The Reality of Driving a 35+ Year Old Rig
Finding joy in repairing and traveling in something self-built
words and photos: trevor anderson
It should come with no surprise that any amount of time on the road in an old rig will come with an uncountable number of mishaps — last minute engine rebuilds, dead fuel pumps, malfunctioning brakes, and the list goes on. But, that’s all part of the fun and I wouldn’t change it if I could.
When I was 15 and ready to get my driver’s license, I fell into a rather fortunate hand-me-down when my grandparents moved out of their country home. This meant they had no need for their Toyota Pickup they bought new in 1985.
Growing up camping out of the various 4x4’s my dad had, I knew this truck was special and for years I’ve put every dime I had into it to keep it on the road — and most importantly, off road.
When I got the truck, EVERYTHING was completely factory. Thankfully it was well taken care of maintenance wise, but other than basic fluid changes I’m sure the only thing replaced since 1985 were the tires.
Now, I haven’t completely kept it in its original factory shape. I’ve made changes when I needed them — bigger tires, a modest suspension refresh, storage drawers in the bed, etc. I am aware the truck might be ‘worth’ more if I had left it alone, but that doesn’t matter to me one bit. I’m not selling this thing and I need it to work the best for how I drive it.
So, how do I drive it?
This 36 year old truck takes me everywhere, and that means TONS of highway miles with daily detours off road while out on trips.
No, it's not ‘comfortable’ to drive on road, and no, it's not ‘comfortable’ to drive off road. It certainly drives nicer than the day I got it, but who cares?
I know that no matter what happens in this truck that I will be able to fix it. Everything is just about as simple as it gets. Days prior to my departure of a 7,000+ mile, 3 month road trip through the American West, I was forced to swap the entire top end myself in the 100 degree heat of the Arizona desert — I'm sure there’s still dust grinding around between some of the seals right now.
There is also something to be said about the sensor overload you get while traveling in an old truck. It’s loud, it smells and you get tossed around over every bump in the road. And you need to always be completely aware of these senses. “Is that gas I smell.” “What’s that noise.” These are things you just get used to saying mile after mile in order to know when something really is wrong.
But a lot of these old rigs are pretty damn durable I’ve gotta say. Now, I may be a bit biased because these old Toyotas are nearly indestructible, but you can abuse an old truck with no worry of whether some piece of plastic is going to rip off. To be honest I’ve even heard of these 22R-E’s running with next to no oil at all!
In the end, this all adds to the fun. There is no feeling that can equate to driving something you built over mountain passes, and across deserts. Ya, it kicks your ass every now and then, but knowing that you have put blood sweat and tears into arriving somewhere makes it all worth it.