A can of worms indeed :)
How far are you planning on driving "on road"?
Vits are road biased but good "off-road" SJ/Sammy are "off-road" biased but 'harsh' on road.
For maximum FUN get an SJ413 and fit 28" (215) mud tyres and leave it there :)
I changed from SJ to Vitara because I want to "off-road" further away from home and the Vit is better on tarmac than the SJ for a 250 mile round trip etc.