Jeep as a hunting rig?

[GetReal]

I'm very used to the reliability of the toyota tacoma , but it's kind of big these days for a hunting truck , so i'm thinking of getting a jeep.... 2020+ for off road hunting vehicle or shooting at more remote thousand yard ranges.

The hard top seems to have enough room for rifles and gear for at least me if not one more person.

Any advice, as far as reliability or suitability for an off-road hunting/shooting vehicle ?

If you have one , how have you equipped it for those purposes ?


Edit to add:

I am deeply conflicted. My wife has a nice CR-V for trips and around town. This would be more a trails, shooting range, 1 mile drive to work vehicle.

 

[JFrank]

Those are very nice, Daughter had one.

I actually prefer the older Cherokee with a 4.0 straight six.
Engines are bullet proof compared to the new V6 ( 3.8 iirc )
Smaller overall but still have four doors and cargo area.

 

[Treerat-sniper]

I had a new 19 Wrangler sport for about 3 years. It got around fine for an IA deer rig, no complaints about the reliability or anything (V6/6-spd) I just got tired of the lack of space and constantly replacing windshields at $500 a crack!
I ended up trading it in on my current truck (Silverado 1500). If I had to do it again, I would have bought the Gladiator just for the pick-up bed. I put better tires on mine along with a HD bumper (brush guard and accessory LEDs...the brand escapes me). I took the rear seat out of mine to add a little useable space, but it still wasn't enough for my purposes. Once, I had to put a couple of coyotes on a tarp in the back & even with the windows down, it was damn near unbearable!
Perhaps a 4-door would have fared better. If I had to do it again, I would have probably bought the Gladiator just for the pick-up bed. They may not have been available when I got mine.

 

[dthomas]

I'm a mechanic and wouldn't recommend a jeep to anyone. What I've seen They are very problematic. People love them even with their problems though.

 

[steve210]

I'm a mechanic and wouldn't recommend a jeep to anyone. What I've seen They are very problematic. People love them even with their problems though.

+1 on this, I'm Mechanic also. Jeeps seem to have more than their share of issues!

 

[J.d. Popkes]

How’s that smaller than a Tacoma??

You will miss the reliability, opposite ends of the spectrum.

 

[TheOtherZilla]

I sold my old 06 GMC truck with a gazillion miles and bought a 16 JK Sport. But wish I woulda got a Rubicon. Am not a Gladiator fan. But I keep all my stuff in there and it serves me well. I am out blastin Pdawgs in it all summer. Get a hard top and make sure the PO didn't convert from a soft top. If they did make sure the wiring for the rear window wiper and de-frost are in place.
I also have a 2009 Jeep Rubicon 2 door that I set up for extreme off roading.

 

[Gman]

I'm a mechanic and wouldn't recommend a jeep to anyone. What I've seen They are very problematic. People love them even with their problems though.

Brand loyalty is a thing for many people. Even if someone can prove to them (with statistics) what they are buying, usually is problematic compared to a better, sometimes cheaper option. Just sayin'.

 

[GetReal]

How’s that smaller than a Tacoma??

You will miss the reliability, opposite ends of the spectrum.

The 2024 Tacoma is a Monsta ! lotsa room for rifles and gear, but...

 

[STOMP442]

I ran a bone stock 2003 Grand Cherokee for about 6 years. Found it in pristine condition and barely turned over 100k Picked it up for $4500 and ran the wheels off of it as a daily commuter / hunting rig. I loved that thing, it went absolutely anywhere I wanted to take it bone stock. It had the All wheel drive and lots of room with the fold down back seat. I only remember putting it in four low a handful of times. All I had to do was point and it went. I sold it about two years ago for the same $4500 I paid with about 230k miles on it.

Here is a couple cool pictures. Found this buck scouting with my wife for her hunt, Hiked about a mile in to get to a nice vantage point. Look back and there he is standing at the jeep. About a month later he is stuffed into the back of the jeep along with all the hunting equipment of three people.

 

[Treerat-sniper]

I was a mechanic (admittedly not in automotive, I did powersports, marine & ag). I understand the brand loyalty thing, but I think every brand made has issues. Anything they can do at the assembly line to save a few cents is done these days. One of the guys in my deer group was a master Ford tech, very brand loyal, but even he shakes his head at how disposable things are made now.

 

[GetReal]

I was a mechanic (admittedly not in automotive, I did powersports, marine & ag). I understand the brand loyalty thing, but I think every brand made has issues. Anything they can do at the assembly line to save a few cents is done these days. One of the guys in my deer group was a master Ford tech, very brand loyal, but even he shakes his head at how disposable things are made now.

