i'VE hAD THREE EVAPORE CORES IN MY 2005 v6 150,000 MILES 4RUNNER. oem LAST 4 YEARS - dealer replace with one I supplied that lasted 9 years.

Just replaced a new one at a top shop for $800. I supplied the evap for $90.

I got 75000 miles on each evaporator

Freezing cold so far.

That’s definitely not a normal failure rate.

BostonJon: Where's your proof to back up your statement. Do you own a 4runner? Work for a dealer? What?

They fail regularly. Possibly because we use it every day and we are in the Bahamas. OEM lasted 4 years in a new 4runner.

It is normal for them to fail IMO. Got 9 years out of the replacement evaporator. Dealer installed that one. I supplied the part.

2005 4runner with 150,000 miles (3 starter failures over the years.) Two bolts to get the new one on which came with a lifetime warranty. I kept the box and receipt on this one - and purchased a $90 backup new starter from Amazon (no lifetime warranty on this one). No HG issues which is common in 5% to 10%.

I'm in the Bahamas. A starter from the dealer was once quoted me at $900.
Do yourself a big favor, don't try replacing or rebuilding the solenoid switch on the starter. Buy a NEW unit for $90 - or you'll be under the car in a year doing the job over again. A new starter from Amazon will last 4 years - the same as the OEM that came with your car - IMO

A starter here in Nassau Bahamas might see 5 times as many starts a year as one in Florida. The island is only 23 miles long. Grocery store/supermarket is 1 mile away.

Amazingly, the WP, radiator and alternator are OEM. Great for a 15 year old car.

What is the average life of a new radiator? (automobile)? | Yahoo Answers

two 4runners in the video below have 500,000 miles + and 800,000 miles +

average life f car radiator - Bing

they do not fail "regularly" captnsolo... & neither do starters.

it is not normal for starters & evaporators to fail that often regardless of where you live.

Beat it firebirdass. You don't know what you are talking about. Do you even own a 4runner?
Don't expect an answer from this wingnut!
Amazon.com : toyota 4runner starter

I've replaced 3 (or 4) starters in my 15-year-old 4runner purchased from new. Cheap part at Amazon $90.


4 Common Complaints About 2005 Toyota 4Runners and How To Solve Them
4 Common Complaints About 2005 Toyota 4Runners and How To Solve Them | Toyota Parts Center Blog

Whatever you do DON'T rebuild a failed starter (even if it's just solenoid). I had that done at a professional shop and it lasted one year and failed again. A new ($90) one is cheap off Amazon and will last trouble-free at least 4 years in my experience.

Of course if you like replacing a failed rebuilt solenoid every year, go ahead.

The OEM evaporator that came with my new 4runner failed at 4 years. The dealer replacement lasted 9 years. New one in there now is from Amazon ($90).

Parts fail and don't last forever. If you are looking for parts like these to last 30 years you are dreaming. JMHO

Cool video toyota 4runner common problems - Bing video

Instead of replacing the starter with a POS Chinese made starter off Amazon 4 times, I'd rather buy an OEM from Toyota.

Higher up-front cost, but my current one has 224,000 miles on it and is 15 years old.

Also, only installing it hopefully once, not over and over again as it fails.

Just my 2 cents.

The original OEM starter that came with the car failed in 4 years. The replacement failed in 4 years as well.

The current starter in there now came with a lifetime warranty.

Good luck finding a company offering that warranty again. Amazon.com: DB Electrical SND0491 Starter Compatible With/Replacement For Toyota Tacoma & Tundra 4.0L 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 & 4Runner 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 FJ Cruiser 2007 2008 2009: Automotive

A genuine AISN starter costs twice as much and they don't have one for my 4runner. Amazon.com: Genuine Toyota Parts 28100-62030-84 Remanufactured Starter for Toyota 4Runner V6/T100 V6/Tacoma V6/Tundra V6: Automotive

Frankly none of this is a big deal as long as they last 4 or more years.

