Best Vehicle for Overlanding

What vehicle is best to live in if you want to hit the road and can’t afford a dream van? Vans are great for a lot of reasons, but they’re unreasonably inflated right now.

This is an impossible question to answer objectively, especially since a spectrum of opinions exists and everyone has a different life situation.

What is my take?
Overlanding is vehicle supported adventure away from everyday life.

With this broad definition, it could be rock crawling or venturing along backroads for an extended fishing trip. Honestly, I lean toward the fishing trips, forest road exploration, and getting off the grid to avoid crowded campsites— rock crawling becomes an essential part of it, the farther from tarmac you go, but I do consistently work in areas where 4x4/AWD is typically necessary.

Let’s get to it…

I have owned and extensively explored the USA in:

• 1998 Jeep Cherokee XJ (I6, 4x4)
• 2004 Toyota Tacoma Xtracab(2.7, 4cyl,4x4)
• 2001 Chevy Express Van (5.7L V8, RWD)
• 2012 Subaru Outback (2.5i, 4cyl, AWD) *current vehicle*

Here’s a quick personal opinion about each:

1998 Jeep Cherokee XJ

My favorite vehicle that exists. That said, it can be a massive headache!

I owned it outright but consistently spent $150+ per month in maintenance, from day 1, for the 8 years I owned it.

The XJ could go everywhere I wanted it to, I checked off many overlanding must-dos (Black Bear Pass, Mojave Road, Alabama Hills, and so much more) in stock form with open differentials and just shy of 30" tires. The trusty and cheap Goodyear Wrangler Radials were the only tires I ever put on the XJ and they were always reliable on long trips, never once causing an issue.

I’m 5'10" and slept in the back of the Jeep comfortably with enough space for gear, food, and my dog! I loved it.

This was in the pre-Overland-marketing-explosion world when now-popular trails and backroads were quiet and being nomadic was not yet monetized. Oh, what a time!

I was never once left stranded off-road or while living on the road, but if I let the Jeep catch the scent of my hometown O’Reillys or Autozone, something would go wrong.

2004 Toyota Tacoma

I’ve never been a truck guy but this Tacoma was amazing. I could go most places the Jeep could, but it still never felt like the XJ — mostly because of the IFS, I think. Although it was an arguably more comfortable setup, I got stuck more with the truck than the Jeep.

It was as reliable and trustworthy as anything could be! I never had a mechanical issue, was religious about changing fluids and this thing would just go. It was comfortable enough with the small backseat for gear and the 6' bed made an awesome mobile living situation with a full-size mattress.

I did not like the separation from the cab to the bed, because I loved parking and literally crawling into bed. Crawling into bed with the Jeep was nice in cold weather, rain, or in public places! With the Taco, I could barely squeeze through the tiny window, so often had to walk around and crawl in. This was extremely obvious in parking lots and utterly inconvenient in bad weather. Also, I could not turn the heater on for a bit and warm up the sleeping space. The topper-covered bed was ambient temperature all the time, which made winter travel hardly shy of dangerous.

Long story short, there wasn’t anything wrong with the Taco but that convenience is something that grew more important to my travels every time I took a trip.

• Something to mention is that my XJ did not have any tint, whatsoever. The Tacoma had a very dark tint and the topper was nearly blacked out! Parking in similar places, the exact same places multiple years in a row in a handful of cases, I had my window knocked on ONCE in the XJ and countless times while sleeping in the back of the Taco. … Rule changes, the increase in van-lifer visibility, and overlanding-minded travelers, etc, are likely factors. Although, it was immediately apparent how less-happy people were about me sleeping in the Taco. Maybe the XJ made me look a little more broke so people let me slide, I’ll never know.

My other dislike is IFS. I realize people do really crazy stuff with IFS, especially compared to how careful I am, but I honestly love how solid axle vehicles drive. Everything about a solid axle, especially off-road, just feels better. There are still small parts and articulating weak points, but a solid axle provides a level of structural confidence that I don’t have when it comes to the countless smaller pieces involved with IFS.

2001 Chevy Express Van

This was a rear-wheel drive BOAT of a vehicle but the extra space was awesome. I had a twin-size mattress and multiple large lockable boxes for storage and seating, and the windows were blacked out.

Aside from being a big blue bus-length van that got 12 miles per gallon (downhill with a tailwind), it was a comfortable vehicle for traveling. It was awkward to park, I couldn’t stand up in the back, and remote campsites were always a risk of getting stuck. This would spin out and get stuck in flat campsites with the smallest amount of moisture— it was truly annoying.

I LOVE the van life living arrangement, although I have come to prioritize AWD/4x4 over living space, so I can enjoy more nature all year round!

2012 Subaru Outback

Yes! (…kind of)

Sleeping in it feels like the XJ, creature comforts are newer than the Taco with heated seats and Bluetooth, and my gas mileage is reasonable.

The best way to describe my feelings about the Outback is that I have a strong peace of mind living in it for extended periods of time, it’s comfortable, and I have every reason to be thrilled about it — until a really rough road comes along.

The AWD system continues to surprise me, stock ground clearance is sufficient most of the time, it’s a wonderful daily driver, and doesn’t really suck at all between home and the obstacles on a trail. It’s a great all-rounder and checks the box for about 99% of desires.

My qualms with the Outback are ground clearance when a trail gets rough, the AWD system is wonderful but it just isn’t a proper 4wd arrangement, and it’s a car-based wagon that immediately feels like a boat when you leave the highway because the awful approach and departure angles make me laugh just a little bit.

It’s modern and based on relatively newer technology, instead of work-based machinery. I REALLY do miss having solid axles, and now I don’t even have one in the rear.

I do have a lot of confidence in getting to most places. There are a few key spots I love in the United States that the XJ easily brought me to but the Outback most likely won’t unless I modify it. All things considered, I did not modify my XJ or Tacoma. Both had open differentials but they were just ready to go!

Conclusion

XJ was my favorite, Taco is probably the best of all the worlds if you can always sleep in the woods and avoid the colder nights in winter, Outback makes the most sense for me all around, or if you live anywhere suburban. The van I had was fine but my future van requirement must include 4x4 or standing room, if not both.

What’s next? Well, I’m going to drive the Outback until it blows up! But if something happens to it or I am suddenly loaded with more money than I know what to do with — my honest ideal course of action would be to get Jeep Wrangler JKU, especially newer than 2012. A 4Runner would be incredible and they are very capable, especially with the modifications available, but the JKU comes ready to go and checks all my boxes, aside from the gas mileage I am now enjoying with the Outback.