What’s killing your 3rd Gen?

B

Brutus

Member
Mine is dying a slow death from the freakin road salt and frost heaves here in Maine. Been here 3 yrs. First two I had a company car and rarely drove my 4Runner. This winter I’m back to using it as a daily driver.
Had a thumping sound happen last week. Rear shock mount gone.
Rocker panel now has a couple rust holes in it.
I did have it undercoated but that ain’t enough.
Gotta climb under it and see what’s the next headache.

I’m not in Ky anymore.

I must admit though, with new snow rated Toyo tires, this thing is awesome in the snow!
 
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Same here in Missouri, part of the salt belt. It's rust. The thing would probably last forever otherwise. But regardless of how well you wash it, repeated ongoing exposure to brine soaking into all the crevices gets to it eventually. My sills have well advanced rust. And I just noticed it was rusting from the inside out behind the rear passenger wheel a couple of weeks ago.

At some point I'll just have to get another manual trans 3rd gen from a dry state. I'm sure the prices haven't gone up too much from when I bought mine in 2010, right?

*google*

Sheesh. Ah well, theyr'e worth it.
 
Luckily I live in the desert but its the summer heat and sun that's slowly toasting all seals, gaskets and boots. That plus at 302,000 miles normal wear and tear, an oil leak that never seems to get fixed, a rack and pinion that leaks like crazy and I need to replace the timing belt.
 
My rockers are rusting from the inside. I assume from the sunroof drains (I hate sunroofs). I'm doing a ton of maintenance work on it right now. This summer I plan to enjoy it and In the fall I'll probably cut out the rockers and weld in some clean ones from the junk yard. So mines not really dying but being brought back to life
 
Same here. Rust. Are you using lanolin coating and injecting the body and frame cavities with it using a 360 degree wand? Makes a huge difference.
 
I had it done but I'm sure they didn't do the frame's interior. It is what it is. just hit 388K and its as strong as ever, but slowly dying.
 
I rebuilt frames. Redone rockers and actually had the rockers rot off again.. I actually have 2 frames here to replace those as well. I have done all the rust repairs and the only tick with Fluid Film style projects only because they are non toxic. Cosmoline RP-342 lasts a lot longer. However, also more toxic to work with.. I am wondering if powder coating the frames and sealing up the holes after putting a quarts into the frame rails.. Maybe pump the frames when they are clean, full of grease and seal the holes off. I do know from experience, that sealing the frame holes off does help slow the oxidation down.
 
I doubt the aftermarket will ever start making them for 3rd gens, but you can buy dip-galvanized replacement frames for old Land Rover Series/Defenders. Like the 4Runner, they also had a boxed frame with enclosed spaces that rusted out.
 
Dry state-rot

Although I'm in a dry area (CA) my 2000 with only 215k is showing every plastic bit...sensors, caps, bushings etc are all starting to crumble. I went out for a drive at the Oceano Dunes and always wash the undercarriage after...this last time, two big plactic "C's" fell on the ground while washing...my steering rack bushings. Then, my heat sensor valves just crumbled into a Plinko game down to the ground. Good times to come!
 
Not necessarily killing it, but it’s all the rubber. Currently replacing bushings and body mounts. But there is rubber everywhere, down to gaskets around the door handles and other window trim.
 
This forum is killing my 3rd gen! (More accurately, the owners' complete disregard for the forum)
 
It's the battle of the general usage wear and rubber bits.....and the rust. I'm doing alright on the first two, the last one, especially the sills, ugh.
Wish I'd re-routed the front sunroof drains earlier than I did but I suspect it'd still have been a losing battle here in MO.
 
It’s lack of parts that’s starting to concern me. The CV axles are a well known example, but I worry about perishable rubber parts that are unique to the car like door gaskets. And electronic parts like Maf or egr.

Rust is a concern since moving to NJ. I completely covered every part of the underside that didn’t heat up or rotate. I didn’t spray inside the rockers and I don’t know how you’d even spray them since the wiring harness runs under the door sill. Dont know what to do about them.
 
NY HERE!!!
Same thing..... it's also hard to find people who will work on it.She's been dealer maintained since the day i took her off the lot.
 
SLO_Rob said:
Although I'm in a dry area (CA) my 2000 with only 215k is showing every plastic bit...sensors, caps, bushings etc are all starting to crumble. I went out for a drive at the Oceano Dunes and always wash the undercarriage after...this last time, two big plactic "C's" fell on the ground while washing...my steering rack bushings. Then, my heat sensor valves just crumbled into a Plinko game down to the ground. Good times to come!
Click to expand...

I'm at the same year and almost same miles (227k I think), but I don'th think I notice any rubber or plastic issues, live in SoCal.

Do you have any pics of what you're noticing? I'm all about preventative maintenence, so I'd be down to look at mine and replace as needed.

I do need to do the valve covers and all associated parts, so if I'm tearing it down, figured it'd be a good time to address whatever else.
 
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