Project $400Runner

"rctothefuture" (rctothefuture) 09/18/2020 at 11:58 • Filed to: Oppositelock, Project Car, $400Runner, Off-Road, Build, hooptie, Toyota 4Runner

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Welcome to Project $400Runner . I’ll be cataloging the ups and downs of my $400 1998 4Runner Limited. First let’s get into the back story, how I got her home and of course where we stand now.

During the start of the pandemic, I was asked to work from home for the foreseeable future. This meant I was spending days at home with no commute and the empty spot in my driveway was starting to gnaw at me. I’m no stranger to projects, I’ve owned over 30 some cars in my lifetime and I already have one that may be sold soon (NA Miata). The need to wrench, sweat, swear and cover my pavement in fluids was eating at me every day.

I decided to find an offroad vehicle. The wife has a Renegade Trailhawk that we love, but is too new for us to take offroad and beat. We need a rig that can handle rubbing up against rocks, taking mud and being rolled over. We also bought a canoe and have been looking at boats. So a good tow rig that can also carry stuff on top was a must. I set my eyes on the vehicle I could trust, a Toyota. Specifically, I wanted a Land Cruiser. But, I only had $1500 to spend so an LC was out of the budget. Enter, the $400 4runner.

Only Facebook Photo that I could find

This is what I saw on Facebook, a cheap and pretty clean example of the famous 3rd gen 4Runner. These are the ones you still see driving around and being great SUV’s. Sadly the hood scoop was not factory, but this example was a Limited so that meant factory lockers and leather interior among other things.

I shot the guy a message, found it was a former Arizona truck and that it had over 300,000 miles on the chassis. Engine and tranny were swapped but had over 100k according to the seller. Mileage, to me, is just a number. So no fear there. I agree to come out and take a look. He tells me it has a snapped rear control arm, so I won’t be able to drive it far or fast. Remember that for later...

First time laying eyes on her

I drove almost 2 hours to look at it. I was in love. Yes there was some holes in the doors, the thing barely started and it had a slight misfire. The interior was dirty and of course the leather has seen better days, but it’s been through 300k miles. But the frame was solid and it was up for a decent price.

After some haggling, and finding out the rear diff cover was leaking, we got it down to $600. You’re probably wondering, how is this a $400 4Runner? I found $200 under the rear cargo tray when I got it home. So it’s a $400 car in my eyes. The seller did note that the rear hatch window didn’t work and was more than likely a motor or wiring failure, no biggie. I might replace that with a new hatch door all together due to some rust.

I was now the proud owner of a 98 4Runner that I had to drive from Madison back home:

This was not fun. The previous owner replaced one lower control arm but not the other as he could only get his hands on one. The whole truck would move sideways, almost crab like, when on the throttle and would require some good countersteering. Left off the gas and it would go back straight. Constantly sawing the wheel on back roads for over 2 hours shot my nerves to hell and back.

Going up hills, it misfired as if half the plugs weren’t working. I couldn’t accelerate in OD, I would manually have to kick it down to get it up hills. Well that or go up in Reverse, but I hadn’t gotten that desperate. On the drive home, I did confirm the cruise control worked and there was some life in the A/C. The sunroof was not so happy, it only rolled back half way and sounded as if it was dying on the way back. We’re just gonna keep it closed.

After getting it home, I did my Pre Purchase inspection.

What we need:

Rear control arms, upper and lower

Spark plugs and wires

Tires (currently balder than Constanza)

Battery

Door rust holes patched

Headlight bulbs

Rear diff cover fixed

Exhaust leak fixed (at header and muffler)

A/C recharge

Front suspension bushings

Rear Hatch Motor/Hatch Replacement

Remove the tacky Autozone “Sport” badge from the passenger side.

Remove the un-photographed giant “Oakley” logo that I can’t stand to look at.

Eventually I’d like to do a lift on it, but just getting her 100% road worthy is the goal now. Here’s how she sits in the driveway:

Needs a good cleaning, as you can see

My sweat and blood will be worth more than this thing when I’m done with it...

