Buying/Selling - what year, how much, etc. - ask for opinions here (6 Viewers)

[jminchoi]

Hi folks, I've been casually looking for LC100's for the past couple of months. I've driven a few while I was overseas (the diesel version) and they are absolute tanks and monsters off-road. I am looking for a 100 series 2003 or newer to build into road-trip, expedition rig. I love to wrench but love to drive even more.

The one I took a look recently was a 2007 LX with 340,000 miles. It's a 1 owner (1 family) car and the guy who drove it was an older gentleman who commuted over 100 miles a day. He owns a construction company so he has his own in house mechanic who fixes up his machinery and claimed that the said mechanic performed all of the maintenance on the truck. When I popped the hood, the timing belt was done 2 years ago at 285k miles. I noticed crusted pink coolant around the radiator hoses (indicating a leak) also the coolant was low. The tires were nearing the end of their life and would need to be replaced. Also the interior has been thrashed. No rips or tears, but lots of cracks and it had been through his 3 kids the youngest who is now 17 and currently driving it.

Pros:
-Car was very quiet and drove pretty well on the road and freeway.
-Frame was straight and there were no obvious signs of any accidents. There was no rust on the frame or body panels.
-Single family car
-There are some dents and dings, but nothing out of the ordinary for a 10 year old truck.
-AHC is working (but not really a pro or con since I would plan to swap it out for a conventional suspension if it failed).

Cons:
-There is no documentation of the maintenance. The owner said that he changed the oil every 5k miles and let "his mechanic" take care of everything.
-It's been through two 16 year old high school drivers. His older son and youngest so is currently driving the rig.
-The Exhaust pipes were either rusted out or caked in mud.
-Interior is aging and will need to be addressed.
-Tires will need to be replaced, truck will need an alignment (1k-1.5k) or more if I decide to swap out the suspension and rims altogether.
-TPMS sensor was on during the drive, the owner claimed that it was because the spare tire pressure was low.
-The rubber hoses in the engine bay will need to be addressed, the engine bay was filthy. Owner claimed he has not ever taken the rig off roading.

It seems that Toyota engineered these cars so well that most owners tend to skip or be unaware of the maintenance and preventative maintenance needed to keep the trucks running great. This one drove quite well for a truck with 340k miles, but my understanding is that once you top 300k, anything could go.

They are asking $10k which I think is a bit much. It is a newer 2007 rig, but the mileage is extremely high. What do you think a fair price for this rig would be? I am thinking that $5k would be a fair value because of the mileage which is under KBB and Nada, but I also have to take into account that buying a truck with 340k miles will be extremely difficult to resell and that after 300k anything could go. What is the bottom out value of these trucks? After reading several threads on ih8mud it seems that $3-4k seems to be the bottom out value for any running Toyota 4x4. I think that the market for such a high mileage truck would be limited to enthusiasts who know the truck as I don't see many folks looking for or banks giving out loans for a 10 year old 300k+ mile vehicle. I'm not looking to lowball or steal the truck, but a fair deal for both sides. What would you offer?

 

[sacmaster]

200k mile trucks in that age range are 15-16k. That's extreme mileage, and the only people who even give it a second look are going to be enthusiasts. I recall seeing an 06 with around 300k and the dealer told me they would take 8.

 

[jminchoi]

340k miles in 10 years is 34000 miles a year which averages out to nearly 100 miles a day!

If I buy it, it's probably going to be a truck that's going to be with me forever. I may just let this one pass and wait for a lower mileage one to pop up.

 

[bctlex]

They are asking $10k which I think is a bit much. It is a newer 2007 rig, but the mileage is extremely high. What do you think a fair price for this rig would be? ?

I think that is high. Just for comparison, like 2-3 months ago, I saw an 06 or 07 LX, 270K for $9K at small local dealer. Interior was good, no rip on the leather. Some dings and scrape - minor exterior blemish. Need a new radiator - was leaking so I did not test drive it, and one of the mirror was not working right. I did not pursue it further because we did not want another black car. I probably could get the price lowered a bit more just based on what I saw.

 

[Bismarck]

$8K is probably fair for the high mile 07 LX. Offering half of what the seller is asking is not super likely to go anywhere, so might as well move on to the next one.

 

[jminchoi]

Hmm, will have to think about it more at that price. You do have a point though. The owner isn't going to just take $5k because in his mind that's a lowball. Unfortunately it's not the market value of the truck.

Right off the bat it's going to need 5 new tires and an alignment. (1200)
New radiator (200-300)
The rusted exhaust pipes will need to be addressed (500?).
Full baseline (all fluids 300 time and labor)
Rubber coolant hoses in engine bay. (200-300, time and cut up hands)
Will prepare for an Old Man EMU lift to replace AHC when it does go out (2-3k)
Be prepared for engine/transmission/differential rebuild.

The car is driveable as-is now. Does anyone else have any experience purchasing a high mileage rig? Or selling a high mileage rig? I searched the forums and there isn't a ton of pricing data on rigs over 300k miles. Most seem to be off-market friend deals for $5k or less.

 

[Bismarck]

Hmm, will have to think about it more at that price. You do have a point though. The owner isn't going to just take $5k because in his mind that's a lowball. Unfortunately it's not the market value of the truck.

Right off the bat it's going to need 5 new tires and an alignment. (1200)
New radiator (200-300)
The rusted exhaust pipes will need to be addressed (500?).
Full baseline (all fluids 300 time and labor)
Rubber coolant hoses in engine bay. (200-300, time and cut up hands)
Will prepare for an Old Man EMU lift to replace AHC when it does go out (2-3k)
Be prepared for engine/transmission/differential rebuild.

