had exactly the same experience with it that you related. Unfortunatley, the 3.0L was discontinued a year or two ago, so the only Ranger engine choices now are the 2.3L DOHC four (no relation to the older SOHC 2.3L four which was a decent engine) and the 4.0L V6. The 4.0L has great power but is somewhat of a gas hog. I have the 2.3L DOHC engine in my 2003 Mazda B2300 2WD (basicaly a Ranger with slightly different bodywork and badging). It's not a good pickup engine IME. The shortest gears you can get it are 3.73's. It is more of a 'sports car' engine, in that you have to wind the pee outa it and abuse the clutch to get it moving. It doesn't get along with the 3.73's, and would probably be much happier with 4.10's. Probably would get better MPG with 4.10's too...

It gets about 3-5 MPG better than my '99 Ranger 4WD with the 3.0L V6 did with bigger tires (but the same gearing, and on the same commute) at best. Doesn't pull hills well at all either. I'd MUCH rather have that 3.0L V6 than the DOHC four. Not happy with it at all. Probably will be getting a new Ranger sometime in the next year or so, and will be forced to go with the 4.0L as I WILL NOT get another 2.3L DOHC four. It has been a constant source of problems and irritation. It is actualy damn quick if you 'run it like you stole it', but that doesn't do much for longevity...

Toyota dropped their 3.0L midsize V6 too, and offers similar choices as the Ranger (2.5L four and 4.0L six). A couple of years ago, they also made the Tacoma into a 'mid size' pickup that's as big as the T100 they sold for a while. That's a shame, as a true Toyota mini truck (with the old 22R four) was a great rig. Shame on you Toyota.....:censored:

LarryTheCableGuy said:

'cept in the snow.

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or the mud

I'm a believer in the Pizza Cutter School of Off Road tires...

LarryTheCableGuy said:

'cept in the snow.

.

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2dogs said:

or the mud

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Or on ice...



Especialy with a lightweight rig like we're talking about here. Too little ground pressure on the tread. That's what makes rigs (like P's traumatic Bronco) slide down hills on the ice too. Uless you're running on sand or DEEP snow, then I'd go with more narrow tires. Has always worked great for me, both with lightweight rigs and the heavy bruisers.

If I had wide meats on my 1986 F250HD 4WD Diesel SC pickup, then it'd STILL be down in a ravine in the Lassen NF............and I'd probably be in a pine box. For about a decade, a number of good friends and I would get together in the Lassen NF, just bordering the Ishi Wildneress Area for a yearly 'hunting' trip. Started off as a pig hunting trip the first year (and one of the Lads got a pig), but it morphed into a 'howl at the moon', wheeling (Pelegrin Jeep Trail), shooting, and firewood cutting trip. Rained about every other year on average. Hotter than heck the rest of the time.

Anywho.....on one particularly rainy year, I took the big diesel instead of the Scout, as I intended to load up on windfall firewood (took about 1/2 cord of Oak out...crammed in with the camping gear and coolers). It was raining cats and dogs on the way in, and the volcanic soil there developes a layer of axle grease in short order when it rains. It gives MEGA traction within an hour of the rain stopping......but that didn't help me here. That 6700 pound or so rig (verified on a scale) and I skated around on every sidehill. One off-camber hillclimb (shortly before camp) in paticular saw me doing the four wheel shuffle towards a steep, deep ravine. Luckily, I was able to pour the coals on, and the narrow LT235/85R16 BFG AT's I was running dug down to dry ground and stopped me before I went for a ride. If I'd had wide meats I'd have been screwed...

Most of the guys I saw with run Tacomas. Good trucks, especially the older models with the 22-R four cylinder. They're a good choice for a forester or faller, long as you don't have to haul diesel - Sam

mtsamloggit said:

...... long as you don't have to haul diesel - Sam

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Sam, that's the beauty of running a small pickup. It cuts down on the "can-ya" requests.

You've probably worked for outfits that, since your day ends earlier than most, want you to stop in town and load up a few things to bring out in the morning. The siderod could leave a little early and do it but they never seem to...it cuts down on their beer drinking time. If you're like me you don't mind unless it starts getting out of hand

Like, "can ya stop in town and pick up a couple of barrels of hydraulic oil, three pallets of chokers, a bull line, some oil filters, a box of gloves, a coil of air line, 2 cases of anti freeze, and some snoose for the Catskinner that's camping out til the warrant on him expires?"

Nope.


With a Toyota, even as good as they are, sometimes you just have to draw the limit. I'd get the snoose for the Catskinner, though. No point making the man suffer.

Gologit said:

Sam, that's the beauty of running a small pickup. It cuts down on the "can-ya" requests.

You've probably worked for outfits that, since your day ends earlier than most, want you to stop in town and load up a few things to bring out in the morning. The siderod could leave a little early and do it but they never seem to...it cuts down on their beer drinking time. If you're like me you don't mind unless it starts getting out of hand

Like, "can ya stop in town and pick up a couple of barrels of hydraulic oil, three pallets of chokers, a bull line, some oil filters, a box of gloves, a coil of air line, 2 cases of anti freeze, and some snoose for the Catskinner that's camping out til the warrant on him expires?"

Nope.


With a Toyota, even as good as they are, sometimes you just have to draw the limit. I'd get the snoose for the Catskinner, though. No point making the man suffer.

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Lol, yep. Can't wait to get rid of my full size Dodge- the next one'll be a toyota. Aside from the work related errands, somebody always wants you and the big truck to help them move. Not exactly what I want to do on the weekend. Pretty hard to stuff a couch in a Toy! - Sam

hammerlogging said:

Agreed. Same. Except mine has 354,000 and still is fine, not pretty, but runs good same mileage as ever, runs 80 on the highway and on rutted skid roads to get to the falling spot, then back, every day. Turns around and doesn't get stuck. Keep an eye out for the models with locking differentials, a real bonus.

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Absolutly a bonus.

Pretty much my idea on the Yota. I fall timber, not drag blocks and rigging, feed cows with hay, or work on equipment and haul iron. Compact, easy to turn around, and remember: 3rd Gear Low Range= Unstoppable (My Toyota buddy Nick's old saying and it has merit).

Fondest memoir of a Toyota fest was on the Lower River RD Vancouver, WA wheeling and atv complex. It has since been gone for almost a decade, but it was a place that when the Columbia would lower due to the tide and upstream Bonneville water, a sea of fresh mud and mayhem would appear. There was a long road out there with a super-straight for dragracing as well. Seems like in 2000 Ice House had emearged as the new "Cheap Beer" around those parts with a blue can in almost every Toyota. The "New Look" Fords had just come out and we were starting to see a bunch of them get lifted and fitted with big treads. Make a long story short, one fall day I remember 4 or 5 Fords and a Dodge getting so burried that we had 5 Toyotas and 2 Jeeps pulling on them. One Ford was so buried that mud was all but a foot from windows. The guy crawled out his window and called for a D5 with line to pull everyone out. For the rest of the evening we spun loops around the stuck full sizes, drinking Ice House and telling a few guys how much a Toyota cost, who was selling one, ect. The one guy swore he was selling his Ford after he had it detailed. Stories like this aren't even common in the NW, it's just household knowledge what truck will not be beat on the trail.