New Toy... Good buy?

[the_dingman]

So, I just bought my 2nd 1st Gen 4Runner. My first one was an '86 Deluxe (non-SR5) and in very bad condition. After 4 faithful years (faithful being over $5000 in total repairs), it died on me in 2004. It was my very first car, and I've loved the 1st gens from the moment I first drove my old one, and have wanted another one from the day it first died.

So a few weeks ago I made a find, and purchased a 1987 SR5 with just over 208k miles for $800. After going through some of the issues, I'm lookig for a little reassurance that I made a good purchase, and some advice on a few repairs, as well as advice on my planned future with the truck.

As you can see from the picture below, the body is in pretty good condition (for Wisconsin at least), with minimal rust visible, though there is some bubbling through the rear fenders under the new paint job (I think repainted about 5 years back). Some rust is hidden, both underneath a guard on the top of the tailgate (it had rusted through), and up the passanger doorframe. There is a bit of rust underneath, but no more than I would expect in a Wisonsin truck that is 20 years old. Supprisingly the interior is almost perfect, no tears in the seats, no cracks in the dash, all the headrests are there, and I even have the cover for the moonroof (sound like that's rare)! The engine runs great (though it does not start as easily as my old one), and does not seem to have any leaks at all. I don't have any records of maintinence, and I want to know if I should take care of a head gasket and/or timing chain preventativly?

My biggest problem is a noisy transmission. I get a grinding noise in all gears, as well as a light noise in neutral with the clutch out, which seems likely to be the input bearing. It also falls out of first and always has to be held in, and will sometimes fall out of third when you let completely off the gas. My mechanic friend recommended replacing the transmission, I just don't have the cash right now. There also seems to be a leak of oil, looking like it's coming from the output shaft on the back of the transfer case.

Problem two is a bad ball joint (upper I believe), and as I'm mechannicly inclined, but in no way a mechanic, I'd like to know how hard that is to replace myself.

Other botherances have to do with needing parts I can't find anywhere. One of the lift tracks for the rear window is rusted out, and I can't seem to find them anywhere. I also can't find the front parking break cable (though I discovered a much easier way of removing it than all the threads here say).

My last question (for now anyway), has to do with the aftermarket rims, and hubs it seems, that were installed. From my understanding, auto locking hubs were not installed on this year, and it seems a previous owner installed auto locking hubs from 'American Racing'. The guy I bought it from said that they don't lock, though I have not tried them myself. How likely is it that these will not work, and how hard are they to change back out to manual ones if they don't work (I like manual hubs better anyway)? I'm also wondering if it's possible that these are just covers, and the original hubs are underneath...

Also if anyone has an Eclipse 5443 and can tell me how the hell to set the clock, that'd be great... In fact any knowledge at all on this unit would help... I'm an electronics geek, pro audio technician, and computer geek and I can't figgure this thing out for the life of me...

More pics at my gallery

 

[mith]

I think you made a pretty good purchase. I just recently bought an '87 myself, and have the exact same problem with the pilot bearing. I've got a new bearing, just haven't had time to take everything apart and get it installed. It's a worthwhile task, cause it will give you a chance to check the clutch and transmission and see what sort of state it's in.

For falling out of gear, I'd try some cheaper fixes before replacing/rebuilding the transmission. You might try picking up a new shifter seat from Marlin Crawler, I've heard some people say that fix has solved a lot of the shifter problems they thought would have required more extensive transmission work.

I've also got rust on my truck, there's a spot on the rear passenger side quarter panel where it's rusted through (underneath the bed line, so not really a big deal yet). I'm planning to replace both quarters with fiberglass once I've got the cash. For stuff like the rear window guide, you'd probably have better luck just buying some metal and bending it yourself; it doesn't have to be pretty, since it's inside the tailgate, it just needs to guide the window.

Given the amount of work for installing ball joint spacers, I'd guess that actually replacing the ball joint won't be too difficult a task.

Your truck looks to be in better condition on the surface than mine. The previous owner gave it a rough and quick paint job, so it's not smooth or shiny, and I've got some rusty spots on the frame that I'll be taking care of as soon as I've got the body lifted off of it.

 

[the_dingman]

This one's got a nice freshish paint job (maybe 5 or 6 years), and is shinier than my '02 Jetta... They did paint over any existing rust, and it's starting to show around the rear fenders. There is also some extensive rust damage inside the door frames, as well as a hole in the top of the tailgate, which is covered now by a chrome guard (these should have been standard).

I have been wondering if a lift track off of a front window might fit the arms for the rear window... The track itself is pretty simple, and the only problem would be the defroster power wires would have to be spliced...

I was really floored by the condition of this truck when I went to look at it. The rust it has is in all the places I've seen on every 1st gen, just not as extensive. The interior is amazing, all the parts are there, no tears, and I bet with a shampoo of the carpet and other upholstery it would look brand new.

I'll give a try to the shifter seat, the shifter does feel very loose, much more so than my old 4runner did.

It's been a life saver for me having had one of these before, even after 3 years, I know all the normal, and not normal sounds and feelings...

 

[truck]

Sounds like a good one to me. At least you didn't sink the bank on it.

Ball Joints aren't as hard to replace as they are hard to replace 'correctly'. You can get them on the truck, then limp it over to a station to have it aligned.

Lose the auto hubs. Even when they do function, they rob your MPG rating.

And I am very jealous of your mooonroof/sunroof situation.