Opinions on Possible 1999 100 Series Purchase

[jhynesrockmtn]

I own a 77 FJ40 and am on the hunt for a 100 LC or possibly an LX470. I found this one locally. My long term plan is to drive it to our Phoenix area winter home from Spokane WA in the winters and/or possibly leave it there to be our local driver and do some off roading.

Here is the description from the ad
1999 Toyota Land Cruiser. Roughly 265k miles. Second owner since 2002. No leaks, all services are up to date and have been done by Downtown, Larry H Miller & Findlay Toyota. Small tear in the drivers seat.Runs and drives great. Very thorough service records. Has dents scratches and dings to be expected.

I spoke with the owner, he has all records since practically new. He has a "guy" at the local Toyota dealership who has serviced it regularly and he has the records. It was his daily, then passed to each of his 4 kids to drive while he continued to own it and maintain it.

I've been reading up on these a bit, but would the miles scare you away? He's asking $11,900 but told me he'd look at offers. I'm going to see it today.

Any advice on price, specific things to look for in the paperwork other than routine service including timing belt/water pump, cooling system services, fluid flushes, etc? I'm fairly handy, but don't want a project. My FJ40 and some other cars take that time and money up.

Thanks,
Jerry

 

[Malleus]

That's a premium price for a not so premium truck, but I have no idea what the market is like where you are. If there is nothing mechanically wrong with it, and the timing belts have been changed recently (<2k miles) and no rust at all, it'd be worth maybe $8k here.

The mileage doesn't bother me at all. If you are serious, you need to download the manual from the Resources forum here...both the service manual and the EWD. Even if you have no intention of doing any of the repair work yourself, if you don't know in advance what you're buying, you'll wind up paying far more that it's worth before it's all said and done.

With new belts, the engine will only likely need a valve job before it dies of extreme old age.

I'd budget for new seat pads, and buy a budget cover set, unless you have $5k burning a hole in your pocket for custom replacement leather covers. The lower pads are still available new; the back pads are not. Get 'em while they're hot.

If the suspension bushings (all of them) haven't been replaced, you need to budget for that. Using only OEM parts, I'd add $1,500, if you do the work yourself. I would not use aftermarket parts. Plan on a weekend to replace them.

If the CV joints haven't been replaced, you need to budget for that, and I'd buy new boots when I bought the truck. With them in hand, you'll be able to assess the life left in the axles. You do not want those CV joints to run without intact boots. This is also a weekend job, unless you've done it before.

You need to bear in mind that the transmission, even if well cared for, will be difficult to maintain in the future without prior planning, because Toyota doesn't seem to want to support it. The 80 series versions are almost impossible to service, with Toyota parts, unless you know them well, and although that is not the case for the 100 series A343F transmissions right now, I can't see Toyota treating them all that differently. If you decide to buy this one, buy the overhaul kit for the transmission and put it on the shelf for future use. Budget $600 for the overhaul kit (all seals and gaskets). You won't need it until after 300k miles, but you will need it at some point after that, because rubber doesn't last forever.

One last thought: the CAN Bus architecture is not like anything you've worked on before, unless you've worked on it before. It's pretty reliable, but it is not straightforward nor is it obvious to work on. I'd read up on it if you plan to do any troubleshooting. It will pay to do that yourself, even if you want someone else to do any electrical work that may come asking.

Having said all that, it looks like a good truck, from way over here.

 

[Super77]

Miles alone would not scare me away, but passing through 4 kids would. It would be worth closer to his asking if it had been babied by an adult owner. My first car was a FJ40 - I now cringe at how I abused that thing. FWIW, I'm in the Seattle area and paid a little less for one identical to your candidate, adult owned, 142K miles. I've got a mental $5K budget for mild restoration and care & feeding - I think your candidate may need a little more.

I'd offer $8k, but there is surely someone out there willing to pay asking or more, especially for a (presumably) rust-free rig. 100s have not yet reached the fever-dream market of 40s and 80s, but we'll get there.