Looking to buy a 2002 Limited :)

[Hepar]

Where are you located? Chances are there's a group of us around you. We tend to get together here and there to work on our rigs, so it would be a great opportunity to learn a thing or two and meet some great folks along the way.

 

[rknight]

First, an open diff is where it has mechanical power coming in through a driveshaft, but each side of the axle comng out of the diff can rotate independent of the other. Like when turning, the outside wheels need to spin faster than the insde wheels, but both need power. This is bad when offroading though. Because if one of the wheels on an axle gets to a point where it has no traction (in the air or mud) then all the power coming from the driveshaft will go to that wheel. Because it is the path of least resistance. If you lock the diff, all of the power through the driveshaft goes to both wheels no matter what. The center diff works much the same.

Look on youtube for videos of how they work. But honestly, unless you will be hardcore offroading you will have no use for one. I have yet to get to a point where i needed one in my 3+ years of owning my 4runner.

Copy that.

 

[rknight]

Where are you located? Chances are there's a group of us around you. We tend to get together here and there to work on our rigs, so it would be a great opportunity to learn a thing or two and meet some great folks along the way.

Opposite side of a different country - Toronto, Canada!

Maybe there are some of my locals on here : )

 

[rknight]

I think I've decided I like the SR5 exterior over the Limited. I love the chrome bumpers, the lack of body-cladding and the chrome fender flares.

For t-case reasons, I'd be looking at an 01-02. Preferably one with leather (I have a childhood psychological scarring with upholstery and road sickness). A sunroof would be great too as I'm not a fan of A/C.

Is there anything one might significantly miss having in the SR5 that you can only get in the Limited (sorry if this is redundant, re: the buyer's thread - it's a wealth of information, so much so that it's hard for a rookie like me to digest, even after several times)?

Thanks.

 

[4-Ripcord]

Look at the features in the limiteds and see if there is anything you want.


For one, the leather seats in 01-02 limiteds are heated. The leather upgrade package for SR5's was not heated.

Also, the stereo head unit in the limiteds is a bit better. Easily remedied though..

Auto A/C. Lately a lot of people have been having problems with the AC control unit in the limited and have to get a new one to the tune of about $150. So I actually prefer the standard controls on the SR5.

The limited will for sure have fog lights, the SR5 will be a hit or miss. Depends if the original owner bought that package.

Obviously you will still get multi-mode and TRAC/VSC in both models.


Other than that, the wood grain trim on the limiteds, yuck.

 

[Hepar]

I think I've decided I like the SR5 exterior over the Limited. I love the chrome bumpers, the lack of body-cladding and the chrome fender flares.

For t-case reasons, I'd be looking at an 01-02. Preferably one with leather (I have a childhood psychological scarring with upholstery and road sickness). A sunroof would be great too as I'm not a fan of A/C.

Is there anything one might significantly miss having in the SR5 that you can only get in the Limited (sorry if this is redundant, re: the buyer's thread - it's a wealth of information, so much so that it's hard for a rookie like me to digest, even after several times)?

Thanks.

4-Ripcord went over a lot of the pros of the Limiteds, but I personally looked to avoid them. I'm not a leather fan in these vehicles (I like the cloth better and plus the leather is often beat up since these are 10+ year old vehicles). I don't like the wood trim. The extra body cladding at the base of the doors is a little too much for me. The climate control has a reputation of being buggy plus it's pretty expensive to replace. In the grand scheme of things, these are all small things. I'm just pretty picky.

On the other side of things, I do like the heated adjustable seats.

 

[rknight]

I'd likely swap out the wood trim for a matched-color trim.

I agree about the standard A/C controls, so no problems there.

I'd prefer heated seats though, for winter. Fog lights are a must for my drives up north. Probably a pretty common option here though.

What's lacking with the audio unit in the SR5?

 

[4-Ripcord]

The SR5 unit plays only 1 CD. While the Limiteds unit has a 6cd changer.

I say easily remedied becuase an aftermarket HU will have better audio quality than the OEM units.

 

[Hepar]

I'd likely swap out the wood trim for a matched-color trim.

I agree about the standard A/C controls, so no problems there.

I'd prefer heated seats though, for winter. Fog lights are a must for my drives up north. Probably a pretty common option here though.

What's lacking with the audio unit in the SR5?

You can install heated seats after the fact, even in the cloth. The factory fogs do help, but they're far from good. You can mount a set into the front valance that will really help and still maintain a factory appearance.

I don't think there's anything really lacking in the factory SR5 unit other than age. CD/Tape/Radio. These days it's easy enough to grab a deck for under $100 that you can hook up your mp3 player, satellite radio and often times bluetooth.

 

[rknight]

You can install heated seats after the fact, even in the cloth. The factory fogs do help, but they're far from good. You can mount a set into the front valance that will really help and still maintain a factory appearance.

I don't think there's anything really lacking in the factory SR5 unit other than age. CD/Tape/Radio. These days it's easy enough to grab a deck for under $100 that you can hook up your mp3 player, satellite radio and often times bluetooth.

What do you mean by "age"? Are you referring to the SR5 vehicle or the audio unit?

 

[Hepar]

What do you mean by "age"? Are you referring to the SR5 vehicle or the audio unit?

I'm referring to the audio unit. It's gonna be over 10 years old, so the chances that it has problems at some point is pretty good, but more so I was talking about the options the stock deck has. These days you can get factory decks in your new car with Nav, bluetooth, ipod hookups etc etc. A whole lot of stuff that wasn't the norm in 2001 for example.

 

[rknight]

Yes, definitely. That'd be a must-upgrade.

The stereo in my Jeep was a joke and the previous owner blew the speakers. So anything will sound like heaven now.

