Return or keep - 2012 GX460 (2 Viewers)

[SDTrojan]

Flew up from San Diego to Sacramento yesterday and picked up a '12 GX yesterday with 97k miles.
It's a one owner California car with maintenance records indicating it was kept around Davis, CA (well inland)
The first thing I did was drive it to a mechanic down the street for a pre-purchase inspection.
The PPI report is here.
He noted there was some superficial rust but that he wasn't concerned about it, just that it might take an overnight spray of WD40 to loosen some screws. He said it was a fairly clean car and he didn't have excessive concerns other than the front struts leaking and needing replacement, which he said was normal at 100k miles.
He also some signs of "seepage" of some fluids as he called it, but said he wasn't too alarmed.
He saw a few drops of oil but said that may have been a sloppy oil change.
I left feeling pretty good about my purchase and drove 400 miles down to my parents' place in Orange County.

I slid under the car yesterday myself after driving back from the dealer and took some pictures. And frankly, it looked pretty bad to me, and now I'm questioning my purchase.

I have 7 days/700 miles to return the car, no questions asked, but would probably need to ship it back, since I've already driven 400/700.

I'm kind of lost with what decision to take. How bad is this rust?
Should I just take the $1k loss (one way flight, PPI, shipment cost of the car back to Sacramento) and walk away and keep looking, and take it as an expensive lesson learned?

I paid ~23K OTD.

 

[Hehena]

No F-ing way that lived it's life in Davis. I'm part time in that area and it's rust free.

 

[SDTrojan]

No F-ing way that lived it's life in Davis. I'm part time in that area and it's rust free.

Yeah, I was puzzled too. Carfax shows regular (5k intervals) maintenance in either Davis or Roseville, and one maintenance record in Sacramento.

I'm not sure if this guy parked the GX in a swamp every night, or what.

 

[r2m]

I live in San Clemente about a hundred yards from the ocean and have a 2013 with about 113,000 on the clock. I don't think mine looks like that.
But for the price, low miles and where you live, what I'd jump on that deal!
There is no rust that's penetrating, it's all surface which can be easily knocked off with a wire brush.
Get the rig, and either pay someone or get under it yourself and clean it up, maybe add an undercoating and you'll be very happy with it.

 

[Hehena]

Yeah, I was puzzled too. Carfax shows regular (5k intervals) maintenance in either Davis or Roseville, and one maintenance record in Sacramento.

I'm not sure if this guy parked the GX in a swamp every night, or what.

The only thing I can think of is taking trips to snow-covered Tahoe and not washing it down afterward. Even then...

 

[SDTrojan]

I live in San Clemente about a hundred yards from the ocean and have a 2013 with about 113,000 on the clock. I don't think mine looks like that.
But for the price, low miles and where you live, what I'd jump on that deal!
There is no rust that's penetrating, it's all surface which can be easily knocked off with a wire brush.
Get the rig, and either pay someone or get under it yourself and clean it up, maybe add an undercoating and you'll be very happy with it.

Thanks so much for the reassurance, Richard.

I keep going back and forth between wanting to ship it back, eating the $1k loss, and keep looking for a cleaner option, or just fixing what needs to be fixed and enjoying the car. I really, really like the feel of driving the car and loved the long road trip back from Sacramento with it. If anything, it solidified that a GX is exactly what I'm looking for.

I texted the dealer about it and they basically said, "I just heard back from management. Unfortunately, the vehicle is 13 years old. It's in excellent condition considering how old it is. However, you're certainly able to use the 7 day return."

I'm a little more at ease about the rust, since it sounds like it can be cleaned up and wouldn't affect the useful lifespan of the vehicle.
And it sounds like the struts going out at this mileage are pretty standard. Since this is an air suspension, I'd probably do the coilover conversion and maybe throw a lift on it.

The transfer case seepage also sounds like it shouldn't be too bad.

I'm just questioning if it was a good deal and if I should have simply invested more into a newer, lower mileage GX. $23k feels like a lot for a rusty undercarriage and $4k in repairs.
I'd probably do a radiator and transmission fluid change in the very near term also.

 

[SDTrojan]

The only thing I can think of is taking trips to snow-covered Tahoe and not washing it down afterward. Even then...

Like you said, even then it's odd since I feel like there's not a lot of salt in Tahoe or Mammoth on the roads on most days.

Since they have the tow package, I'm wondering if the person had a boat and just constantly took it to the boat ramp

 

[r2m]

Thanks so much for the reassurance, Richard.

I keep going back and forth between wanting to ship it back, eating the $1k loss, and keep looking for a cleaner option, or just fixing what needs to be fixed and enjoying the car. I really, really like the feel of driving the car and loved the long road trip back from Sacramento with it. If anything, it solidified that a GX is exactly what I'm looking for.

I texted the dealer about it and they basically said, "I just heard back from management. Unfortunately, the vehicle is 13 years old. It's in excellent condition considering how old it is. However, you're certainly able to use the 7 day return."

