Furst car as a 13 year old

[keepjeepin]

So I am 13 and I am planing on buying my first car and working on it so that when I'm 16 I will have a nice car. My plan is to buy some sort of off road vehicle. I will have about 4 grand to spend because my dad is planing to match whatever money i come up with I have 800 saved up and I bought a dirt bike with y own money not "daddies". I am selling that for 1200. if you wonder how I made that money the awnser is I have been shoveling drive ways an mowing lawns all winter. But to the point what do you think the best 4x4 for my money will be. Thanks, Jackson

 

[Utah_jeepster]

With this crowd, expect 'a jeep' as an answer. LOL
With 4 grand you get a good solid jeep as an starting foundation. I would say a good early model wrangler 97 and up could be had , since the JKs are all the rage now. A quick trip over to JP magazine's web site you can find an article named steal J, about finding a low cost tj 97-06 that hasn't been beaten to death. Since you live in the snow belt I would take a careful look at what ever you buy since jeeps are a rust magnet. For that same reason I would be leery of older Cherokee's. But I am a wrangler owner and a bit biased. A TJ is a good platform for a new time jeep owner and there is lots of upgrades available to this platform, compared to a YJ or earlier CJ's. But this is also depending on how good with a wrench you are. Some like the challenges of an earlier model compared to the newer electronically controlled newer models. The internet is a good source for information about each year/ model of jeep out there and what to look for about the problems each year had. And asking questions here. You found a good site with lots of friendly people who are willing to share their jeep love (addiction) with new timers.
Feel free to ask as many of questions you have, we are here to help.
Once again welcome to group therapy (jeepz board), LOL

 

[TerryMason]

I'm a fan of the Wranglers as well - for 4K you may be able to get a good YJ. If you could find a rust free XJ (Cherokee) that could be good as well.

 

[jps4jeep]

Go buy yourself a reliable safe vehicle that can get you to and from school and get an education then eventually get you a very well paying job, at which point you can buy any vehicle you want with out having to save money for 3 years.
I am not insinuating that jeeps are neither safe or reliable, just that there are far better budget friendly vehicles when the budget is limited.


That said, I'd look at a 91-95 YJ with 4.0. Cheap, parts are everywhere, EFI, not overly complicated.