Thinking of buying a Hardbody, what do I need to look out for?

[Saturn]

So I've decided to convert the ole R50 to 4 wheel drive and have it be my trail rig, and I want to buy a truck to drive while I'm working on it and then to daily at least for a while if not permanently as I have trouble getting rid of stuff. I'd like to grab an ext. cab hardbody, preferably with a KA24 so it's easy to work on and get parts for, and a manual transmission so I can impress the females of course. I know these trucks are pretty tough and simple, but are there any pitfalls in their construction or major changes between years I need to look out for? Certain engine/transmission years? Just general info about them would be great, I don't always trust wiki and I know ya'll are more familiar with em. And NO I am NOT going to sell my R50 and buy a 4x4.