Very low mileage 08 SR5 for sale... question

[Skeet Shooter]

Hi all,

I found an amazingly low mileage 2008 SR5 4Runner (less than 25K miles) It is a CPO and carries a 7 year 100k powertrain warranty from last year.

The price is $18k... I guess i have a few questions...

1. The low mileage, could there be problems because it wasnt driven much (4k miles a year)
2. Would a 75K mile 4runner same age but 4K less be a better deal and be just as good?

Thanks guys... I'm ready to start counting out c-notes to buy this thing.

 

[olsen_karl]

Rust free? 4WD? Buy it.

I wouldn't sell my 55k miles 2008 4Runner for $18k.

 

[verman84]

Both are great prices given they are in decent condition.

25k miles is nearly new in the 4runner world so just give it a thorough inspection and check everything you can see. Look at the bottom of the truck, look at the brakes, take it for a good drive and pay attention to everything. Check the carfax to see if maybe it was involved in an accident or flood perhaps.

Personally I just don't understand the person who would buy such a vehicle and never drive it. 25k miles in 6 years is basically just enough mileage to keep it moving every week. That wasn't even enough miles to warrant a lot of the servicing just yet. Check the tires, while they might still have a ton of tread, if they are stock they might be dry rotting depending on where the vehicle is/came from. I would check the brakes for pulsating, and look at the rotors to see if there are any indications of a stuck caliper. For something that doesn't get driven a lot, I wouldn't be surprised to see a stuck caliper or two.

This summer when I was looking with a budget of $14-15k, I was finding anything from 2006-2008s v6 4x4 with around 80-120k miles in decent shape with no accidents. I found a 2008 sr5 v6 4x4 in amazing shape with a moon roof and tow hitch, new tires and interior was an 8/10 with 64k miles for $18k. It sold in a week of being listed.

Even the 75k mile model is still well below its value (given its v6 4x4 and no accidents).

 

[Skeet Shooter]

I ran a carfax on it... He is the third owner... has only owned it since September of last year... He said he needs a bigger vehicle... Has 4 kids.

I have not seen it yet in person, but I asked to come see it this weekend. I can't make it down there any earlier to see it as its out of state...

It was sold to him as a CPO from a Toyota dealership, so its registered as such... No warranty work done to it at all on the service records, and not brought in for maintenance for anything but regular service.

Tires look ok in the pics, but no up-close ones... My guess is a replacement set will be needed.

Correction on mileage... its 28,363 not under 25... my bad.

 

[Skeet Shooter]

A little update on this... I went to go look at it and it was in a really shady area and i realized fairly quickly that it was a scam because they guy told me to pull around to the back of this garage in a pretty industrial area... Never saw the car anywhere.

Luckily I didn't fall for that bait, because I have a feeling that I would have been robbed or I would have had to end up shooting someone. Lesson is that you should be careful with Craigslist guys...

 

[ben550]

A little update on this... I went to go look at it and it was in a really shady area and i realized fairly quickly that it was a scam because they guy told me to pull around to the back of this garage in a pretty industrial area... Never saw the car anywhere.

Luckily I didn't fall for that bait, because I have a feeling that I would have been robbed or I would have had to end up shooting someone. Lesson is that you should be careful with Craigslist guys...

Good thing you made it out of there without an issue. I always bring someone else with me when doing any Craigslist transactions for that very reason.

You are fortunate. Just curious did you have the cash on you? If so he must have been prepping to pounce...

 

[AZ4runner08]

A little update on this... I went to go look at it and it was in a really shady area and i realized fairly quickly that it was a scam because they guy told me to pull around to the back of this garage in a pretty industrial area... Never saw the car anywhere.

Luckily I didn't fall for that bait, because I have a feeling that I would have been robbed or I would have had to end up shooting someone. Lesson is that you should be careful with Craigslist guys...

You are most likely right but it could be where the guy works and he might have had it in a bay or something. Did you follow up via phone call and express your concerns, or did he just disappear into thin air along with the ad? If its a real deal, and who wouldn't want those low miles, then I would call him back and tell him you want to meet at a public place, something like QT that is loaded with cameras. Then you will know for sure...

 

[AZ4runner08]

Speaking of scams me and a friend at work played along with the craigslist scam with someone. The old "I am in the military over seas but we can use the ebay shipping program to send the vehicle. After many stupid questions we had gone back and forth for awhile, we decided to go ahead and buy this for our son. (wink wink). He asked us to wire a thousand dollars for the down payment to a specific western union and send him a copy of the wire transfer receipt. We photo shopped the form to make it look perfect and he went there only to find the money not there. He emailed us back an hour later and said the money wasn't there. He got really demanding and asked for a phone number to call us at. We gave him the Phoenix police phone number and within minutes his ad was removed, his email address deleted and never heard back from him again. So we at least got him to go down thinking he pulled one over on us only to get burned himself....LOL!!

 

[macgyver_ga]

A little update on this... I went to go look at it and it was in a really shady area and i realized fairly quickly that it was a scam because they guy told me to pull around to the back of this garage in a pretty industrial area... Never saw the car anywhere.

Luckily I didn't fall for that bait, because I have a feeling that I would have been robbed or I would have had to end up shooting someone. Lesson is that you should be careful with Craigslist guys...

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Ran into a similar issue when searching for my wife's 4runner a few weeks ago. Came across one on autotrader locally that was mint looking '08 limited v8 4wd. Black on black leather w/ 49k miles. Seemed too good to be true so I ran the carfax/autocheck on it because it was being sold by some rinky dink dealer in a not so great part of town. Came back as possible odometer fraud, many many owners and had been sold at auctions all across the country. Also showed a repossession dated about a week prior, which was interesting because it had been on autotrader for sale for a few weeks. I definitely let that one go. We ended up buying one from a dealer out of state. It's so hard to find a 4wd 4runner around here, you can find a 2wd all day long but 4wd is a different story.

I always meet CL sellers or buyers in a Walmart or Target parking lot if I can because I know they have excellent video surveillance (I work in the LP industry). I also always have my XD9 on my hip (concealed) w/ a JHP in the chamber.

 

[mcope514]

Ran across a couple of the military out of state scams on craigslist when looking for my 4runner. They became pretty obvious to spot, so when I got curious, I would just reverse search the pictures from the ad. Every time it would link back to an old ad that someone had just pulled pictures from. This one seems a little more sophisticated with a vin number and all. Also a little more scary if he wasn't just trying to get you to wire him money. Probably best that you went with your gut feeling.

 

[peebee]

Ran across a couple of the military out of state scams on craigslist when looking for my 4runner. They became pretty obvious to spot, so when I got curious, I would just reverse search the pictures from the ad. Every time it would link back to an old ad that someone had just pulled pictures from. This one seems a little more sophisticated with a vin number and all. Also a little more scary if he wasn't just trying to get you to wire him money. Probably best that you went with your gut feeling.

It probably helped that he was packing heat too. I'd never want to use it, but I won't hesitate if needed. Thieves and scammers get no sympathy from me.

Glad you're safe bud.