Looking at purchasing this 2000 4Runner limited 4x4

4

4runnergeek

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Hey everyone, looking to get some advice here. Just test drove a 2000 4runner 4x4 Limited. Body is in excellent shape, paint still shines, interior is mint (no tears on the leather), and it runs and shifts smooth. It has the original motor and transmission. No weird vibrations, no weird sounds, just an overall solid truck. The current owner purchased it from a dealer back in 2005 and has maintained it religiously. He's providing me with all the receipts since his ownership and it's a pretty large stack of receipts and well organized. Timing belt/water pump will need to be replaced in 15 k miles. The only concern I have is the high mileage. He wants $5k and the mileage is 247k miles. Here's the link to the ad:

https://ventura.craigslist.org/cto/6021344756.html

Is $5k too high? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
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I asked about that too but the owner said he replaced it because there was a slow leak from the radiator. I'll verify in his receipts.
 
The receipts probably wont state a reason for the replacement, you can look for some signs such as residue inside the coolant reservoir or brand new transmission fluid/filter.
As for the price and mileage, I think the price might be a little high for the mileage especially considering its close to needing a timing belt job. Are the valve covers leaking? A compression check wouldn't be a bad idea, if I were buying a 4Runner with that many miles I would want to do one, in order to get a sense of the health of the motor.
How are the brakes and tires?
Have the rear axle seals and bearings been serviced/have you checked if they are leaking?
 
I'll check the receipts to see if the transmission fluid was replaced with the radiator. Valve covers aren't leaking. Brakes and tires in excellent shape. I'm not sure if the rear axle seals and bearings were replaced but when I looked underneath I didn't see any major issues.

Thanks for the advice.

Yoter said:
The receipts probably wont state a reason for the replacement, you can look for some signs such as residue inside the coolant reservoir or brand new transmission fluid/filter.
As for the price and mileage, I think the price might be a little high for the mileage especially considering its close to needing a timing belt job. Are the valve covers leaking? A compression check wouldn't be a bad idea, if I were buying a 4Runner with that many miles I would want to do one, in order to get a sense of the health of the motor.
How are the brakes and tires?
Have the rear axle seals and bearings been serviced/have you checked if they are leaking?
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In our area....if it is truly as nice as is claimed....and no tranny issue....it would go for 5k pretty darn fast.
 
If you haven't checked the underside for rust, do so. Seems basic but in the excitement of trying to acquire a vehicle it's amazing what you'll forget to look at. I ran across a rusty one and it amazed me how clean the rest of the vehicle was to have a nearly rotted in half frame under it.

I gave under $5k for one with a shave fewer miles, but I also have a laundry list of maintenance items that need doing. Nothing serious wrong, just a lot of catching up to do. But to me the plus side to that is if I do them myself I won't doubt that they were done.

I say from your description, if everything is as it seems, it sounds like a good 4runner. $5k is not at all unreasonable. I wouldn't worry over the mileage that much with these.

A lot goes unnoticed before you buy it. After it's yours and you start driving it every day is when you notice a vibration here, a rough sound there, a glitchy shift there, at least that is how it was for me. But I got a 3rd gen thinking no matter what might go wrong with it, it would not be impossible to fix, and a heck of a lot easier to fix than a newer vehicle.
 
It got an E-locker too!

Drive about 50- 60 miles on highway find any issues you come across. Post it here.
 
I would drive it on the street and fwy for signs of any issues. Then test the 4wd and elocker to see if they engage. If all is well I would jump on it. 2000 is the last year the elocker was available on the 3rd gens. I bought my 98 with 260k for $3500 in much worse shape so 5K sounds pretty damn reasonable to me. As a matter of fact, if I didn't have my 98, I would jump on it if you didn't buy it. Keep in mind no matter what 3rd gen you buy you have to keep in mind that it will be a "work in progress." There is a laundry list of stuff to replace but pretty much everything is covered on this forum.
 
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I appreciate that folks are looking for advice, but I'll never understand threads like this. You're pretty much laying out your hand for the seller, while at the same time giving a heads up to your competition!

Questions good. Direct links to a specific vehicle bad!:spy:
 
I_bRAD said:
I appreciate that folks are looking for advice, but I'll never understand threads like this. You're pretty much laying out your hand for the seller, while at the same time giving a heads up to your competition!