 

[rknight]

I'm taking a look at this 1996 Limited tomorrow morning:

1996 Toyota 4Runner limited

It has very low miles on it, less than 74,000 miles! Two owners, with full service history for the last 7 years for the entirely of the second ownership. He does not know anything about it's history with the initial owner. I'll search the VIN and see if I can find anything.

Hasn't had to repair anything, in tip top shape he says! Disappointing though, no fog lights and he has not done any undercoating. There was some surface rust on the tail gate but he has taken care or it. We'll see.

As well, will a 99-00 grill fit on to a 96? Lastly, how do I check if this 4Runner is compatible with the Tundra Brake Upgrade ("A popular swap is the use Tundra components if you have the 16" wheels with the big rotor option already. I don't know if it can be done with the small brake package and you definately would need the proper 16" wheels" - http://www.larsdennert.com/4runner/brakes/index.html).

 

[CaliCal]

miles are not much of a big deal on 4runners....

 

[Hepar]

I'm taking a look at this 1996 Limited tomorrow morning:

1996 Toyota 4Runner limited

It has very low miles on it, less than 74,000 miles! Two owners, with full service history for the last 7 years for the entirely of the second ownership. He does not know anything about it's history with the initial owner. I'll search the VIN and see if I can find anything.

Hasn't had to repair anything, in tip top shape he says! Disappointing though, no fog lights and he has not done any undercoating. There was some surface rust on the tail gate but he has taken care or it. We'll see.

As well, will a 99-00 grill fit on to a 96? Lastly, how do I check if this 4Runner is compatible with the Tundra Brake Upgrade ("A popular swap is the use Tundra components if you have the 16" wheels with the big rotor option already. I don't know if it can be done with the small brake package and you definately would need the proper 16" wheels" - LarsDennert.com).

Looks like a good find. Keep in mind that while the engine and such might only have 74k on it, the other components have 16 years on them. Some parts deteriorate with time, not miles.

All the 4Runners can get a brake upgrade. Question is, can the wheels you have cover them. The stock 15" wheels cannot. Just make sure you have 16" wheels and you're good to go.

 

[rknight]

Thank Hepar.

Age is certainly my concern for the frame, especially because he has not done any undercoating. The suspension and rear coils too, particularly because Canada apparently did not honor the rear coil spring recall for 96-98s for some reason. So what's an average price range to replace them with ones from the 99's (I saw somewhere here that 99's are the highest springs)?

 

[Hepar]

Thank Hepar.

Age is certainly my concern for the frame, especially because he has not done any undercoating. The suspension and rear coils too, particularly because Canada apparently did not honor the rear coil spring recall for 96-98s for some reason. So what's an average price range to replace them with ones from the 99's (I saw somewhere here that 99's are the highest springs)?

You should be able to find a set for under a hundred bucks. Another big thing to keep in mind is anything rubber. For example, all of the bushings. Also keep in mind that if the undercarriage is badly rusted, it's going to make things that much more difficult to work on.

 

[rknight]

So the 1996 Limited was is pretty good good shape! Test drive was great! Solid and hearty.

Apart from a tear in the driver seat leather, the INT was mint and clean. A lot more spacious than I remember from passengering in my friend's SR5. The only thing that would throw me for a curve ball, interior-wise, is the slider/lever system of the AC/heat unit (is it possible to replace that whole console with a younger/push-botton unit, would it be worth it?). Also, the front windows squeal/squeak when they first begin to open. The current owner replaced the antenna and had an auto-starter installed.

Surprise, surprise, it has the e-locker

There is a small dent on both corners of the rear bumper as well as small patches of rust from the bottom edge of the bumper up towards the horizontal centre. The door sils and rocker panels are rust-free, as is the rest of the body. There is, however, a worrisome amount of rust underneath - the frame, the undercarriage. Actually, the steelie spare is so rusted, it's done. Totally done. For the frame, I wonder if the rust is only on the paint on the frame... if it's structural integrity is good-to-go, I wonder if I could scrape as much rust as possible off, sand it, clean it, coat it with a rust proof paint and then start undercoating... ???

I'm going to have my mechanic do a full inspection asap.

Is there a thread on installing fog lights on a 96-98?

Thanks for everyone's help so far!

 

[Hepar]

So the 1996 Limited was is pretty good good shape! Test drive was great! Solid and hearty.

Apart from a tear in the driver seat leather, the INT was mint and clean. A lot more spacious than I remember from passengering in my friend's SR5. The only thing that would throw me for a curve ball, interior-wise, is the slider/lever system of the AC/heat unit (is it possible to replace that whole console with a younger/push-botton unit, would it be worth it?). Also, the front windows squeal/squeak when they first begin to open. The current owner replaced the antenna and had an auto-starter installed.

Surprise, surprise, it has the e-locker

There is a small dent on both corners of the rear bumper as well as small patches of rust from the bottom edge of the bumper up towards the horizontal centre. The door sils and rocker panels are rust-free, as is the rest of the body. There is, however, a worrisome amount of rust underneath - the frame, the undercarriage. Actually, the steelie spare is so rusted, it's done. Totally done. For the frame, I wonder if the rust is only on the paint on the frame... if it's structural integrity is good-to-go, I wonder if I could scrape as much rust as possible off, sand it, clean it, coat it with a rust proof paint and then start undercoating... ???

I'm going to have my mechanic do a full inspection asap.

Is there a thread on installing fog lights on a 96-98?

Thanks for everyone's help so far!

I really don't have much advice on the rust. I personally would stay away from it.

And were you thinking of the stock fog lights?

 

[rknight]

I'll find out about the rust, and everything else, at the inspection tomorrow morning.

The space for fog lights looks pretty tight under the bumper. I was suppose that the stock ones may fit best. Are there other good options?

Thanks Hepar.