As the post title say's I'm new to the forum, as for the advice I'm trying to decide what vehicle to get, to either turn into a wheeler, or to buy a somewhat pre-built wheeler. Either way I don't know what exactly to get. Samurai's have been catching my interest since I saw the wheeling rig one of the apprentice teacher's at my college has. Tracker's have recently been giving me interest just because I haven't seen very many of them around or at all for that matter. As well 4Runner's, pickups, and just Yota's in general have always looked good to me, and have proven to be excellent wheeler's from what I've seen out of my buddy's rigs. So yeah any insight or help you can give me would be very helpful, as well as first things to do to whatever vehicle I may get would be great as well. Thanks in advance.

Welcome to 4x4Wire.

Your question is often asked and has a lot of opinions.

First, you need to ask yourself what your intended purpose of a wheeling rig is.

Is it also a daily driver? Do you drive it to the trail head?

Do you have tools and skills to fabricate and/or maintain/modify a vehicle yourself?

Personally, if you are new to wheeling and your vehicle is also a daily driver, I would stick with Jeep of Toyota. They have excellent aftermarket support and many options.

Samurais are good vehicle. However, they are an older model making parts more difficult to obtain.

working on the rig yourself, or at least being actively involved in service and modifications, should make for a more reliable trail rig.
there are alot of aftermarket suppliers of samurai parts and accessories. good amount of web support also.
i think most anything can be modified to work. it mostly means money and time.
everybody will have a preference as to what make to start with.
don't go for looks. spend the money on function.

i kinda like suzuki.

Everyone has a favorite.

At the end of the day, consider how committed you are to the project.

Select your first with care. Look for rust, frame cracks, and dents.

I would opt for a stack vehicle rather than one that has a number of mods. I have seen some that look good on the surface but have funky mods added that were not engineered for safety.

Welcome to the wire.

Other questions to ask. How many people are you going to going to be bringing on your adventures? Are you going to sleep in the open, or in a tent?

Small rigs can be small if you have to pack for 2 or 3. With my 4 door Montero, I can bring enough stuff to last me weeks and still sleep inside if I wish. With the old Bronco, things can be a bit tight.

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