Excited to be part of the crew

[Crazed710]

Just bought my first vehicle last week at a local used car dealership. I got it for 8000 which seemed reasonable for a 2002 Limited with 180k miles. The car is pretty much perfect apart from a few minor issues.I couldn't wait to start working on the runner, and by the end of the next day I took of the running boards.

I have a few questions. First off, the antenna has been completely removed for whatever reason, but whenever I shutoff the car I can hear the motor try and retract the antenna back into the body. Kind of annoying and it seems like something that could be a quick fix. I don't really listen to the radio much, so doing the Tacoma whip mod seems like more money then I want to spend. Any way to just cutoff the power to the antenna motor?

Secondly, it appears there is a small oil leak from the back of engine block. I took it into a mechanic and he seemed to think it was the gasket heads being loose. He said that the parts were cheap but the labor can be expensive and if I wanted to get to know the engine I could probably do it myself. I have little to no car experience but I'm eager to get my hands dirty and learn some valuable skills. Would you guys recommend trying to do the job myself?

I'm also planning on using plasti-dip to paint emblems in the rear black. Also would like to put some new LED's in the display. Other then that, I'm afraid I have to wait until I have a little more coin in the coffers before I can lift it. Until then just some of the cheap little mods I have seen on the site!

 

[StreetCreeper]

Congrats on your new truck. $8000 sounds a bit high to me, but I suspose since I got mine for free, everything sounds high to me.

I belive you could just pull the radio out and disconnect the solid blue wire. No more motor noise since just the antenna motor won't have power.

As for the oil leak, I don't know cause I'm new at this too.

 

[LittleCaesar]

Welcome. Nice first car.

Try lightly tightening down the valve cover bolts first to see if that aids in slowing down the leak. Ultimately though the gaskets should be replaced. There are a couple if DIY tutorials on here on how to do it.

 

[Kenworth]

Ok oil leak is most likely your valve cover gaskets , its an easy job , u can first try to tighten the bolts down a bit this seems to help,for awhile.being in cal there's tons of guys from the forum from there maybe you can hook up with them for some guidance on the basic repairs?

 

[Kenworth]

Really if you search the forum theres really nothing that has not been covered
And have great write ups on DIY projects , enjoy

 

[nissanh]

Welcome to the forum. Where in Davis are you? I used to live in Sac/Reno. Did you talk to any 4runner owner before buying the truck? $8000 for a 02 with 180K seems little high.

My advice when it comes to buy parts/filters etc.,: Use only OEM parts (cheap at the dealer compared to aftermarket prices and we are here to help you to DIY). Get some good quality tools for cheap from Harbor freight tools. I know the parts store manager in Davis Toyota and he gives me very good discounts. If you want to know his name, please PM me.

IMPORTANT:
To tighten the valve cover, DO NOT USE a wrench. Just 10mm box socket and an extension. Turn it with your hand. Never use excessive force like you use in other applications. REASON: the valve cover may crack!

 

[gamefreakgc]

Welcome to the forum. Where in Davis are you? I used to live in Sac/Reno. Did you talk to any 4runner owner before buying the truck? $8000 for a 02 with 180K seems little high.

For whatever reason, 4Runners are stupid expensive in the Sacramento area. I got tired of terrible prices so I went to San Ramon to buy mine.

My closest dealer is the Roseville dealer, and I KNOW they do not have cheap parts. Try the parts division at Dallas as a comparable to the Davis dealer and see which is cheaper.

Aftermarket DENSO parts for the engine are actually OEM parts for Toyotas so sometimes other stores will sell these for cheaper than the dealer. In my experience you can go non-OEM for non-essentials such as gaskets (Fel-Pro aren't bad at all) and other plastic/rubber parts. Any sensors or weight bearing parts such as ball joints need to be top notch though.

 

[Crazed710]

Thanks for info. Yeah it does seem that 4runner prices in the Sac area are quite inflated, and I think I could have gotten a better deal up in the foothills or maybe even up north in Redding. I didn't have a car at the time though so it's hard to trek far to look at stuff.

Alright, I'll try tightening up the valve cover bolts. See if that helps. Also did some more research and think I'll try my hand at the deckplate mod. Seems like a good intro into working under the hood.

 

[foskco87]

Whether you paid a bit more or not for your 4runner, its beautiful and its about getting what you want. Sometimes to get what you want and get one that is already in the shape you want you gotta pay more than what the "book value" is. I live in BC where yota's are worth more than most other places... I had to pay $8000 to get my 2000 5 speed. It has less miles than yours but not that many less. The fact was I wanted that EXACT truck and I wasnt willing to wait another 2 years to find another one. I probably wont get out of it what I put into it but I didnt buy it to get my money back I bought it to be my truck. Just think... you could pay 40 grand for a brand new 4runner or you could pay 8 grand for a 4runner that is basically just as good and in damn near new condition (and looks way better).

