Poll: 2001 vs 2006 on Craiglist

[courtwshr1]

Posing a question to the group and appreciate your input:

I'm looking to buy a 4Runner to last me a couple years and help my family move cross-country and back. Anticipate owning for 3-5 years, putting about 30k-40k miles on it. My goal is to spend about $7k.

My mechanic says he thinks the "older" 4Runners last longer and that he sees more problems with the new ones - but I figured I would crowd source the forums for an opinion:

Option A: 2001 SR5 V6 2WD with 165,000 miles. Single owner. Good condition. Listed for $6850.

Option B: 2006 Sport V6 2WD with 193,000 miles. Single owner. Good condition. Listed for $7500.

Assume all other aspects are equivalent and assume Craigslist negotiation could help the price out a little for both.

Thoughts?

 

[GLP]

I would say go for the 06, but caution you that the V6 had a head gasket problem for years 03-05. I think it isn't completely sure that all 06 models got the new head gasket design, so take a look at this thread

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/188699-%2A%2A%2A-v6-head-gasket-action-request-%2A%2A%2A.html

After reading through all of that info if you can convince yourself that the 2006 does not have a head gasket problem then I would get the 06. Seems like more for your money. But I would also evaluate the owner almost as much as the vehicle and how they drove and maintained it (off-road use, highway miles, city miles...)

 

[awdjunkies]

4th gen, and not because you posted it on the 4th gen side, but because given the fact that the 4th gen is going to be a little more roomier, and has a good amount of power which you can feel.
Don't get me wrong, I've owned quite a few 3th gens and they are very, very capable, have more ground clearance from the factory, and are great over all rigs. But the comfortability/ride factor is definitely a win for the 4th gen, if comparing the two(Given the fact that they have about the same mileage on the suspension components).

PS: For the money you are wanting to spend? I am sure you can find a 4x4. That way you won't/Don't have buyers remorse in the end. Why? because it's always better to have and not need it, than to need it and NOT have it...


Just my 2 cents

 

[courtwshr1]

I appreciate all the very insightful comments! I ended up seeing both 4Runners today and the 4th Gen definitely wins out. My poll stated "assuming all other factors equal" for the sake of easy comparison - but in reality the 4th Gen was in SIGNIFICANTLY better condition cosmetically. In addition, the 3rd Gen seller was very firm on the price (which is extraordinarily high) and the 4th Gen came down to $7000.

Unfortunately I don't have the title in hand yet... I don't actually know anything about cars (hence my posting here), so I have a pre-purchase inspection set up for Monday morning. Carfax checks out, so if the inspection is good then hopefully it'll be mine. Thanks for all the great help!

 

[awdjunkies]

I appreciate all the very insightful comments! I ended up seeing both 4Runners today and the 4th Gen definitely wins out. My poll stated "assuming all other factors equal" for the sake of easy comparison - but in reality the 4th Gen was in SIGNIFICANTLY better condition cosmetically. In addition, the 3rd Gen seller was very firm on the price (which is extraordinarily high) and the 4th Gen came down to $7000.

Unfortunately I don't have the title in hand yet... I don't actually know anything about cars (hence my posting here), so I have a pre-purchase inspection set up for Monday morning. Carfax checks out, so if the inspection is good then hopefully it'll be mine. Thanks for all the great help!

Remember that you can hop on over to Toyota.com and click on the owner's tab(Create a user name and password, although I can't remember if you can enter the VIN without creating an account, since it has been a while for me) and then enter the VIN as if it was your own. This should tell you the work that was performed at the dealership and at what intervals. That is if indeed if was brought to a Toyota dealership anywhere within the U.S.