Landstalker

The Landstalker is an SUV which is available in Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories and Grand Theft Auto IV.

GTA III — GTA Vice City Stories
The Landstalker has many different designs between GTA III and GTA Vice City Stories, usually combined from a variety of sources.


 * In GTA III, the Landstalker is loosely based on a Jeep Grand Cherokee WJ, with a more striking resemblance to the Ford Escape, Suzuki Escudo or the Isuzu/Holden Rodeo, due to size and handling. The latter rendition may also come with roof-mounted luggage rack, and boxes in the rear compartment.
 * Although in the Liberty City Stories rendition the headlights, tailights and grille resemble a slightly altered first generation Landrover Freelander (Pre facelift) or the 1998 Nissan Terrano
 * In GTA Vice City and GTA Vice City Stories, the Landstalker resembles a 1984-1990 Jeep Wagoneer Limited with the headlights and front bumper from the 1983-1990 Chevrolet S-10.
 * In GTA San Andreas, the Landstalker generally resembles the GTA Vice City and GTA Vice City Stories rendition but with a few changes. It no longer carries a rear-mounted spare tire; instead, a tire is visible inside the rear compartment. The engine sound suggests a 4.7L V8 or a large displacement V6.

GTA IV
The GTA IV rendition of the Landstalker bears close resemblance to the 2007 Ford Expedition, due to its overall shape. The grille however is most likely modeled after that of the Lincoln Navigator. The headlights resemble those of the 2006-present Range Rover, and the taillights appear to share similar traits of those on the Range Rover Sport.

A special black variant of the Landstalker can be seen driving around North Holland by North Holland Hustlers and Firefly Projects by M.O.B.. This variant features chrome side scuff bars, no luggage rails, and TVs installed in the back of the front seats' headrests

Another variant of the Landstalker has a unique gold side scuffs and a lower front and rear bumper. This variant is possibly based on the Eddie Bauer trim, seen on several Fords, including the Explorer, Expedition and the 2004 F-150.

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GTA III — GTA Vice City Stories
The Landstalker was originally introduced with a light weight (1380 kg), a short wheelbase, high ground clearance, full time 4WD, poor grip, stiff suspension, a high center of gravity and unstable weight distribution. As a result, it is highly susceptible to rollovers while simply turning or traversing off-road especially on traintracks, if the player doesn't drive carefully or make use of the handbrake. These attributes made the vehicle vastly inferior as an off-road vehicle when compared to the Patriot, Rancher, Sandking and Huntley. Although its handling is poor, the Landstalker has all-round moderate-to-good acceleration and top speed due to its weight.

The Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories rendition is noticeably more stable—its redesigned body features a lowered ground clearance (resulting in a slight redistribution of weight to the bottom) and a longer, heavier body (1880 kg), reducing the likelihood of rollovers. This is decidedly not the case with the version used in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories which has some of the poorest handling and highest likelihood of rollovers of any car in the GTA III universe, especially when attempting VCS' Robbery missions.

GTA IV
The GTA IV rendition of the Landstalker is quite heavy, resulting in poor acceleration and a top speed of 144 km/h (90 mph), and compared to other SUVs; braking is also adversely affected by the weight. The engine itself sounds as if it is a mid-sized V6, paired to a 5 speed gearbox in a 50% Front, 50% Rear 4WD layout. The suspension is moderately firm, but still far too soft to corner at speed effectively. The body flops about in the turns, often causing the rear end to kick out and fishtail rather than simply overturn as in previous games. On the road, the Landstalker is nowhere near as competent as its closest competitors (the Cavalcade and Huntley Sport), but off-road the Landstalker begins to show its usefulness. The engine has enough torque to allow scaling of medium-grade hills, and the suspension evens out most of the natural bumps; unfortunately, the long rear overhang means the Landstalker can beach itself on rocks. Overall, its off-road performance is inferior to that of the Cavalcade, however it fares better than the Huntley Sport.

The Landstalker has a unique ABS system as standard equipment. The ABS will only work if braking in a straight line. If braking while turning, the wheels will lock, but will unlock after the Landstalker straightens out.

Deformation in frontal accidents is very good, having able to retain both headlights after hitting a low car. Rear accidents though cause quite a bit of visible damage. The engine itself is sturdy in accidents, allowing the Landstalker to take multiple direct hits at full speed before failing. Overall, this vehicle is better suited for short drives and off-road expeditions than high-speed pursuits.

Alarm
GTA Liberty City Stories models usually have alarms, but those in GTA Vice City, GTA Vice City Stories and GTA San Andreas don't. GTA IV models commonly have alarms, either those that sound the horn or flash the lights.

Modifications (GTA San Andreas)
In TransFender:
 * Color
 * Exhaust (three varieties)
 * Fog Lights (two varieties)
 * Nitro (three varieties)
 * Wheels (ten varieties)
 * Bass Boost
 * Hydraulics

Notable owners

 * Francis McReary owns a black Landstalker, as seen in the first cutscene of Blood Brothers.
 * Ray Bulgarin owns a black Landstalker, as seen in the mission Going Deep.

Trivia

 * After collecting all thirty cars for Stevie in GTA IV, a Landstalker may be sold at his garage for $3,000.
 * The Landstalker plays the following radio stations by default when entered:
 * SF-UR in GTA San Andreas.
 * IF99 - International Funk or K109 The Studio in GTA IV.
 * Landstalker means that it is suitable for natural areas such as forests and sandy areas.
 * When in reverse in the Landstalker the front badge glows due to a glitch.
 * The name "Landstalker" could be a play on the name Land Rover, a similar real-life SUV brand, as roving and stalking are similar.
 * The name could also be a reference to the GTA 2 vehicle, the Land Roamer. Roaming and stalking are considered to have similar meanings.
 * The Landstalker is the first car from a previous game to appear in the GTA V trailer, appearing white during one of the earlier scenes.

Locations
GTA III
 * Outside the hut in the north-west corner of Belleville Park, Staunton Island. This is the start point for a checkpoints side-mission.

GTA Vice City
 * Parked at the dirt track in Downtown, Vice City (starts Test Track).
 * In front of a mansion with a tennis court in the northwest part of Starfish Island.

GTA San Andreas
 * In the parking lot in Foster Valley, San Fierro.
 * Spawns regularly around The Strip, Las Venturas.
 * Spawns around Santa Maria Beach, Los Santos.
 * Spawns more commonly in Whitewood Estates.

GTA Liberty City Stories
 * Parked at the car lot at Capital Autos in Harwood, Portland Island.
 * Found commonly in Portland Island.
 * Spawns regularly in Belleville Park, Staunton Island.
 * A bulletproof version can be found at the Shoreside Vale safehouse in Cedar Grove, Shoreside Vale after completing all 12 levels of See The Sight Before Your Flight, which can be accessed in a tourist booth near Francis International Airport.
 * In the Newport Multistory Car Park.

GTA Vice City Stories
 * Parked at an alleyway in Ocean Beach.
 * Spawns by every robbery empire site the player owns. If all 30 empire sites are owned by Vic, it's bulletproof.

GTA IV
 * Can be found in Firefly Projects, Broker.
 * Can be found in Northwood or North Holland, Algonquin.
 * Can be found in The Triangle or Star Junction, Algonquin.
 * Can be found anywhere in Alderney.

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