The original OEM starter that came with the car failed in 4 years. The replacement failed in 4 years as well.

The current starter in there now came with a lifetime warranty.

Good luck finding a company offering that warranty again. Amazon.com: DB Electrical SND0491 Starter Compatible With/Replacement For Toyota Tacoma & Tundra 4.0L 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 & 4Runner 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 FJ Cruiser 2007 2008 2009: Automotive

A genuine AISN starter costs twice as much and they don't have one for my 4runner. Amazon.com: Genuine Toyota Parts 28100-62030-84 Remanufactured Starter for Toyota 4Runner V6/T100 V6/Tacoma V6/Tundra V6: Automotive

Frankly, none of this is a big deal as long as they last 4 or more years.

Since this migrated to starters, a quick perspective:

I've driven exclusively Toyotas for a little over 1.3 million miles over the past 40 years. I don't recall ever replacing an OEM starter, but maybe I did one time. This includes my 1988 4Runner, which I used as a field service tech, and I started that truck 10-15 times a day, 5 days a week. The starter was the one thing I expected to see fail, but it didn't, all the way to 305k miles. Most of the others also went past 200k.

Given the option, I would never replace an OEM starter with an aftermarket one. What good is an aftermarket lifetime warranty if you need to do the job over again (with yet another aftermarket starter) in order to collect on it?

As for evaporators, I haven't experienced a failure on one.

The OEM starter in my 2005 4runner failed in 4 years. The dealer's shop rebuilt the solenoid and that fix lasted one year. I then started using AM starters. Ironically the first AM starter failed in 4 years too (same as the OEM).

The current starter in there now came with a lifetime warranty. The manufacturer was Quality Built. It's been in their 4-1/2 years so far. I called QB and they will honor that lifetime warranty. I purchased a new AM starter for when the lifetime warranty QB starter fails.

The OEM evaporator failed in 5 years. The Dealer replaced it with another evaporator and that worked for 9 years - until it failed.

I then bought an AM/Denzo from Amazon for $90. I had that installed at a professional AC shop at a cost of $880.

I've had ice cold AC fr a month now - apparently no freon leaks.

Also. The AC compressor failed about 3 years ao and was replaced.

I keep good records of all replacements, the time they lasted as well as other histories for this 4runner which I owned from brand new.

that's not a bad price if it is all oem at this point. How many miles on your original? mine has 214K now and no signs of trouble, but i am wondering if I need to do anything to maintain its performance as long as possible? I let go of an amazing 04 Camry years ago mainly due to cost of replacing AC during one of our hottest 'streaks' here, with almost 270K miles on it. Looking back, I wish I had bit the bullet and replaced it. It would not have added that much in resale value, but I would have kept it another 100k.

Once the evaporator leaks you need to replace it. Have an expert check it out if you suspect it leaks.

My OEM AC compressor leaked after10 years and I replaced with $200 Amazon. The OEM evap. failed in 5 years and dealer replaced with one I had to buy and bring them. That one lasted 9 years until it failed.

I now got ice cold like new - thanks to the AC shop that replaced my 3rd evaporator (I bought it to them). I'm very satisfied.

I'm sorry about the delay in response to your question. Well I finally got the job done. Luckily I had a loaner vehicle that I could use while my 4Runner sat in my yard with grass growing up around it.

Words of advice...video a lot of it along with your commentary on what you're doing and get yourself a PDF copy of the Toyota service manual on eBay. Bag your nuts and bolts in small ziplock bags and write on there what step in the manual they were removed. Luckily there's only a few different sized bolts throughout the process so it's pretty easy to keep straight what hardware goes where. There's a couple of good how to videos on how to get down to the radio in the vehicle so that helped. There's just that one video on youtube on evaporator Replacement in a 2006 4Runner and it really did help a lot. I slowed it down and watched it many times. I'm making my own video I will be posting sometime.


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