nix4x4

http://www.racetoretirement.org/

I know this is a re-post.
I just wanted to remind everybody
of what 4 bangers are capable of.
I love my 3VZ-E, and my 2UZ-FE,
but I can garauntee that neither of them
will hit 1,000,000 miles.

edzo

THIS


nothing busted on my nov 1998 built, 1999 4runner ltd that I didn't expect

1) gas gauge problem, TSB, dealer fixed

2) I rolled it over, lots of bodywork and glass

3) new front rotors and brakes as well as all new brakes in
back, drums too...but this is because I mudded a lot and never pulled
my wheels to clean. so stuff just rotted and died. 112,000 miles and I buried it in mud once a week for 5 years... new rear axle bearings as well. normal stuff

4) MAF needs cleaning every 30,000 miles

5) a/f sensor at 140,000

6) exhaust manifold cat gasket was replaced. this 2 dollar item is normal

7) muffler and pipe ('cuz I hit a rock, 18 times, finally it started to leak)

8) new front antisway bar bushings and links. I am in the salt belt and
yes you could say salt sits on the link and rots it. also I do some very slow
creeping but still fairly extreme off roading and work the hell out of the swaybars

nothing else has gone wrong or broken. this thing is awesome

and I cannot say enough about the 4wd modes, and the electric locker. that
factory locker allows me to creep slow and save my skidplates, and when it gets
stuck because I am going too slow on wet tires. push a button, creep a bit,
once she locks, I am outta there

dirtoyboy

x2.....

btw, it sounds like most of the issues are maintenance (or lack of) related. If this turns you away from a maker then you have a big surprise coming to ya with other makers!

cackalak han

Is it a rebuilt title or something? Or has it gotten in a major accident? Flood vehicle maybe? I had a 98 with 130k miles and it ran strong all the way till it was totalled. Oh, and that was 130k SUPERCHARGED miles.

toyminator2000

Toyota trucks own 6 of the top 10 spots on comsumer reports truck/SUV customer satisfaction list.

Just my 2 cents

Maxx

Bummer...

I had a similar situation with another known reputable vehicle happen to me when the bride and I hooked up. She had always taken her car to a retired fireman for repairs before we married and I usually did my own maintenance. Not wanting to be the scrooge, I went along with this arrangement. Well, as it turns out, the well built vehicle spent a lot of time each month with this mechanic and his pricing wasn't that cheap. A fuel pump here, a clutch there. It went on and on way too much. After paying what I knew was way too much for a battery, the first cold snap of winter produced a dead battery. The battery was only 6 mos. old so I called this shyster and ask for a refund to which he stated the place he bought from it went out of biz. I informed him that he was also not getting anymore business with our vehicle. After replacing the battery, I maintained the bride's car on a regular basis with fluids, tune-ups and regular maintenance and from that point on, not one major mechanical failure occurred to the vehicle while we owned it. The bastid was robbing us and probably everyone else that took their vehicle to him. Just sayin...

Rock Slide

iTrader: (1)

crazy_horse3030, hate to hear about your bad experiences w/ your Toy. Like others have said, I'm sure the PO abused the hell out of it...still sucks though.

I, on the other hand, have had nothing but great experiences owning Toyotas. I've personally owned four 4Runners (currently on an '02) and my wife currently drives a '00 4Runner too. All 5 have been the best vehicles I've ever had the pleasure of owning. (Only reason for selling the previous ones, was to upgrade ). This being the main reason I keep buying them - quality. Outside of regular vehicle maintenance, they have all been trouble free...and the previous ones all had high mileage on them when I sold them.

I know it is not recommended, but a friend of mine owns a '98 4Runner w/ 209K miles on it and still has the original timing belt, water pump and many other factory parts that he probably should have already replaced. He just drives a vehicle until it breaks and then he fixes it...but he has yet to have to do any work on his 4Runner!

Good luck on yours

lt1toy

I have never seen a Toyota with that much trouble back to back po must have killed it

icerunner

QUOTE: Few months later the harmonic balancer came loose and that caused a 400 dollar dent in my wallet.




Hey,
FYI If the harmonic ballancer bolt is not properly torqued down (on the V6 it 217 ft pounds) then it will come loose....generally this part is NON- reuseable and many techs do no know this or disregard this fact...Possibly the last person who did the timing belt messed up...?

98runner210

don't think so

FJAL

I feel the same way as you. My 86 4Runner has 356,xxx and the idler arm and tie rod ends are shot, my drivers seat is all torn up, my brakes are getting bad, my paint is another story all together. Now I'm worried that the water pump or idler pulley is going bad because tonite I heard a slight roar that was not there before.

98runner210

uhhhh please don't tell me u r upset that your 22 yearold vehicle is wearing?

