Let's face it, we're a different crowd. While most people are still driving a hand-me down or judging their buy on mileage or on safety reports, we chose another path. Why did you pursue your vehicle and are your reasons for keeping it different now (i.e. I bought it to be cool and now I can't sell it b/c there's too much sheet metal missing ;))
I know there's different reasons for what people do with their 4wd buttons. What pushes yours?

bought it so I could go explore

love getting out and seeing new things

I grew up riding motorcycles and riding in my dad's Scouts. Loved it, even bought my dad's 74 Scout II after high school, usually owned a 4x4. Went through some tough times and was driving a Ford Escort that was falling apart, was in a position to get a new vehicle and decided I wanted a Jeep (had not had a Jeep up to this point).

When the wife and I met she had a 4x4 Toyota Truck and I had a Suzuki Sam, both of us missed our 4x4 days, so when we got the Jeep we both were in heaven. We both love camping, see new areas, getting away from the city and smelling the fresh air.

Now with a family I think about getting a 4 door, but starting over would be a huge undertaking, and my TJ is paid off, the new 4 door would not be. For now we are keeping it, although the wife is expressing interest in getting rid of the mini van and her getting a 4 door as a DD and when it is paid off we can fix it up for more hard core family wheeling... hmmmmmm

My youth pastor had an 84 CJ 7. I loved that he could take the top and doors off. 8 yeas ago I had just got home from school and got me a little 2wd truck. One of my friends just picked up a Tahoe and we went to CK. I sold my truck the next week and pickup up a Bronco because I couldn’t find a Jeep I wanted.
Sold the Bronco and my Mustang and picked up my first Jeep… Its been down hill from there.

I like the destination but I also like the culture.

Outdoors is where I want to be, and regardless of where I end up, I really enjoy photography. For me that translates into two separate groups- the subject of Offroad Photography and Landscape Photography. The paths of each, crossing so easily.
With Higher Ground I have the ability to give back to my culture, my friends who are in it for the trail, by documenting through pictures their trials and accomplishments coupled with the scenic environment around. I was doing this before I invested in a 4wd vehicle of my own.
I've always been a truck guy without question. Growing up learning to drive my grandfather's truck which would be later mine . I decided to purchase my vehicle based upon my interests and what I would directly use it for. Knowing that I had more fun behind the camera than behind the wheel (I literally get anxious thinking I could be missing a shot), I had a different decision to make. I still wanted to be able to progress out past the reaches of civilization, but didn't mind certain limits on those options since I didn't mind going out alone. Also being that I am one of the more feduciarily limited members, I didn't want a vehicle that I felt I needed to always be adding to to be at the top.
I decided on a Nissan Xterra, because in my opinion it was one of the only vehicles out of the box that didn’t need much to hold its own or look right. There weren’t whole catalogs dedicated to accessories for it, and there weren’t many on the road that would be look-a-likes when I was finished. I knew ahead of time what I would do to it, and went to work on it as soon as it was bought.
If I were in it for the trail, I would have never looked at an independent front suspension. Knowing the limits keeps me from going too far when alone, and the winch helps my confidence in situations where I may accidentally have. It was important to me to be able to getaway whenever I needed and to have room for hauling gear or just sleeping inside wherever I end up. My camera is still for the hard trails and my 4wd is for getting me to my destinations grouped or alone.

In high school (sophomore year) I really wanted a Bronco. I started saving my money from my first job at Black-eyed Pea. My savings method was to staple one-dollar bills all over my wall... which looked frickin' cool. I had one wall covered, which ended up being about $800. Since that wouldn't have been enough to get a Bronco and I really wanted a vehicle, Michael and I headed to Tucson to a car auction. I drove home in an '89 gold Ford Taurus8| It didn't last all that long some reason, but was able to get around in my mom's or Mike's vehicle. My dream to have a Bronco turned into a dream to have a Jeep... and that came true graduation night when I was presented with my YJ that Mike and my mom bought me. I mainly wanted a jeep cause they were cool as sh*t :lol:. It was great having up at NAU. Anytime I needed to excape life, I'd drive 10 minutes and be on a forest road. It was awesome but I miss that sooooo much! My red Jeep lasted for a while but was tired of fixing it so that's when I bought the yellow one. That's my story in a nutshell..... owning a Jeep is part of my identity now:cool)

I wreaked the Honda accord that I had been driving since HS. It just so happened that my sister was thinking about selling her red Jeep, and I was now in the market to buy something. Never did much more than glorified dirt roads until I met Paula, she new where box canyon was so I made her take me. Of course the red Jeep's engine recently died on us so we went and bought our black Jeep. Sooner or later we are going to fix up the red one and then we'll have two drivable Jeeps!!

To haul groceries and go to soccer practice.

Learned to drive my Grandpa's Toyota 4x4 truck @ 12yr old and drove all over the White Tanks area use to camp right next to that old firebird on whats now know as the firebird trail.
A few years ago I was watching Extreme 4x4 & saw their Jeep Speed epsoide and started to look for a Cherokee and as Bob said... "Its been down hill since then"

When we first moved here, 2 things happened: (1) I was no longer driving 50,000 to 60,000 miles a year for work, so I didn't have to worry about gas mileage as much, and (2) I was traveling all the time, but my peers were a group of 65 women (I was one of only 2 male consultants on the dental side...)

