Picking up a 2007 limited V8

H

HKTackDriver

New member
Hey guys, I'm new here and have a question and request...

I'm picking up a 2007 limited V8 on Thursday and wanted to do a last minute check before paying for it. I saw there's an issue with the transfer case seal - anyone have a pic of the problem so I can eyeball it? It's at 93,000 miles, so the timing belt may need to be done, do you know how I could check to see whether it's been done without digging into the engine? Anything else I should look into? Got it for $13,500 - if the belt was done, it seems like a great deal. Only defect is a tear on the leather on the side of the drivers seat.

This is going to be a fun toy to play with, I've already learned a lot lurking here the last couple of weeks!
 
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Sounds like you got it for a great price, congrats! I paid 16 for my 2007 Sport with 101k on it.
 
It's customary for the shop to put an easy to see sticker under the hood on the engine/mainfold/air box or somewhere with timing belt mileage and date of change.

Also you can look up service history by VIN number on the Toyota owner website and sometimes CarFax will show it if the belt was done by a dealer. Lots of folks go to 120K before change but that's too long for me.

That is a terrific price for a 93K mi 2007, especially if relatively rust free.
 
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That's a great price on the 4Runner, I just picked up a similar 08 with 120K and paid 17,500 for it. I thought I got a good buy on mine still booking for over 23K but I would nab that up quick if everything checks out, even with having to do a timing belt is still a good buy.
 
have you tested 4low yet?

go on a test drive with the salesman, and shift it into low.
make sure it actually shifts, I suspect it doesn't...

have them fix that before buying, as its spendy, and should take care of the leak. ;)
 
anotherrunner83 said:
do you have any idea how bad the damage from the accident was? that's a very attractive price
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Less than $1000 in damage. The trailer hitch is the only thing I can see that has damage, I'm guessing he was rear ended. No airbag deployment and all body work is original. It's the first thing I looked at.

The dealership also put the truck on it's frame rack and it was straight - or so they claimed.

$2400 for a 2 year bumper to bumper warranty. $1500 for one year. Thoughts?
 
nevada said:
have you tested 4low yet?

go on a test drive with the salesman, and shift it into low.
make sure it actually shifts, I suspect it doesn't...

have them fix that before buying, as its spendy, and should take care of the leak. ;)
Click to expand...

I don't know if it has a leak and no, I didn't test the 4low. I'll test it before picking it up. Do you know where I would see this leak?
 
HKTackDriver said:
Less than $1000 in damage. The trailer hitch is the only thing I can see that has damage, I'm guessing he was rear ended. No airbag deployment and all body work is original. It's the first thing I looked at.

The dealership also put the truck on it's frame rack and it was straight - or so they claimed.

$2400 for a 2 year bumper to bumper warranty. $1500 for one year. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

that price is incredible...it's worth doing a little crawling all over it to make sure the deal is as good as it seems. not trying to scare you off of it, just be smart about your investment.

warranties are always a tough call. if it makes you more comfortable, go for it. i have over 140k on my 08 now and i bought it with only 20k in 2009. the only things it's needed has been timing belt, water pump, spark plugs, trans case fluid, diff fluids, tires, and front brakes. nothing unexpected. i'd have a hard time paying an extra 17% for a 2 year warranty.

for the 4 lo switch, it's easy. start it up and follow the instructions on the card in the sun visor over your head. you'll know if it switched as soon as you put it in drive and the 4LO light on the dash will quit blinking and become solid. the truck will really rock when you go to drive, so have your foot firmly on the brake.

check the underside of the truck. look at the frame rails to see if it looks like they've been repaired (fresh(er) paint, heavy rust areas, etc). look at the floor to see if you can detect any wrinkles. at 93k miles, it's possible it's still on it's original set. i saw 90k on mine and had some tread left. so you may be in for a set of tires. i don't think you can negotiate much more repair/maintenance work in at the price they are asking. you may be able to add new tires to the price if you need to finance them in. you'll likely spend $1000 on a set of tires.

check for rust on the seat brackets inside the truck. that will tell you if it had any water damage. check the gaps on the body panels, the pictures look good, but you can tell more in person. all of the gaps should be even and straight. straight meaning the same gap from top to bottom. check all the window motors and sunroof. check the functionality of the rear gate and window, especially if you think it was rear ended.

if it all checks out, it sounds like you have a really good deal on your hands. i'm always skeptical on really good deals as i have usually found out why after doing some digging. best of luck!
 
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I paid 7500 for an 04 V8 with 147,000 miles off a used car lot but I had to have the timing belt replaced. They placed an easy to read sticker on the cover that should say when it was replaced and how many miles. If you dont see the sticker, it probably was never done, especially at those miles (which is why some people trade them in!).
 
If the t-case is seized, there's over $1,000.

If you have to get the timing belt changed there's close to $1,000 (to do it right).

So now you're in for over $16K including the taxes and it's a wrecked SUV that's 7 model years old.

I'm not going to say it's a bad deal...but I don't think it's "incredible" like some of the others here.
 
WXman said:
If the t-case is seized, there's over $1,000.

If you have to get the timing belt changed there's close to $1,000 (to do it right).

