WTB 4gen T4R - advice?

[airsix]

Hey gang, Great community here. I've been a lurker for a while and thought I'd come out of the shadows for a minute to ask your advice.

I'm trying to find a good value on a 4th gen. Here's what I'm after:

4x4
Leather
less than 60k miles

Will consider any trim level and v6/v8 if the price/features/condition combo is attractive.

I've seen posts here quoting prices (low) that I just haven't seen while shopping. Anyone know of any good deals? What price should I hold out for (considering the above)? Thanks.

-Ben

ps - While I've got your attention, what do you think about this? Good deal or do you think I could find similar for a better price?

 

[JayKumar]

With your preferences, I would say you would pay 18-23K. Dont forget T4R's hold their values very well, and are worth every bit of what you pay. I suggest you go with the Limited trim.

Limiteds are most top of the line and everything comes standards...Go with Sport Edition if you dont need all the bells and whistles like standard memory seats, heated seats, sunroof, leather, power passenger seat, dual climate, steering functions etc. If your going with 4x4 i'd prefer a V8. But its your choice.

None of mine are 4x4 so i couldnt tell you whats better on that part.

Paying more for a well kept truck will do you good for the mere future. Good luck

 

[Lexusbstrdchild]

Another thing to keep in mind pricing these guys is that they are much more expensive on the west coast than the middle or east coast. So price changes based on where you live.

 

[MikesToy]

If you wanna by-pass the dealerships, used car lots, internet sales, and private party and avoid extra fees (handling fees, miscellaneous, and other tack-on fees); then talk to your bank and ask if they have any 4th gen 4Runners that are or will be repossessed.

 

[webby]

If you want a good deal on a Toyota, my experience is that you have to shop, shop, and shop some more. That's the bad news, but the good news is that you can do most of it in front of your computer monitor.

I live in Arizona, and I found purchasing my last two used Toyota SUV's (a Highlander, and then a 4Runner), that the prices were unfortunately much too expensive locally. Shopping online, as it happened, the smoking deals I found on both Toyota SUV's were in Texas, one in Dallas and one in Houston, both from non-Toyota dealerships. I flew one way, bought the vehicles, and drove home. The savings in both cases was more than worth my trip and my trouble. Both vehicles have turned out to be good solid, trouble-free Toyotas.

In shopping online I would suggest monitoring ebay motors, autotrader.com, and cars.com. Deals do come up occasionally on all three of those sites. To find the deals, you have to be patient, persistent, and ready to act when you do find the right deal (I used to be a car wholesaler -- moved to different career since) Buy one of those Carfax packages for I think it's 5 cars for 60 days so you can pull a full history on any vehicle you are seriously interested in. Do not buy any vehicle with a Salvage title at any price -- even if a good car, too hard to sell when you finish with it.

Personally, I like to book out cars on Edmunds.com, as I find their book values are pretty real world. NADA or Kelley Blue Book values I do not find useful. If you can buy a 4Runner below book as booked out fully and correctly at Edmunds.com including the plus or minus mileage allowance, you have found a pretty good value. I bought my 2009 at $3K back of Edmunds book, so deals can be had, as I said, if you are patient and persistent. The $$ savings by doing so can be quite substantial.

Good luck!

 

[Skiman254]

I paid $21,800 for my 06 Limited 4WD V8 w/41K back in Febuary. The dealer that I work for took it in on trade. If you can find one that a dealer (if you go that route) has had for a while and at the end of the month, that helps. Just be prepared to look for a while. It took me about 4-5 months to find what I wanted.

 

[JackOSU]

I think you can probably do better than that pricing if you look around. I've found similar here around $19k or so.

I bought an 07 Sport Edition with 70k on it for $20k. I prefer the look more and didn't need leather seats. For me they are too cold in winter without heated ones and too hot in summer. I also like the steering wheel radio controls on mine.

Good luck in your search.

 

[airsix]

Thanks for the tips! I'd been looking on local dealer inventories, regional craigslists, and autotrader. I hadn't bothered with cars.com or ebay-motors until now. You guys are spot on - the East-coast and mid-West prices are significantly lower than Western state prices. I also notice that there are a lot more East-coast/mid-West cars on cars.com and more West-coast stuff on autotrader. I didn't realize there would be a regional bias. As soon as I started looking on cars.com I started seeing some lower prices. Haven't found "the one" but will keep looking. Thanks everybody.

-Ben

 

[cali_axela]

Personally, I decided that I didn't mind a little minor body damage (cracked fog light housing, some scuffs on the corners of the bumpers, etc -- no dents) because I'll be parking it on the street anyways (the track car gets the garage spot) and that way I won't worry about little things happening to it. I got an 04 V8 4WD Sport w/ 56k miles, the engine/trans/drivetrain is in great shape, but with the minor damage listed above, for only $17k. All the comparable ones with similar options but no visible body damage I could not get below $20k. Totally worth it to me, but everyone has their own list of priorities. Something to think about.

 

[Ryco4R]

i paid a bit more than others say they have but i found a single owner vehicle (older female) that was purchased, serviced, and traded at the same dealer. the car was basically flawless, and also covered for another 5 years. everyone thinks the car is brand new (well, those that don't know there's a 5th gen now). my point is that the vehicle is worth what you are willing to pay for it. just cuz it's cheap doesnt mean its a great buy. shop around!

 

[Merle]

In order of my 'preferences'...

1. Get a v8 and 4x4. It's always better to have and not need versus need and not have.

2. Limited Trim: Heated leather seats are nice, especially in the winter. Don't need navigation as you can definately go aftermarket (w/ the rear backup camera which is nice for not hitting kidlets or poles and lining up the towball). Lit running boards are nice, but if you're going to replace them with sliders then not worth it. The Limited comes with 18" tires but 17" rims (e.g. FJC rims) may not fit the larger brake footprint. 4WD is automatic w/o having to flip a switch or shift.

3. Sport & Limited Trim: If you plan on adding lifting aftermarket bumpers, then avoid getting the X-REAS and rear air suspension. They'll cause you all sorts of consternation. Plus you free up 2 buttons.

4. Projector head lights are good, plus it's easy to drop in a HID kit in order to uprev. You can go aftermarket though. HIR are a cheap way for upgraded luminosity.

5. Rear cargo deck... eh. Same goes with the 3rd row seats. However I prefer the cargo deck versus the 3rd row seating, as the deck is a lot more useful

6. Everything else is fluff: Additional AC outlet (-1 button), homelink, compass in the mirror, rear cigarette outlet, etc.

I have a 2008 Gray/Gray Limited V8 4x4 w/ Navigation and 99,950 miles and am only thinking of upgrading in order to pull a larger travel trailer.