RevvTrev91
New member
So I've been looking at buying a 3rd gen 4 runner for almost a month now. Must have looked at 8 or more in my area and nearly all of them have had frame rot issues and some have been maintained poorly and have oil leaks, oil in the coolant, 4wd doesn't engage properly, as well. Basically having a really hard time even finding one worth it, let alone with no frame rot. I don't mind fixing some issues but only if the price is right.
So I found this one 97 4runner with minimal rust for this area(no frame rot at all) and it needs all these things replaced: valve cover gaskets, rear main seal, rack and pinion, 3 drivebelts, timing belt and water pump, and probably the lower ball joints as well. It has 144k miles on it and drove kinda rough, was squealing when I accelerated quickly (from the belts needing to be replaced). The owner has no maintenance records and the oil and coolant levels were low. I had it professionally inspected by my friend who works as a mechanic at a Toyota dealership. I know he wasn't making issues up just so they make more money, because he told me I should go somewhere else to have that work done cheaper if I buy it. My mechanic friend said that other than those issues the engine seems fine, and the rust on the frame is not too bad. The 4wd also didn't work during the test drive, but my friend seemed to have fixed the issue accidentally by trying to diagnose the 4wd issue. He applied manual suction to the vacuum switching valve which got it to work, and apparently it is still working now. The seller has had it for sale for 5 months and is asking $3250 for it. I told him just repairing the rear main seal and rack and pinion can be pretty expensive and I offered him $1500 for it, which he turned down. What is a 4runner in this condition worth? It also has some cosmetic issues like a tiny crack in the windshield, the driver seat is torn, and the driver side door lock doesn't work all the time.
So what advice can some of you enthusiasts give me? Is it worth going up to $2000 or $2500 and then paying to have all that repaired? Minus a couple things like the valve cover gaskets and drivebelts which I can do myself.
As a comparison, great condition 3rd gen 4runners in my area are near impossible to find and ones with no(or extremely little) frame rust with miles above 150k to over 200k sell for $8,000 to $10,000
Thank you
So I found this one 97 4runner with minimal rust for this area(no frame rot at all) and it needs all these things replaced: valve cover gaskets, rear main seal, rack and pinion, 3 drivebelts, timing belt and water pump, and probably the lower ball joints as well. It has 144k miles on it and drove kinda rough, was squealing when I accelerated quickly (from the belts needing to be replaced). The owner has no maintenance records and the oil and coolant levels were low. I had it professionally inspected by my friend who works as a mechanic at a Toyota dealership. I know he wasn't making issues up just so they make more money, because he told me I should go somewhere else to have that work done cheaper if I buy it. My mechanic friend said that other than those issues the engine seems fine, and the rust on the frame is not too bad. The 4wd also didn't work during the test drive, but my friend seemed to have fixed the issue accidentally by trying to diagnose the 4wd issue. He applied manual suction to the vacuum switching valve which got it to work, and apparently it is still working now. The seller has had it for sale for 5 months and is asking $3250 for it. I told him just repairing the rear main seal and rack and pinion can be pretty expensive and I offered him $1500 for it, which he turned down. What is a 4runner in this condition worth? It also has some cosmetic issues like a tiny crack in the windshield, the driver seat is torn, and the driver side door lock doesn't work all the time.
So what advice can some of you enthusiasts give me? Is it worth going up to $2000 or $2500 and then paying to have all that repaired? Minus a couple things like the valve cover gaskets and drivebelts which I can do myself.
As a comparison, great condition 3rd gen 4runners in my area are near impossible to find and ones with no(or extremely little) frame rust with miles above 150k to over 200k sell for $8,000 to $10,000
Thank you
