2002 Sport Edition - Take a bath?

[75Denver]

A little over a year ago I bought an ‘02 off a gentleman selling his late-mother’s 4Runner. At the time, I thought it was a pretty good deal despite it having 215k mi. 1-owner, garage kept, rust free CA life (underside is insanely clean!), immaculate interior, and full dealership service records. Yet, after spending some time with it, I began to see how much it actually needed.
I’ll admit, I’m a little OCD with all my vehicles and went all OEM parts aside from the Bilstein shocks. Here’s a list of all the work I did along with recent services:

‘99 factory coils
Bilstein shocks (aftermarket)
All new bushings
Rear UCA/LCA
Panhard bar
New Steering rack
LBJ
Tie rod ends
Steering column linkage
Valve cover gaskets
Tuneup
Brake flush
PS flush
T-case/axles
Trans fluid replacement
New pulley and tensioner
Fan clutch (+ something else)
Drive belts
Radiator and hoses
Tundra brake upgrade
Stainless brake lines (aftermarket)
Rear axle seals
Rear brakes
2 windshields (!!)
Falken Wildpeak AT4W’s
Weather tech (front/rear)
Ceramic tint all around
Driver side weatherstripping
Rear cargo struts
Bug deflector
Pass front/rear glass trim

I’m sure I’m missing something. I stopped counting at $26k and after driving it everyday the last year as my sales car (now 233k), my body needs something else for the road. What went from a reasonably priced, reliable sales car turn “restoration”, I quickly intended to keep it another 150k mi. I’ve come to a crossroad. I love driving it as it’s my third 3rd Gen, but I have two other vehicles that just sit.

My question for you all is, will I take a bath on the sale? I know most car markets have seen a decline the last year or so (Early Broncos have!), but how is the 3rd Gen mkt? Is it even worth trying to sell seeing as I’m in so deep? For relative purposes, what do you all have tied up in yours?

 

[rdruss]

Google old rock star "Bobby Darin" and check out one of his hits.

 

[Mendoncyclesmith]

Yeah, sunk cost fallacy right here. Sorry...

You either accept the loss and watch someone else drive away with a truck you put a ton of money into and just swallow it, or drive it enough that the cash outlay, ceases to be a factor in your choices/feelings.

Fully built out, (bigger tires, suspension beyond stock, bumpers, rock sliders, etc etc etc) these vehicles barely tickle $20, 25K (which is still awesome), but anyone looking at this goes, okay, cool, nice it has all these new parts, but it still has power plant that is at best, halfway done, at worst, who knows how long till X blows and they need to sink money into an engine replacement etc.

Nice truck, seriously, but she's a suburban mall crawler in her current trim, so no one is going to give you anywhere near what you put into it, mostly cause they're gonna rip most of it off and do a trail build anyway.....

If it helps, my '96 was $10K, ~12 years ago, I've easily put $15K+, in off-road improvements, and wouldn't get more than maybe what I paid for it, back out, and I'm okay with that.

 

[75Denver]

Thank you for the advice. I knew I was making the wrong decision by shelling out at every piece needing attention. But then again, wasn’t planning on letting it go. The question is “how much” of a hit? This site definitely leans towards modifications, so I might be asking the wrong crowd. I either find the right person looking for a stock 4Runner or give it to my son in 4yrs. The loss is what it is. I appreciate the input.

 

[ch1966]

Put it in storage and continue the upkeep.
You might be amazed at the money someone will spend for it 20 years from now.

 

[ninethings]

I mean, I've seen clean tacomas of similar vintage go at auction for $25k+. I think the only place you might take the least hit would be an auction house, BaT or similar. Marketplace, etc., you're gonna be hurting... a lot.

I bought my '02 sport edition 7yrs ago for $6.5k, super clean, 1 owner, garage kept, etc. Exactly what you look for. I have put probably $15k in to it, conservatively, and would be lucky to get $10k today. As with most every old car, it is usually a negative ROI.

 

[2TH4IST]

It looks super clean. But I'm going to be honest, that's all regular maintenance items youve done. With maybe 2 upgrades. Is it 2wd or 4wd? 2wd, won't get much for it. It's almost 24 years old w/233k miles on it. If it's 4wd then you have a better chance getting more $ for it. But then again the car market in general is bad now as no one has money to spend. I'd just store it, drive it a few times and keep it for your son.

How much a hit your going to take is impossible to guess. You'll never get back what you put in. I stopped counting after I bought the car as I'm not intending on flipping it for a profit.

 

[phattyduck]

Also something to think about - it sounds like the one issue you have is the seat comfort... unless you need more space or more MPG. Maybe all you need is the right seats...

-Charlie

 

[JohnMc]

It looks super clean. But I'm going to be honest, that's all regular maintenance items youve done. With maybe 2 upgrades.

This. It's nice that it doesn't have a ton of deferred maintenance, but still, doing maintenance just keeps the value normal, it doesn't add value. And modifications are tricky, they can hurt the value, and only rarely really add to the value (or at least, add more value than they cost).

Judging by sales prices I've seen, the most valuable 3rd gens are bone stock, low miles, and insanely clean underneath. Miss any one of those 3 things and the value drops a fair amount.

 

[pluton]

I love driving it as it’s my third 3rd Gen, but I have two other vehicles that just sit.

Sell one of the other vehicles....the ones you apparently don't drive much.