[Dafni]

Okay, the way I see it, the criteria you mentioned would break down like this:

driving pleasure/fun experience: both have their advantages, buggies will cut those extra sharp corners, but then again may seem too aggressive to some. And they are not so forgiving on rough and bumpy stuff as the truggs (pretty obvious: less ground clearance and all)
cost: I'd say a buggy and a truggy on the same quality level cost the same. Maybe it's worth mentioning that the buggies eat tires quick.
Maintenance: again, same for same quality level.
Toughness: again, pretty much the same. Altough the more compact geometry (shorter arms) would make me think the buggies can take a bit more. From my experience they are mean bashers, they can take a beating.

This is only my opinion and experience. I like them both, I would not want to miss my buggy, and I look forward to see the truggy thing growing here too. Most older die-hard buggy guys around here only smile at the "new thing"... but that's just because it's always hard to get new ideas into some people. Sometimes they don't even believe what their eyes see :005: Please ignore the personal rant :)

As for your decision, I think you will be happy with both in the end. Both classes are purely purpose built, with performance on nowadays off-road race tracks in mind.

Hope this helps a bit :)

Cheers
DAF