- Location
- United States
I know I was!
I'm putting up for sale my most recent "research project."
Like many of you on MUD, cars are my primary hobby. As such, I like fooling with different brands of vehicles from time to time, although at present, everything I have is a Toyota. When my son got a 4wd Sequoia last year, that started me wondering if one of those could be a capable off-roader like my 80 or 100 or if it would be too big to be any fun.....so I had to find out.
When I first started considering "building" a Sequoia, I was surprised at just how little empirical information I could find online about a Sequoia's off-road capabilities. There was ample information on TundraSolutions.com and other sites about most everything else on these trucks, but there were very few sites that actually discussed anyone off-roading a Sequoia. I think that's what got me really interested. (I think it's fair to note here that my off-roading desires for a truck like this fell somewhere between Forest Service roads and obstacles that create body damage. My frame of reference are trails up to "3" on a scale of 1-5 at Hot Springs Off Road Park in Hot Springs, AR. For those of you who have been there, you know that #3 trails can be challenging for a truck the size of an 80 or 100, so that's why I wanted to try the Sequoia. Here's the link to their site http://www.orvpark.com/
Let me say that I, and others at this year's Southern Cruiser Crawl were very impressed with what this truck would do! It went everywhere - and I mean EVERYWHERE - either my triple-locked 80 on 35's or my A-TRAC 100 with 1.5" OME lift had gone in past years. Again, to be fair, I am not the type of wheeler to tempt body damage, so I limit my trail riding to a maximum of #3 at Hot Springs, but you'd be amazed at how steep/severe/loose/off-camber/etc. some of those trails are for a rig like this to traverse! I'm telling you, I never high-centered, got stuck, had to back up or couldn't go forward on ANY of the same trails my 80 or 100 had done!
When I started, my end goal was to buy a Sequoia, from an area with no rust, because Toyota just finished a recall on Sequoias / Tundras from certain states for FRAME REPLACEMENTS! Yep, they've been replacing entire frames on some trucks, so goal number one was to find a good, rust-free, southern truck...which I did. It's clean as can be. Then, I wanted to mildly build it to where it was rock-solid reliable and still completely driveable on-road (up the ground clearance, but not enough to where I started getting drive line vibrations) but do enough to it to where I thought it would get through most of the places I had taken my 80s and 100s before.....then, I intended to put it to the test I mentioned above.
What I've got is a very well-sorted 2001 Sequoia Limited, Silver Sky Metallic / gray leather. It's now got 210,xxx, and within the last 6 months, I have taken care of all of the "problem areas" early Sequoias seem to have. Granted, it's 14 years old, so it's got a few nicks and scratches here and there, but overall, it's very clean, inside and out. After all I've done, it's now a great travel vehicle as well as being a competent off-roader (all items listed below)
For comparison purposes, here are the specs on a 100-series Land Cruiser vs. a Sequoia. (NOTE: In no way am I suggesting one is better than the other. I have both, and I like both for different reasons. For instance, the Land Cruiser has a little better build quality, but sucks the fuel. The Sequoia has some plasticky parts, but being part-time 4wd, get better fuel mileage. There are many comparisons of that type.)
2001 2001
Land Cruiser Sequoia
Wheel base 112.2 in. 118.1 in.
Length 192.5 in. 203.9 in.
Width 76.4 in. 76.4 in.
Height 73.2 in. 73 in.
Grd clearnce 9.8 in. 10 in.
Fuel Capacity 25.4 gal. 26.4 gal.
Tow capacity 6,500 lbs 6,500 lbs
Cargo 27.8 cu. ft. 59.7 cu. ft.
HP 230 240
Torque 320 315
Only 5.9 in. difference in wheelbase from the Land Cruiser and less than a foot longer overall.
Ok, so here's what I've done to it in the last 6 months:
* Factory-style timing belt service:
* Replaced air filter
* Replaced spark plugs with NGK Iridium plugs
* Replaced steering rack bushings
* Replaced common torn steering intermediate shaft seal in firewall
* Replaced both the VSC module and Yaw Rate sensor (Toyota installed with a warranty.) This is a common problem on Sequoias and VERY expensive, but necessary for the A-TRAC to function properly. If you look at a 4wd Sequoia that doesn't have documentation that these parts have been changed, run. The first generation modules were a weak point, and they were very prone to fail.....and as I said above, this was a VERY expensive correction!
