80 w/ factory lockers - buy this or run away? (1 Viewer)

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

Hi all,

Had to "re-sign up" to the forum b/c of losing access to my old EM address/ username. So, first post!

I have an opportunity to buy a '97 LX450 with factory lockers. (I already own a '97 LX450, BTW). The truck I can potentially buy is mechanically and cosmetically rough and needs TLC, but seems to run/ drive fairly well. The key reason I'm interested in the truck is that it has factory lockers, which from the research I've done so far, apparently only about 3% of LX450's came with factory lockers and most of those went to the Rocky Mountain region.

Is my info above accurate? If I bought the truck with the intent to clean it and fix it a bit to resell, is the fact that it has factory lockers as big a selling point as it seems? (I'm also concerned that the lockers may be "stuck" from not being used). I'm thinking this could be a great truck for the right person who wants to build an offroad rig with factory lockers, and doesn't care that the leather is rough, etc....

Your thoughts? Thanks all!

 

[auttiman]

$$$???

 

[Proven]

Pictures?

 

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

$$$???

Seller is currently at $3500 and I believe i can negotiate down. A bit over 250k mileage I believe. Oil leaks seem to abound.

 

[jpoole]

Not a lot of info to go on here but price and rust are two of the most important factors in any buying decision I'd say. Most 80s can be fixed if they aren't very rusty and don't have a bent frame or excessive body damage from accidents. You have to decide if it's worth it by adding the repair costs to the purchase price and then understanding your goals for the truck. Functional factory lockers may increase the value of an 80 around $2k but there are a lot of factors that could change that.

 

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

Pictures?

sorry man, no pics. Rough inside and out, paint is faded/ rough and leather is rough inside too. Again, the main draw here is the fact it has lockers (and runs/ drives OK) - so I am mostly wondering about the desirability/ rarity of the factory locker option....

 

[COYS]

I adjusted +$3k roughly for the factory locker equipped 80 when I was in the market not long ago. That’s about what it would’ve cost me for arb front/rear parts+install. Bonus if it came with 4.88s since I must have 35s.

Gl!

 

[inkpot]

Sounds like a great trail rig if it is not rustly. There are pros and cons with the factory lockers, but there is certainly an increased market for them vs unlocked. I have helped friends buy 3 of them since the first of the year.

 

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

Not a lot of info to go on here but price and rust are two of the most important factors in any buying decision I'd say. Most 80s can be fixed if they aren't very rusty and don't have a bent frame or excessive body damage from accidents. You have to decide if it's worth it by adding the repair costs to the purchase price and then understanding your goals for the truck. Functional factory lockers may increase the value of an 80 around $2k but there are a lot of factors that could change that.

Thanks for the input. I have to look at it again, but I don't think it's rusty and the body seems fairly straight. The challenge/ bummer for me is I'm not very mechanically inclined (though I want to learn) - so for now I'd have to pay a shop for repairs :-(

 

[slow95z]

300 bucks for a lunchbox locker in yours or 3K for a pile of crap with factory lockers... i know which way i would go. a front locker is not needed 99% of the time. if you really NEED lockers then you can always add them. give me a clean unlocked truck any day over a pile of crap with factory lockers.

 

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

300 bucks for a lunchbox locker in yours or 3K for a pile of crap with factory lockers... i know which way i would go. a front locker is not needed 99% of the time. if you really NEED lockers then you can always add them. give me a clean unlocked truck any day over a pile of crap with factory lockers.

Thanks for the input! Just to clarify: I am not selling my current 80 (which I love and have owned for 12 yrs) to potentially buy this other one, and I'm not looking to add lockers to my current 80. I am looking to see (if I can get the other 97 LX450 with the factory lockers at a good price) if it will be worth my time and effort to buy the truck, clean and fix it a bit, and look to resell it to a new buyer who might be looking to build a trail rig that already has factory lockers (and therefore doesn't have to spend $3k on ARB's). Thx.

 

[Qball]

 

[jpoole]

@DawnpatrolCBNC

Every situation is different but I don't think you stand a chance of coming out ahead if you can't do the work yourself. Being able to do the work yourself also implies that you would be able to estimate and plan the project out.

I'm in the middle of a multi-year, long-term restoration project of a '97 80 that I purchased in rough shape. It was my top choice for a platform as it's a locked CE '97 in white but was very rough cosmetically and had a number of issues mechanically. No rust and not much body damage and you could drive my truck when I got it, though not entirely safely. I've done restorations and mechanic work for almost 30 years now so knew what I was getting into. All of that said I don't think there is any way that I could profit on my particular truck unless I get it into perfect shape and then hold it until prices go up (if they ever do) in the next 5-10 years or whenever. I paid $1700 for my truck as I recall, and probably paid too much. For me the goal is to have fun fixing something that was left for dead, so it's worth it. If I was going for profit I'd be failing miserably.

As a starting point it sounds like yours would need a full baseline, paint job, a lot of interior work and then perhaps a few other updates to be in "nice" higher value condition. Baselining is a broad/variable area and can range from changing fluids and fixing what's clearly broken to doing a lot of preventative maintenance and fixing what's aged/worn out. You could easily spend $15k on baseline/paint/interior work even if you tried to stick to a budget and did most of the work yourself. Hiring things out/etc. you will likely spend a lot more unless the truck is better than expected and has had a lot of maintenance done recently. If you had an in on a cheap way to address paint/body issues and/or interior and/or mechanical work that could help shave big expenses. In the end, unless you have the skills or a way to beat market prices on what the truck needs or would sell for you'll only lose money restoring and then selling the truck at current resale prices in my estimation.