Mark Tucker > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 14:13

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As the proud (?) owner of a $500 Corolla, I applaud you for bringing another half-dead dirt-cheap Toyota back to life. Especially one of these; my wife had an ‘02 SR5 when we met, and we both still regret selling it. Good luck!

rctothefuture > Mark Tucker 09/18/2020 at 14:17

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Appreciate it! It’s gotten a lot of love from 4Runner folks for trying to save her. Should be fun, I hope.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 14:23

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Looks like a fun project, and probably in better starting shape than my $400 project vehicle.  Can’t wait to follow this one.  

rctothefuture > Snuze: Needs another Swede 09/18/2020 at 14:27

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Your’s is probably faster than mine. So you got that going for you, which is nice.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 14:38

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Probably only slightly, it’s a basic Volvo 850, FWD, non-turbo, and an auto. So you’ve got 4WD going for you, which is cool!

MM54 > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 15:11

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Nice find. I have a minty ‘99 sport package, excellent truck. Great off-road but mine’s too nice to beat up (I felt bad the one time I went). Catch up on the maintenance and you’ll be impressed how well it can do stock with some good tires (especially with the locker).

Those rust spots on the door scream “southern truck brought up north” - as long as underneath is solid you’ll be set for a long time.

One thing - you list “rear diff cover fixed” - the rear axle is a center-section type, there is no “cover” that comes off. If it’s leaking from the “cover” then that’s a can of worms.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 15:41

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Welcome to Oppo! You’ll love it here.

My only experience with Toyotas is my dad’s 02 TRD Tundra and even then it’s never really been offroad. Also with 300k on it, it makes your faux leather look positively mint compared to it even if it has 100% less rust. Though its bed and towing capacity even with the offroad spec has definitely earned its keep.

These things just go forever. Someone must have loved yours at some point to put that push bar on it. Clearly it has had a lot of deferred maintenance under the previous owner though. Hope you manage to get it running well.

Spark plugs, wires, and coils might even be original so it’s probably time for a replacement. Not sure what is up with the suspension for it to be so janky but I remember how much the ride improved when he replaced the bushings.

Also, is that a bright blue Mini Paceman in your driveway? Between that and the yellow Renegade I like your style!

rctothefuture > MM54 09/18/2020 at 16:25

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Yeah, there’s some rust on the inner door wells and on the passenger side by the window. Plan on sanding them down to bare and either replacing or patching. It aint a show truck, just don’t want it eaten by the tinworm.

So I did some research on that. The rear diff is one solid unit, nice choice by Toyota there. I did see that RockAuto sells a new center cover, however it needs to be ground off and a new one welded on. I have a welder and the time to do it, the problem is removing the axle. That’s disturbing a lot of new rust and my luck needs to be about me to try and remove it. Most 4Runner Forum guys I’ve seen patch it with some JB weld and go until they need a diff rebuild or they swap it.

If this ends up becoming a more “serious” offroader. I’ll do the SFA swap and put a Ford 8.8 in the rear with some lockers.

rctothefuture > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 09/18/2020 at 16:30

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Thanks, happy to be here!

Those Tundra’s are tanks, love hearing about them. Shame the news one lag behind the Big 3 when it comes to their interior and MPG. Love the green!

Suspension is TBD, I’ve put it in the air and everything is solid feeling. Just very squeaky. I figure getting some new rubber and lube in their should straighten her up. Going over bumps, she gets a good shimmy and vibration so I’m pretty sure it’s struts and control arm bushings. Easy enough fixes!

Don’t let the pushbar fool you, it’s got a broken weld on the passenger side. I do plan on replacing the bumper so I’ll probably weld it back together and put a new bumper on at some point.

Appreciate the love for the rest of the fleet. Renegade is the Wife’s and the Paceman is mine. Wait until you see how I paint the 4Runner to match ;)

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 16:52

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Since this is a lifelong Georgia car, rust is not at all an issue and since it fits most of the way under the car port the clearcoat isn’t half bad given it has the beautiful but infamous green paint. My uncle has a same year lower spec model that has spent 20 years in the sun and it’s hard to tell what color it might have once been from the horizontal surfaces.

But with a V8 those Tundras/Sequoias are nigh on unstoppable. You’d be hard pressed to find one with less than 200,000 miles. Friend of a friend of a friend supposedly got a Sequoia to 500,000. And they’re quite fun to drive too. I never quite got behind the second gen platform and I certainly am not interested 10 years later. Too bulbous and thirsty.

I guess you’ll have to dig into it to really find out. With the strut work and some new bushings, tires, and an alignment it might just drive like new again.

