My 200 Series Shakedown

[Specialeyes]

Hey guys, this past weekend I picked up a used '20 HE from a Land Rover dealer in Peoria, IL. I tried my best to do my due diligence with the whole process as this is the first time I have ever purchased a vehicle sight unseen. I had a PPI done, had the dealer send what I felt at the time was an adequate amount of photos, and felt like I was getting an alright deal considering where the market has been on these. ($90k, with 17k miles) I am in to it so far for another $2500 and that was for a set of the bronze heritage wheels since the previous owner put some red and black, bro dozer Fuels on it.

I don't really like buying used vehicles because of the things like what I am about to get in to. I wasn't expecting it to be immaculate as it is now 3 years old and had been driven a little bit. (First two owners were in AZ, the third in IL.) After showing up at the dealer I immediately noticed the side mirror caps and mounts are faded in a bad way. Somehow this did not show up on any of the photos I was sent. I figured since this is purely cosmetic they can be repainted or replaced but wanted to ask what you guys would recommend on tidying those up? Everything else cosmetically is pretty good. There are some small chips on the front where some touch up paint was used, and it could use a new shark fin I noticed today while cleaning it up, but again for being used all in all I'd say it's a 8/10 for me on the outside.

I took it out for a wash this morning to get all the bugs and grime off from my drive home and crawled underneath to take a look at the Bilstein setup when I noticed the rusty spots along the frame, some nuts, and the rear end housing. Again somehow these were not obvious in the photos I was sent when they had it on the rack. Looks like those last 8-9 months it spent in the midwest did a little number. I don't think it's detrimental but again I wanted to ask what does everyone recommend on this? I was thinking I could just have this cleaned and coated? The truck is in Texas now and we don't salt the roads here when it snows although I do plan on taking this thing up into parts of Colorado and Utah for snowboarding on occasion.

Other personal notes after putting about 850 miles on it so far.... the Bilsten 6112/5160 setup is great on the highway but seems a bit firm and bumpy to me on certain roads and definitely at lower speeds (50 and below). I think it is still running OEM springs. Current tires are KO2 275/65/18 E Load but I am most likely going to swap them to either a 275/70 or 295/65 to help fill in the wheel wells a little more. Also considering adding the Spidertrax spacers as the current setup has everything squeezed in a bit more than I'd like. I want them to be flush with the fenders ideally, maybe a hair of poke.

I did manage 324 miles yesterday on a tank which was pretty much on par with my 4Runner. The V8/8spd on this thing has gobs of power and is much smoother compared to the v6/5spd. It's also much quieter in the cabin, however I need to find a fix to stop the damn passenger seat head rest from rattling over bumps.

Couple other things on note, previous owner installed one of the old Navi Plus units and it sucks. I kept having issues with Bluetooth disconnecting, then reconnecting and could not get Spotify to load on the screen. It played music but with a black background. Also the phone calls and texting is horrible with their mic. I plan on having this stuff removed and will try a Grom VLite or something that uses the OEM mic and has slightly newer software.

Lastly, my rear view mirror has a bit of play in it. Is this normal? Any fixes to tighten it up on the ball/axis where it pivots and adjusts?

Any suggestions or additional recommendations from anyone is greatly appreciated! Looking forward to being part of the 200 community.

 

[BarnFab]

I think you will be fine on the rust front

 

[Zill]

Congratulations on picking up a desirable HE! It is odd that someone swapped out the best part of HE with those bro-dozer rims, but glad you got it all sorted out.

That’s a minor amount of rust, but I would recommend throwing some wool wax or fluid film on it to keep it at bay since the oxidation process has started. Also, use a healthy application of heavy marine grade grease on those KDSS valves!! (How are they looking by the way?)

For the mirror caps, since it’s on the underside of the mirror, is it even that noticeable on a day to day basis? I wouldn’t mess with it if it’s not easily noticeable.

 

[Specialeyes]

Congratulations on picking up a desirable HE! It is odd that someone swapped out the best part of HE with those bro-dozer rims, but glad you got it all sorted out.

That’s a minor amount of rust, but I would recommend throwing some wool wax or fluid film on it to keep it at bay since the oxidation process has started. Also, use a healthy application of heavy marine grade grease on those KDSS valves!! (How are they looking by the way?)

For the mirror caps, since it’s on the underside of the mirror, is it even that noticeable on a day to day basis? I wouldn’t mess with it if it’s not easily noticeable.

It’s on the piece of the mirror that mounts to the door as well. Here’s a photo of the KDSS valve.

 

[Tex68w]

I'd hit the rust with a wire wheel on a drill, then spray some rust stop product of some sort and then rattle can it with black Rustoleum. It's nothing to be worried about but I am willing to bet it all came from it's one winter in Illinois. As far as the underside of the mirror caps fading I have never seen anything like that before. They almost look stained with some sort of overspray more so than faded, I'd maybe see about having them replaced if it still has a bumper-to-bumper warranty remaining in terms of years/months, I doubt it would fall under the rust corrosion warranty since it's plastic. If not try some of the black plastic restorer products, that should do wonders for something like that.

In regards to the headrest rattle I found that mine only rattles when the headrest base is tilted/projected forward. If I have the base of the headrest pushed back it's not an issue so maybe give that a try. I can't help you with the Navi Plus issues, that's why I have stayed away from those products so far, they just aren't seamless integration yet and until they are (maybe never) I am not going to waste my time or money. Spidertrax 1.25" wheel spacers will push those stock wheels out to almost perfectly flush, that's my suggestion if you're sticking with the Toyota BBS wheels. Lastly, any lift will feel slightly firmer than stock, add a little weight and it usually settles things out.

