Maybe a Toyota convert....from jeep

N

Nesquik

Observer
Hey guys

I've been searching for an XJ. I'm looking for a DD/off-road/camping/highway trip truck with 4 doors

I found a 4Runner that I really like...3.4L motor

It's got 250k on the odometer and appears in good shape. Assuming the vehicle checks out okay, is this high mileage something to shy away from?

It's lightly modified with a lift and bumpers, something I often shy away from but it looks decent; supposedly no rust, tho he says the driver side rocker was cut and not replaced to keep rust from spreading

It's priced under $4000.

Thoughts? Its about 4 hours each way for me to go check it over but I'm confident I can tell if it runs strong and th suspension is nice and tight; justcurious aboht the mileage
 
J

JLee

Adventurer
The 3.4 (5VZ-FE) is absurdly reliable. I sold my '99 Tacoma with 282,9xx on it and it still ran like a champ. I wouldn't worry about mileage on the motor at all.

4Runners are fairly easy to find, so whether this one is a good enough deal to be worthwhile depends on how much you like this particular one. What country/region are you in?
 
N

Nesquik

Observer
JLee said:
The 3.4 (5VZ-FE) is absurdly reliable. I sold my '99 Tacoma with 282,9xx on it and it still ran like a champ. I wouldn't worry about mileage on the motor at all.

4Runners are fairly easy to find, so whether this one is a good enough deal to be worthwhile depends on how much you like this particular one. What country/region are you in?
Click to expand...
The price seems great here in the Midwest

I'm running carfax on it tomorrow hopefully

If the consensus is that it still has life left; I'll buy it if it checks out as it should
 
H

Happykamper

Explorer
The miles should not be a factor if everything checks out. Find out when timing belt was last changed as that's a biggy both in cost and in maintenance although with those miles pretty sure it's been kept up. And the price sounds AWESOME !!!!
 
R

Renegade_Medic

Observer
As a fellow jeep-convert I'll provide some insight.
The 4Runners are good, comfortable to me and I have had no significant problems, I have done a good deal of maintenence to the truck. All said and done, I'm at about $7000 in my 4Runner including a lift and wheels/tires. I have 255k on it and 7k are from me. The 4Runner is much more refined and nice than an XJ. The XJ is a littler wider and shorter. The interior of the 4Runner is a little small in the front, but not much more than an XJ is. I bought my 4Runner after looking at xjs, a wj, and a couple 4runners. The quality of the Toyota sold me.
The cons of the yota are that it's an expensive proposition, between maintenence and aftermarket. If you want bumpers, there are only a few to choose from, which isn't a factor if it already has them. You'll only want to use Toyota parts, no parts store brands, which work fine for jeeps. I found that I can find the part price online (toyota of dallas parts) and my dealer will usually price match, or get close.

There are lots of lift options, I like the coil springs, much more comfortable. I opted for the OME 891 (heavy coil) with bilstein shocks and it's almost too soft. Theyou handle and take bumps much better than the jeeps.
Another con is power, I know it's relative and everyone has their opinion, but mone is that the 3.4 is a reliable slug. Mine is at least. If you have a 4.0/4.2L, you will find yourself wanting more. Fuel economy is ok, to me. I get roughly 18mpg after lift and 33s.
Ultimately it comes down to personal preference, but I would be deterred by that mileage. In my search for a 4Runner I saw a lot that were well over 300k miles.
Good luck!
 
J

JLee

Adventurer
Renegade_Medic said:
As a fellow jeep-convert I'll provide some insight.
The 4Runners are good, comfortable to me and I have had no significant problems, I have done a good deal of maintenence to the truck. All said and done, I'm at about $7000 in my 4Runner including a lift and wheels/tires. I have 255k on it and 7k are from me. The 4Runner is much more refined and nice than an XJ. The XJ is a littler wider and shorter. The interior of the 4Runner is a little small in the front, but not much more than an XJ is. I bought my 4Runner after looking at xjs, a wj, and a couple 4runners. The quality of the Toyota sold me.
The cons of the yota are that it's an expensive proposition, between maintenence and aftermarket. If you want bumpers, there are only a few to choose from, which isn't a factor if it already has them. You'll only want to use Toyota parts, no parts store brands, which work fine for jeeps. I found that I can find the part price online (toyota of dallas parts) and my dealer will usually price match, or get close.

