Hey guys, last year I sold my 99 limited.. Biggest mistake of my life. I'm looking to get back into a 4runner and I test drove this tonight. My question is, am I crazy for thinking this is a good deal? The paint had a few blemishes on the hatch and the interior had a few cig burns but other than that I thought it was in good shape. I would of course have Toyota do an inspection to make sure mechanically there was nothing major. Any thoughts? I am chomping at the bit to get back into a 4runner.
Is it a good deal?
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philskeeter
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If everything works on it(switches and 4wd etc) and all of the maintenance was done than I think its a very good deal because you still still be able to knock them down some more
bigswoleone
New member
FWIW I paid, proudly, $17.4k for an '05 Sport 4wd, granted it only had 63k miles. I think you may have a good deal there, again, just make sure all the "buttons" work. Good luck.
I've seen that dealerships ads all over the place. You may want to do some research on the dealership itself and make sure they are someone you want to do business with. Not saying they are good or bad, but I know of dealerships that I wouldn't buy any vehicle off of based on their business practices and not their inventory quality. The smoking would bother me, but it's still a good price and there are a lot of tricks and products to get rid of the smell. Let us know what happens.
Hey Keyrunner, I am in Greensboro and bought a 4runner (05 Ltd, 120k miles 4wd, for same price) from them a couple of months ago. They really know nothing about the vehicles, so it is all on you. Try to find the service records from the vehicle. Usually they have the carfax. I called the Toy dealers around the last owners location and found the dealer that serviced my vehicle.
Mine had issues, but since I was doing all the upgrades anyways, I went for it.
They don't deal much, but sometimes showing things that has to be fixed works for price reduction.
For the miles and the special versions, sounds like a good deal. Get it checked out. Mine needed new half shafts and some front end parts.
Biggest thing is did the oil get changed regularly. Plan on doing water pump, belts, hoses, transmission fluid change, dif fluids, antifreeze and more to get the vehicle up to date. Good luck!
Mine had issues, but since I was doing all the upgrades anyways, I went for it.
They don't deal much, but sometimes showing things that has to be fixed works for price reduction.
For the miles and the special versions, sounds like a good deal. Get it checked out. Mine needed new half shafts and some front end parts.
Biggest thing is did the oil get changed regularly. Plan on doing water pump, belts, hoses, transmission fluid change, dif fluids, antifreeze and more to get the vehicle up to date. Good luck!
Mliebal, thanks for the advice about the dealership! I'm not a big fan of them so far, I wouldn't have even gone there if it wasn't for the 4runner. I plan to have Rice Toyota look at it and make sure its in good shape. I think Rice can look up all the records on the truck. I will be bringing up the cig burns, paint scuffs, rear hatch shocks, and anything toyota finds to drive the price down. But I don't think they will go much lower though.
Carfax
I just checked the carfax, and two minor accidents have been reported. I am having toyota inspect the truck tomorrow. If they do not sign off on it I am going to pass over this one. as hard as it is to do that, I don't want to be constantly buying tires and alignments.
I just checked the carfax, and two minor accidents have been reported. I am having toyota inspect the truck tomorrow. If they do not sign off on it I am going to pass over this one. as hard as it is to do that, I don't want to be constantly buying tires and alignments.
Good plan
BTW, I would try for a lower mile 4runner. These go 300k easily, but like my 96 4runner at 300k, I put 220k on it myself. That was a lot of issue free miles, but at 230k onwards there were some minor stuff starting and flexplate broke at 280k and stuck a ring at 290 due to cracked air box. I like to keep my vehicles a long time, so spending a little more at the front end makes sense.
BTW, I would try for a lower mile 4runner. These go 300k easily, but like my 96 4runner at 300k, I put 220k on it myself. That was a lot of issue free miles, but at 230k onwards there were some minor stuff starting and flexplate broke at 280k and stuck a ring at 290 due to cracked air box. I like to keep my vehicles a long time, so spending a little more at the front end makes sense.
IMO it looks like you have a lot of options in that area. Searching on autotrader, they're mainly "higher mileage" but in the same realm as what you're looking at. Are you looking for an Urban Runner or would you settle with an SR5? I only ask because myself, I personally would want an accident free vehicle (although carfax can't catch everything, so you never really know...). If it checks out with your mechanic though, I'd say go for it.