By the way, that faux leather is an entirely different color under those years of butt grime. With some off the shelf leather cleaner it’ll look waaaaaaay less grungy. I was shocked when I did that to my dad’s truck.

Definitely needs a little work on the aesthetic front but I didn’t single out the bumper. What’s wrong with it?

I also am somewhat of a connoisseur of good colors. Clearly you know what a fun bright paint color does to the character of a vehicle. The paint didn’t look too bad in photos but the white and silver two tone is a little boring.

My own car is a mind bogglingly uncommon shade called autumn metallic that is sort of an earthy orangeish red. I love it.

The Mini Paceman is unfathomable rare around here. You should make a post and/or review about it sometime as I’ve always been curious about them. They do look good in the metallic blue color like yours.

MM54 > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 17:30

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Sounds like a pretty good plan. I’ve got a little bubbling in the front of the rockers (and replaced the rear bumper which was weirdly super-rotted) but otherwise not much rust (21 years in PA/OH but only 120k miles).

There really isn’t much off-roading to be done around here or I’d probably look for a more-beat one to commit to that; as it is my priorities are elsewhere so it’s remarkably stock :)

Eury - AFRICA TWIN!!!!!!! > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 18:58

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Nice find! My previous Toyota was a 2001 4 Runner Limited. Loved that truck, unfortunately the omnipresent frame rust made it no longer feasible to keep on the road so I replaced it with a 2006 Sequoia Limited with a fresh frame replacement.

I’d be checking very carefully for frame rust, if it’s an AZ car than it’s probably good, so get in there and spray the inside of the frame to keep it that way. Look very carefully on the passenger side frame right by the muffler and the rear section from where it curves up and out to the bumper. That’s where the typically go.

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > rctothefuture 09/18/2020 at 19:04

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Aw man another 3rd gen! Not cosmetically great but $400 for a running truck is a steal, if it doesn't have frame rust. Check the link mount on the passenger side. If it's good there, it's good

rctothefuture > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 09/18/2020 at 22:53

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Praise be Toyota! Their Sequoia body are so frigging huge, and way to ungainly to drive!

Bumper isn’t bad, these Toyota bumpers are just tiny sheet metal covers. Don’t offer much protection, so a little beefier replacement would be nice.

The paint on this is almost gone, no clear coat and chipping off on places. Love the red on the Cruze! Such an amazing color in the sun, very jealous!

Will  definitely do a review, thanks for the idea! I never seen them either, so I love it.

rctothefuture > Eury - AFRICA TWIN!!!!!!! 09/18/2020 at 22:57

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Thanks for the info. What would you recommend for a spray ? Just used motor oil? I noticed some body rot on the passenger rear near the Hatch but its not bad. I can probably grind her down and save some of it.

Eury - AFRICA TWIN!!!!!!! > rctothefuture 09/19/2020 at 07:29

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Wish I could say what the best course of action is. Eastwood makes an inner frame coating that comes with a special nozzle and long tube  that sprays in 360 degrees to do the inside of frames. That’s what I’ve done on the Sequoia in the areas where the old frame rotted out. 

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > rctothefuture 09/19/2020 at 12:59

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The Sequoia probably has the roomiest third row of a non minivan I’ve ever sat in. It’s a great body for people who want to get stuff done with the kids in tow. The second gen did the same thing but I’ve never quite gotten myself to like it.

The color looks reasonably reddish in medium light but in very direct light the bronze metallic flake shows and makes it appear almost orange. In low light it is kind of an earthy clay color. I love how it changes with the light. Glad you like it.

Yes, definitely let us know about the Paceman. I applaud your decision to rock a bright blue one. 

VincentMalamute-Kim > rctothefuture 09/22/2020 at 19:26

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The photo of the side looks like the previous owner got shot up in a drug deal gone bad.

I used to work in Menomonee Falls and know a couple of people in Colgate . I w oulda towed it for you were I still in Milwaukee (now in Colorado. )

hillrat > rctothefuture 09/23/2020 at 09:30

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I found $200 under the rear cargo tray when I got it home.

This is easily the best part of this whole story. Is there anything sweeter than finding cash?

rctothefuture > hillrat 09/23/2020 at 13:42

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Was slightly worried that it was fake, but the bank took it so I can’t complain!