Advice for the Newb please.

[TDwill]

1st time poster long time reader. I've loved the look of the 80 series for a long time now and just recently sold my XTerra a few days ago. The wife and I are expecting our 3rd child so we were looking for something that had a 3rd row seat. She likes the Volvo Wagon and I mentioned, "You know what else has a 3rd row?". Started looking at 80 Series LC's and she also loves them. My buddy pointed me to this site and said that everyone is super helpful and great. I have to admit that he was spot on. Thanks everyone for all the very useful information you've posted.

I don't plan on doing any major off-roading (YET) just family trips in Oregon, fishing, camping, etc. I have poured through numerous posts on this site, the FAQ for the 80 seris (https://forum.ih8mud.com/showpost.php...35&postcount=3), drooled over and dreamed of all the things I can do to my new ride when I find it, and got great questions to ask and things to look for when I go see one I might want.

I saw the LC linked below but was wondering if this is not such a great idea to get into one already at 220k miles? Interior is EXCELLENT, called the dealer and no service records but looks and runs great.

1996 TOYOTA LAND CRUISER PRICED FOR IMMEDIATE SALE

Things I've been wondering:

I have about $7,500 for a car. In your experts opinions, is it better to pay more at the start for lower miles OR get one for around $5k in great cosmetic condition, appears to have been taken care of and runs good and have around $2,500 left over to fix anything, add the "bling" as I want, etc?

Thanks much in advance for any help.

Ryan

 

[spdwaver]

Welcome! (official Mud welcome)

I am no expert, but having just gone through the buying process for the past several months, and after gaining a lot of assistance from this board, I would say that you could get all of what you are looking for, by just being patient.

There are a lot of deals here on Mud classifieds, and you can know a vehicle's history, since you will more than likely be dealing directly with the current owner. That is why I sold my last Cruiser and bought the next one on here; I did not even bother trying to sell my Cruiser outside of Mud, nor did I want to buy outside of Mud. You see, many here are dedicated to a sense of community and accountability in providing full disclosure, as or close as you are going to get to full disclosure.

So, I would highly suggest that you wait for the right deal, from someone on the board who has a great reputation. In this way, you can get both a reliable vehicle and a good build - with a history - for the amount you are willing to spend.

Oh, and 220K miles is not too much for an 80 series (mine has 239K ); but even 100K miles without any history is worse, in my opinion.

Look for an 80 with factory lockers and possibly even one with a head gasket that has been replaced. The lift, tires, sliders, bumpers, etc. can all be found on Mud for surprisingly little, so buying a stocker is not a bad idea.

EDIT: By the way, when you get a chance, click on "80 Series Registry" if you have not already done so; lots of ideas there.

 

[firetruck41]

I just saw that one on criagslist tonight, wondered what the miles were. I am not put off that much by a "high mileage" 80 series, but 200k+ is kind of a tough one for me to get over. Especially from a dealer, where you don't get records, or the ability to talk to the owner, to get a feel for how they took care of it. I would low ball a lot, if I were going to try to get it. I kinda like the wheels, they look like FJ Cruiser wheels maybe?

 

[ranma21]

I think 220k miles for $5k is a bit too much for this particular one. I think the front seat leather is not original leather, it looks like a vinyl replacement or aftermarket leather replacement to me. I might be wrong though. Take your time and look, do not rush into any that you sees. You might have to dump lots of $$ if the truck is not well maintained at 220k miles. If it is well maintained, it is worth it I guess. Good luck. I have a 96 I am letting go for around $6k, it has 160k miles, lots of work has been put to it.

 

[Brian894X4]

Find a local rig, do a car fax for sure. Local rigs will almost certainly have little or no rust. I avoid dealers at all cost. Especially used car dealers. Too many used cars will be auction rigs and you have no idea where these rigs came from. Many come from back east and could be garbage. Toyota or major dealers might have a nice rig as a trade in, but these days most dealers don't want these SUVs as they are hard to sell so they often get dumped off at auctions or used car dealers.

For sale by owner is the way to go. See if you can find an original owner rig or very low number of owners. They're out there. Also, I personally prefer as low miles as possible. If I was looking for a new rig, my mileage range would be in the 80K-120K or so. For $7500, with the way LCs have dropped like a rock, you should be able to find a lower mileage rig.

Without knowing the history of a rig, it's hit and miss on the mileage. There's a change that you'll find a higher mileage rig that is better maintained, had a lot of money dumped into it and is fully baselined and ready to go verses a lower mileage unit that needs everything...but the "likelihood" is that you're always better off, the lower the miles, in my opinion.