So now you're in for over $16K including the taxes and it's a wrecked SUV that's 7 model years old.

I'm not going to say it's a bad deal...but I don't think it's "incredible" like some of the others here.
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if the actuator is seized, they should do it before selling. so no change in price there.
also, he may get them to throw in the t-belt as well. even if not, that is a maintenance issue, something he would have to do anyway, assuming he had it for any length of time.
 
anotherrunner83 said:
that price is incredible...it's worth doing a little crawling all over it to make sure the deal is as good as it seems. not trying to scare you off of it, just be smart about your investment.

warranties are always a tough call. if it makes you more comfortable, go for it. i have over 140k on my 08 now and i bought it with only 20k in 2009. the only things it's needed has been timing belt, water pump, spark plugs, trans case fluid, diff fluids, tires, and front brakes. nothing unexpected. i'd have a hard time paying an extra 17% for a 2 year warranty.

for the 4 lo switch, it's easy. start it up and follow the instructions on the card in the sun visor over your head. you'll know if it switched as soon as you put it in drive and the 4LO light on the dash will quit blinking and become solid. the truck will really rock when you go to drive, so have your foot firmly on the brake.

check the underside of the truck. look at the frame rails to see if it looks like they've been repaired (fresh(er) paint, heavy rust areas, etc). look at the floor to see if you can detect any wrinkles. at 93k miles, it's possible it's still on it's original set. i saw 90k on mine and had some tread left. so you may be in for a set of tires. i don't think you can negotiate much more repair/maintenance work in at the price they are asking. you may be able to add new tires to the price if you need to finance them in. you'll likely spend $1000 on a set of tires.

check for rust on the seat brackets inside the truck. that will tell you if it had any water damage. check the gaps on the body panels, the pictures look good, but you can tell more in person. all of the gaps should be even and straight. straight meaning the same gap from top to bottom. check all the window motors and sunroof. check the functionality of the rear gate and window, especially if you think it was rear ended.

if it all checks out, it sounds like you have a really good deal on your hands. i'm always skeptical on really good deals as i have usually found out why after doing some digging. best of luck!
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First thing I did was check the body panels for alignment, then checked all typical "wrinkle" areas where the body would be imperfect after an accident. Checked each panel for repaint or different paint fade - nothing. Only thing I saw was a scuff under the rear hitch, so I think someone hit the hitch at some point. Hitch is square and undeformed.

I really appreciate the 4lo advice, I'll do that before picking it up. The truck drove well, tranny shifted perfectly and engine seemed strong with no knocking or other issues. Is this a premium fuel engine or regular?

Engine and underside was clean. Appears to have been garaged. I'd know, none of my cars have been garaged and the undercarriage shows!

Your advice should be posted in a sticky for potential buyers, it's how I've purchased all used cars!

As far as calling the truck a "wreck" because it lists an accident. Would you consider another car striking the rear hitch a "wreck?" Knowing how Carfax describes accidents helps. They list airbags opening and the extent of damage, none of which is indicated here, so I think it's ok, especially after looking at the underside and under the bumpers. Seems solid.

I'm also in no rush to buy a truck, nor did I know this was a steal, it just fit my budget - with tax, it was $14,500. That was after I took 45 mins to go over the whole truck. Only thing I haven't done is go through the radio or work the sunroof. That'll be Thursday. I'll also check for the timing belt sticker and I have them working on a "cheap" fix for the leather seat, which will otherwise cost me $150 to replace.

Anyway, I appreciate all of the help! With any luck, the 4lo will check out and I'll post pics of the truck by weekend!
 
Definitely check 4LO. I forgot to check it before I bought mine and ended up going back becasuse the actuator was seized. The dealership certainly lost whatever profit they may have made off me replacing that.
:wof::wof::wof:
 
nevada said:
if the actuator is seized, they should do it before selling. so no change in price there.
also, he may get them to throw in the t-belt as well. even if not, that is a maintenance issue, something he would have to do anyway, assuming he had it for any length of time.
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I wish him luck with that. I tried to get the dealership to fix the t-case on the first one I looked at, and when they found out that the stupid actuator alone is over $1,000 they were basically like, "no".

A dealership is rarely going to sink thousands into a used vehicle just to sell it to a certain person because they normally are only making that much on the sale to begin with. They'll just wait and sell it to the next person that comes along that doesn't care about the issues. That's why 9 times out of 10 there is a window sticker on them that says "AS IS".
 
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WXman said:
I wish him luck with that. I tried to get the dealership to fix the t-case on the first one I looked at, and when they found out that the stupid actuator alone is over $1,000 they were basically like, "no".

A dealership is rarely going to sink thousands into a used vehicle just to sell it to a certain person because they normally are only making that much on the sale to begin with. They'll just wait and sell it to the next person that comes along that doesn't care about the issues. That's why 9 times out of 10 there is a window sticker on them that says "AS IS".
Click to expand...

and that's when you walk away.


I experienced this exact issue when I bought mine recently. I knew to check for 4low, it didn't engage. they agreed to fix it, if I would still buy it.
I said yes, and they put it in writing.
 
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