Oh and congrats on the 200, looking forward to some full profile pics soon.

 

[LTSR]

congrats on the 200. i had the rear view mirror coming loose also, a quick retighten and it has been trouble free for 2 years.

 

[Zill]

It’s on the piece of the mirror that mounts to the door as well. Here’s a photo of the KDSS valve.

View attachment 3353860

View attachment 3353865

The KDSS valve looks great! Grease it well, and you shouldn’t have much of any problems down the road.

What in the world happened to that mirror? Are you sure it’s not road road grime that got splashed up from the front tires?

 

[Specialeyes]

congrats on the 200. i had the rear view mirror coming loose also, a quick retighten and it has been trouble free for 2 years.

How did you do this?

 

[bloc]

I absolutely hate rust, but I wouldn't do anything to what I see on there. If you wire wheel it off then coat it, you'll never get all of it in the nooks & crannies, and for the length of your ownership you'll constantly be finding new little spots to obsess over. Personally? Just leave it, knowing that in north texas it isn't going to progress basically at all.

That side view mirror would drive me nuts too..

When you tighten the rearview mirror, don't go ham on it, or you risk pulling the mounting puck off the windshield. Just enough to snug it up. Ill let others with newer rigs detail how to get to the screw, but it's not the socket itself, it is where the arm mounts to the mounting disk on the glass.

The headrest rattle has an updated part number to address it. I can't find it easily but if you do some searching you should find it.

Congrats on the rig!

 

[LTSR]

How did you do this?

On my 2018, the plastic portion that covers the bolt and electronics are 2 parts. The upper portion, you pull towards the mirror and pull up and it will come right out. That should give you access to the single torx(?) bolt that tightens the rear view mirror. The lower and larger plastic portion doesn't need to come out if I recall, but if you want to remove it, just push it down following the angle of the windshield and the clips should come undone pretty easily. All of this is fresh in my mind since I just installed a dash cam a few days ago

 

[speakout525]

It’s on the piece of the mirror that mounts to the door as well. Here’s a photo of the KDSS valve.

View attachment 3353860

View attachment 3353865I have this same odd white stuff on my mirror!

 

[777Gage]

Congrats on the purchase!

I would bet that you are not running OEM springs - I have that exact lift on my 200 and it the exact shock set-up it I ordered as a complete package. You should with a good flashlight find the Bilstein name somewhere on the springs in white. I'll see if I can get a picture of mine to post for reference - found it on the front drivers side

 

[LCH21]

For the head rest rattle, I pulled the head rest out of the seat, bent the bars to the outside a bit and re-installed it with the bars under tension from being bent out. No more rattle.

 

[Leelanau]

Congratulations on your new truck! Smart move picking the best year and model too!

Don’t sweat the small stuff. The best part of buying a truck with some character marks is you won’t be afraid to use it and rack up some miles.

I agree on the rust; that’s not much. I had a similar amount on my kdss valves when it was brand new off an Ohio lot. Hit it with a wire brush and slather on some marine grease.

I also love the look of the bronze bbs wheels. Good to hear your putting those back on! I have read a lot of good reviews on the Bilstein suspension. Let us know what you think about it.

 

[Specialeyes]

Well I’ve got the rear view mirror fixed! One thing at a time I keep telling myself (as I try to do it allllll at once)

 

[FerrisBueller]

Looks great, I wouldn't do anything about that rust, other than apply grease to the kdss body.

That's pretty bizarre with those side mirror caps. If you end up thinking you'll replace them, then I would first remove them and try a heat gun on them. Heat will often soften and eliminate those types of marks on other plastics around the vehicle (like when reforming the mud flaps for tire clearance).

 

[Sud]

Side mirrors look like they had wax sprayed on but never wiped off and it dried.

 

[Specialeyes]

Side mirrors look like they had wax sprayed on but never wiped off and it dried.

That’s what I thinking. If not wax then some kind of cleaner. I just tried some black trim restoration cream and it only yielded a slight improvement. Afraid new mirrors will be on order soon.

I went and seen my dealer this morning and they are getting the head rest parts on order. I’ve heard mixed opinions on the rust and honestly that is the thing that is bothering me the most. There’s quite a few bushings and bolts also rusted as well. Just jarring being that I never had so much as a spec of rust on the 4R I traded in.

 

[Tex68w]

That’s what I thinking. If not wax then some kind of cleaner. I just tried some black trim restoration cream and it only yielded a slight improvement. Afraid new mirrors will be on order soon.

I went and seen my dealer this morning and they are getting the head rest parts on order. I’ve heard mixed opinions on the rust and honestly that is the thing that is bothering me the most. There’s quite a few bushings and bolts also rusted as well. Just jarring being that I never had so much as a spec of rust on the 4R I traded in.

Maybe try a clay bar on the mirrors to see if it’ll remove it?!

In regards to the rust, just hit it with some black and be done. If the rusty hardware bothers you I’d just replace it, easier now than in a few years when it’s worse. I have a few nuts on some front end components that have corrosion where there’s none anywhere else on the chassis, it’s likely from beach trips but it’s just too easy for me to replace and not worry about it.

 

[Pierce]

For the mirror plastic I’d put money on buffing compound. I’ve been buffing my wife’s passenger side and that area collects a lot of compound. The buffer gets a little wonky in that area under the mirror. It’s the same color as 3m Machine Polish as well.

It dries hard and can initially be hard to wipe off. Get it very wet and wipe it or pressure wash it and hopefully it’ll come right off.