The main focus of the auto industry today is to make sure people never ever do *not* have a car payment / repair bill

 

[TheOtherZilla]

I'm a mechanic and wouldn't recommend a jeep to anyone. What I've seen They are very problematic. People love them even with their problems though.

That's why I also own a welder. Seriously the Jeep I had before [75 CJ5] was the one that needed the welder. New ones can have issues, with the electronic crap but that's every vehicle today.

 

[dfrosch]

I'm very used to the reliability of the toyota tacoma , but it's kind of big these days for a hunting truck , so i'm thinking of getting a jeep.... 2020+ for off road hunting vehicle or shooting at more remote thousand yard ranges.

The hard top seems to have enough room for rifles and gear for at least me if not one more person.

Any advice, as far as reliability or suitability for an off-road hunting/shooting vehicle ?

If you have one , how have you equipped it for those purposes ?

View attachment 1733613

Not sure what kind of hunting you do. But there will come a time when you want to toss something in the bed and not in the cab.

 

[ebb]

Stick with the Toyota.

 

[Belton45]

We have a Jeep that we use and seems to work well. We don’t use it for daily by no means but works great at deer lease and so forth.

 

[ISS]

I had a Tundra, bought it new in 2016. It had the big motor. I could not get it past a gas station to save my life. 10-12 miles per gallon if I stuck it in 4WD for two minutes. 14 on the Interstate. I traded it for a RAM 3/4 ton that got 17 or so. Two years ago I sold it to my nephew and bought a Grand Cherokee 24 on the road headed to shoot Rockchucks, stayed mostly on gravel and real dry mud. I would tank up in town, drive nearly 300 miles to gravel/dirt, and crawl around 5-6 hours moving and shooting and then, drive back to town and fill up at a combined 16-18 mpg.
At age 76 and two spine surgeries last year, I am not interested in making trails anymore. I can get out to 90% of the places I ever did forty years ago. I can also shoot about as many these days as I ever did.

If I want to do more, I will get a Rubicon with the 392 and 35 inch tires.

 

[ken158]

How’s that smaller than a Tacoma??

You will miss the reliability, opposite ends of the spectrum.

Yeah - I sold my Tacoma and bought a Tundra so I would have enough room for my hunting gear.

 

[209jones]

Bought a 74 CJ5 with a 304v8 in about 78, kept it til 93. Was a good unit for what it was. Can always remember a guy crossing a creek with some serious and slippery banks, F250's and GM2500's were having trouble with it, no top on a CJ5 yelling "wanna real live 4 wheel drive, buy a CJ5" as he just scooted down across and up, no sweat. They short wheelbase real quick on ice, like to hang by one wheel in ruts on hills. Mine had the old tin hardtop and doors, could carry a pile of stuff on a homemade roofrack. I put pwr strg on it, added an aux htr, Detroit locker in the rear, new brg kit in frt diff, new trans and tsfr case, reman engine, heavier springs, repaired cracked frame in it over the years. Hauled a few moose in it. Pull the pass seat and shove the quarters in, head on top on roof rack.

Bought a Taco in 92, before it was called a Taco. Went pretty much anywhere the CJ went, handled moguls better, rode a whole bunch nicer, did a whole lot less work on it, and I was just as hard on it, just regular maint. LIttle trickier to drive in the trees to get to something in the bush because of length, every bit as good in mud, far better on ice and in snow than the CJ. Kept it til 2009, it ran on a farm til 2023, 330K on it when I got rid of it. Bought a Taco in 2009, still have it, much better driveability, ride, and less maint than the 92 (92 had timing belt), 310K on it now, finally put brakes on it, no shocks yet, just changed headlamp assys as they were sandblasted.
Taco hauls more stuff when fishing, camping or hunting, tows waaaay better than a Jeep will, rides and handles far better and will go almost anywhere a Jeep will go. There are a few things Jeep does a bit better, things Taco does better, pretty even split in the bush, Alberta and BC. I have a topper on mine and can sleep in the back, haul dogs, amazing what can be stuffed in there. Also amazed myself a few times with the Jeep, but, no comparison to the Taco for volume and weight capacity.
Would I buy another Jeep? not for the money they want for them now.

 

[Jr solocam]

I Bought a 2025 Tacoma I hated it and traded it for a 2026 Duramax. Here is why-

Too small, felt claustrophobic. No interior storage.
Poor MPG, only 18 vs 22-30 in the Duramax.
"Premium JBL stereo is garbage.
Double the towing.

Can't understand why anyone would buy a Tacoma. AND Toyota quality isn't what it used to be......