Trucks, SUV's and 4x4's.........what's your fishing vehicle?

[steveo27]

Nice! My old man had a mid 80s Bronco when I was little. I remember being like 5 years old goin on fishing trips in it.


My old lady has an '11 Wrangler Sahara Unlimited. V6, 6 speed, 4wd. We use that for fishing and hunting from time to time as well. Lifted a few inches and slightly larger tires. Its as comfortable as a Jeep can be. The gearing is horrible for the highways, constantly changing gears every time you go up hill. Theres been spots on the turnpike Ive had the thing in 3rd gear trying to go up a hill, its a dog. However, 100% capable on back roads and in the woods. Biggest complaint on that vehicle is the footwells. I cant drive the thing in work boots because when you step on the clutch, you also step on the brakes. Reminds me of driving a C4 Corvette. It gets roughly the same mileage as much truck.

 

[Stimey]

Kray,

Seriously consider the outback. That's what I have and I can pack more gear than my dad's Jeep. Never had a problem with snow or mud. I've gotten that car through mud holes that other SUVs got stuck in. Haven't towed the boat yet but putting the hitch on is a project for this winter. I think it will handle it.... will I want to put in at Hale Eddy with it... no, but I think will do good on most ramps.

 

[BrooksAndHooks]

You did ask what we drove... I daily a 2000 wrangler, lightly modified. Axle swap, lockers, 35s, a few other odds and ends (no rear seat, bedlined and stripped tub, high clearance bumpers and skids, some custom work no one probably cares about...)

Way more than you need for fishing, but I've also got to some pretty remote places, and snow, mud, etc don't stop me either.

Realistically, I would second the toyota tacoma or subby suggestions. A van or a suburban with the seats out of the back also accomplishes a lot, but you can sleep in the back of the first two vehicles if you really want. Really depends on what exactly you're looking for. You mentioned the different goals you have. Look at what you do most, whats most important, and then choose a vehicle that fits you, what you want, and that you like and think will be reliable. Honestly can't go wrong with these couple though.

 

[pro4mance]

2010 jeep wrangler 4 door rubicon

 

[Hook_Jaw]

Old 92 Jeep Wrangler gets me anywhere I wanna go and I don't have to go far for great fishing

 

[krayfish2]

Should I do this to the old gal? LOL.

Pat,
After purchasing a new vehicle or two, I don't see the benefit versus buying a low mile / used vehicle that's 1-4 years old. I would be looking at WAY under 100k... closer to 20-50k on the vehicle.

Stimey,
The example you gave "hale eddy ramp" is the exact type of thing I'd want to be able to do.


After driving the Element for 12+ years and being labeled as gay or hipster........ a Subaru might throw me right back in that category. LMAO.

Lots and lots of votes for a Taco. I will keep it until it explodes or rusts apart just like I'm doing with the Honda. I'm going to miss not having car payments.

 

[geebee]

what I have is a 2013 Honda CRV AWD. it takes a 9ft fly rod easily.

what I'd like is a VW Westfalia Campervan - no hotels or tents for one night trips.

you might need a V6 to tow your raft, so that probably a Jeep Cherokee or RAV 4,

 

[pcray1231]

After purchasing a new vehicle or two, I don't see the benefit versus buying a low mile / used vehicle that's 1-4 years old.

I got a pretty good surprise when I bought my 2014 Outback. Was thinking about low mile/used as well and shopped around some. Well, it was literally more expensive to get an

 

[steveo27]

I picked up my '11 Tacoma in 2013 with 44k on the clock for 28,000$ out the door. Kinda pricey, but they hold their value. KBB show its still worth 24000$ with 75k on the clock now. Ive gotten well over 4k$ worth of use/enjoyment out of it is the past 2 years.

I did forget to mention one thing with it. If you plan on hauling a lot of things in a truck bed, the Tacoma isnt the best option. The depth of the bed is more shallow than other trucks by a few inches. But save for that, Ive hauled upwards of 800lbs of scrap in it no problem

 

[Stimey]

If you want to put in at hale eddy you might want to try Grave Digger or Big Foot... LOL.

 

[RLeep2]

My favorite fish car was my 1988 Subaru DL wagon. The old 1.8 four with a manual transmission and power nothing, (crank windows, etc.) The back seat folded down almost exactly flush with the back of the front seat and created a space that was 71.5" on a diagonal which was perfect for me at 69.5" (on a vertical) to sleep in. The head gasket finally went out at 175K or so and I let it go.

These days, my fish car is a 2004 Focus SE wagon. It has been a surprisingly good car for a Ford and has almost 150K on it. Mile for mile, we have put about 2/3 of the repair bucks into it that we put in our 2004 Accord, which we traded yesterday on a new Forester.

