Now here’s a vehicle that I don’t give much thought to ever, a 1980s-era Toyota Van. Toyota sold these one-box style things in the United States from 1983-1989 in both rear-drive and four-wheel-drive versions and honestly…well, let’s be nice here and say that I thought they looked “quirky”. Ok, that isn’t working…these were strange ducks in my eyes, even as a kid. A forward-control van that looked like it was capable of performing an endo if you stabbed the brakes hard enough just didn’t seem appealing…not then, not now, not ever. (I have similar feelings for early flat-face vans from the 1960s, too, just in case you think I’m picking on Toyotas alone.) That being said, Toyota sold who knows how many worldwide, and all were pretty much the same: four cylinder engine that hovered around 100 horsepower and either a five-speed or one of two slushboxes. Yawn.
Now, if we have to explain the Gambler 500 to you, please hit up Google and treat yourself. The short summary is $500 cars, long trips, with lots of mechanical carnage the normal. Seeing a Toyota Van on a Gambler makes sense. Seeing one practice for the Gambler by hitting up a tough truck course? Um…the idea isn’t to break your junk before you are supposed to. But credit given where credit is due: the driver of this funky little lump does well enough and should hang with the rest of the Gambler cars…so long as there isn’t too much mud.
Matt Farah off roaded one for a couple thousand miles in “All Cars Go To Heaven 2”
It available on Veoh.
My LA next door neighbor had one. I think it was an ’89 4×4 cargo version. Supposedly uber rare. Takes it off roading to his little place in the desert where he paints.