My Father's Concern

[MrSeth]

Hey all,

I had a rather lengthy phonecall with my father today about saving for a new car and trying to find good payments to reduce the amount of debt I will be in "when your truck fails"

This honestly made me step back and think for a minute- I've got an interference V8, have replaced the timing belt at the specified intervals, perform oil changes every time the maintenance light comes on, get my tires rotated regularly, have replaced my cardan joints, lube the lube points regularly, have replaced one CV, and don't really wheel it that much.

What are some weak points on our Toyota's I should watch out for? I'm at 206k miles and don't really ever push the drive/powertrane.

How long do these rigs usually last on average mile wise? I've seen some great 300k+ mile ODO shots, but its a 14 year old rig...


Maybe I'm just overthinking it- honestly my "new" car would either be another 4th gen or possibly a 5th gen. What are your thoughts on longevity and quality of these 4th gens?


Thanks in advance all, safe wheeling.

 

[ElZilcho]

Toyota's never really "die."(suffer a catastrophic failure) They're either killed, (in a glorious crash/rollover/explosion), or retired (start nickel and diming you until the aggravation and expense outweigh the cost of a new vehicle).

In my experience that starts happening somewhere between 200K and 300K miles depending on how handy you are with a wrench. In addition to the things you already mentioned, good maintenance, replace your "lifetime" fluids, and fix the SAIP ASAP:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/174030-secondary-air-injection-pump-failure-v8s-important.html

It's the only thing I can think of with an increased likelihood of failure that could be financially crippling. It wont kill the truck but it will run poorly and you'll never sell a +200K mile truck that needs a $4000 repair, rendering your truck almost worthless, instantly.

The 2UZ will go down in history next to the 1fz and 22r in terms of reliability (as long as you don't boost it). There's always risk of a dropped valve or some other fluke catastrophe, but it's extremely unlikely.

 

[Atlanta_man]

Like the air injection fix, power brake (the electric motor pressurizer) system can also cost as much to fix as a 14 year old 4Runner is worth.


Alternators sometimes quit at 150k mi.

 

[Antoddio]

So is he advocating buying a new car? Buying a new car to avoid hassle has its merits but buying a new car to save money is the some of the poorest financial advise that exists.


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[Antoddio]

I’d would also argue that between a 4Runner at 200k miles vs a brand new domestic vehicle, that the 4Runner will have less issues over the next 100k Miles even though it’s so much older.


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[blackoutt]

Sounds like poor financial advice. If you really want to save money/pay down debt then maybe a v8 4runner isn't the best vehicle but it's what you have right now (and hopefully paid off) so easiest to just keep it and live poor. Buying a new car and taking that depreciation hit as well as having payments for the sake of reliability only makes sense if you NEED that reliability. I drove a $3000 beater through the end of college and a couple years after, drove it all over the country. Sure it had some issues but I limped it along and made some big strides paying off school loans compared to those that got their first job and house/car/lifestyle payments that matched their income to the penny. Keep the 4runner if it's paid off, it owes you nothing at 200k miles. Drive it.

 

[Legender]

Not knowing your personal situation... you should always be saving for the next thing... or plan on making monthly payments when the time comes. While the 4runners are notoriously reliable and great fun, they won't last forever and has been stated above, it might get to the point where you get tired of fixing the things that break. Change in life is inevitable and you always need to be planning to handle that. Saving now is mandatory no matter what you're doing. I would never recommend a 'new' car. Another car? Sure, but only when it's warranted and you can afford it. Better to be proactive in your planning than having to react in a desperate situation.

 

[Atlanta_man]

A $3 or $4 K repair on an old 4Runner is worth paying and keeping it a couple more years. The intake air pump (easily defeated if done in advance), exhaust manifold, brake booster are about all the expensive things that can happen to a V8 based on reading this forum. Alternator and two front wheel bearings are $500 each if you know how to shop.

That's my plan, keep it even if something breaks, since I cannot find anything on the (new, or lightly used) market that I want more than my old 4R.

 

[ElZilcho]

So is he advocating buying a new car? Buying a new car to avoid hassle has its merits but buying a new car to save money is the some of the poorest financial advise that exists.

No one is advocating buying a new car. I said there is a point at which maintaining an old car becomes more expensive than replacing it with a new(er) one. Like when my 1993 Land Cruiser with 380K miles became more expensive to maintain than the payment on a used 2008 4Runner. That line is different for every vehicle and every owner. Quite literally...YMMV.

All I meant to say was that there don't seem to be any common catastrophic failure points with the 4runner. You can get them to limp along forever. OP asked how long they last. For me and my Toyota's, about 300K miles.

 

[MrSeth]

Thanks for the great input all. It's good to have a few different points of views in this. My personal situation is a little tight. I actually bought my 4R with cash after selling my 1968 Mustang and 1984 Jeep XJ.

I used to be an automotive engineer for Porsche and later on Ferrari before I switched career paths and became a Nurse.

I've done all of the modifications and repairs myself, and intend on continuing that as it has saved my thousands and is also quite fun.

I will be saving for something incase the 4R suffers a catastrophic failure, but for now she basically just drives me 10 minutes to work and back every day. I do have a few planned off-road trips for the spring/summer time, but they are within a 2 hour drive and the trails are just dirt roads.

I'm hoping to stretch the life of the 4R at least another 2 years or so in order to save up enough for another vehicle so I can park the 4R until I encounter severe snow and ice here in Colorado.

Thanks again everyone, I'll be sleeping a bit better tonight!!!