* Replaced the common torn driver's left side seat panel - a bracket in the seat frame is known to puncture this panel on most Sequoias.
* Replaced both front headlight assemblies
* Installed Stubbs Welding rock sliders
* Installed Bilstein 5100 adjustable shocks in the front (set to provide about 1.3" of lift - the truck sits completely level at this setting
* Installed 4 OEM FZJ80 40th Anniversary Land Cruiser wheels (I wanted a wheel with 4.5" backspacing, in case I ever wanted to go with a larger/wider tire, and I thought it would look good with an OEM wheel. I had seen plenty of Sequoia wheels on 80s, but never 80 wheels on a Sequoia) with 275/70-16 BFG AT KO tires (I will reduce the purchase price by $400 if you don't want these wheels)
* Weathertech front floor mats
Bottom line: Building a 100 series Land Cruiser can be very expensive. The purchase price of the truck is relatively high to begin with, then accessorizing it can add thousands more. Plus, sometimes you need a bigger vehicle (a Sequoia is about as big as an Expedition) than a Land Cruiser, one in which you can keep the 3rd row seats in and STILL pile all of your stuff behind the seats! That's where a 4wd Sequoia works so well, in that it's a less expensive, bigger vehicle that is virtually as capable as a 100 off-road and gets better fuel mileage on-road.
The main reason I'm selling it after having done so much to it is because I've gotten distracted on another vehicle. I recently got my wife a newer GX460, and that left us still owning her former GX470. Having seen some of these older GXs on the trails at this year's SCC at HSORV, I'm now thinking about building this truck of hers, but I want to sell this Sequoia to get some funds to do it.
There's a lot more information I have about these trucks I haven't posted here, so if you have specific questions or want photos of specific areas of the truck, please let me know.
Again, these are less expensive to purchase and build than a 100, and from my experience, they're nearly as capable
I'm asking $8,400 (or $8,000 with the factory Sequoia wheels to replace the FZJ80 wheels).
I'm putting up for sale my most recent "research project."
Like many of you on MUD, cars are my primary hobby. As such, I like fooling with different brands of vehicles from time to time, although at present, everything I have is a Toyota. When my son got a 4wd Sequoia last year, that started me wondering if one of those could be a capable off-roader like my 80 or 100 or if it would be too big to be any fun.....so I had to find out.
When I first started considering "building" a Sequoia, I was surprised at just how little empirical information I could find online about a Sequoia's off-road capabilities. There was ample information on TundraSolutions.com and other sites about most everything else on these trucks, but there were very few sites that actually discussed anyone off-roading a Sequoia. I think that's what got me really interested. (I think it's fair to note here that my off-roading desires for a truck like this fell somewhere between Forest Service roads and obstacles that create body damage. My frame of reference are trails up to "3" on a scale of 1-5 at Hot Springs Off Road Park in Hot Springs, AR. For those of you who have been there, you know that #3 trails can be challenging for a truck the size of an 80 or 100, so that's why I wanted to try the Sequoia. Here's the link to their site http://www.orvpark.com/
Let me say that I, and others at this year's Southern Cruiser Crawl were very impressed with what this truck would do! It went everywhere - and I mean EVERYWHERE - either my triple-locked 80 on 35's or my A-TRAC 100 with 1.5" OME lift had gone in past years. Again, to be fair, I am not the type of wheeler to tempt body damage, so I limit my trail riding to a maximum of #3 at Hot Springs, but you'd be amazed at how steep/severe/loose/off-camber/etc. some of those trails are for a rig like this to traverse! I'm telling you, I never high-centered, got stuck, had to back up or couldn't go forward on ANY of the same trails my 80 or 100 had done!
When I started, my end goal was to buy a Sequoia, from an area with no rust, because Toyota just finished a recall on Sequoias / Tundras from certain states for FRAME REPLACEMENTS! Yep, they've been replacing entire frames on some trucks, so goal number one was to find a good, rust-free, southern truck...which I did. It's clean as can be. Then, I wanted to mildly build it to where it was rock-solid reliable and still completely driveable on-road (up the ground clearance, but not enough to where I started getting drive line vibrations) but do enough to it to where I thought it would get through most of the places I had taken my 80s and 100s before.....then, I intended to put it to the test I mentioned above.
