New 2004 4R 4x4 V8 Owner; some questions.

[Sundance14]

Hello all! First off, I'd like to say that I've really enjoyed lurking on here for the past few weeks and learning about the car, and its dedicated community. You guys have a real infectious optimism about the 4R, and I've adopted that same outlook on my new 2004 4R. I am moving to a mountainous region that harbors large amounts of snowfall in a few months, and I'm a rock climber so I am outdoors all of the time. My VW just wasn't cutting it.

Enter the 4R.

In the time I've spent browsing, I have acquired a decent amount of familiarity with the vehicle and the differences in the V8 and the V6. This led me to find the perfect car: a used, 2004 4RLimited V8 4x4 with 109k miles, so she's just been broken in. One owner, who drove the vehicle around 11k miles per year and hit EVERY service appointment, and changed the filter and oil every 5k. Here she is in all of her glory; I'm the proud papa of an hour and a half.

Note:: the CarFax are available on the page.

The truck has me optimistic. It's sturdy and rides like a dream. I have some questions though.


How can I check if the timing belt has been changed? I know that it needs attention every 6 years or 70k miles, but I don't know how to identify the physical features of a healthy timing belt.

What sort of full-point inspection can I do at home, at the dealership, to get the whole story of the car? I want to know every tooth of sand clenched material so that I can ensure all parts are up to speed.

What sort of upgrades can I make in the short-term to make the ride more fun?


Thanks for any response I get. Again, I am STOKED to have a new "old" 4R! I think I have a good truck on my hands and I really want to make the most out her.


Here's to the next 200k miles!

 

[TRDCal]

If it was maintained at a dealership, there will be an electronic record of the belt change, you can go in and they'll print it out for you. There should also be a sticker somewhere in the engine bay saying when and at what mileage it was done. Other than that its pretty difficult to tell based just on looks, its not like a serpentine belt.

As for inspections, there's nothing special to inspect that you wouldn't do on any other new to you vehicle. I suppose you could drop the spare tire and lube the mechanism since you don't what to find out the hard way that its seized. But since your from Texas I don't know if that would even be an issue.

Since you already got A/Ts on its, I'd throw a leveling kit or small lift and do the VSC off mod (if Kliv is still in business) and should be as much fun as you need. Maybe exhaust as well to let that V8 breath alittle. Stereo upgrade never hurts either. I guess its up to you what upgrades you'll like but those are the best things I did to mine.

Either way, you can't go wrong...oh and welcome to the club!

 

[Synister]

For the timing belt, there is usually a sticker on the top or front of the engine indicating the who and when if its been changed. I think its more like 90k on the interval also. If it was done at a dealer, and also for just general awareness of the vehicle history in general, its a good idea to register on toyota.com/owners using the VIN. This will give you a digital history of any time its been touched by a dealer.

As far as multi-point inspection getting it up on a lift if you can is always good. For peace of mind its probably not a bad idea to replace all 3 diff fluids, power steering and brake fluid as these see the most use on a day to day basis. Given how little the truck has ben driven and unless you know its seen some heavy duty towing, I would probably leave the tranny fluid alone, at least for a while. Most agree that 100k is about where you want to think about draining it but its up to you.

Bilstein 5100's all around would probably be a nice upgrade to a tired old 100k suspension and would give as little or as much of a lift as you want while also improving the ride.

Enjoy that sweet ride!