Looking to Import an 80…asking for advice (1 Viewer)

[TXinVA]

TLDR: **Asking for folks with import experience** The potential dealbreaker: a PO removed the OBD port. Import policy says that the drivetrain must be in original, unmodified condition. With the OBD port removed, is that a concern?

Greetings to all. First post here. I’m stationed in Bahrain with the military, and if I buy an 80, I’d be able to bring it back to the States (for free! Thanks, taxpayers).
Hoping for some advice. I’ve read the buyer’s guide, watched the prepurchase inspection videos on YouTube, and researched the differences within the 80s (CDL, 3xLocked, engine/tranny options, etc.). I know that buying a GCC 80 series has its complications due to the wear and tear the climate gives a truck, so my expectations aren’t incredibly high, but I don’t want to buy a money pit either. Plan is to drive it as my daily (avg 15mi/day) while I’m here, then take it home in a couple years and make it my project/toy.
There’s a 97 available right now at a used car dealer here for $5700US. 266k mi (426k km). Body and frame are in good condition considering mileage and age. Pretty much rust free. Mechanically, it’s ok. Brakes are scary soft, but fluid is low and dirty, so hopefully a flush and new pads would correct that. Prepurchase inspection shop gave a litany of issues:
- New struts all around
- Pwr steering box leaking
- Oil pan and transmission pan leaking
- Tie rod ends
- Control arm bushings
- Vacuum and radiator hoses
They didn’t give any recommendation on the condition of the front axle, and in retrospect I should have asked. But from my own visual inspection I didn’t see any issues.
Interior is ok. Some of the power features aren’t working. Power driver seat (fwd/rear broken, but up/down and recline are good), power driver window, moonroof, for example. It has the fridge/ice maker in the center console, but I have no idea if it works.
It might have CDL switch. There’s a button in the expected CDL switch spot labeled “H4”, but when you press it, nothing shows on the dash. Could be the dash bulb is out. Has anybody seen that? Photos attached.

Hope you folks with experience in high mileage 80s can provide some advice. Thanks!
By the time I leave Bahrain, I hope to be a real member of the 80-Series owner club.

 

[gilmorneau]

Import policy says that the drivetrain must be in original, unmodified condition. With the OBD port removed, is that a concern?

As long as the motor is original and has whatever emissions equipment it had when new, I seriously doubt anyone at the EPA would even notice, much less care about, a missing OBD port. I've imported maybe a dozen cars by now (all from Europe), and this topic has never come up.

I don’t want to buy a money pit either

Buying a 25 year Landcruiser is almost always going to have a draining effect on your wallet. It's to be expected. If you're willing and able to do most of the work yourself, you can save a ton of money over hiring someone to do it all for you.

Plan is to drive it as my daily (avg 15mi/day) while I’m here

If you daily drive it for a couple of years, you'd be pretty well familiar with its strengths and weaknesses. If you still love it, bring it home, if it turns into a money pit or you hate it, sell it before you leave.

 

[WarDamnEagle]

I currently live in Riyadh and there are certainly better examples to be had......and much worse. I would say that's a more than fair price based on what you have posted. I found a super clean '97 example a few months back with about 75k original KM and the person was asking 65k SAR ($17K) but it wasn't clear that he was actually willing to part with it for that price. Just my personal preference but if I bought one from the middle east it would have to be tan. It's a color that wasn't offered in the US.

 

[Devils Paw 80]

The tailgate mounted spare tire is cool. The H4 button looks like the one found on US FJ62 that is a vacuum shift into 4WD high range.
Diff lock switch should say "diff lock", right?

 

[gilmorneau]

Diff lock switch should say "diff lock", right?

Center diff lock switch is what is usually there and it looks like this:

Might be different for the Middle East market, or someone may have swapped switches for some reason.

 

[TXinVA]

I currently live in Riyadh and there are certainly better examples to be had......and much worse. I would say that's a more than fair price based on what you have posted. I found a super clean '97 example a few months back with about 75k original KM and the person was asking 65k SAR ($17K) but it wasn't clear that he was actually willing to part with it for that price. Just my personal preference but if I bought one from the middle east it would have to be tan. It's a color that wasn't offered in the US.

Like this tan?

 

[WarDamnEagle]

Not sure. Maybe it's the lighting but that doesn't look the same. Like this one. It's the same tan as my FZJ75 pickup if you click on the link in my signature line. 4E9 is the paint code.

 

[TXinVA]

Not sure. Maybe it's the lighting but that doesn't look the same. Like this one. It's the same tan as my FZJ75 pickup if you click on the link in my signature line. 4E9 is the paint code.

Gotcha. The one I sent is available here in Bahrain. Maybe it’s Desert Dune Metallic (1A5) or Flaxen Mica (4M7). Asking BD3500 (SAR 35000). Much cleaner (at least in photos) than the black 97 I looked at a few days ago. 315k km. I’ll take a look at it this weekend.
In your experience here in GCC, is the H4 button a shifter into 4HI? Does that mean these trucks are all not AWD?
If you ever make your way across the Causeway, we should meet up for a drink.

 

[WarDamnEagle]

Does that mean these trucks are all not AWD?
If you ever make your way across the Causeway, we should meet up for a drink.

That's a very good question. I have only looked at manual transmissions as that's my other "must have" criteria for a non-USA 80. Having said that, I'm not sure what the transfer case / locker situation is for those. I thought they all had front and rear diff locks but maybe not? No idea about the transfer case if it's a manual transmission but I'm sure someone on here does.

I have been to Bahrain a lot and will definitely let you know if I get back over there anytime soon. Good luck with your search. KSA is a much larger market than Bahrain; not sure though what it would take to "import" one though. Haraj.com is a good KSA website to look for them. The UAE is another good market but I'm not familiar with the websites.

 

[TXinVA]

KSA is a much larger market than Bahrain.

Wow. You ain’t kidding. Like orders of magnitude larger. On OLX (Bahrain’s Craigslist) there are normally like 2 80-series for sale at any one time. Wish I could just pop over to Saudi and grab one and bring it back. There’s a massive paperwork burden to export-import Saudi to Bahrain. Made even more difficult when you don’t speak or read Arabic.