Need help on prioritizing services (1 Viewer)

[ouki]

I took my 99 4Runner SR5 to the dealer and had them done a thorough inspection. They recommended a list of things but I do not have the time and money to have all done at once. I am looking for your help on prioritizing the critical services needed to be done ASAP. And the rest will be done in 3-month or 6-month. Here is the list of things the dealer recommended.

1. FLUSH BRAKE SYSTEM, DIRTY
2. FLUSH POWER STEERING SYSTEM, DIRTY
3. FLUSH COOLING SYSTEM (INCLS 2 GAL COOLANT), OLD
4. FLUSH AUTOMATIC TRANS, DIRTY
5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
6. BATTERY SERVICE
7. AIR FILTER, R&R, DIRTY
8. FUEL INJECTORS, CLEAN
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING
11. WHEEL ALIGNMENT

 

[Brake Weight]

All the fluids and filters, belts, and spark plugs you could do yourself in an afternoon. I'd guess that you get decent brands at a parts house for under $150 easy. The alignment around my neck of the woods is about $50-75 dollars depending on the severity. Since the stralership didn't mention ball joints, the alignment shop will. The R&P, I haven't bought one of those yet. I'd get a second opinion and if needed, I'd flush the power steering fluid then. Remember, Yotas don't use true power steering fluid. Check the cap before buying any.

So, barring a new R&P and you doing or sourcing the labor outside of a Toyota dealer, it is conceivable you could be under $250-300.

 

[Jacket]

Most of that stuff is standard maintenance, and it's hard to stack rank without knowing the severity of any of the issues. Given that the dealer let you drive off, none must be too urgent.

What's the mileage on the truck? Some of this should have been done when the timing belt and water pump were replaced at around 100k (belts, coolant).

I guess if it was me, I'd go with this order.

5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
3. FLUSH COOLING SYSTEM (INCLS 2 GAL COOLANT), OLD
7. AIR FILTER, R&R, DIRTY (please just do this yourself - no tools required except maybe a wrench)
4. FLUSH AUTOMATIC TRANS, DIRTY
1. FLUSH BRAKE SYSTEM, DIRTY
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING (this could be pricey....)
2. FLUSH POWER STEERING SYSTEM, DIRTY
9. VALVE COVER GASKET LEAKING, SPARK PLUGS TUBE (this will just cause a dirty engine bay and a minor loss of oil between changes.)
8. FUEL INJECTORS, CLEAN (unless you are throwing any codes, dirty injectors will just degrade performance but not cause any serious issues)
11. WHEEL ALIGNMENT
6. BATTERY SERVICE (wtf is this?)

 

[ouki]

What's the mileage on the truck?
5. DRIVE BELTS ALL, R&R, BELT(S) DRY AND CRACKING
3. FLUSH COOLING SYSTEM (INCLS 2 GAL COOLANT), OLD
10. POWER RACK & PINION ASSY, R&R, STRG GEAR ASSY LEAKING (this could be pricey....)

The truck has 132,500 miles. I'm just trying to do preventive maintenance, nothing is noticeably broke yet. The timing-belt was done at around 100k but water pump wasn't done. How urgent water pump needs to be done?
I've read a lot posts talking about "milkshake" radiator failure. Should I replace it?

 

[IanB]

Common failure items on these trucks are the lower balljoints(lbj), and the rad where it connects to the tranny cooler(pink milkshake). These should both be done ASAP, as the cost to repair if they fail is FAR more than if you replace them on your own, and in the case of the lbj can be very dangerous. The other stuff I touched on in my reply on the t4r forum.

 

[ouki]

Common failure items on these trucks are the lower balljoints(lbj), and the rad where it connects to the tranny cooler(pink milkshake). These should both be done ASAP, as the cost to repair if they fail is FAR more than if you replace them on your own, and in the case of the lbj can be very dangerous. The other stuff I touched on in my reply on the t4r forum.

You got me!
Do you know how much average costs for "lower balljoints(lbj)" replacement and radiator replacement?

 

[weejub]

Isn't there a recall for the ball joints? I don't know a lot about it, though