What I've got is a very well-sorted 2001 Sequoia Limited, Silver Sky Metallic / gray leather. It's now got 210,xxx, and within the last 6 months, I have taken care of all of the "problem areas" early Sequoias seem to have. Granted, it's 14 years old, so it's got a few nicks and scratches here and there, but overall, it's very clean, inside and out. After all I've done, it's now a great travel vehicle as well as being a competent off-roader (all items listed below)
For comparison purposes, here are the specs on a 100-series Land Cruiser vs. a Sequoia. (NOTE: In no way am I suggesting one is better than the other. I have both, and I like both for different reasons. For instance, the Land Cruiser has a little better build quality, but sucks the fuel. The Sequoia has some plasticky parts, but being part-time 4wd, get better fuel mileage. There are many comparisons of that type.)
2001 2001
Land Cruiser Sequoia
Wheel base 112.2 in. 118.1 in.
Length 192.5 in. 203.9 in.
Width 76.4 in. 76.4 in.
Height 73.2 in. 73 in.
Grd clearnce 9.8 in. 10 in.
Fuel Capacity 25.4 gal. 26.4 gal.
Tow capacity 6,500 lbs 6,500 lbs
Cargo 27.8 cu. ft. 59.7 cu. ft.
HP 230 240
Torque 320 315
Only 5.9 in. difference in wheelbase from the Land Cruiser and less than a foot longer overall.
Ok, so here's what I've done to it in the last 6 months:
* Factory-style timing belt service:
- Aisin water pump
- Mitsubishi timing belt
- Koyo idler bearing
- Koyo tensioner bearing
- NTN tensioner
- Cooling system flush, replacing fluids with distilled water and Toyota red coolant
- Gates accessory drive belt
- Gates accessory drive belt idler pulley
* Replaced air filter
* Replaced spark plugs with NGK Iridium plugs
* Replaced steering rack bushings
* Replaced common torn steering intermediate shaft seal in firewall
* Replaced both the VSC module and Yaw Rate sensor (Toyota installed with a warranty.) This is a common problem on Sequoias and VERY expensive, but necessary for the A-TRAC to function properly. If you look at a 4wd Sequoia that doesn't have documentation that these parts have been changed, run. The first generation modules were a weak point, and they were very prone to fail.....and as I said above, this was a VERY expensive correction!
* Replaced the common torn driver's left side seat panel - a bracket in the seat frame is known to puncture this panel on most Sequoias.
* Replaced both front headlight assemblies
* Installed Stubbs Welding rock sliders
* Installed Bilstein 5100 adjustable shocks in the front (set to provide about 1.3" of lift - the truck sits completely level at this setting
* Installed 4 OEM FZJ80 40th Anniversary Land Cruiser wheels (I wanted a wheel with 4.5" backspacing, in case I ever wanted to go with a larger/wider tire, and I thought it would look good with an OEM wheel. I had seen plenty of Sequoia wheels on 80s, but never 80 wheels on a Sequoia) with 275/70-16 BFG AT KO tires (I will reduce the purchase price by $400 if you don't want these wheels)
* Weathertech front floor mats
Bottom line: Building a 100 series Land Cruiser can be very expensive. The purchase price of the truck is relatively high to begin with, then accessorizing it can add thousands more. Plus, sometimes you need a bigger vehicle (a Sequoia is about as big as an Expedition) than a Land Cruiser, one in which you can keep the 3rd row seats in and STILL pile all of your stuff behind the seats! That's where a 4wd Sequoia works so well, in that it's a less expensive, bigger vehicle that is virtually as capable as a 100 off-road and gets better fuel mileage on-road.
The main reason I'm selling it after having done so much to it is because I've gotten distracted on another vehicle. I recently got my wife a newer GX460, and that left us still owning her former GX470. Having seen some of these older GXs on the trails at this year's SCC at HSORV, I'm now thinking about building this truck of hers, but I want to sell this Sequoia to get some funds to do it.
There's a lot more information I have about these trucks I haven't posted here, so if you have specific questions or want photos of specific areas of the truck, please let me know.
Again, these are less expensive to purchase and build than a 100, and from my experience, they're nearly as capable
I'm asking $8,400 (or $8,000 with the factory Sequoia wheels to replace the FZJ80 wheels).