The Forester will be our good, Sunday Go To Meeting car and won't be available for use as a fish car, especially the way I use fish cars. In the next month or so, I'll be getting something else for fishing. Something used in the 9-12K range or so. I'm undecided as to what. Need to do some research, etc. I prioritize reliability, cargo space, decent (but not necessarily exceptional) mileage and ease of carrying a Scanoe on the roof. I may end up with a Vibe (Matrix twin) or even an Xb. I dunno, gotta think on it and see what is available.

 

[Big-Bass]

Kray,

This should handle Hale Eddy decently...

http://image.fourwheeler.com/f/8949617/129_0608_02_z+1978_amc_pacer+front_passeger_side_view.jpg

 

[purplewoolly]

You've had good luck with the Hondas have you considered a Pilot? I have an '05 135k, 6cyl AWD upper teens on the mpg's, absolutely no issues with it. I don't tow so I can't help you there.

 

[bdfish]

2004 dodge dakota quad cab. magnum v6. 108000 miles and no issues to date. Had since 05-06. It was the family vehicle for years until the wife got a new cherokee. Plenty of room in the short bed for gear or in the back seat if weather is bad. Pulled utility trailers with canoes, bikes and kayaks back and forth to little pine for annual camping trips and back and forth the the Juniata River (local) for summer floats. Not good on gas but holdiing up well.

 

[bigslackwater]

I've had two Pathfinders. My 2000 got me to 220000 miles and it would've kept going. Very few problems over 13 years of ownership. I traded it for an '05 with 115k. This one is a great size. Can fit 10' rods from front to back. All seats fold flat. Tows a boat nicely. But I've had a few issues with it. Some misses in the engine I can't seem to fix, replaced a the radiator. Gets about 14mpg...but its a nice fishing vehicle!

 

[SteveG]

Krayfish, regarding the frame rust issue, you can always have a dealer run the VIN to see if it was already replaced under the recall. That issue was more apt to happen in the earlier of that generation of Tacoma (95-00), than the latter (01-04). It is a 15yr unlimited mileage warranty.

The reason that generation Tacoma holds such value was because they are bulletproof, and anyone who has one isn't likely to be selling it anytime soon. When I worked for Yota, they very rarely had issues. My favorite story was about a customer who rolled his down a mountain and broke the driveshaft. Without any hesitation, the district service rep told me to repair it under warranty hahaha.

The 3rd and 4th gen 4Runner were excellent vehicles too. The 4th gen, while still having a body on frame construction, rode very smoothly. The v6s had electronic stability that would bring you into 4wd when it sensed wheel slip. If you find one with rear ear diff lock, that's the cat's meow.

 

[pcray1231]

bd,

I had an 01 dodge Dakota quad cab v8 for a number of years. Loved the truck. Space was good and it hauled arse. But, it was a lemon. Rear diff failed twice in 2 years, broke an axle driving down the interstate, electrical demons that would shut my headlights off at random times. Fun times. That and 13-14 mpg made it a financial disaster. Cash for clunkered it with about 125k on the clock. Government gave me $4500 for it, when it had a trade in value of $3000, and needed $3000 in repairs (2nd rear diff replacement). Drove it to the dealer in a cloud of blue smoke making one hell of a racket, lol.

I vowed never to buy Dodge again.

 

[jrmyln]

Had an '07 Frontier with 80k and Nissan covered the trans, radiator, heater core, trans cooler, and steering cooler all under the same bulletin. They had it for a month due to the trans being on backorder.
Had a '93 Pathfinder 290k, 98 Pthfinder 174k, 03 QX4 135k, G35 125k all with no issues. Very disappointed with the Frontier and the tranny but Nissan did step up. I had the crew cab and the rear seats had no leg room for kids in car seats.

krayfish2 wrote:
Steve,

I had actually looked at an 08 4runner. You have not commented on the Frontier. I think it's the best looking truck, quite capable it Nissan fails to stand behind thier product from what I can gather. Toyota was much more 'stand up' when the frame issues arose. Nissan basically said 'sorry' with trans cooler problems.

Pat has me giving consideration to Outbacks again.

 

[dryflyguy]

FWIW -

I put a cap on my trucks and sleep back there.
My 2015 Tacoma has a bed that's 73.5 inches long. I'm exactly 6 feet tall, and can sleep fine in that bed - although there isn't much leeway for sure.
However, the top of the pickup box is kinda irregular. The part that sits behind the cab is 1" shorter than the sides - resulting in the cap bottom not sitting flush up front. To fill the gap, the cap comes with a 1" thick weather strip.
But I still had some water coming through during heavy rains.
So, I lifted the cap off and shot a bunch of silicon around that area where the gap is. And finally got it to seal tight

 

[Bosshog]

Add another vote for the Tacoma. 2010 Access Cab V6 6spd for me as well.