by "Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
Published 09/20/2017 at 20:13
by "Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
Published 09/20/2017 at 20:13
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STARS: 2
So I’ve been looking for a truck to use as a daily/parts hauler the last few months and the other day I found out a coworker of mine is selling a 1991 Toyota Pickup, 3.0 V6, 5 Speed, 4x4, access cab, so it’s well optioned. Think this but in a purple, blueish color.
Cosmetically it’s decent for a 26 year old truck, paints fading but that’s not super important to me. Some of the major items that would need fixed are a non working speedo/odometer, and the driver door doesn’t open anymore due to something in the assembly breaking. Drivers door should be as simple as taking the door panel off and finding what broke, the speedo/odo could be as simple finding something that wasn’t plugged back in when the clutch was replaced. The kicker is that the truck has probably 360k on the chassis, he’s not sure since the odometer doesn’t work. He had a reman engine put in a little over two years ago, which he estimates has 60k on it. Has a new clutch, clutch master, and slave cylinder, and recently had a new starter put on it. This was all done at a Toyota dealership and he has receipts for everything. It’s actually a two owner truck, he’s the second owner, he has all of the maintenance record from the first owner too. Basically it’s a truck with 360k on it but a relatively fresh drivetrain for $4k. What say you Oppo, good buy or not?
"jasmits" (jasmits)
09/20/2017 at 20:23, STARS: 0
Not bad. I’ve got a 2nd gen 4Runner with the V6 so essentially the same thing but an SUV. I bought it about a year ago with a bit under 200k and an engine like 60k off a rebuild(rebuild, not reman so not quite as nice as yours). I paid 3400(I think, somewhere between 3-3.5k), but for some reason the pickups seem to command a slightly higher price.
The 3.0 is a dog, not very powerful, not very efficient. Supposedly not the most reliable either but I’ve put over 12k on it in a year and it’s been fine for me at least. Just 150 horsepower in a vehicle that is not small nor light is not enough. But you can keep up with traffic reasonably well and it’ll cruise at 75 or 80 on the highway(as long as it’s not uphill).
"SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media" (silentbutnotreallydeadly)
09/20/2017 at 20:28, STARS: 0
As long as the chassis is good and the suspension and steering mounts on it are solid then go for it. Mechanically these are straight forward...it’s frame failure (rust and injury) that tends to kill them.
"Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies" (jordanwphillips)
09/20/2017 at 20:28, STARS: 0
Besides the headgasket issue, there aren’t really any other reliability issues. I’ll take headgasket repair every 150k over pretty much any other issue. Plus, if it was repaired right, it shouldn’t happen again.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/20/2017 at 20:34, STARS: 1
I knew a guy who had one of these new, just in a regular cab. I recall him having a bunch of trouble with the 3.0, but I can’t remember exactly what the problems were, being that it was 20 years ago. I want to say it didn’t like keeping its oil inside it, but I could just be making that up in my head-movies. I think multiple recalls and/or TSBs on it. Although with a relatively fresh reman engine, that one could be sorted.
"jasmits" (jasmits)
09/20/2017 at 20:44, STARS: 1
Head gaskets were a big issue early on, at this point if it’s on the road it’s been done and should be fine if it was done correctly.
"jasmits" (jasmits)
09/20/2017 at 20:46, STARS: 1
True, I still really hate working on it. It’s in that awkward state where they were packing in lots of modern features/emissions controls but things weren’t fully digital so there are little rubber hoses for vacuum functions and emissions systems running EVERYWHERE
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/20/2017 at 20:46, STARS: 0
Yeah, that makes sense.
"Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo" (thetomselleck)
09/20/2017 at 21:26, STARS: 0
4K... maybe if it were perfect and had half the miles.
I would say pass and get one with the 22RE. There are countless 3.0 SR5s throughout the year on CL, if you wanted to go that route just hold out for a better one.
"vicali" (vicali)
09/20/2017 at 21:29, STARS: 0
Looks good, check the frame. Behind the cab, and pass side beside the cat.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/20/2017 at 22:11, STARS: 0
Figured I’d get some good input from you. It’s the SoCal market so values are kind of weird compared to a lot of other places. That being said, I have found a same optioned 1991 with 160k, 3k on a rebuilt motor, with interior issues, missing handbrake??? and the same odometer problem.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/20/2017 at 22:13, STARS: 0
Didn’t see any visible rust, surface or otherwise when I looked under, it’s been a SoCal truck the duration of it’s life so didn’t foresee much issue with it anyway.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/20/2017 at 22:15, STARS: 0
Will do, thanks for the tip.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/20/2017 at 22:18, STARS: 0
How was it holding up at 200k? And then the subsequent miles after you bought it?
I’ve read that as far as the 3.0 goes its okay at best, but it seems like quite a few people swap in a 3.4 eventually.
"jasmits" (jasmits)
09/21/2017 at 03:48, STARS: 0
She’s solid, I’ve brought her cross country twice in the past year or so.
A 3.4 swap would make it my perfect SUV
"So Shiney. So Chrome! So Frunky" (badams109)
09/21/2017 at 08:59, STARS: 0
I have the exact truck you describe but in the white pictured above. If it’s not rusty I would say it’s market value, maybe on the high end. Disclaimer: I say this as a resident of the rust belt. These things are usually so rusted here they need frame repair. I’ve only been let down a couple times by my truck and they have all been cooling system related. I’m guessing the coolant hoses would have been replaced with the engine swap but if not I’d advise replacing them. There are a lot more than you would think on the V6. Cheapest way is to buy a whole cooling hose kit from someplace, I found mine on Amazon. It’s a lot easier because a number of the little formed hoses will not be available from parts stores at all.
"Dru" (therealkennyd)
09/21/2017 at 10:15, STARS: 0
My dad had a truck exactly like the one pictured when I was still in a car seat. As I got older, he “upgraded” to a 2 door 4Runner. Amazing how in the 90s having a kid didn’t mean you needed a suburban.
Anyway! If the truck is as described, and you can negotiate the price closer to $3K, I’d go for it. My dads 4Runner had the mythical 22re, but it had also had like 4 or 5 owners by the time he got it, so it had some issues despite its reputation.
I’ve had two 2nd gen 4runners, and my main complaint with the 3.0 is fuel consumption. It makes almost no power and gets full size truck fuel economy. The first one I had needed head baskets right away, which we had done by a reputable shop. Then 17 year old me proceeded to beat the shit out of that poor truck for like 3 years. It never quit.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/21/2017 at 16:30, STARS: 0
Lifelong SoCal truck so no rust issues that I saw from a peek at the chassis. Most of the rubber under the hood looked fairly fresh, but I’ll take that under consideration, thanks.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/21/2017 at 16:33, STARS: 0
The real question is what were you getting mileage wise during those trips? He said he usually averages around 18, primarily highway to work and back.
"Leonardo DiCabriolet" (leonardodicabriolet)
09/21/2017 at 16:36, STARS: 0
Gonna see if I can talk him down a little bit anyway, he’s planning on using the money from selling the truck to put a down payment on something more kid friendly to haul his daughters around, so we’ll see if he’s willing to deal.
"jasmits" (jasmits)
09/21/2017 at 23:22, STARS: 0
I was getting 16 or so, could’ve and probably should’ve done a bit better if I wasn’t cruising at 75 the entire time.