soon to be 4runner owner

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vthokie

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Hey everyone. Over the past few months i've been looking for a suv. I've decided to get a used 4runner and i figure i should ask the pros for a little advice. I've been to look at a few so far, but i'm not sure of what problems to be looking at exactly. What are common issues with 4runners? or what wear is expected? Where are common rust areas? etc. I'm looking at getting a 96'-00'. Any advice on buying one would be helpful.
Thanks
 
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I don't think you can go wrong with any 3rd gen. The biggest issues seem to be some have saggy (but easy to replace) rear springs and any with an auto transmission should probably be converted to an external transmission cooler.

Plenty of knowledge here. With a little searching and some help from the 3rd gen guys you'll find what you need:D
 
More serious issues are leaky rear axle seals and the auto transmission cooler built into the radiator which can leak and cause the coolant and tranny fluid to mix together and invade each other's spaces.

Both are relatively rare but worth taking a look.

Rear axle seal failure looks like this:
Helmuth_rear_axle_seal_failure.jpg~original


Failure of tranny cooler is known as the "pink milkshake" issue. Best solution is to be pro-active and add an external cooler and bypass the one built into the stock radiator.

Otherwise, yes, these are very reliable vehicles!
 
Yeah rear axle seal failure and strawberry milkshake for automatic transmissions are some of the more common failures on 3rd gens.

I'd check to make sure that the maintenance wasn't neglected too. The timing belts on the V6 engines are normally replaced in 90k mile intervals and it's a good idea if the water pump was also changed too with the belt. Check to see if the oils are in good condition (engine oil, transmission oil, diffs, etc.) since this should give you a clue if the previous owner kept up with the maintenance if no records are available.

If you are worried about rust just have a look under the 4Runner. The rust will be easy to spot if it has any.

Good luck!
 
alright, thanks for the help so far. Tomorrow i'm going to look at a few and i'll definately keep this in mind. As far as the exernal tranny cooler would you just buy a cooler and mount it under or infront of the radiator? Would you just extend the hoses to the new cooler? It doesnt seem hard but i could be wrong. If anyone knows of a previous thread explaining it please let me know. I did see that some people mounted an external tranny cooler that was placed after the fluid went through the radiator, so it wasnt a completely seperate unit.
 
vthokie said:
alright, thanks for the help so far. Tomorrow i'm going to look at a few and i'll definately keep this in mind. As far as the exernal tranny cooler would you just buy a cooler and mount it under or infront of the radiator? Would you just extend the hoses to the new cooler? It doesnt seem hard but i could be wrong. If anyone knows of a previous thread explaining it please let me know. I did see that some people mounted an external tranny cooler that was placed after the fluid went through the radiator, so it wasnt a completely seperate unit.
Click to expand...

External tranny cooler in front of the rad. Plenty of threads on this, I chose the B&M 70268, bought it off Amazon.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/66786-transmission-cooler-fan-pics.html

Fan is optional.
 
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Add the tranny cooler and don't risk it. I bought my 4runner with 138k miles and it pink milkshaked on me three weeks ago at 142k miles. It's a MAJOR hassle to deal with and you run the risk of ruining your tranny.

It's super easy to install and cheap. Not to mention it keeps your tranny running much cooler. You might as well flush out the tranny while you do this. There's no telling how long it's been unless there are maintenance records.
 
Alright well i went and looked at two 4runners today. One was lifted and had 126k i fell in love with it. it drove well and was awesome. Now i have to wait to see if the owner's family friend qualifies for a loan because they want to buy it and get dibs over me... The other 4runner only had 105k it is in pretty good shape but it came from New Jersey so there is some rust under it. Its not awful but not perfect either... It also needs an alignment and the owner is trying to loosen some bolts on the tie-rod because the shop said they couldnt ... hopefully all will workout and i can get the first one i looked at. The were both 98's.
 
vthokie said:
alright, i skimmed over that, so whats the big difference? What was your deciding factor that swayed you to 99+ 4runners?
Click to expand...

My reasons (from the '99 model year improvements).....

- Interior Equipment (numerous improvements)
- The hot wire type mass air flow meter has been changed to the plug-in type.
- 4-hole type fuel injectors have been adopted to improve the atomization of fuel
- VF3AM transfer case (electronic 4WD shift button on Ltd, shift-on-fly on SR5)
- fully automatic controlled type air conditioner on Limited
- odometer and A/B trip meters with LCD display
- wireless door lock remote control system
- one-touch auto up-and-down function on front windows
- SRS airbag: 3-sensor type airbag system has been adopted with the addition of a front airbag sensor
- One-touch full open moon roof function has been newly adopted.
- Two power outlets are adopted into the center cluster (total of 3)

2000 is very similar to the '99. 2001 had a number of other improvements, but most '01s I found were over my price threshold.

Duhockey said:
What about the 96?
Click to expand...

That's just where the 3rd gen section starts.
 
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I hear that Boise has the best 4runners 99+ if you get my drift!! See you on Fed Ex Field. GO BRONCOS! :gun5: :AK47:
 
So i'm still looking and i have yet to find "the one". I cant decide if finding a higher mileage one for cheaper is better or finding a not so high mileage one for more money. The "high mileage" ones have about 165k and the lower mileage ones have 120-130k. Is it worth the extra $2000 or more? or would i be better off buying the higher mileage one and fixing it up. All i need is for it to last 5-6 more years. I will be at school, so i wont be driving too much, probably 5-7 thousand a year. What are your opinions?
 
vthokie said:
So i'm still looking and i have yet to find "the one". I cant decide if finding a higher mileage one for cheaper is better or finding a not so high mileage one for more money. The "high mileage" ones have about 165k and the lower mileage ones have 120-130k. Is it worth the extra $2000 or more? or would i be better off buying the higher mileage one and fixing it up. All i need is for it to last 5-6 more years. I will be at school, so i wont be driving too much, probably 5-7 thousand a year. What are your opinions?
Click to expand...


30,000 miles isn't worth 2k in my opinion. As long as it has regular maintenance it still has a long life left in it. If it hasn't buy it anyways and drop 500 into repairs and it will still be in great shape. Good Luck :lookout:
 
I agree with toy4ever. 165K isn't much for a toyota and you should probably change all the fluids and do plugs and wires regardless of if it has 120K or 165K just to have a fresh start. The money you save by getting a higher mileage one you can spend on cool stuff. I've got 200K+ and these engines will go much longer than that if you take care of them.
 
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