Newbie here! Need help finding my first 4runner
 

Helloooo! I need some help

It's been a long time coming and the wait is finally over for me....I'm finally making the move to own my first 4runner! Here's a little backstory of my car history...

I'm in the SoCal area and go the desert very often. I've been driving a Mazda 3 and have taken it off roading everywhere I go :shocked:
It's my first car(I've had it since high school) and I sure as hell beat the hell out of it! Never really took good care of it so now I'm dealing with all the repercussions of that. Oh well, lesson learned! For my next car I'll make sure to pay more attention, and take better care of it. No more neglecting.

I plan on getting a used 4th gen. 4runner.
After hours & hours of researching and reading(thank god for this forum) I would ideally like to get myself a 4runner with a V8 and obviously 4x4...

Unfortunately I haven't found any 4runners in my price range in my area. So now I've been searching in Utah, mostly SLC area and have found many affordable options that look very promising. Another luxury for me is my uncle lives in SLC. He's owned a 4runner so I'll be making sure to tag him along.

One thing that has me concerned about purchasing a car from that area though is the issue of rusting.
From my research it seems like Utah isn't part of "the salt belt" but it seems like 4th gen 4runners have had the issue of rusting easily? I don't know much but any input on this would be greatly appreciated.

Any 4th gen 4runner owners from the Utah area out here? If so, what has your experience been with this whole rusting issue? Does anyone NOT recommend me buying a used car from this area?

Sorry if I sound like a rookie! I'm just trying to make the right decision! Just because it maybe cheaper to purchase a car in another state doesn't mean it'll be worth it if this is a main concern. I want to make sure my trip to Utah will be worth it.

Also would like to add on to this...

Oddly enough a lot of the 4runners I'm finding from Utah were previously owned in New York which seems to be one of the worst states in terms of rusting due to their roads being salted so much.

I'm obviously going to have to take look underneath myself to see how it's looking but wanted to see if anyone has any input/experience with this issue especially for 4th gen 4runners since they seem to have a real issue with rusting.

Any "salt belt" 4runner owners from Utah or New York here?

https://www.ksl.com/auto/listing/5405912?ad_cid=17

Anyone think this one is overpriced or fair for all the xtra add ons it has to offer? This car was previously owned in Pennsylvania and New York:suspicious:


Am I worrying too much about rusting?

Here's some of the pictures I've retained for this specific car

Attachment 329517
Attachment 329518

To me...this looks bad....

But also side note, I'll be driving in SoCal where rusting is not an issue so maybe I shouldn't worry too much because it won't rust as bad out here over time?

I just bought a 4th gen 4runner this weekend! it's a 2004 V8 Sport 4x4 with 100K.

8 grand... pretty happy with that. anywho, I live in Northern Nevada, and this thing is virtually Rust free! granted it wasnt a Tahoe/Truckee area car.. and Always garaged too, Maybe try looking in this area too?

Honestly, that doesnt look terrible, maybe "Slightly" worse than surface rust

I know exactly which 4runner you're talking about!!! You straight up beat me to it! If it's the beige one then damn I'm stoked for you...

I was about to get on my way to the dealership to check it out and I guess you had bought it right before I called them.

Congrats!

Ok ok that's good to hear. I have no idea what bad to worse rust looks like to me

Well Surface rust is.. it looks orange, or always dirty, the paint is gone basically, Think "Patina" since you're in Socal, nothing major.

Rust that has corroded parts and bolts etc, that's not great, but fix able

Rust that has literally put a Hole through the Frame (Tacoma's....) that's definitely something to avoid.

Haha nope, Mine's Galactic Gray Mica. wow I love that color name, bought it Private Party

Congrats on the Galactic Gray score! I bought an 08 limited in Galactic Gray with 67k on it last OCT looked for a year but my patience was worth the wait!

Craigslist is always a good option. You can also reach out to several Toyota dealerships in your area.

Craiglist and Facebook marketplace for sure.

Wow nice friend

Howdy Elextron! That doesn't look too bad to me either when it comes to rust.