H3T going out 100 Series coming in

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Explorin

10 Year
Joined
Jan 22, 2013
Threads
1
Messages
5
Location
Prescott AZ
Alright guys I'm in need of some schooling on 100's. I currently drive a 2009 H3T. Im into the overland thing and I'm looking for something more reliable, comfortable, and roomy than my T. After doing some searching the 100 series seems to fit the bill. I have NO idea of what to look for in these vehicles. I have seen a recurring trend of timing belt and water pump replacements and heard 00-02 have weaker transmissions?? How many miles will these reliably run to before you have major issues? What kind of maintenance needs to be performed and what does it usually cost?

Any help on what to look for when selecting a truck would be greatly appreciated.

Irrelevant but here is my current truck
Leveled 35" tires front and rear lockers full ucp and reservoir shocks
MJS_1317_zpsf345628e.jpg

Overland2012185.jpg
 
Welcome to the family! Sorry no one has replied to your post. I guess these guys are stunned by the H3 photos. I've wheeled in most of the major U.S. states where wheeling is good and in Europe and South America and I've never seen any H version off-road either - I'm serious, but just giving you a hard time. There are hundreds of answers to your questions on this site, just search for specifics. You without a doubt made a great decision on buying a LC. Personally, I have owned models, specifically an FZJ80 that had 200,000 miles on it, with no more than a timing chain replacement, other than routine maintenance done. These vehicles are engineered and produced for heavy duty service over a 25 year span. Here is a great link to learn more about the history of the LC:

http://www.toyota.com.kw/english/to...uiser/history/html/worldwide/dakar_rally.html

Enjoy your new vehicle.
 
Explorin said:
Alright guys I'm in need of some schooling on 100's. I currently drive a 2009 H3T. Im into the overland thing and I'm looking for something more reliable, comfortable, and roomy than my T. After doing some searching the 100 series seems to fit the bill. I have NO idea of what to look for in these vehicles. I have seen a recurring trend of timing belt and water pump replacements and heard 00-02 have weaker transmissions?? How many miles will these reliably run to before you have major issues? What kind of maintenance needs to be performed and what does it usually cost?

Any help on what to look for when selecting a truck would be greatly appreciated.

Irrelevant but here is my current truck
Leveled 35" tires front and rear lockers full ucp and reservoir shocks
MJS_1317_zpsf345628e.jpg

Overland2012185.jpg
Click to expand...

Welcome to the club! Sorta... pre-emptively.

Yeah, second that link to slees introduction. Shows you the tranny "issue" and what else to look for when buying.

Where is that second pic? Looks awesome!
 
I'll take a crack at this since I'm a newbie paying my dues :cheers:

I've seen some dispute about the transmission thing. The biggies you may want to consider are:
'98/'99 had e-lockers as an option
'00 got ATRAC (up until then some/all? had LSD rear)
'05 went from 4 speed to 5 speed tran
'06 got a hp boost

Miles: answer will depend on how fired up the peanut gallery is, 300k miles is no big deal and you'll see people often refer to toyota's design target of 25 year hard use service life. Many fun to read threads about this subject.

Timing belt / water pump is part of the every-90k servicing. Many people get by with just this. I had it done for around $700 I think parts and labor.

If you get a 100(or lx) with AHC (active height control) - it often has a more limited life than the rest of the truck - so have it checked out and know what you're going to do if it fails - or if you are going to just replace it with a lift or whatever - especially if you are going to add a bunch of heavy things on like armor and winches. Also know that rock sliders have to be modified to work with the AHC usually.

The other thing to consider if you are going to offroad aggressively is that the front differential is known to be a weak point and putting a front locker on it like ARB can help you solve that - going through that myself right now.

Good luck! Everyone on the forum here is real helpful and we all learn from each others' questions.

BTW, you going to keep the H3T still?


Explorin said:
Alright guys I'm in need of some schooling on 100's. I currently drive a 2009 H3T. Im into the overland thing and I'm looking for something more reliable, comfortable, and roomy than my T. After doing some searching the 100 series seems to fit the bill. I have NO idea of what to look for in these vehicles. I have seen a recurring trend of timing belt and water pump replacements and heard 00-02 have weaker transmissions?? How many miles will these reliably run to before you have major issues? What kind of maintenance needs to be performed and what does it usually cost?

Any help on what to look for when selecting a truck would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
 
kashmir said:
I'll take a crack at this since I'm a newbie paying my dues :cheers:

I've seen some dispute about the transmission thing. The biggies you may want to consider are:

'05 went from 4 speed to 5 speed tran
Click to expand...

Just minor correction: The 5 speed auto tranny is standard in 2003+ trucks.

I have had my 2003 100 since 60K miles and I am now up to 160K miles since I bought it 6 years ago. Fingers crossed but so far all major expenditures on this truck were voluntary such as headers, wheels, stereo upgrade, etc.

