Ok-
My
I had a'82 as my first yota wheeler. Did great but was lacking interior storage.
Now have a runner, more inside storage.........
trade off, runner is HEAVY. Ended up dragging the rear quarter panels and beating them up. (going on more difficult trails ect) so I chopped off the last 2 feet of the runner. Now I have interior storage but that is decreased drastically due to no rear seats. (fuel cell). The runner is a much better vehicle in MY comparison ('82 mini vs. '85 runner) as I have built it better overall. Like having the EFI and space inside. Now I run tube doors most of the time so I am not enclosed very well.
Pickup- tighter inside, lighter, able to haul stuff! I miss that capability.... ALOT! Being lighter it may seem more powerful. If you are going earlier than '86 you will stuff the tires into the frame unless you get some weird offset rims.
If it were me looking for a pickup, I would go for the '89-94 body style, EFI rounded fenders, wider rear axle, correct steering box for crossover steering and still have the ability to haul stuff.
hope that helps