So! I needed to do something manly (:)=)) AND I wanted to spend time with my family. Jeeps seemed a perfect solution to both... go run crap over with my family.

So, I got a 91 YJ, took the top and doors off, and have been hooked ever since. I just love running stuff over. Then running over it again. Even better, the being out in this amazing state helped meet my country boy need to see trees and wild life, and not be in a city all the time. I've adapted to city living just fine, but I really miss/need to be outside a lot to stay connected.

The move to the XJ was part of the kids getting bigger and needing more space and still be safe, yet still be able to run stuff over. XJ seemed a good compromise from the YJ. In retrospect, I probably should have gotten a TJ, but you know, my little white XJ does just fine!

My main goals in getting a Jeep were not just to look cool, but to have something that could take me places more than 1/2 the population could not get to (or even have any desire to get to). I can't tell you how many times my mom and I would be driving the little Kia and I would see a FS road and think "I wonder where that goes." A couple times we actually did venture down some roads in the foreign, red wind-up toy. The last road we ever drove that car on was the one that determined we needed a Jeep. I, for a moment, high centered the Kia on some rocks.8|:)=) Luckily it was just the frame, but that really was the deciding moment. We (ok, maybe I) had always wanted a Jeep. We rented a Wrangler when we went to Kartchner Caverns and toodled around some of the dirt roads down there. We went on a Safari Jeep tour in Sedona. The vehicle we rented for a road trip up the California coast into Oregon and Washington was a Jeep. The only thing that had changed was that we now needed a Jeep, rather than simply wanted a Jeep.

The question was, how was I going to get a Jeep with no money of my own? I decided I was going to get a job and save and save and save. I was ready to wait months after I got my license, taking the city bus to and from school, before I could finally get a Jeep. I got a lucky break though, and was given 5K on my 16th birthday to buy a vehicle of my choosing. I was originally planning on getting a YJ (97 TJ if I could find one) but after a couple months of searching for the right one ended up with the XJ. Now I realize the XJ was a good choice. Lots more cargo room over a wrangler to carry all of our camping gear.

The madness all started in 1999 and it is all my sister's fault. My youngest sister asked me if I had seen the new Xterra. Of course, I had'nt, so I went and looked at them. I loved them from the start. To this day, I can pick them out from 2-3 miles down the road. I finally was able to purchase a Solar Yellow one in Oct of 2000. From that point on it was all about offroading for me. I had the greatest opportunities to wheel in the Black Hills of South Dakota and on the Iron Range of Minnesota. I met some really cool people who I am still friends with to this day. Well, in '03 I lost my Xterra due to other doors being opened for me.

I fiddled around for awhile and in '05 God opened a door for me to move to AZ. That is when I saw the new Xterra. I had to have it. So I went and bought it. I drove that and offroaded that for 2 years. After grenading the whole drive train on Sunflower mine trail, I decided that it wasn't as tough as the previous years and it became a mall crawler. About that time my other sister decided to give me her '74 CJ. Of course, being big brother I couldn't just take it so I am paying her for it.

During all this time, I became married to a wonderful woman who loves the outdoors. We had a son who makes his Daddy prould because he recognizes Jeeps and always says when he sees them. "Jeep!! Daddy Jeep!!":)g)

My family has been into camping, hunting, hiking and offraoding for as long as I can remember. Owning a 4x4 was just a matter of time. First vehicle was a 2wd Nissan pick-up with snow tires. I buried that thing more times than I could count. Sold that and built a VW Baja. It had the roll cage, racing harness, bucket seats, fiberglass fender's, big engine and all. Really learned a lot about offroading in that car.

One day I went out with some friends to Butcher Jones. I was in my Baja thinking I would be able to keep up with my friends stock Jeep and this other guy's Jeep on 33's. Man was I wrong. After the first hill climb I was done. I ended up parking the Baja and cruzed around in the Jeep for the rest of the day. I was blown away at what a stock Jeep could do. So for the next five years owning a TJ was my main goal. Then I heard talk of the Rubicon and I knew exactly what I wanted. I waited till the price came down, found the perfect Jeep and flew to Florida to pick it up. Yes, I went to Florida. It was a great deal. Got home and did the full lift and tires about three months in. Haven't slowed down since. I am still to this day blown away almost every time I take it out! Definitely worth the wait!

jstaffeldt wrote:My family has been into camping, hunting, hiking and offraoding for...

Welcome! :cool)

My first truck was a 78 Dodge Ramcharger. I loved the offroad aspect to it. And since I was constantly in the woods...hunting or camping or whatever i knew i needed a truck that could handle the roads i was traveling. When the dodge got a bit too expensive to fix i started lookin. My oldest brother had a Jeep YJ before and i KNEW i had to get a jeep. I found my ZJ in an autotrader catalog. It wasnt like every other grand cherokee out there...it definately stood out. I dont think i will ever go back to anything other than a jeep honestly!

Skatchkins wrote:Welcome! :cool)

Thanks dude, Nice Xterra. Great site, looking forward to running some trails with everyone!