The car is driveable as-is now. Does anyone else have any experience purchasing a high mileage rig? Or selling a high mileage rig? I searched the forums and there isn't a ton of pricing data on rigs over 300k miles. Most seem to be off-market friend deals for $5k or less.

All of these items are something you'd have to budget for on a truck with half the miles too unless recent maintenance has been completed. And if it's been recently done the price will usually reflect that. I'd move on.

 

[SWUtah]

Hmm, will have to think about it more at that price. You do have a point though. The owner isn't going to just take $5k because in his mind that's a lowball. Unfortunately it's not the market value of the truck.

Right off the bat it's going to need 5 new tires and an alignment. (1200)
New radiator (200-300)
The rusted exhaust pipes will need to be addressed (500?).
Full baseline (all fluids 300 time and labor)
Rubber coolant hoses in engine bay. (200-300, time and cut up hands)
Will prepare for an Old Man EMU lift to replace AHC when it does go out (2-3k)
Be prepared for engine/transmission/differential rebuild.

The car is driveable as-is now. Does anyone else have any experience purchasing a high mileage rig? Or selling a high mileage rig? I searched the forums and there isn't a ton of pricing data on rigs over 300k miles. Most seem to be off-market friend deals for $5k or less.

It's amazing that this vehicle still runs after that many miles and two different teenagers using it as their transportation

 

[jminchoi]

The truck ran amazingly well and did not feel like it had over 300k miles. Although in my brief test drive nothing immediately obvious stood out. Mileage is mileage and the biggest concerns I have are needing to rebuild an engine or transmission. Since these trucks are engineered so well I think that it masks issues or owners tend to overlook them. I'm lukewarm on the vehicle at 8k, and as Bismarck suggested will probably pass. Anyone have experience buying or selling 300k miles LC100s and the prices?

 

[ponytl]

The truck ran amazingly well and did not feel like it had over 300k miles. Although in my brief test drive nothing immediately obvious stood out. Mileage is mileage and the biggest concerns I have are needing to rebuild an engine or transmission. Since these trucks are engineered so well I think that it masks issues or owners tend to overlook them. I'm lukewarm on the vehicle at 8k, and as Bismarck suggested will probably pass. Anyone have experience buying or selling 300k miles LC100s and the prices?

my daily driver I purchased off ebay sight unseen buy it now for $1100 305k i read the ad for like 3min before i hit the buy it now button, by the time I got it delivered, put an engine in, baselined, tires wheels, touch screen gps, fender & paint, new tb wp bushings ect... I'm in it for less than 3k and would drive it anywhere (and do) put about 20k on it to date...
now for your truck
resale is really the only issue I see with it..... check ebay radiator $100, simple tire.com tires less than $600, full oil/grease $100, oem hoses are usually good for... forever... full detail $200... if the body is good NO RUST, and the leather is good , and it runs and drives I think 6k would be pretty fair...... once you own it for a week I bet you wouldn't sell it for what you paid... just say'n

 

[JayM]

Hi folks, I've been casually looking for LC100's for the past couple of months. I've driven a few while I was overseas (the diesel version) and they are absolute tanks and monsters off-road. I am looking for a 100 series 2003 or newer to build into road-trip, expedition rig. I love to wrench but love to drive even more.

The one I took a look recently was a 2007 LX with 340,000 miles

Nice thing with the 07 is the nice bump in HP. Really you can't go too wrong with the price. I would go back and drive it and and have the 5k with you and it may fly. There is a limited market for that truck and he just put a big number on it. You can never go down on the offer. I always let a guy know " I don't intend to insult you but I feel comfortable paying 5k knowing I will be spending another 2-3k to get her back in shape. I love the truck and will give her a good home." I would go as high as 7-8k on 2007 just based on the year with the fully functioning AHC. For what you can get with 8k these days it is still a lot of truck.

 

[LapuLapu]

To buy or not to buy? 2003 cruiser 130k miles. One owner, descent/uptodate maintenance records. Mechanically in good shape. Some rust, interior and exterior in ok condition. For $14000.

 

[2001LC]

I agree with jaym^^^

At $5k you may not care if engine or transmission needs replacing. But if you do; with millage and coolant hose issue noted, you'll need to do extra inspection. Look at all hoses, swelling may be sign of over heating. Do compression check. Pressure test coolant system. Inspect head gasket, which means pulling off skid plate and #2 shield.


Head gasket, can you guess what color coolant was used?

 

[2001LC]

To buy or not to buy? 2003 cruiser 130k miles. One owner, descent/uptodate maintenance records. Mechanically in good shape. Some rust, interior and exterior in ok condition. For $14000.

Don't buy rust, or discount heavily depending on extent. $14 needs to better than OK.

 

[LapuLapu]

Here's the pics of rust the owner gave me. Hard to tell with pics.

 

[LapuLapu]

Another

 

[LapuLapu]

One more

 

[LapuLapu]

Last one

 

[planomateo]

I wouldn't buy it with that rust, but that's me.

 

[JayM]

To buy or not to buy? 2003 cruiser 130k miles. One owner, descent/uptodate maintenance records. Mechanically in good shape. Some rust, interior and exterior in ok condition. For $14000.

My experience with rust on any vehicle. anything visable you can damn well bet your house that it is at least twice as bad as you think. I have never purchased a car with rust and dug into it and said....oh it's better than I thought.