Even with low miles, you'll have a ton of base lining to do. The headgasket issue will always be a risk you'll need to budget for and keep in mind that these rigs suck in a huge way in the gas mileage department. Expect as low as the low teens in the city to maybe mid teens on the highway on an unmodified rig. Modified rigs only get worse.

I look at the LC as a great, safe, comfortable daily driver for those with significant disposable incomes...otherwise better for very short daily commutes and/or as a weekend driver, knowing that you'll be paying out the wazoo for gas.

The advantages of the LC is they are extremely reliable when maintained properly, are extremely safe rigs, good crash protection (good spousal selling point) are comfortable to drive and have decent power for their size. And you can drive the equivilent of a $70,000 vehicle (in today's dollars) for only a fraction of that price. (another good spousal selling point)My 1995 cost the original owner $49,000 in 1995 dollars!!!

The disadantages are they are expensive to maintain, especially if you don't do you're own work and get horrible gas mileage.

Be patient in your search. Get EXACTLY what you want and you won't regret it. These rigs have REALLY, REALLY come down in price in the last 2 years. Trust me. But they are relatively rare (very few imported compared to other models) which is why the good deals on good rigs are getting a little harder to find. Good luck.

 

[Ebag333]

I think 220k miles for $5k is a bit too much for this particular one. I think the front seat leather is not original leather, it looks like a vinyl replacement or aftermarket leather replacement to me. I might be wrong though. Take your time and look, do not rush into any that you sees. You might have to dump lots of $$ if the truck is not well maintained at 220k miles. If it is well maintained, it is worth it I guess. Good luck. I have a 96 I am letting go for around $6k, it has 160k miles, lots of work has been put to it.

x2

Price is too high.

It probably needs a full front end job, possibly including birfs. About $500 on up, depending on if you do the work yourself and if you get the smart shopper discount from cdan.

I'd hit up a local Toyota dealership and ask them for an estimate/quote for a full front end job, including new birfs. Take that into the dealer and I'd be willing to bet that the price drops rather quickly.

I'll be in Portland not this weekend but the following. If you're still interested in it then, I'd be more than happy to take a look at it for ya.

 

[zombified]

I just bought an 80 series. My needs were a bit different, so my criteria was different than yours.

the best advice that i can give you is, BE PATIENT!

low mileage does not always mean "in great shape".

i looked at about 15 or so 80s.

the one i chose was the right combonation of " has stuff i'd put on it" and " was maintained"

I looked at some that had ridiculously low mileage ( one had 61K on it, the other had 87K on it ) and both of them need TONS on PM done on them. one of them looked like it needed about 2-3 grand worth of parts for me to be confident that i wouldn't have any surprises on the road somewhere. a few that i looked at that had over 200K on them were pristine and needed nothing.

the other thing i will say is be prepared to lay out some cash for PM stuf and to baseline whatever you get. Don't get stuck spending everything in your budget on just the truck, then be up the creek when you realize a week and a half into it that the truck really needs something.

there are a plethora of FAQs on this site that are invaluable, read them all!

 

[Sparky97LX]

Nice 97

Might look at this one. 1997 Lexus LX450 in OAK HARBOR , WA 98277: Sport Utility Details - 261648586 - AutoTrader.com I spoke with him and he will take $9000 for certian. Offer him $8500.

 

[lucidlyseen]

The other thing to keep in mind (at least in my opinion) is I found when I was looking that LC's are priced differently throughout the country, so when somebody says "I got mine for x amount with only x amount of miles" they might be across the country where the market is different.

My finding is LC's are more expensive here in the Northwest then elsewhere. I looked for a looong time and found a bunch of so-so rigs with mileage and pricing all over the place and I finally settled on a higher mileage LC, but it had service records from the Toyota dealer and it had obviously been well maintained by the PO. Did I pay more than I should have for it? Probably, but I had a tough time finding a good one around here, just my 2¢...

 

[TDwill]

Thank you SO much to everyone for your help. This is all great information and amazing some folks are willing to go look at LC's and give their expert opinions for a newb like me. I truly hope that I one day can be as helpful as all of you have been. I'll be sure to post pics and such once I get it so you all can say "Go fix that, take this off, update that."

 

[Ebag333]

TDwill, your PM box is full.

 

[TDwill]

Yeah, tryin' to fix it now. The internet stinks at work today......guess they expect me to work instead of read this forum like I want.

 

[drifter]

If you have a little time to put one back togther. One that has sum light Damage may be the way to go. I picked up a 97 lx for $2200 and now have $3500 into it. on looker but the wife love it. There are pic. of My 97 lx build on here. take your time.