Well hello there!

[Roamed YT]

Hey everyone! Looks like I'm joining the 4th gen club for a bit.

I've made worse decisions than buying another 4Runner...

The stats:
'03 SR5 - But based on wheels, hood and seats I'd actually say it's a Sport
V6
Beaten to Hell and back (320,000km / 198,000miles)
Rusty tailgate (as is tradition)
Failed sunroof (again, as is tradition)

The Good:
It runs. Drives. Most of the bulbs in the interior work.

The Bad:
It's been beaten. Needs the following before I can put it on the road (my test is: "Would I put my kids in it? If not, then it's not safe for me, or the road.")
- A/C is kaput (and service records say it's been problematic since at least 2012)
- Front brakes
- Rear Brakes
- Parking Brake (adjustment or replacement)
- Upper & Lower Ball Joints
- Suspension is done
- Front CV's
- Rear axle seal (lord help me if they're as much as a PITA as the 3rd gens)
- Tie rod ends (an assumption)
- Every other link (sways at both ends)
- Sunroof is busted (noted above)
- Rear hatch is cancelled out
- Interior is a mess

The really good?
It set me back a whopping $2500 CAD ($1950 Freedom-bucks)!

It's a project, and we'll see where we go with it. I'm keeping my '99 for now but we will see about that next year.

So... who can give me some tips on dealing with the UV-faded body cladding?

 

[cloud]

Hey everyone! Looks like I'm joining the 4th gen club for a bit.

I've made worse decisions than buying another 4Runner...

The stats:
'03 SR5 - But based on wheels, hood and seats I'd actually say it's a Sport
V6
Beaten to Hell and back (320,000km / 198,000miles)
Rusty tailgate (as is tradition)
Failed sunroof (again, as is tradition)

The Good:
It runs. Drives. Most of the bulbs in the interior work.

The Bad:
It's been beaten. Needs the following before I can put it on the road (my test is: "Would I put my kids in it? If not, then it's not safe for me, or the road.")
- A/C is kaput (and service records say it's been problematic since at least 2012)
- Front brakes
- Rear Brakes
- Parking Brake (adjustment or replacement)
- Upper & Lower Ball Joints
- Suspension is done
- Front CV's
- Rear axle seal (lord help me if they're as much as a PITA as the 3rd gens)
- Tie rod ends (an assumption)
- Every other link (sways at both ends)
- Sunroof is busted (noted above)
- Rear hatch is cancelled out
- Interior is a mess

The really good?
It set me back a whopping $2500 CAD ($1950 Freedom-bucks)!

It's a project, and we'll see where we go with it. I'm keeping my '99 for now but we will see about that next year.

So... who can give me some tips on dealing with the UV-faded body cladding?

Are you sure the plastic panels are faded? I know for a while they weren't color matched and it's kinda hard to tell with the blue color.

I just did my tie rods and their super easy.

If you want a quick test disconnect the outer from the (pitman arm?) And see if it stays stiff or just drops and wobbles. At 183k miles mine were loose and giving me death wobble.

Now the death wobble is severely reduced so I'm thinking lower ball joints from moog are next on the list.

Lots of users complain that it's not worth it or that it can't be done but that just makes me want to do it more. Other forums claim the press kit from advance will do it if you get the large one.

You should probably add lca bushings to that list.

From which coast of America's hat do you hail?

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[Roamed YT]

Haha.. I'm on the left coast. And then north. Whitehorse, Yukon. Last month I did my summer motorcycle trip and went as far south as Redding.

The body cladding and bumpers are the grey plastic. I did treat them and they clean up a bit but they suffer from the mismatched colour issue that Toyota had with poorly sourced plastics in the late 1990's and early 2000's. It was really bad on 97-02 Camry's, especially in beige (they were all beige, though!).

Pic below for an idea of what I'm talking about. The LR bumper skin has degraded. I may just end up painting over a weekend. It's by far the worst visual issue this truck has.

I put it up on the hoist this weekend and it's surprisingly solid underneath. I may revise my parts list down a bit but will likely still do a complete suspension refresh (including LCA bushings...)

Parts are en route from Japan! I likely won't get to it over the long weekend, as I have house projects that are more pressing (like installing a new pellet stove so we have heat this winter..) but the next weekend is looking promising!

 

[cloud]

Haha.. I'm on the left coast. And then north. Whitehorse, Yukon. Last month I did my summer motorcycle trip and went as far south as Redding.

The body cladding and bumpers are the grey plastic. I did treat them and they clean up a bit but they suffer from the mismatched colour issue that Toyota had with poorly sourced plastics in the late 1990's and early 2000's. It was really bad on 97-02 Camry's, especially in beige (they were all beige, though!).

Pic below for an idea of what I'm talking about. The LR bumper skin has degraded. I may just end up painting over a weekend. It's by far the worst visual issue this truck has.

I put it up on the hoist this weekend and it's surprisingly solid underneath. I may revise my parts list down a bit but will likely still do a complete suspension refresh (including LCA bushings...)

Parts are en route from Japan! I likely won't get to it over the long weekend, as I have house projects that are more pressing (like installing a new pellet stove so we have heat this winter..) but the next weekend is looking promising!

Oh damn, that's some gnarly discoloration.

Have you seen the pellet stove fireplace insert? I really want one, but it doesn't get cold enough to justify it where I live.



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[Roamed YT]

If you're in the PNW, you may be able to justify a pellet insert. Check out the forums at hearth.com - they have a ton of good information. Where I live we see 40 below so I like to have two heat sources.

Fedex tells me that my parts are in town. So... I may have a few projects for the long weekend coming up!


Wahoo!

 

[cloud]

If you're in the PNW, you may be able to justify a pellet insert. Check out the forums at hearth.com - they have a ton of good information. Where I live we see 40 below so I like to have two heat sources.

Fedex tells me that my parts are in town. So... I may have a few projects for the long weekend coming up!


Wahoo!

I think 28F is the lowest I've ever seen it where I live. Gotta love that warm tropical air from Japan/Hawaii!

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