After a LONG search I finally picked up a 99 Limited 4x4 and its bone stock. The seller owned it for the past 16 years and before that his Uncle owned it who bought it new from the dealership. I checked multiple VIN history sites and verified, so I’m officially the 3rd owner. 224K on the clock, and a 3 ring binder stuffed full of maintenance records and parts receipts. The seller bought most parts from the dealer and had most maintenance done at the dealer. He even kept receipts for OEM windshield wiper blades going back years - which is crazy IMHO. Always garaged (so he said), no paint fade, no ripped seats, the doors, headliner, dash, etc., are all in great shape… even the electric antenna works. Well... you can see the condition for yourself in the pics. For undercarriage pics, I pulled both skid plates because I wanted to inspect. Some grime, but surprisingly not much, and not a drop of oil on my driveway in the past week. It’s had the real main seal replaced, so it was leaking at some point. No rust which is good (I’m in NorCal) but no E locker unfortunately.

Now onto business. 224K now, last timing belt done at 140K. Never had lower ball joints replaced, rear axel seals have not been replaced, shocks are gone...its like driving a waterbed (or mid 70's Cadillac.. haha). It was dealer prepped for sale and within the last 100 miles it got new plugs, new coil packs, new air filter, tranny drain and refill. I looked at the service records and there was no error code prior to sale, the seller just did these items.

So I'm doing the timing belt, dry belts & lower ball joints shortly as preventative. I need recommendations on:
A)Lower ball joints (brand)?
B)Shocks... I want a comfortable ride, with no lift. I’m thinking Bilsteins - Thoughts?
C) What other stuff I should tackle in order? - Fire away!

The other stuff will be added to a list and dealt with as funds and time become available unless there’s something I should do now that wont empty my wallet and take a weekend.

I’ve been wrenching for years as a hobby, and out of necessity of course, had a few Toyota’s (my wife current is a ‘02 Sequoia that we’ve had since ‘05) but I’ve never had a 4runner. Been wanting a 3rd gen for years.

Thanks in advance for your input from the 3rd gen experts. BTW, I'll be pulling the running boards off right away.

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Man, nice Runner. Look at how rust free that undercarriage is. Amazing. I went with Toyota lower ball joints.

Your patience was nicely rewarded, congratulations.

Also consider all new fluids. Enjoy!

I suppose I'm confused by that on the ball joints. If Toyota's are known to fail, why would we go back to them?

Thanks, it was a long time coming to be sure. I'll definately have new coolant when I do the timing belt / water pump. As for for fluids - go with both differntials, oil/filter, what other reccomedations? Thanks.

Because any/all other options fail sooner/faster.

The failure is due to design, not parts quality. That means ANY brand you use will fail eventually. Others have tried all the different options and found that they were doing the job again in a very short time. Simply put, it's cheaper and with less time spent to use the OEM replacements.

YouTube

30k service for most fluids, but you also have brakes and power steering that aren't in that video. FWIW, I also just (a month ago) bought a 99 limited in stock trim, I'm sitting at 193k miles and the 2nd owner (first was a little ole lady who only drive it 9k miles a year.... lol, sarcasm is strong in that comment). Sadly for me, ZERO records... not a single one (not from Toyota, not on Carfax, nothing), owners also owned a Marina and had mechanics on-staff who did the work. So I'm going whole-hog on the deferred maintenance stuff, looks like about $3k in parts/materials.

Nice truck.

Stick with OEM ball joints.

I was in the same boat suspension-wise with my 99 Limited. I went with Bilstein 4600's and replaced the sagging rear springs with Old Man Emu 906's to eliminate the rake and add additional carrying capacity. Rides fantastic.

I don't think they are known to fail, exactly. They will fail like any other part and there was a recall but only for 01-02's. The failure seems to happen more with lifted trucks or trucks in extreme service.

If they haven't been replaced they should as when they fail it's usually pretty ugly. The new OEM ball joints wouldn't have any known production issues, and with such a critical part saving $50 on a knock off isn't a way to save money. Good piece of mind knowing your wheel isn't going to fall off at freeway speeds.

Toyota Recall For Lower Ball Joint Issue : Toyota 4Runner Suspension and Steering

I replaced mine with OEM 3 years ago, and I had a 01 which would have had the bad ball joints if it wasn't taken in for the recall.

Congrats, nice ride. Add a radiator to the list to prevent strawberry milkshake. That one looks original. Google that term if your not familiar.

Very nice looking rig !
I would change the radiator and fuel filter also if they haven't been done.
Look up "pink milkshake" and you will change the radiator.

Toyota OEM ball joints fail around 100k lifted or 200k or much longer at stock height (mine were still fine at 270k miles when I replaced them). Aftermarket lasts less than 30k, and often fail as soon as 10k miles.

Consider them a wear part and replace with OEM.

Looks like it never even saw gravel. Enjoy it!

-Charlie.

Great looking rig. Just purchased my sister in law's 1999 last Monday which is a SR5 Highlander (sport hood scoop, color coded bumpers, et al)
Leather looks great and like mine, clearly it has been well taken care of.
Jealous of your antenna working as that and the bloody clock are the only things amiss on mine.

The engine bay and frame are incredibly clean, even for a Cali truck. All the bolts look fresh. Doesn't look like it ever spent time at the beach.

I would baseline the truck with new wear and tear items. Most have been mentioned above. I would also go around the truck and grease the hinges and the window tracks, especially the rear sliding window. The grease dries out over time.

Good luck. There's a plethora of information on this forum and also from our own member, mtbtim's YouTube channel: YouTube