Need to vent..
- Thread starter vision-quest
- Start date
vision-quest
New member
Every time I find a car that I think is the car I click on the ad and it['s V8. Ugh! lol.
vision-quest
New member
They've been for sale for a while...Thanks! Unfortunately I wouldn't be able to get over there until next weekend
pjbrownva
New member
Wow, Lewis & Clark. That's hardcore and a true dedication to exploration!
I'm not that patient, plus I'm too afraid of my wife. She's much shorter than I, and half my weight, but if I tick her off, she can be fierce! :fish:
:biggrin2:
You're a lot braver than I am. I'm glad you found what you want.
-Phil
pjbrownva
New member
Good point, alia176, unless you are VERY patient, you will have to make some trade-offs. For me, I went with *slightly* higher mileage than I would like (it had 108K), and I paid a premium, which I'm convinced was "market" price for the truck I got, with all of the options, and in really, really good condition.
Hehe... I know what you mean. I looked at soooo many 4Runners online that I ended up creating a spreadsheet to keep track of anything that seemed good to me. Without the spreadsheet, I started to get confused, or sometimes I ended up looking at a 4Runner that was missing some of what I wanted, or seemed good in price, but in reality the price difference was because it had fewer options, or other quantifiable reasons for the difference, such as condition of the truck.
Here's a link to the spreadsheet.
I helped me track...
Year
Mileage
Engine (V8 vs V6)
4x4 vs 4x2
how far away the truck was (only rough categories for a loose comparison)
Asking Price
Color
Trim Level (SR5, Sport, Limited)
Options I cared about
Radio - (JBL Radio, Regular Radio, Nav, etc)
Seats - Pwr, manual, leather, etc
Rear Spoiler
Tow Hitch
Sun Roof
Features based on model year & trim
(eg. Projector headlights, LED tail lights, seat memory,
tilt steering wheel, steering wheel radio controls,
Steering wheel bluetooth controls, etc)
General impressions about condition
(eg... stained seats, dirty carpets, despite being detailed, torn or heavily worn seats, visible corrosion in engine bay, etc).
Approx cost to ship car (if it was far away, and I had gotten a ball-park shipping quote, like from uship, for example, I listed it. FYI, CarMAX will ship any of their cars to a location near you, and they show the exact cost for the shipping on their website. Unfortunately, most of the CarMax cars were newer than what we're looking for. They had many 5th gens, but very few 4th gens...)
The spreadsheet really helped me. Use it if you like.
Last edited:
vision-quest
New member
If it's still around there's one in Oregon I want to look at too, so I may fly there next weekend.
I originally wanted a 06+ sport however in my search, I found the sport to be very rare and essentially, once I learned the 05 had the 5 speed transmission it added an option I didn't consider.
I bought mine from a GM Dealer, I brought a second set of eyes with me and the overall condition was too good to pass up. IMO, when looking for a 6-9yo car, condition is everything!
V8's were more prevalent I think back then, now that I'm towing more I wish I had considered it however gas mileage was a big concern at time of my purchase considering gas was $4.00 a gallon! :ybrick:
I bought mine from a GM Dealer, I brought a second set of eyes with me and the overall condition was too good to pass up. IMO, when looking for a 6-9yo car, condition is everything!
V8's were more prevalent I think back then, now that I'm towing more I wish I had considered it however gas mileage was a big concern at time of my purchase considering gas was $4.00 a gallon! :ybrick:
Man, I swear I'm in the exact same boat, but I live in Arkansas. How long have you been looking? And how much would you be willing spend on let's say 115k miles?
wadle5
New member
I know personally I looked for almost 9 months and ended up driving over 4 hours into another state to get a fair deal on mine. Everything else prior was overpriced or over abused. Just let it happen and the right vehicle will present itself.
Good luck.
I would do what a lot of the members are saying and start at the dealership. When I was about 18, my brother who was 23 went to a used dealership and told them he was looking to buy a Jeep. they told him that they would be in touch and in 3 days they had one for him. like someone else said, "let the dealership do the work"
I was lucky enough to get my 4 runner from a tow yard. Who ever had it before me took really good care of it and I was super jazzed to have found it.
Martinjmpr
New member
Mine will be for sale soon but it's maroon (Salsa Red Pearl.) PM me if you're interested. Right now I'm planning on removing the custom plate bumper before I put it up for sale (I learned the hard way when I sold my '99 that a custom bumper will drive away more buyers than it will attract) but if someone is interested in buying it as-is with the bumper and the other mods, I'd be open to that, too.
vision-quest
New member
About 18k. I've been looking about 2 months now.
vision-quest
New member
I have heard the MPG is quite different from a bunch of other people? I mean, I guess I could be persuaded to check out the V8 but coming from a Mazda 3 the MPG drop on the V6 was already looking painful.
vision-quest
New member
Sorry mate, really want to stick with the silver/white/gray and maybe black. Appreciate you letting me know though and good luck moving it on!
It varies based on your driving style but on a road trip, I can get a steady 22MPG. While commuting, I get a steady 17-18mpg @ 5,000' - 7000' elevation. Do keep in mind that I'm full time 4x4, so at least 1-2mpg hit.
vision-quest
New member
Interesting, thanks.. maybe it would be worth considering if something doesn't pop up soon.
Martinjmpr
New member
Is that based on hand calculations or are you relying on the "lie-o-meter" on the dash. Because the dash MPG gauge is notoriously optimistic. Mine consistenly reads 2 - 3 MPG higher than what I get by hand calculating and for a V8, 15-16 in the city and 20 on the highway is a lot more believable.
