LX450 with Salvage Title & Engine/Trans replacement - What to look out for? (1 Viewer)

[Heckraiser]

Hi Folks,

The wife wants me to look at something with a little better road manners than "clobbersarus," so I checked CL and found this guy.

The owner has only had it for a few months but bought it from a "cruiser head" who has owned since 2005. What I'm really hoping is that the previous owner might be a member of the forum and I could check in with him!

If not, what would be your concerns with this purchase?

300k on the odometer, engine, xfer and trans all replaced 100k ago (NO DOCUMENTATION!). The reason for the salvage title is body damage due to an accident. This does not bother me so much as the drivetrain swap, since I have taken previous owners' word for it in the past and ended up with something not what I expected.

http://denver.craigslist.org/cto/4664732513.html

1996 Lexus LX 450 , Toyota Landcruiser FZJ 80.
engine , tranny and t-case has 100 K miles. odometer 299K.
OME/ ARB suspension 3in. lift,
HD tie rods,
fresh fluids, brakes, belts.
Original E-LOCKERS axles, (works perfect)
SALVAGE TITLE.
Runs and drives perfect.
etc...

 

[nukegoat]

bent things, alignment issues, hacked together fixes, uneven tire wear, creaking weird noises when driving over things, leaks, vibrations when driving down the road, etc

 

[BVCOTaco]

I do know that it has been on CL for over a month. I was thinking about checking it out, but ended up buying a 96 FZJ80 from a member here.

 

[1973Guppie]

Base your offer on the truck having 300k

 

[Kuneefay]

I bought mine with 216k on the body and 20k on the trans and engine. Ome lift and steel bumpers/sliders for $3600. Clean title but needed paint and two doors relaced. The guy also didnt have reciepts but i got the PO's name who did all the work and found the shops that the work was done at and now have copies of the reciepts in a file at home. Without those reciepts i wouldnt pay a dime over $3k especially with the salvage title. Good luck with your search though.

 

[702FZJ80]

A lot of insurance companies won't even sell you comp/collison on a salvaged vehicle. Pass!

 

[LINUS]

After just doing a "lx450" search of your CO area CL, you have 3 ~$4200 ones that are less miles & clean title - smart money is there.

I'd be scared this guy found that he's come up against finding a problem he doesn't want to / can't afford to fix, so he's passing it off - and that "undocumented" powertrain swap would have at least SOME receipts.

The lockers are worth $1200-$1500 & tops I'd give him exactly that for it since it's a salvage.

And even then, expect to run it into the ground & have plenty of time to fix whatever springs up.

My bet is he'd have a hard time/couldn't get $1500 on trade anywhere, but you better have the time & a tool collection or money to end up with a tool collection. And money to fix anything in short term (like if the HG is starting to go).

 

[Heckraiser]

Well I met up with the seller and it turns out he is a land cruiser guy also and I have actually met him in the past a few years ago (or at least talked to him on the phone). He actually repaired the collision himself and it was all bolt-on stuff (headlight, grille, front bumper) did not even need to change out the radiator support. It was a pretty minor fender bender, the only reason it was totalled was because of the mileage.

He owns a herd of cruisers and bought this one with the intention to repair the front-end damage for his daughter to drive (he lives up in the mountains). She moved down to the city so he got her a highlander for better mileage.

The thing drives like brand new. Lots of pep, smooth shifts, lockers work great. The underside was also pretty much dry, which seems like a rarity. Two small surface rust spots in the rear wheelwell dirt-catcher area. Only cosmetic issue is the driver's seat bottom (don't care) and a little bit of peeling clear coat (hard to notice and also don't care).

Bottom line: I lowballed him, we haggled a bit, weapons were brandished, and I now have two wagons. I don't want to say the price I paid because Kuneefay will think I'm an idiot.

 

[Kungpaodog]

Congrats on the new Cruiser. Mine also looked really dry and leak free when I bought it, but I think that the seller either A. cleaned it really well and then drove through some dirt/mud to make it look like it wasn't just cleaned, or B. all the new fluids I put in after purchase cleaned the dirt from the seals and it started leaking. But, they all do that when they're this old, right?

 

[DSRTRDR]

congratulations

 

[Kuneefay]

Well I met up with the seller and it turns out he is a land cruiser guy also and I have actually met him in the past a few years ago

Bottom line: I lowballed him, we haggled a bit, weapons were brandished, and I now have two wagons. I don't want to say the price I paid because Kuneefay will think I'm an idiot.

Honestly if you trust him and have delt with him before i say more power to you. A cruiser is a cruiser and if you feel like you got a deal then congrats. I was just sharing my experiance to kind of give you a reference. Granted i believe i got an exceptional deal seeing as i worked him down $2k(he was getting pretty hungry). The area in which you live also strongly affects the price margins.

 

[702FZJ80]

No regrets at this point, run it like you stole it. (hopefully you did) and just remember that the least amount you put into the better because if you ever decide to sell it resale on a salvage is really tough.

 

[Heckraiser]

Yep, I'm trying to keep it low budget. It needs tires before the snow flies. With the lift it looks like it has room for 315's, and eventually I want to re-gear, but I think I'll find some cheap 265's for now and save some money until I have a better idea of any baseline maintenance or other issues that might crop up. All other stuff (bumpers, sliders) will be home made out of duct tape and bailing wire. If there comes a time I need to dump it, I'm guessing there is probably more money to be had parting out. But let's hope it doesn't come to that

 

[702FZJ80]

285-75-16 at least with the lift IMO

 

[Kuneefay]

Im running 295/75/16 on an ome 3" lift. There is definitely room for 315's.

 

[Heckraiser]

This mule will be making regular schleps over the continental divide, so I don't want to compromise the gearing at all. Larger-than-stock tires and gears will have to come at the same time. And I'm thinking it would be prudent not to drop $3k on tires and gears until I've put a few miles on it and sorted out if there are any bugs.

Speaking of OME lift, this thing is at least 2" taller in the back compared to the front. If the springs ever had any identifying marks on them, they have since worn off. I either need to adjust my headlights or get a spacer lift for the front.

 

[DSRTRDR]

we have stinkbug on our 80 - who cares if the rear is a bit higher

 

[Heckraiser]

Just ran through my first full tank of gas. 14.87mpg and that includes a lot of around town, idling at the Walgreens pharmacy window and two stop-and-go traffic jams. I've only driven my acura twice since I bought this thing. Might need to sell the DD

 

[Kuneefay]

I really dont know how people can get under 12mpg in these even towing. My rig topped off and loaded with me weighs 5600lbs. Its got a highflow cat and muffler, ome 2.5" lift, 32" tires, 1994 ecu, dorkle, and a healthy block with fresh heads and i averaged 15.6mpg on my last two fill ups with mixed driving country roads and down town driving on the weekend with the ect engaged. I definitely dont drive like uncle sven while he's trolling for tail. Its just perplexing reading about all these people that get 10mpg.

 

[ppc]

Try towing a 5,000 lbs trailer at highway speeds and see if you can break 10 mpg.