I'm a little more at ease about the rust, since it sounds like it can be cleaned up and wouldn't affect the useful lifespan of the vehicle.
And it sounds like the struts going out at this mileage are pretty standard. Since this is an air suspension, I'd probably do the coilover conversion and maybe throw a lift on it.

The transfer case seepage also sounds like it shouldn't be too bad.

I'm just questioning if it was a good deal and if I should have simply invested more into a newer, lower mileage GX. $23k feels like a lot for a rusty undercarriage and $4k in repairs.
I'd probably do a radiator and transmission fluid change in the very near term also.

Considering your last statement on vehicle price and repair costs, consider this: how much would you spend for a newer vehicle with an average 7,500 miles/year on the clock (what you presently have)?
The short answer is: look in CarGurus, AutoTrader, whatever and see how much a newer GX460 is selling for with only an average of 7,500 miles/year on the odometer. This may be the reality check you're looking for. My guess is you have a pretty good deal.

 

[r2m]

The only thing I can think of is taking trips to snow-covered Tahoe and not washing it down afterward. Even then...

We're up in So. Lake Tahoe annually for skiing and I've never washed down the under carriage after coming home form our trips.
But I believe Tahoe (think "eco California") uses sand, not salt for their roads.

 

[Hehena]

We're up in So. Lake Tahoe annually for skiing and I've never washed down the under carriage after coming home form our trips.
But I believe Tahoe (think "eco California") uses sand, not salt for their roads.

Caltrans uses a mixture of salt brine and sand.

 

[Rednexus]

That's not "bad" persay, and would be typical for a GX from the lower midwest. My GX was about the same when I bought it. If you work on the rig, you will probably end up rounding off, stripping, or breaking a few bolts. It's not the end of the world, it will just add a few hours to the job when it happens. The problem you might run into is a lack of experience in local mechanics (and yourself if you are DIY wrenching) in dealing with rusty fasteners and knowing how to move past them.

IMO, $23K is a bit steep for a 2012, regardless of the mileage, but that's in my local market. A quick search on Cargurus in my area shows several 2014-2016 models with similar mileage as that one for around $23K. The undersides will probably look the same as your 2012.

For my personal rig, I treated the inside of the frame with Fluid Film and the outside with Woolwax Black. I purchased the rig in 2020, did the first application in the spring of 2021, and the second in the spring of 2024. The treatment completely stopped the rust progression - and that included over 3 winters with salt on the roads. I'd recommend the same if you keep the rig, except you'll probably need to treat it far less often. It's a pretty easy DIY job with the Woolwax applicator gun and a small air compressor. It should be around $300 total investment to do that, even if you need to buy a small pancake air compressor, and you'll have enough left over for 1-2 future re-treatments.

 

[Hiluxforever]

My 2015 GX460 that lived 120k in Iowa has way less rust than this. I would be concerned with the rust you can't see.

 

[ChipSchwartz]

The OP lives in one of the finest places in the US to find rust-free BOF vehicles. I don't think I'd settle for that particular example.

 

[rexington14]

I'd return it but then again I would have looked underneath to check for rust before I would have even opened the driver's door.
GX460s aren't that hard to find.

 

[jd2395]

I've got a 2013 with about 150K on it that's lived in Virginia all it's life and and I have nothing even close to that for rust.

It's been somewhere....maybe the dude had a vacation home in the rust belt. I'm super OCD, but I'd return it...

 

[GrizzlyClint]

Ship it back and take the hit. There's plenty of GX's out there.

 

[Rednexus]

Guys, this can be mitigated for around $300. If this rig is cherry otherwise - good maintenance history, no trans issues or valley plate leak - I'd personally prefer it over a rust-free one that's gonna need $5-7K plus in mechanical repairs dumped in it.

I do think the price is a bit high - by Midwestern standards where a 2012 is just a 13-year old SUV and nothing too special. Around here, it probably should have been priced closer to $17-20K. So ultimately it's up to the OP, based on what other rust-free GXs are going through in his local market and the mechanical condition of this GX relative to those.

If it has any trans or valley plate issues at all I'd personally take it back.

EDIT: Photos of my personal rig - in 2021 pre-coating, 2024 post-washing/pre-coating, and 2024 post coating, are in this post.

 

[Hehena]

My 2014 NorCal truck with 110k. Rust is a non issue here.

 

[suitcase]

Rust looks superficial to me, but it also doesn't look like a NorCal truck. $23k seems OK, but not great.

 

[SDTrojan]

Thanks everyone. A lot of food for thought and I still can't make up my mind.
If anything, my flip flopping back and forth almost tells me I should just return it for the peace of mind and find one I don't have any worries about.
At the same time, my buddy from Chicago just came by and he said it seems like a great car and didn't think the rust was anything to worry about, but he's also coming from the rust belt.

The car is a pleasure to drive, handles well, no creaks or rattles, good maintenance history.
Prices at least here in southern California are insanely inflated.
Seeing used 2015 4Runners with 120k miles going for $32k asking price.
Most GXs with fewer miles and that are newer (15-16) are going for 28-36k, so like R2M pointed out, I'm asking myself how long I'd need to wait for a clean example for a more compelling price.
Pretty sad state still for the used car market.