Fairly run down, locked trail rig candidates pop up periodically in the sub $5000 price range. You may be able to flip the truck for a small profit but buying at $3k you won't have much, if any budget for repairs/upgrades so would pretty much be selling as is I assume. Are your marketing/selling skills good enough to lead you to believe you can resell the truck at a profit as is? Unless you really are passionate about the project (ie have non monetary motivations) you'd probably come out ahead financially by working more hours at your main income source than getting into a worn out 450 flip.

Of course, if you proceed share lots of photos here as you work through cleaning up the truck/whatever as you may be able to show that it's nicer than expected and find a buyer on this site at a profit.

 

[ZackR]

Sounds like a bad idea. Lockers are great and all assuming the rest of the truck is in good condition, however if the truck is thrashed then buying with the intent to flip probably wont pan out. If it were me I'd focus my time/money on the rig you currently own.

On the other hand if the seller was willing to go as low as $500 then you could reasonably flip it/part it out and make a few bucks.

 

[Marine7]

If this is the beige Lexus sitting on Carolina Beach Rd in Wilmington you better bring a better mechanic with you! Lockers won’t engage (tried for half hour), needs head gasket, interior is thrashed, and exterior isn’t much better. Not sure if this is the one your checking out, but if it is, offer him $1500 and go up no further than $2000. It’s been sitting out there for a couple months now. (PHH needs to be changed too) Owner is clueless about wrenching.

 

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

If this is the beige Lexus sitting on Carolina Beach Rd in Wilmington you better bring a better mechanic with you! Lockers won’t engage (tried for half hour), needs head gasket, interior is thrashed, and exterior isn’t much better. Not sure if this is the one your checking out, but if it is, offer him $1500 and go up no further than $2000. It’s been sitting out there for a couple months now. (PHH needs to be changed too) Owner is clueless about wrenching.

Hey Marine7 - thanks very much for the input. Yep, that is the one....you have just made my decision easy, I will definitely pass on it!! Since he did not have it advertised online, I was thinking I could clean the interior, buff out the paint, do minor fixes and take some "pretty pictures" and pass it on to someone looking for an 80 with lockers to build out, while I made a few bucks in the deal.....a potential win win. But I totally agree with you, it is too hammered.....especially since I wouldn't be wrenching on it myself. So, thanks for saving me the hassle, time and $$!

It did have a pretty nice stereo though

Thanks also to jpoole and others for their helpful and thoughful responses above.

BTW, Marine7, do you do your own wrenching and/ or know someone here in Wilmington who works on 80's (besides local shops)? I am willing to learn and I would also rather pay a private individual who knows these trucks to work on my current '97 LX450 (has about 235k currently). Shoot me a PM about that if you prefer.....thx!!

 

[Marine7]

Hey Marine7 - thanks very much for the input. Yep, that is the one....you have just made my decision easy, I will definitely pass on it!! Since he did not have it advertised online, I was thinking I could clean the interior, buff out the paint, do minor fixes and take some "pretty pictures" and pass it on to someone looking for an 80 with lockers to build out, while I made a few bucks in the deal.....a potential win win. But I totally agree with you, it is too hammered.....especially since I wouldn't be wrenching on it myself. So, thanks for saving me the hassle, time and $$!

It did have a pretty nice stereo though

Thanks also to jpoole and others for their helpful and thoughful responses above.

BTW, Marine7, do you do your own wrenching and/ or know someone here in Wilmington who works on 80's (besides local shops)? I am willing to learn and I would also rather pay a private individual who knows these trucks to work on my current '97 LX450 (has about 235k currently). Shoot me a PM about that if you prefer.....thx!!

Glad I could help. I know he also poured some garbage into his oil to “seal the head gasket” so that would be a nightmare to clean out of the engine too.

 

[DawnpatrolCBNC]

Glad I could help. I know he also poured some garbage into his oil to “seal the head gasket” so that would be a nightmare to clean out of the engine too.

Yeah, that does not surprise me. I know it is leaking a lot of oil. Well, if anyone here on Mud is reading this thread and is in NC/SC, and is interested in a white '97 LX450 that has a decently straight body, seems fairly rust free, runs and drives OK, has factory lockers (that don't engage currently) and a nice touch screen stereo - but also has a bit over 250k and probably needs a total engine rebuild and a number of other mechanical issues and a rough interior - send me a PM and I can get you the seller's number. I bet someone could buy this truck for around $2k to $2500.....it will be a project for sure though. I have one exterior pic.....it doesn't look bad from 20 feet and the paint may buff out.

 

[Marine7]

Yeah, that does not surprise me. I know it is leaking a lot of oil. Well, if anyone here on Mud is reading this thread and is in NC/SC, and is interested in a white '97 LX450 that has a decently straight body, seems fairly rust free, runs and drives OK, has factory lockers (that don't engage currently) and a nice touch screen stereo - but also has a bit over 250k and probably needs a total engine rebuild and a number of other mechanical issues and a rough interior - send me a PM and I can get you the seller's number. I bet someone could buy this truck for around $2k to $2500.....it will be a project for sure though. I have one exterior pic.....it doesn't look bad from 20 feet and the paint may buff out.

I agree Dawnpatrolcbnc! The paint would look TONS better after a day of elbow grease and a clay bar! Interior could be made presentable by removing it all, power washing carpet, and more elbow grease!
And the engine..... I believe a top end rebuild would be HIGHLY encouraged, along with a thourough baselining. The lockers may/may not be an issue. Sometimes it’s loose harness..... other times it requires a few new parts.
If someone could pick this up for $2000 or less, they could make a little $$$ Off it, or build a nice 80!

 

[auttiman]

Seller is currently at $3500 and I believe i can negotiate down. A bit over 250k mileage I believe. Oil leaks seem to abound.

$2500 would be a good deal if the axles are in good shape. If you get and air-locker, you'll have $1200 in each axle so you're getting that plus you can put your used axles on the junk 80 and sell it for $2000