Rock Slide

iTrader: (1)

KU_MechE

had a '96 grand cherokee - replaced the transmission twice before 75,000 miles

Now have a '99 4Runner for 3 years and 40,000 Miles - replaced the A/c compressor and Fuel Pump. car has 159K Miles
.

thefallman

All i have to say is from my experiance any car can be a piece of CR@P if its owner lets it. and any car can be a wonder if its owner maintains it. i personally know of several domestic GAS trucks that are over 500k on original engines. My toyota has gotten the PISS beat out of it constantly and had around 300k on it when i finally killed the motor by running it out of oil up a steep grade. (the 65 degree kind of steep grade with it 2 to 3 quarts low on oil.) yeah yeah i know not smart. but my point is that if you and the previous owners treat a vehicle correctly and nicely it doesnt matter what it is (except FORD and CHRYSLER) it will last forever.

(edit) Some vehicles are made with inferior materials IE ford, chrysler, kia, daewoo, mitsu. but if maintianed and driven with those inferior materials in mind and treated with respect with that in mind they can still last a very long time

JohnnyRanger54

any car can be a complete POS.. It really depends on how they are treated.. My 88 runner 3.0 has clocked 198,000 and is still strong belive it or not...

ozziesironmanoffroad

id rather have a chrysler than a kia, at least id be keepin the money in america, and not sending it to the commies. sorry, but i was raised anti commie. i refuse to drive kias period. one comes in at work, i tell someone else to drive it in, and drive it out, i wont drive it.

Speedy

I'll add to the list of incredible vehicle reliability from my Toyotas.

1991 4x4 PU 5spd bought used - Flawless. I drove that thing 600 miles a week for 3 years. I ran over sized tires and heavy wagon spoke chrome wheels, off road here and there. I was meticulous about maintenance. Had a pin hole in the radiator fixed at 80K miles and the clutch at 95K. The clutch was because of the larger wheels and heavy tires on that little 22RE motor. Traded it for a 97 Tacoma 4x4. Bought for $14K used, traded for $12K 90K miles later.

1997 Tacoma 4x4 5spd bought new - Lifted 6 inches, 33x12.50 tires on 15x10 wheels. Rear lockrite locker installed. Off road a lot. Never a single repair but only kept it to 45K miles as I got tired of the lift and locker (clicky clicky bang bang in turns). Traded it for a 1999 TRD 4x4 Tacoma. Meticulous maintenance. Bought for $23K new, traded for $21K toward the 99 TRD.

1999 TRD 4x4 Tacoma 5spd bought new - Kept it stock except for Flowmaster 40 exhaust and grey wire locker mod. Off road at Tellico and other placles (used to be the TTORA TN Chapter President). Never a single problem in 60K miles. Had a momentary lapse of judgment and traded for a 2002 Xterra. Bought for $24K and traded for $19K 3 years later.

2002 Xterra 4x4 bought new - POS - was in the shop all the time for various problems, for instance windshield washers quit working, leaking rear axle, engine noise through stereo, all kind of alignment issues. Finally had enough and traded it for a 2002 4Runner in 2003. Xterra barely had 30K miles on it, bought for $23K new (had a friends and family $6K discount), got $20K toward trade.

2002 4Runner bought used - purchased 10/2003 - AWESOME VEHICLE. This has been the best Toyota I've owned thus far. I got it with 12K miles on it from a lease turn in. It's the SR5 with leather. This was a certified Toyota which came with a 5 year 100K mile Toyota bumper to bumper warranty which I've never used. I've not had a single problem to date and the truck is going on 5 years with me as the owner. It is quiet, OK power stock, comfortable, cold AC, quick heat, and a nice interior lay out. I've added the SC and other goodies just for kicks. Paid $26K and it was worth every penny. I've only done regular maintenance to date such as oil and filter changes, and changed all the fluids at 60K miles including the radiator and a transmission flush. At 60K I also had all the fluids changed over to Mobil1 Synthetic, including the transfer case, auto tranny, and both diffs and changed the fuel filter as well. I've always used Castrol GTX 10W30 dino motor oil with 5K intervals and a Purolator Pure One oil filter. It's still on the OEM brakes and tires at 72,000 miles!

I will say that my 1991 PU and this 2002 4Runner have been the best Toyota vehicles I've owned. The Tacomas weren't as "tightly" built and had some rattles here and there. The difference......the 91 PU and my 4Runner were both built in Japan. Sometimes I wouldn't close my 91's door hard enough and it would bounce back open that truck was built so tight.

cackalak han

^^ WTF? That Xterra came out of nowhere!

I've been looking for a 86-89 4Runner or 90-94 PU. They just look like so much fun to build up. (Not selling my 4Runner, though, just looking for a project).

icerunner

Yo,
No offence yet KIA Motors is a Korean company and made in South korea.... and South Korea IS a Democracy and has been a Democracy since the Korean War....Remember they are our allies...Now North Korea is a crazy communist country as with China and North Korea makes no cars and they are dirt poor...