Questions good. Direct links to a specific vehicle bad!:spy:
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I understand what you're saying and typically I would feel the same way, but in this particular case, we've already agreed on the price, I've provided a down payment, and the guy doesn't seem like the type to pull back from a deal just to get an extra few hundred dollars from someone else. He seemed very trustworthy and just an honest guy overall. He lives in my area too so dealing with local folks is great.
 
reelamin said:
In our area....if it is truly as nice as is claimed....and no tranny issue....it would go for 5k pretty darn fast.
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I was very surprised when I saw the truck in person and was able to test drive it. It honestly didn't feel like it had over 240K miles. There were no weird creaks, noises, etc. Just ran smooth and everything worked.

jgue467 said:
I think that's a reasonable price given the variables. Just drive it, you'll know then if it's the one. Luck and enjoy. :cowboy:
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Thanks and will do.

Airmapper said:
If you haven't checked the underside for rust, do so. Seems basic but in the excitement of trying to acquire a vehicle it's amazing what you'll forget to look at. I ran across a rusty one and it amazed me how clean the rest of the vehicle was to have a nearly rotted in half frame under it.

I gave under $5k for one with a shave fewer miles, but I also have a laundry list of maintenance items that need doing. Nothing serious wrong, just a lot of catching up to do. But to me the plus side to that is if I do them myself I won't doubt that they were done.

I say from your description, if everything is as it seems, it sounds like a good 4runner. $5k is not at all unreasonable. I wouldn't worry over the mileage that much with these.

A lot goes unnoticed before you buy it. After it's yours and you start driving it every day is when you notice a vibration here, a rough sound there, a glitchy shift there, at least that is how it was for me. But I got a 3rd gen thinking no matter what might go wrong with it, it would not be impossible to fix, and a heck of a lot easier to fix than a newer vehicle.
Click to expand...

I did look underneath and didn't see any rust. The owner also said he bought it from a friend who worked at the dealership and it was purchased in California and has been in California its entire life.

nissanh said:
It got an E-locker too!

Another reason why I'm purchasing the truck :)

Drive about 50- 60 miles on highway find any issues you come across. Post it here.
Click to expand...

Will do.

cbr900boy said:
I would drive it on the street and fwy for signs of any issues. Then test the 4wd and elocker to see if they engage. If all is well I would jump on it. 2000 is the last year the elocker was available on the 3rd gens. I bought my 98 with 260k for $3500 in much worse shape so 5K sounds pretty damn reasonable to me. As a matter of fact, if I didn't have my 98, I would jump on it if you didn't buy it. Keep in mind no matter what 3rd gen you buy you have to keep in mind that it will be a "work in progress." There is a laundry list of stuff to replace but pretty much everything is covered on this forum.
Click to expand...

I did test drive it around the local streets and brought it up to around 50-55mph. I haven't test drove it on the freeway, which I will be doing the next time I see him. I did pull over to test the 4wd and elocker to check the engagement and it works perfectly. I do understand its a work in progress and I'm willing to invest time and money if needed.

Thanks again everyone for the replies and advice.

hang10 said:
Well.............if you buy it. Ditch those running boards. JMHO :rockon:
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As for the running boards, NOPE, can't get rid of them lol I have two kids who are still fairly young so they need that extra step to help them get in the truck. Plus my wife likes the running boards so I have to compromise a little bit lol
 
I say go to Chuy's and have a couple pitchers of 805 and some wings!
I've got a beautiful well maintained alway garaged limited with 180K that blew a head gasket between ensenada and san felipe......I'll never buy a high mileage truck again. yup, once bitten......
 
baja1 said:
I say go to Chuy's and have a couple pitchers of 805 and some wings!
I've got a beautiful well maintained alway garaged limited with 180K that blew a head gasket between ensenada and san felipe......I'll never buy a high mileage truck again. yup, once bitten......
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Chuys...nope, never going in there again. Terrible customer service. Although I do like your idea of beer and wings.

I totally understand about not purchasing a high mileage truck. Lots of factors that can go wrong, but I've had some success purchasing high mileage vehicles, such as our Rav4 and it still runs great. I'm hoping I have the same success with this 4runner.
 
tjaguilar said:
Not a bad deal. Ive seen worse on CL in the Bay Area and people asking for the same amount or more.
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Yeah I've seen similar prices on CL but I'm still amazed how a truck with over 250K miles is going for $5k. Typically cars with over 250K miles are worth as much as scrap metal lol
 
I think its a nice find.
If the dealer did a radiator and tranny flush then you know what happened. Its not the end of the world. I bought mine, form a dealer, clean car fax, but then I wnet to the dealer with my vin to get the service records. It had a "drivability issue" at one point. dealer replaced radiator and tranny flush. At that point reading that I was pissed and afraid. Well that was about 20k before I bought it, and I have put another almost 30k on it, no issues. However, after finding that out, I dropped the pan, to look around, flushed the tranny again. So they must have caught early enough.

BTW, both previous owners had every service, oil change, windsheild wipers even flat repairs done at the dealer
 
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