Buying another 80 questions (1 Viewer)

[80drifter]

Like others I have come to realize that I need another land cruiser. I have been going through craigslist and MUD trying to find the right one. I've went to look at four of them so far but haven't driven one home.

Is it just me, or is every 80 on craigslist ragged out? Torn seats, destroyed carpet, broken windshields, windows and locks that are not working, no maintenance done, rust, and even stinky. I feel like I've seen it all. And to make matters worse 1 in 5 on craigslist appear to be scam artists. Sure let me send that check to your uncle and he can just ship me the cruiser. If I am not happy, he will pay to have it shipped back. How sweet.

Finding a good land cruiser has become a lot harder than it was a few years ago. Finding a great one might be like the proverbial unicorn.

Other than MUD, Craigslist, and Ebay, any other good sources of finding a good vehicle?

 

[Red Merle]

I think you just have to be patient. I found mine on CL after casually looking for a number of years. It had 250,000 miles and some rust underneath but it ran well and the interior was absolutely immaculate. I live in the super rust belt but my truck was owned by a wealthy couple that had only used it for the previous 14 years to drop their yacht into the water and before that they mostly used it to travel to and from their mountain homes. The body is in great shape and I am dealing with the rust underneath and many of the dollars I spent were replacing things that were rustier than I am comfortable with. I also rebuilt the top end of the motor, replaced the entire braking system, the entire exhaust system, rebuilt the front axle, added new BFG KO2s and a number of other projects. I have a new gas tank, filler neck and skid plate ready to install next spring and I want to replace the whole AC system. Once that is done, I won't have anything major that needs to be done.

I picked up the truck for $3000 and I agreed to paint the exterior of their home for the other $3000 that they were initially asking. I have since done quite a bit of work to it and have about $12K total into it but it is close to being ready to rock for the next 24 years at minimum.

It is getting harder to find nice trucks for cheap, but if you keep looking religiously, you will find a nice one even if it costs more than you think it should. The market has definitely been on the uptick as far as prices go though.

 

[80drifter]

Thank you for the advice. I have only been looking for a few months. I agree that it is much harder to find one now than it was 3 years ago. I agree on the uptick as far as prices go. I paid $9,000 for mine in 2014 and it is better than most that I have seen out there now for 12, and 13K.

 

[LS1FJ40]

Patience is a virtue young grasshopper!

Also, look further away. IIRC, you are in the Northeast. Aka where metal goes to die. Look out west/southwest. Partner up with a Mud member that will go look at t for a couple of bucks.

 

[Lumpskie]

I ended up buying an 80 from Oregon. If you buy one up here, be sure to fluid film!

 

[Red Merle]

This one is pretty nice with low miles and lockers with very little rust. It's a short drive from the Minneapolis airport and only a few days drive from Maine. He told me he would take $8500 for it. I think I would have bought this one instead of mine, had it been available two years ago. I am way too far into my truck to change horses mid stream at this point though.

Good luck with whatever you end up with!

1994 Toyota Land Cruiser

 

[80drifter]

Yes, I live in Maine. Luckily more sand locally than salt so it's not too bad. I've done the fluid film each fall and I still have no rust. Hopefully I can continue doing that with the same results. I also wash it a lot.

I'm spontaneous not patient That's not good when you're looking at $15K vehicles though.

 

[gummycarbs]

Well, of course they're ragged out, they're 20 year old vehicles that are being sold for a reason.

Use an app on your phone to monitor Craigslist listings. It helps to know how to use CL search terms. Spend a couple minutes per day rejecting bad ones like it's fat girl week in Tinder and move fast on the good ones.

 

[baldilocks]

I second the idea of shopping in the West especially southwest.

 

[Cass007]

I'm looking for a 3rd 80 Series and I feel your pain with CL. The last one I got was beat to hell when I flew in on a one way ticket to pick it up. Luckily it made the drive home OK. It never fails to amaze me that people bitch about taking a few extra pics and emailing them before you pay for a vehicle.

I have found that the Carolinas seem to have a bunch of trucks, up in Maine and NH too on the east coast. Ratted out beaters in NY and NJ and almost none of those with lockers. Minnesota and Texas in central US and Cali, Oregon and Washington on the west coast. Many of the weest coast 80s seem to already have mods done. Almost forgot ... Florida for the 80 that may smell super musty from sitting in the humidity, but usually no mods and no rust (except for the one super hillbilly rig in Fl on CL right now).

Good luck with your search.

 

[Gabriel 71]

AutoTempest.com will let you look at many craigslist listings at once ://www.autotempest.com/

 

[White Stripe]

Yes, I live in Maine. Luckily more sand locally than salt so it's not too bad. I've done the fluid film each fall and I still have no rust. Hopefully I can continue doing that with the same results. I also wash it a lot.

I'm spontaneous not patient That's not good when you're looking at $15K vehicles though.

94 Toyota Landcruiser with triple factory lockers, lifted, etc - Rising Sun Member Forums

 

[mgoblue]

AutoTempest.com will let you look at many craigslist listings at once ://www.autotempest.com/

Yup, I was on there daily for several months until I found an obscure ad out of the Louisville area with no photos. I took a leap of faith, and it worked out, but you have to be ready to travel (or ship it) and quick on the phone when ads pop up, because good trucks are gone quick.

 

[n0rth]

Here is the link to one of the classifieds I watch out of Salt Lake City Utah if you decide to look out west.

https://www.ksl.com/auto/search/ind...5&yearFrom=1991&page=0&cx_navSource=hp_search

 

[PDoyle]

I have saved searches on
Hemmings motor mews , cargrus,autotrader, and
a couple of other sites just to see what’s out there. Can also try sites like cars.com I would difenetly travel to get the right one.

 

[Irish Reiver]

There are a few down this neck of the woods. I am more than happy to help check them out for if you see something that tickles your fancy.

 

[Ghostrider I]

I ended up buying an 80 from Oregon. If you buy one up here, be sure to fluid film!

What is this "fluid film," you speak of?

 

[Dork]

If you want one that hasn't been treated like it was previously owned by an American, get one from Japan.

 

[ThomasMore66]

AutoTrader worked for me. I own 2 and they were both in great condition. I did pay up.

 

[LINUS]

I can't swing a dead cat without seeing 2-3 worth a look any day of the week out here.

If I was into a rust-free older rig I'd just import one from the West coast.

Hands down you can find good starting point 80's here. Reliable Carriers - who I would get familiar with and just ask locals to scout ones you see.