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- Thread starter
- #22
Yes agreed. This will be a project truck and I'm happy to do some wrenching, in fact that's the main reason I'm purchasing.
However being from the south and now living in WA state I'm not a rust expert. I currently drive a 2007 FJ cruiser and it doesn't seem to be much less rusty than those last 3 pics I took and I consider my FJ to be in pretty good shape and it hasn't been too hard to work on.
Just looking to get more knowledgeable opinions on the rust pics so I know what is a waste of time and what could be wire-brushed and treated
The second one looks OK to me.
Second one looks good. Check as best you can the bottom of doors, rocker panels, hatches and rear 1/4 area. Those are where rust hides. Some surface rust is normal for anything that hasn’t been in a desert environment and of little concern.
- Thread starter
- #25
Thanks. Really appreciate these insights. Going to look at this one shortly
mudgudgeon
Resident galah
2nd one looks better, but still kinda crusty to my mind
- Thread starter
- #27
Just went and looked at it, the frame and all seemed pretty solid and just had some what appeared to me to be superficial rust like in the pictures which didn't seem too bad. Didn't see any rust in the places that @pgmatt mentioned.
However it did have all sorts of other problems such as:
Power steering fluid leak
AC doesn't work
Sunroof doesn't work
Driver side rear door doesn't unlock automatically
Has original suspension which seems shot
Small exhaust leak at passenger exhaust manifold
Dry rot on pretty much all engine hoses
Probably main rear seal leak
Dry rot on all of the window trim, some trim missing completely
Driver seat motor doesn't work
Also:
Owner said no suspension/steering work had been done so birfield joints probably need to be serviced
There was an empty oil container in the driver door which seems kind of sus because the owner said it doesn't leak oil. However upon climbing underneath I could the whole bottom of the engine looked wet which I was expecting given this one has 270k miles
He's asking $10k which seems like a lot given all the issues. I guess the one thing it has going for it is the roof rack and the interior/leather being in great shape
Edit:
Also the thermostat in the dash cluster doesn't work and it has an O2 sensor code DTC
That sounds pretty typical. Most Land Cruisers you are going to look at will likely need 5K+ in maintenance to be made reliable and brought back to good condition. I would be most concerned with condition of body and engine as those are the two expensive items. Everything rubber will be shot and most everything that has a seal or gasket will need replacing.
These are 30 year old trucks and although they are reliable and very well built that doesn't mean they are cheap to maintain.
- Thread starter
- #29
Any thoughts on price of $10k? The body looked fair (i.e. it looked solid and no big dents or rust) but had obviously been repainted pretty poorly. Engine seemed to run fine upon cursory inspection and wasn't producing any smoke and the oil looked normal. Small amount of dark buildup under oil cap which looked about the same as my FJ with 230k miles.
Either way I'm going to try to go look at a '95 next week so maybe that will be a good basis for comparison
Bonus engine bay pic:
The fact it’s been repainted and done poorly kinda sounds like a turn off. Hard to judge without seeing it. I think for 10k you can find a good base to work with and by that I mean one with original decent condition paint , healthy engine and little rust. The rest is less important and easily brought back to spec.
They turn up on Craigslist, facebook marketplace etc if you’re patient . Many LX450 were bought by older people who generally kept care of them so don’t forget to search under Lexus as well.
They turn up on Craigslist, facebook marketplace etc if you’re patient . Many LX450 were bought by older people who generally kept care of them so don’t forget to search under Lexus as well.
- Thread starter
- #31
Maybe I was a bit harsh on the paint. I should give more leeway given it's an almost 30 year old vehicle. I'm not even a stickler for good paint, my FJ is has a sun damaged hood and brush scratches all down the side.
Overall it was decent, I think I saw a section that was a bit uneven and bubbly but that likely was a small repair and overall it looked ok:
OP, the last posted one isn't bad. I would suggest that when looking, bring a unbiased pair of eyes with you. No mater how you say you feel you will impose some emotion that could cloud judgement. Reach out to the local club (WA- North Sound Cruisers - https://forum.ih8mud.com/forums/wa-north-sound-cruisers.161) and see if anyone would be available, heck if it was in the South Sound I would help if needed. I also like to video the walk around and review later, you will be surprised at what you see after the fact. If Torfab has availability, I would brig the one you intend to buy to them for a pre-purchase inspection. They are good people and will give you an honest estimate of what is needed and what should be replaced even if they do not have time to work on it.
Also, keep your eye out locally as they tend to post quite often.
Also, keep your eye out locally as they tend to post quite often.
- Joined
- Sep 9, 2004
- Threads
- 200
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- Location
- Boise - Idaho
- Website
- www.snlandcruisers.com
For Sale - Arizona: 1994 Toyota Land Cruiser
I am looking to sell my 1994 Land Cruiser. The LC has approximately 253K miles. I am the 3rd owner, this Land Cruiser has spent its whole life as an AZ vehicle so you know there is no rust on the frame. There are a couple oil leaks which I am assuming are the front/rear main seals and the...
forum.ih8mud.com
$12k and well sorted mechanically with no rust.
That $10k Cruiser needs $10k in baselining and then it’s still just a stock 80.
Cheers
- Thread starter
- #34
These are good points. I would actually prefer an unmodded cruiser. The more mechanically sound the better, but I'm expecting with such an old model I will be wrenching a lot regardless
For Sale - Arizona: 1994 Toyota Land Cruiser
I am looking to sell my 1994 Land Cruiser. The LC has approximately 253K miles. I am the 3rd owner, this Land Cruiser has spent its whole life as an AZ vehicle so you know there is no rust on the frame. There are a couple oil leaks which I am assuming are the front/rear main seals and the...
$12k and well sorted mechanically with no rust.
That $10k Cruiser needs $10k in baselining and then it’s still just a stock 80.
Cheers
Dang, Scott is selling his truck. It is well sorted and he has been posting about it for years so you could find a lot of information to mods if needed.
- Thread starter
- #36
Scott's truck does look sweet. However I'm really looking for something with airbags else it's a hard sell with the wife. Even then there is some discussion between us about the efficacy of 30 year old airbags (feel like there is a good wife joke in here somewhere).
On another note is anyone familiar with the effect of running the AC when the compressor is broken/not connected? The owner of that second cruiser seemed strangely hesitant to press the AC button when I asked even though he had already admitted that the AC didn't work. I also noticed afterwards upon reviewing pics of the engine bay that the AC compressor belt was missing. Is it bad to run the engine with the compressor completely disconnected?
Last edited:
If it's completely disconnected, as in no belt then there is no issue.
The windows work fine, right?
- Thread starter
- #38
Lmao yes windows worked fine. I was more curious why the owner was so hesitant to press the AC button. My theory is perhaps he pressed it at some point and maybe the belt snapping was very noisy or something and so he didn't want to press it again while showing the truck to a prospective buyer. He didn't seem aware that the compressor wasn't connected.
mudgudgeon
Resident galah
Yes, if the compressor was siezed, or about to sieze, hitting the button could be very noisy.
Not if there's no belt......
