Opinions on this 1999 100 Series for sale

[Brandon Lawhorn]

Hey! First time on the forum. So, I live in Arizona and was walking my dog through my neighborhood and when I tuned a corner I came across this Land Cruiser for sale. On the For Sale tag, it said it was a 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser 100-Series 4x4 for $6,500. Over all the vehicle seemed to be in good condition. Some dents, dings and wear inside, but nothing outrageous. I contacted the seller and he told me that "the body has 267,000 miles on it, but before he decided to sell it, he took out the old engine and replaced it with a 100 series engine with 68,000 miles". I have not further contacted him mostly because I have been busy, but I wanted your opinions on this to see if it seems like a good deal or not. Should I be cautious about this swap or is it common or people to do this? I took some pictures of the exterior and what I could get of the interior, but I'm at work. So I will try to post those when I get home.
Thank you for any responses!

 

[Buu100]

I would ask to see the receipt for the engine replacement. If he can't provide it I'd say he's lying. If he did it himself I would have a mechanic look at it. Pull the VIN on the engine and run a carfax to verify mileage. If that all checks out and there's no rust, personally, I think that's a pretty good price. Also, if it has the rear locking differential (round switch to the left of steering column) then that's a big bonus.

 

[Brandon Lawhorn]

I would ask to see the receipt for the engine replacement. If he can't provide it I'd say he's lying. If he did it himself I would have a mechanic look at it. Pull the VIN on the engine and run a carfax to verify mileage. If that all checks out and there's no rust, personally, I think that's a pretty good price. Also, if it has the rear locking differential (round switch to the left of steering column) then that's a big bonus.

I believe it does have the rear diff, if my memory serves me right. But yea, I will definitely ask for the VIN and then hopefully have my local shop check it out. Thanks!

 

[JayM]

Price is in line even if it still had the stock motor with 267k provided Tbelt is up to date and mechanically checks out. I would speculate that maintenance was neglected if motor was replaced. Just a theory but it is very uncommon to have to replace a motor in these. After passing inspection an offer of 5k would be in line and be prepared to go higher if needed and you really like it. Good luck!