HELP! Is this a good buy? 2002 4x4 4Runner

[ewingeric]

Hey friends!

Looking at purchasing my very first 4Runner! Came across one that seems like a good deal, but seeing as I'm just getting into this world of 4x4/overlanding, I'm not 100% on what I'm looking for.. any help would be great

Images are attached, but here are the finer details..

2002 4x4 4Runner
Has 234k on the clock
Had a JDM motor put in about 2 yrs ago had 80k on it when installed.
Has aprox. 110k on it now

Everything is new on it:

• Axles
• Steering
• 4.56 Gears
• Rear locker
• Tundra Brakes
• Exhaust
• Steering Rack
• Radiator
• Tranny Cooler
• Ball Joints
• SPC lower control arms

Also has the following:

• All LED interior lighting
• Shrock Works front winch bumper
• Morimoto head lights
• Rear Camera
• Sonoran 2.0 Lift
• Front Bilstein Coil Covers
• Rear Toytec springs/ Belstein Shocks
• Goodyear mtrs with 5k on them
• Icon Wheels
• Pioneer touch screen radio w/ Apple car play
• Full tint all the way around

Seller has receipts for nearly everything.

Seller is asking 11K.

Question is, is this a good deal? Is there anything else I should ask/know about the vehicle?

TIA!

 

[APhelps]

Looks to me like a pretty squared away 4R for off-roading / mall crawling. Seems a bit over priced but well cared for. I guess the big question is can he prove that he replaced all those components?

 

[jgue467]

Clean, good looking yet it's only worth MAX $4000 without the add-ons.

So only you can decide if the Add-Ons are worth the difference.

No opinions on Add-Ons, they're just that - the worth is in the beholder.

Luck and enjoy a Runner. :cowboy:

 

[eddielasvegas]

Keep looking and be patient.

Good luck,

Eddie

 

[WRWhit93]

Looks great to me, well kept. Not sure what prices in TX are like, but I'd try and go a little cheaper if possible. Also is there a winch in the bumper or just the fairlead?

 

[johnbyebye]

I'm just here to say that it's beautiful lol.

 

[DominionRoofs]

I think it's overpriced personallly. I know that these things last a long time but miles are miles and maintenance is never really known 100% without all the documentation.

 

[ewingeric]

This guy has TONNNNS of receipts and such on maintenance. I can definitely tell that this guy has taken great care of it!

While I know it’s expensive, my thought is that with the maintenance and addons he’s put, it seems worth the price?

 

[JRZEE2000TR4LTD]

This guy has TONNNNS of receipts and such on maintenance. I can definitely tell that this guy has taken great care of it!

While I know it’s expensive, my thought is that with the maintenance and addons he’s put, it seems worth the price?

LOL your mind's already made up. As others have said, a little overpriced so if your gonna dive in offer $10K and remind him that miles are miles no matter what. And unless he saw the JDM vehicle it came out of, 80K on the motor when he replaced it is not verifiable.


Also, tons of receipts is not always a good thing. What are the receipts for? Is he chasing a problem and throwing parts at it? Just saying. It does look nice though.

 

[Riceye]

Ask the seller if he has a box in the garage containing a trd supercharger, and all the special bits. If so, now it’s only a little overpriced.

 

[pluton]

If the seller did a lot of off-highway driving, it may be trashed. If/when you test drive it, pay particular attention to how tight the suspension feels. Tight means no free play, sloppy feel, mysterious clunks when going over bumps, etc.
Also, at that mileage, the Auto Trans could go at any time, without warning.
Make sure you budget ahead for unplanned, unforeseen repairs.
Check the rear axle seals. If they are leaking, take $1200 off the asking price immediately.

 

[gamefreakgc]

That 4Runner was definitely loved by the owner. That's a lot of mods and accessories and some of those jobs (steering rack) is not a simple task.

Is it worth 11k to you? I could see it selling for that much to the right buyer. Maybe that's you.

 

[LittleCaesar]

I would ask why the original engine was replaced.

Clean engine bay, but no AC port caps. Hmmm.

$8.5k is as high as I would go.

 

[kevinRR]

Look like it's been well taken care of. I would ask if the timing belt and water pump been done. And if the rear main seal was replaced before he drop the motor in. 8k is the max I would pay for it.

 

[thegipper]

I wouldn't be a buyer at that price but no doubt, the truck does look very nice and appears to have been well maintained.

 

[JohnMc]

Fixing things like a bad steering rack and a bad motor doesn't' add value to a car, it simply maintains the value. In other words, if it had a busted motor it would be cheap, if it has a working motor, that's simply not a price factor any more.

At 230K, why did it even need a new motor?

It's pretty, some people are willing to pay a lot more for something that looks that nice. Personally, I'd be looking at one for half the price, and if I spent another $5500 on mods it would end up more suited to how I want to use it.

 

[AntleredRuin]

Fixing things like a bad steering rack and a bad motor doesn't' add value to a car, it simply maintains the value. In other words, if it had a busted motor it would be cheap, if it has a working motor, that's simply not a price factor any more.

At 230K, why did it even need a new motor?

It's pretty, some people are willing to pay a lot more for something that looks that nice. Personally, I'd be looking at one for half the price, and if I spent another $5500 on mods it would end up more suited to how I want to use it.

Agreed. Replacing the engine doesn't mean :banana:It has a new engine!:banana:. It means that it has a working engine, in general. He put the new engine in so he didn't have to sell the rest of the truck to a junkyard for $1k. That should not raise the price at all.
Not to mention the rest of the vehicle (minus the maintenance items) still have 230k+ miles on them.

 

[SeaBass8]

Looks like a real nice, clean truck.

IMO the market for heavily modified rigs like this is very limited. Meaning very few buyers actually looking for this setup. That really works in your favor.

I'd comp the truck to a less modified trucks in the same condition in your area and then calculate what all his mods are worth to YOU. The maintenance items help the value for sure but it's still a 4runner at the end of the day, a nice one, but still a 3rd gen 4Runner.

 

[calimobber]

Your going to see people all over the place on this one. Depends on where everyone lives so take everyone input with a grain of sand.


I paid 10k for my 2002 in 2011 with 145k miles in the LA area. lots of people said i was crazy but thats just the going rate where I lived.

I would say this one depends on what you have been seeing in the area. I agree i think its a little high but if all those components look good and he has receipts then maybe its what your looking for. Make sure you drive it and inspect or have others look for you. If I wanted 4.56 gears and that bumper and i replaced some of those It get pretty expensive for me. I don't agree with others on new parts don't add value, if they are intact new OEM then thats something your not replacing for a very long time. Where as I had to replace lots of those things even after paying 10k.

Im no expert but Id want to pay around 8-9k or something like this in my area, so take that for what its worth. Good luck on your hunt.

 

[gamefreakgc]

Yes, opinions will very. The ones who say it's terribly overpriced aren't realizing the value added by the mods and only looking at the mileage and state of the vehicle. Those mods don't add value for everyone, just for those looking for them.

That rig will sell for close to 11k. Maybe 10k if he's eager to sell. It's clean and the mods were done well so it's worth what he's selling it for.