craigslist 1992 or 1998 both for $4k - What say you?

Location

United States

Hi Everyone,

I've been looking for an LC for a while now in the Albuquerque, NM area. They have been in short supply around here. Two have popped up. I'd appreciate any thoughts you all might have. I'm leaning towards an 80 but the price of the 100 is appealing.

1998 Land Cruiser with 250k miles.
1998 Toyota Land Cruiser

1992 Land Cruiser with undisclosed miles. This is the info from the seller:

I’m only letting this one go because we bought one a bit newer and with lower mileage. I bought this with the intention of building it out into an overland rig. It's has the foundation perfect for rough terrain, but it's also a great vehicle for the family, It has third-row seating, sits eight. Rear seats easily removable or folds to creating a very large cargo area t does _NOT_ have front or rear lockers.

Features:
-Clean title
-Sunroof,
-Engine and transmission still strong
-All time four wheel drive
-Working diff lock, great for off roading
-Automatic doors locks and windows
-Working A/C and heater
-Clean interior/well kept

The Bad:
-Speedometer is off
-Seats are showing their age
-Cruise control not working
-Has oil leaks less than a half of quart of oil between oil change
- Rear Main Oil Seal leak, pretty standard for a 22 year old truck

Upgrades:
-Rancho 5000's shocks
-Mitchell XT tires
-flow master Exhaust system
-radio with Bluetooth, hands free calling and new front and rear speakers on the passenger and driver side
-Tinted windows.

Here's the stuff I've done on it in the last 10k miles
- Replaced alternator
- Rebuilt front knuckles with new Nitro chromoly axles, cvc, plus drive caps, all new seals and inner and outer wheel bearing and new brake pads, plus brake rotors
-Replaced rear drums, shoes and wheel cylinders
-Oil changes at standard intervals (3-4K depending on driving conditions)
- New 2 row aluminum radiator, replaced upper radiator hose, and all hoses running to the heater and installed a new thermostat. I have the lower radiator hose but not installed
-Converted the AC from R12 to 134a refrigerant.
-Overall tune-up, spark plugs, wires, cap, and rotor.
-New belts
-New starter
-New front brake lines
-New master cylinder and brake booster
-New steering dampener.​

 

[2 E L O]

People will hate on the '92 due to the 3FE but in desmogged form they're dead simple to work on and reliable as heck. The maintenance on the '92 seems to be pretty solid, which is a huge plus. The issues seem to be pretty darn minor, but you should definitely find out the mileage. If the speedo cable is broken then the odometer won't work, but the seller should know when that happened and be able to estimate how many miles he's put on it since then. He may be full of crap, but it's at least a starting point. From his ad, he seems like he's trying to be transparent, though...

The '98 will be more modern and comfortable in every sense of the word, but based on the ad and the photos I'm guessing you'll find a crapload of maintenance that needs to be done immediately. New tires, steering rack, CV boots, timing belt, etc.--the common 100 series stuff. Depending on your skill level, that could be thousands of dollars in repairs if you have a mechanic do it.

It's hard to compare these 2 trucks apples to apples since they're so different. What is your intended use? What's your skill level? What's your budget for maintenance? Those factors all need to play into your decision...

 

[dinkyrdj]

It's hard to compare these 2 trucks apples to apples since they're so different. What is your intended use? What's your skill level? What's your budget for maintenance? Those factors all need to play into your decision...

Thanks 2 E L O for the feedback. Sounds like I need much more info on the 100, particularly maintenance history.

I'm looking for something to take the kiddos out and about, mostly on the weekends. Will do some minor off-roading. I do most of my own maintenance on my vehicles and am not afraid to get my hands dirty. The LC will be a second car so if it's down for a while, that's not a deal breaker for me.

 

[dinkyrdj]

People will hate on the '92 due to the 3FE but in desmogged form they're dead simple to work on and reliable as heck.

One more question...tell me more about being "desmogged". Particularly, what about it makes it more reliable and easier to maintain?

 

[Devils Paw 80]

One more question...tell me more about being "desmogged". Particularly, what about it makes it more reliable and easier to maintain?

Less vacuum lines to cause potential problems and confuse you, no air pump in the way of other components and possibly failing, no EGR mess either. Not that I've done it to my 3FE, but have considered it.

ELO's advice is right on, IMO. 100 has more safety features, if you're into those. Both have outstanding engines, in their own rights, and look to be good deals. Be sure to confirm auto tranny in the 80 is OK. Well, in the 100 too for that matter.

 

[dinkyrdj]

Reporting back...
I checked out the 1992 LC today. The owner put a LOT of work into it. Upgraded axels and lots of other suspension work. He said it has approximately 320k miles on it. Planning to check out the 1998 on Monday.