Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives newer jeep or old scout?

OK-been jonesing for a 4wd vehilce I can run with the top off for a loooong time. Keep going back and forth between a newer jeep vs an older International scout. Figue the jeep would be more mechanically sound but the scout would be REALLY COOL! Assuming cost being about the same, would it be smarter to buy the newer vehicle is my question

I owned and restored a 1980 Scout with the factory optioned SD33T diesel engine. Dana 44 axels, Dana 300 transfer, 4 speed manual.

A more robust driveline you can't build.

The electrical systems are archaic. They were 3 decades behind the industry in that regard.

A well restored Scout will twist peoples heads right off as you drive by.


I'll find a picture and see if that helps you make the decision.

If you simply have a bunch of $ you need to blow just to look cool, buy the Scout.

If you wish you had bought a Jeep, they’ll be plenty around if you wish you had bought a scout, you might keep wishing. If I had $ and time to tinker with it, I’d get a scout. If I wanted turn key and forget it, Jeep. Then again, if I had play $ to begin with, I’d buy an another FJ40.

Had an original K5 Blazer and it was cool for its' day. Milage was horrible, rust was a problem, comfort was marginal, safety additions were non-existent and it wouldn't go any place the current 4Runner TRD Pro will with all those extras. Cool only goes so far when it is something you use on a regular basis. Today, give me the 4Runner.

Over the years I have owned Scouts and Jeeps and if you are going to use your choice off road get a Jeep, the Scouts have a narrow wheel base and are a pain in the butt on narrow two track roads, and if it's muddy stay home the Scouts are helpless on a side hill in mud.

If you just want a Mall Crawler get the Scout so you can Look COOL!! Rio7

Older first gen bronco will get you there too. Incase you didn’t think of it. But I’d pick a Jeep over the scout 10/10 times. Scout is Coker but S LOT more money to find, but, and maintain.

I had a 1968 and 1974 IH Scouts back in the day. But I don't think they've made one in nearly 40 years. Never many period. They had their strong points, but I wouldn't go back. Restoring one and keeping it running would be a challenge. So much so that you'd be afraid to take it off road.

I've had several Wranglers over the years and taking the top off never really did anything for me. But the doors stayed off mine for half the year. You get just as much wind but still ride in the shade and have some protection if caught in a rain shower.

If looking for something cheap that is very capable off road I'm seeing a lot of guys building older Jeep Cherokee's and leaving the doors off of them. Even seen a few older Grand Cherokees done that way.

If the FJ Cruiser had come off the line as a hard top convertible, it woulda been special. Top notch drivetrain and off-road capabilities.

There were two kind of Scout owners back in the day as I remember it.
Those that loved their scout and it was trouble free
Those that hated their Scout because there was something wrong with it constantly.

Scouts are cool!

Pretty trailer queen.

The old 13 letter schit spreader .

Kidding as I like Scouts even never having owned one. I have a soft spot for almost all the old 2 door American SUVs, especially Broncos of the first and second generations, but also IHs and first gen Blazers. I draw the line at Ramchargers, Lonewolf McQuade aside.

Had an 89 Wrangler for a short while, huge POS that ate Peugeot transmissions way too regularly and had some BS vacuum actuated 4x4 system that rarely worked.

my family owned about every variation of IH and Jeep made from the early 50's to the mid-70's. rugged drivetrain and schit bodies and electrical systems. you better be mechanically inclined and have a good source of parts if you go either IH or older jeep unless it is a garage queen. if i was going non-pickup, i'd look at toyota 4runner or somesuch. jeeps are chrysler so you get what you get there. although those late 2000's Rubicons seem cool.

Scouts are pretty cool, but I'd take a newer 4 door Jeep any day of the week over one.

Not many would be happy with a Scout.
Some were really nice, for their day.

They were trucks, built by a farm/truck manufacturer.
Not a heated seat, heated steering wheel, metro sexual, "look at me in my "truck"

There ain't no doubt they're cool.

Replaced the floors, body mounts, rockers, reupholstered the interior, added a roll bar, a couple body patch panels, and new paint and Rallye stripe decals.

The only thing not OEM was the tires, roll bar, and seat belts. Everything else is at it left from the factory

You can get about any Scout part here: http://www.superscoutspecialists.com/store/

When I moved from South Dakota to Colorado, I didn't want to mess with moving it, so I sold it......

Stupid, stupid move. I sold it to a dealer who turned around and sold it on Ebay for double the price.....it now resides on Long Island, NY.

You just don't see many 1980 turbo diesels out there.

It was a fun vehicle, but I was always chasing electrical gremlins.

I'm short on time for most things but NO TIME for that....even if I had all the time in the world.

If were to jump on the Binder bandwagon again, I'd look into a 5.3 LS transplant and a rewire kit.