test drove my first 4runner... fail

J

jmichael99

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took a test drive of a 03 4runnder sr5 with the v8. a mile out of the dealership we hear metal banging.. when i slowed down so did the noise. sounded like it was something on a cable banging around (spare tire was there)

130k ish miles. the were asking 9100... he said he would call when fixed.. what should i say? I'm wondering if i could get less now since it had an issue..

inside was ok out side has some makes and one little scratch with some rust.. the engine did seem good and was running solid.
 
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Find another one! There are hundreds around Huntington charleston south charleston St. Albans depending on where up are here in wv.!
 
post back when they tell you what they repaired. Might turn out to be something horrible or could be an easy fix. Id be interested in what was repaired, but would still look around else where.
 
my money is on the spare tire tool bag roll that has a bungee with a metal clip on the end holding tightly in place. If it's not attached (highly likely if the technician used it to check the spare before the sale)... it'll make that annoying noise.
 
I'd see if you can get a better deal because of the noise. After you buy it disengage the E-brake and the sound will go away:)....I could be wrong but this is my guess. I bought my 06' a few years back and thought the transmission was going to fall out of it once I got a few hundred yards down the highway. I was alone and about 500 miles from home....little worried at that point. The extremely loud knocking noise went away immediately once I did what I stated above.
 
How loud was the metal banging? Definitely could have been the jack/tool bag moving around, or the spare tire crane might not have been secured. A metal bang definitely is concerning. The heat shields vibrate when loose, but definitely don't bang around.
 
I've heard the tool bag clip...it's more of a metal ding, not anything close to a bang. The bottle jack may be loose in there which will make more of a bang, but that typically only happens when braking or accelerating.
 
It really depends on what they end up fixing. Was the banging occurring when you hit a bump in the road or was it occurring in timing with the rotation of the wheels/gears in the transmission/driveshaft/etc...
 
Haha this reminds me of my first 4runner test drive. I left the Ebrake on by accident. 2 miles down the road when I hit the breaks for the first time, I heard a sound similar to what youre describing. Disengaged the EBreak and the sound was gone. I sure felt like an idiot...
 
andy2008 said:
Find another one! There are hundreds around Huntington charleston south charleston St. Albans depending on where up are here in wv.!
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im in martinsburg on the other side of the state. Im not opposed to coming to charleston to get one but coming all that way and have it be a POS is what I'm afraid of. Maybe someone could check it out if I find one before i make the trip.


BTW, nice sig! ;)
 
jmichael99 said:
im in martinsburg on the other side of the state. Im not opposed to coming to charleston to get one but coming all that way and have it be a POS is what I'm afraid of. Maybe someone could check it out if I find one before i make the trip.


BTW, nice sig! ;)
Click to expand...

You find one here I'd be happy to stop and look at it and give you a heads up on it. PM me let me know if you see one you are interested in!
 
Depends on what they say they found wrong, its hard to say what it could be without being there to hear it. Not to mention we have no idea how shady this business is (its a bit harsh, but its always good to overestimate your enemy than underestimate them), so I would say if it is something as simple as a loose bottle jack or loose heat shield; give the vehicle another chance.

If it wasn't that great a deal and you don't feel comfortable, find another one.
 
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