There are lots of lift options, I like the coil springs, much more comfortable. I opted for the OME 891 (heavy coil) with bilstein shocks and it's almost too soft. Theyou handle and take bumps much better than the jeeps.
Another con is power, I know it's relative and everyone has their opinion, but mone is that the 3.4 is a reliable slug. Mine is at least. If you have a 4.0/4.2L, you will find yourself wanting more. Fuel economy is ok, to me. I get roughly 18mpg after lift and 33s.
Ultimately it comes down to personal preference, but I would be deterred by that mileage. In my search for a 4Runner I saw a lot that were well over 300k miles.
Good luck!
Click to expand...

If power is a concern, look for a 4th gen 4Runner with the V8 or a GX470. :)
 
N

Nesquik

Observer
Renegade_Medic said:
As a fellow jeep-convert I'll provide some insight.
The 4Runners are good, comfortable to me and I have had no significant problems, I have done a good deal of maintenence to the truck. All said and done, I'm at about $7000 in my 4Runner including a lift and wheels/tires. I have 255k on it and 7k are from me. The 4Runner is much more refined and nice than an XJ. The XJ is a littler wider and shorter. The interior of the 4Runner is a little small in the front, but not much more than an XJ is. I bought my 4Runner after looking at xjs, a wj, and a couple 4runners. The quality of the Toyota sold me.
The cons of the yota are that it's an expensive proposition, between maintenence and aftermarket. If you want bumpers, there are only a few to choose from, which isn't a factor if it already has them. You'll only want to use Toyota parts, no parts store brands, which work fine for jeeps. I found that I can find the part price online (toyota of dallas parts) and my dealer will usually price match, or get close.

There are lots of lift options, I like the coil springs, much more comfortable. I opted for the OME 891 (heavy coil) with bilstein shocks and it's almost too soft. Theyou handle and take bumps much better than the jeeps.
Another con is power, I know it's relative and everyone has their opinion, but mone is that the 3.4 is a reliable slug. Mine is at least. If you have a 4.0/4.2L, you will find yourself wanting more. Fuel economy is ok, to me. I get roughly 18mpg after lift and 33s.
Ultimately it comes down to personal preference, but I would be deterred by that mileage. In my search for a 4Runner I saw a lot that were well over 300k miles.
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Thanks for your thorough post

To clarify, because it seems to contradict the rest of the post, are you saying you WOULDNT be deterred by the mileage? Or you would be?
 
R

Renegade_Medic

Observer
Nesquik said:
Thanks for your thorough post

To clarify, because it seems to contradict the rest of the post, are you saying you WOULDNT be deterred by the mileage? Or you would be?
Click to expand...

Sorry, no I would NOT be deterred. As long as the engine doesn't knock or make any noise and everything works like it should. I will correct my post. And if the the engine goes, I have seen lots locally on craigslist from Japan at about $800.
 
R

Renegade_Medic

Observer
JLee said:
If power is a concern, look for a 4th gen 4Runner with the V8 or a GX470. :)
Click to expand...

Cost... I got my 99 limited for $3500 in very good condition. Cheapest 4th Gen I could find in 4x4 was over twice that. Just my experience. It's gutless, even with the 4.30 gears. But, it's liveable. I just go with the flow in it, that's about all you can do. I've just always had powerful vehicles so this was an adjustment, that's it.
 
Desert Dan

Desert Dan

Explorer
With that kind of mileage (on any vehicle) I would plan/budget for an engine rebuild.
4th Gen V6 has plenty of power in most situations.
 
N

Nesquik

Observer
Desert Dan said:
With that kind of mileage (on any vehicle) I would plan/budget for an engine rebuild.
4th Gen V6 has plenty of power in most situations.
Click to expand...

I hope it'll last another 50k

That being said, I have a back up video, and I could afford to buy a whole other 4Runner or two if need be

I'm a cheap ***; if the engine seems solid, I'll buy it. If it blows up; it'll get a low mileage engine and I'll be in a little more than it's worth

And if I refrain from selling it, it can still be worth it
 
AaronK

AaronK

Explorer
The engine wouldn't be my concern. It'd be everything else. Ball joints, u joints. CVs, etc etc. Nothing major, but Potential for additional maintenance

Sent from my OnePlus One using Tapatalk.
 
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