Whats a good beach car

Amen to that, have a 2012 explorer. Great for long trips to the beach too.

 

The awd is great in the snow and I've seen them on the beach in Maryland and they do fine here. The sand on this beach is super soft but if you stay in the ruts they make it through. The fj on the other hand is a monster.

 

I've driven an awd CRV over sand a few times onto the north end of Carolina Beach. Yeah, it's pretty nerve-wracking, but just air down and keep your momentum up and you'll be fine. And definitely bring along a shovel and a piece of wood just in vase.

 

Also a vase...bring a vase too.

 

4runner great on the beach and the back window goes down to stick your board out the back. Had a 97 accord wagon not 4wd but great car for surf, got 30 mpgs and reliable.

 

I see these all wheel drive GM Safari and Chevy Astro vans that are pretty interesting. They are mid 90's to mid 2000's or so and sport a 4 or so liter V6 so not horrendous mileage. Seen them on the beaches on OBX and Florida and they seem to go well in sand (providing you let all the air out of the tires). They are pretty easy to find and really cheap, like I see some 100,000 mile rigs for under $2000 and clean. Some sport tow packages and have pretty deck out interiors good for a decent size surf family. Drivetrain is based on the S10 pickup so they made a billion of 'em and then some. Nothing beats a van for a surf machine, hands down. And it's 'merican.

 

Vintage:
http://picrickphotos.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/woodies-at-the-beach-002.jpg

 

I always liked the size and layout of those vans. They were bigger, taller, and more spacious than a minivan but smaller than a full-size. Consumer Reports didn't rate them very well, but I still liked and wanted to get a used one back in 2000. My wife didn't, so we ended up with a used Toyota Sienna minivan.
But the Toyota was a reliable workhorse. Beat the heck out of it. The only issues were ongoing problems with driver's door electric window mechanism and the useless tire pressure indicator on the dash. Also the plastic wheel covers tended to disappear or get stolen for some reason. All our kids learned to drive on it. Minivans aren't "cool" but are very practical and good transport getting to the beach, carrying gear, and for changing in. Don't know about their on-sand capabilities.

 

In Central America they have these awesome little vans, Daewoo I think. Got a picture of my friend standing in front of one with his arms spread and I swear his arms were at least half the length of the van. Friggin loved those things.

 

TOY FJ

Never gets stuck, sand or snow.

 

Funny you say that...traded hard loaded 2010F250fx4 for the Subie. I don't race my 05 Mustang anymore, so it doesn't break and need a trailer ; )
Always had a soft spot for Subaru. I researched downsize vehicles, reading up on Toyota Tacomas on Toyota forum.
I was checking on performance, someone had a long writeup on installing a TRD supercharger. The last sentence was, "Or, you could just get a Subaru ForesterXT".
2 weeks later, traded for XT...Cobb acessport 93 octane tune.
This Lil booger can go anywhere, FAST!! MADE for Louisiana mud/sand. Not all awd is the same
XT way more fun than they should be!!!
( apologizing in advance for novel... too much coffeeeee

 

I have had the STI in sand many times, and it never has any issues. That said, it is very low to the ground and it wouldn't take much to bottom out.

 

I would rock an FJ anytime. It would have to be my dd, as I would still want a toy for racing and whatnot.

I am at Cobb stage 1 as well. BIG difference.

 

my last tundra - '04 - went 170K miles, broke twice (nothing serious), was chewed/bit/hurled on/kicked/scratched etc. by young children…hit a 10 pt buck (outcome much worse for him than me..) and
i still got 10k trade-in…...

 

Glad to see some Ford Tough owners here. Stars and Stripes.

Those Astro vans went AWD? My family had one when I was growing up but it was late 80s or early 90s. I remember it being very basic and rectangular on the inside. Perfect to gut out and reno. And yes, I bet cheap parts for those are growing on trees. I'm not one for living in a van down by the river mouth, but if that's your thing that van's a good bet.

Isn't the best surf wagon Bill Cosby's Nephew's Xterra? What happened to that brah anyway? Tasket was finally getting some clean swell these last couple days. Last thing we heard, he was parked on that grassy knoll in the Xterra...

 

Jeep, but you better know how to turn a wrench.

 

My initial response would be Land Cruiser (I'm biased) and 2nd an FJ, but you're looking for better gas mileage.

Get an older 4-Runner with the 4 cylinder 22re (or 22r if you go pre 1988--these also have the solid front axle = awesome) engine and a 5 speed.

Don't get an AWD unless it has an option to lock the transfer case... otherwise you will always be driving with power at 1 wheel in the front and 1 in the back--no good for the deep sand we have in the Carolinas.

 

Older 4-runners go for decades.

 

I must add: No matter what you get, purchase a factory service manual and you'll be set for minor and somewhat major repairs. Don't buy a Haynes or Chilton's...