 

[gamefreakgc]

Whether you paid a bit more or not for your 4runner, its beautiful and its about getting what you want. Sometimes to get what you want and get one that is already in the shape you want you gotta pay more than what the "book value" is. I live in BC where yota's are worth more than most other places... I had to pay $8000 to get my 2000 5 speed. It has less miles than yours but not that many less. The fact was I wanted that EXACT truck and I wasnt willing to wait another 2 years to find another one. I probably wont get out of it what I put into it but I didnt buy it to get my money back I bought it to be my truck. Just think... you could pay 40 grand for a brand new 4runner or you could pay 8 grand for a 4runner that is basically just as good and in damn near new condition (and looks way better).

Very true. Most of us on here are never going to sell unless we are in really dire need... so it's not like we are looking for resale value! However, cheaper purchase price does mean more money to use on mods and such.

 

[jeff88]

Welcome to the board! Hope your safe and dry in this torrential down pour! Heard it's pretty bad up there.

Anyway, glad you found what you want and it seems to be the perfect clean slate to make it "yours". I think another first mod (maybe combined with the deckplate) is to do the ISR mod. Personally, I'd start with the ISR. No point in putting more air in, if you're going to get it stuck inside little compartments.

The best first mod though is a standalone trans cooler. It'll be worth every penny when it saves your rig from the "milkshake". Seriously, if you haven't yet, search for pink milkshake.

Is the 4R 4x4? E-locker?

 

[KANO]

Congrats on the new Runner! And nice color choice lol!

Here's my thread where you can check out what plastidipped emblems and wheels would look like on your color and wheels http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/181452-kanos-progress-thread.html

Good luck with the oil leak and welcome!

 

[2KT4R]

Everyone says it.... and for good reason, anytime theres someone new the the runner scene with an automatic.....

Check into the "PINK MILKSHAKE" search it on here, and make sure you are aware. It can save you thousands if your active in preventing it.

One of your first mods should def be popping in an external cooler for your transmission. Eliminate the chance of it even happening. It can cost you as little as $60, and not a difficult install atall.... especially since you wanna "get your hands dirty"

I personally have had it happen to mine and it wasn't pleasant.... however, i am one of the lucky ones and after several flushes and now an external cooler install.... she's been going strong for whats been just short of a year since!

Enjoy! and get in there... mods are fun!

 

[nissanh]

Yes, forgot to mention about milkshake. Forget about all the mods.... priority is the radiator, if your radiator is old/unknown age.

 

[afg10000]

Hello and welcome to the money pit. x2 on the above poster about tightening the valve cover bolts (IIRC only 4.5 lbs torque). Be careful. Not to be a poopy but I'd also verify it's the valve covers leaking. I know it's common, but when I bought my wife's '01, it had a rear main seal leak. Makes a mess in the same place. All the little things you listed are fun and cheap. May as well chuck some cheap LED's in the center console whilst you are disconnecting the power antenna wire. One thing I did with my first 4Runner is just stockpile parts for my build until it was all there to do at once. For instance, just start buying poly bushings, TBU parts, maybe a set of shocks, etc. when you've got a few bucks to spare. I'm sure you've seen this on here but don't neglect the LBJ's, especially when installing lift. After having 3 of these, the first thing I ALWAYS do is plugs, wires, fuel filter, air filter, TBU, ball joints and any system flushes that are necessary. Those things are fairly cheap on their own and will get you familiar with the truck. Enjoy the 4Runner and welcome -

 

[Crazed710]

Yeah. Airfilter looks super clean and new, and most of the fluids looked very clean, but it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to flush them myself and get acquainted with working on the car. Also looked around for transmission external cooler threads, found this one which looks alright. If anybody had a link to a better one it would be much appreciated. Maybe with some help on which brands to trust. Thanks.

 

[Brique]

Another little thing. Your 4runner is actually a truck. A body on frame masterpiece of rugged refinement. You might hurt its feelings if you call it a car.

 

[Crazed710]

Haha I'll keep that in mind. Also looks like I might get my first opportunity to do some work sooner then I thought, vsc track, trac off and check engine light all just came on together...

 

[afg10000]

Haha I'll keep that in mind. Also looks like I might get my first opportunity to do some work sooner then I thought, vsc track, trac off and check engine light all just came on together...

Maybe invest in a Scangauge 2 or other such OBDII reader first. There seems to be an angry Toyota god telling all newer 3rd gens to throw these codes recently. Perhaps it's just because it happened to me a while back and a recent rash of threads on here that I notice.

 

[Crazed710]

Yeah a little disappointing. Borrowed a friends scanner and got a P0440 returned. Hoping I just didn't tighten the gas cap enough or something. A lot of people mentioned that you can get this problem with an aftermarket gas cap, so I'm now trying to determine if thats my problem. Not super worried as most people with serious problems smelled gas which isn't my case. Either way I unplugged the battery for 45 min which made the CEL light go out. Hopefully I don't see it again!