Just stick to the factory maintenance schedule and all will be fine.

Depending on your budget I would either pick up a 2003 / 2004 (new dash, shifter, 5 speed tranny, power bump, better roof rack) on the low end or a 2006 / 2007 (more power, VVT-i, Sat Radio, newer NAV system, updated look) on the high end. I guess if you wanted to build a wheeling beast, look for a 98 / 99 for cheap and go nuts.

Great pics BTW.
 
Great to see all these responses! I was starting to wonder if owning a hummer was going to get me completely ignored haha. I will absolutely be reading through those links today seems to be a lot of helpful information here as well as helpful people. Kashmir I will be selling the T before purchasing the LC. It has been a great truck with no problems until a recent front diff issue. In regards to the pictures the first is shot on soldiers pass sedona and the second is a spot in AZ about three hours (off road) south of Prescott.

Also I would like to go cheaper for a LC and invest in modifications. I'm not a big cushy interior guy which is why my H3T has cloth seats and nothing power or upgraded on the inside. My goal is to put on front and rear bumper a winch OME lift lockers and snorkel. I used to have my T outfit with most of this but I have been removing parts prior to sale
DSC00421.jpg

DSC00414-2.jpg
 
wow guys I just read through some of the links they have blown through my questions! extremely helpful especially with the changes by year. So pre 2001 there are no brackets to strap down a carseat at all? My girlfriend has a 3 year old and I would like to have that safety feature
 
Explorin - what kind of wheeling did you do with your h3t and what were the good bad and ugly with it? What kind of capabilities do it have?
 
I know my 01 only has anchors driver and center but not passenger.
These are extremely reliable trucks.. Having said that what year are you looking for?
the reason i'm asking is that a 10+ year old truck is going to need some maintenance up front regardless of the manufacture. Boots and bushings are going to wear with age regardless of the mileage.
Keep the PM in mind when budgeting for your rig and get it done up front; you will be very pleased with a 100 if you do.
 
Jordan345 said:
Explorin - what kind of wheeling did you do with your h3t and what were the good bad and ugly with it? What kind of capabilities do it have?
Click to expand...
I did just about everything with it. Completely stock it sits on 33" tires with front and rear lockers and a 4:1 gear ratio. With that I was able to do broken arrow in sedona with ease and ive hear moab isn't an issue in most places either. I then leveled it added 35" tires and put on full ucp. After that I ran crown king in AZ and trails where other rigs had a heck of a time with more equipment. I also do a lot of longer distance travel down to padre island, up to canada, and generally around AZ on dirt roads and snow. It has 91,000 miles now and has performed pretty flawlessly minus one or two maintenance issues which were warrantied. The only complaints are the small windows in the technical sections and low power at highway speed.
ClankBang said:
I know my 01 only has anchors driver and center but not passenger.
These are extremely reliable trucks.. Having said that what year are you looking for?
the reason i'm asking is that a 10+ year old truck is going to need some maintenance up front regardless of the manufacture. Boots and bushings are going to wear with age regardless of the mileage.
Keep the PM in mind when budgeting for your rig and get it done up front; you will be very pleased with a 100 if you do.
Click to expand...
I think I will look for an 01 up so it has the anchors. I expect some maintenance on smaller items but I'm trying to avoid the $1000 and up items busting often. Whatever truck I buy will be getting a thorough inspection and overhaul when purchased.
paflytyer said:
US Spec 2001-07 will have LATCH anchors in the second row. DS and middle seats, not PS.
Click to expand...
Thanks! we always put the car seat in the middle and behind driver anyway its safer that way so it works out
 
Welcome! Go for an 03+ You and your family will appreciate the 5 speed.

Good looking H3T by the way.
 
Explorin said:
Also I would like to go cheaper for a LC and invest in modifications.
Click to expand...
I can understand this but if your plans are to go 35's... it cost about $1200-1500 to regear. Tack that cost onto a 00-02 and you'll be close to the cost of a '03.

IMO, this is the order of worst to best...

35/4sp/4.3
35/4sp/4.88
35/5sp/4.1 (lower 1st gear than 35/4sp/4.88 makes up for super overdrive in 5th gear... and besides, 4th gear is not too far way)
35/5sp/4.88--> Cat's meow
 
Playing devil's advocate here: If you are, as you state above, basically happy with your H3 why not just trade over to the regular H3/wagon version?
 
I don't think i want to go for 35s again. They are too big and I would rather go for a slightly larger than stock tire with a small lift. Also I want to get away from hummer for a few reasons. Smaller ones being the visibility is atrocious, the on road handling isn't wonderful and its very lacking in room for a bigger vehicle. Larger reasons being the maintenance is going up quick and with warranty up soon I don't like where its heading especially with how crazy expensive the parts are. I really want reliability which the 100 series is famous for
 
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