What do you think of this '04 LC?

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thegreatgazoo

thegreatgazoo

10 Year
Joined
Nov 6, 2015
Threads
20
Messages
149
Location
Boulder CO
Hi folks, I've been lurking here for a while, and trying to find a '03+ LC100 or LX470. They are hard to find, and a couple of good ones were quickly sold when I didn't save enough $. Now I'm looking at this one and wondering what you guys think:
Used 2004 Toyota Land Cruiser for Sale in Aurora CO 80011 Gaylord Sales & Leasing Co., Inc.
CARFAX Vehicle History Report for this 2004 TOYOTA LANDCRUISER: JTEHT05J142061763

Low mileage but I noticed a few things:
- 3 real owners all in PA so it must have seen tons of snow storms.
- Timing belt was replaced at 58,365 miles, which looked strange. Shouldn't it be about 90K?
- Some services was delayed a bit, e.g. 15,000 mile service performed at 17,389 miles. Could it be a big deal?
- The engine cover seemed missing:
635787207832010457.jpg


I intend to mod it into an overland vehicle, i.e. lots of $ to be invested on mods, so longevity is my top concern. Please let me know what you think - thanks ahead!

Also, since I luckily live in CO, I'll see if the dealer would let me take it to Slee for an inspection.
 
thegreatgazoo said:
......
Low mileage but I noticed a few things:
- 3 real owners all in PA so it must have seen tons of snow storms.
Click to expand...

I looked at the LC today. I didn't see any body rust but there was quite some rust underneath it on the skid plates and rear axle - not severe but more than average I'd say. Also, is it common for LC100 to sell well above KBB used value? The KBB good-condition value is about $21K, but the dealer insisted about $3K above that (yet its condition is just average).
 
That's way too much for an 04. Or at least way more than I'd be willing to pay. You can get a good 06-07 for that price.

The 03-05s are in the mid to high teens.

It snows here in PA. We use salt on the roads. Not as bad as some places like OH, but not great either!

Engine cover is for looks only, not a big concern if it is missing.
 
I agree with Fireball. That's overpriced in my opinion, despite the VERY low mileage. I've been looking nonstop (as in 8 hours a day or more) for at least 10 days for a replacement for our 99 that was wrecked 13 days ago - so I'm awfully familiar with pricing. I bought a very clean, one-owner 2005 yesterday with 114k on the clock for $19k, which I still found to be a bit high but tolerable. You could find an '04 with more miles that's been taken care of for considerably less money. And miles don't seem to matter a whole lot when a 100 has been well maintained and is salt-free. Good luck with the hunt!
 
There seem to be areas of the country where LC/LX are more abundant. If you're willing to travel south, try looking at cities like Nashville, Atlanta, Charleston ect where roads aren't salted and there are enough cruisers for sale that you'll not see them overpriced. Rust offsets low miles in the pricing equation to me.
 
Battery cap is missing too. If that's been off for a while there may be acid damage in the engine compartment. Missing parts, even if just cosmetic, can be a flag for sloppy care. Is the brake fluid level ok, it looks low. I'd pass on that price (and don't look so eager next time:)).
 
Almost every one I looked at the owner wanted more than KBB Excellent even though the truck would never qualify for that. The common response was these are hard to find. Even used car lots weren't budging much.

The one I bought she admitted it was priced high and she was banking on them being hard to find. I told her I have looked at five locally in the last two weeks and there are plenty if you are willing to travel. She said she had received a lot of out of state inquires, but nothing solid. I set a deadline on my offer for her because I had a road trip planned and needed to know by X time. It was true, I was going to drive 4 to 5 hrs to look at a couple and didn't plan to come home empty handed. I am glad she came around last minute and I didn't have to road trip.

One i was going to travel to see was listed firm for 10,980. After I bought mine, two days later the new price he had listed was 9,250. I guess he was tired of waiting for the right buyer.
 
thegreatgazoo said:
Low mileage but I noticed a few things:
- 3 real owners all in PA so it must have seen tons of snow storms.
Click to expand...
Rust sucks if you do your own work. Buy a CO truck, or better yet a AZ, CA, TX or NM rig. I had an 80 from PA/MD/VA, and it was just a pain to do any little thing on. Got pretty good at tapping holes, though...

thegreatgazoo said:
- Timing belt was replaced at 58,365 miles, which looked strange. Shouldn't it be about 90K?
Click to expand...
Older Toyotas used to have a 60K interval (My '00 Avalon for example). Could just be an agressive service mgr? Or there is also a time component to the TB service life, largely ignored here (and rightly so).
thegreatgazoo said:
- Some services was delayed a bit, e.g. 15,000 mile service performed at 17,389 miles. Could it be a big deal?
Click to expand...
Nope.
thegreatgazoo said:
- The engine cover seemed missing:
Click to expand...
[Forrest Gump Voice] That's good! One less thang... [/Forrest Gump Voice]
- I have 2 laying on the garage floor if you ever buy one and feel the need to own a useless piece of plastic that can rattle...
 
Look on Dallas and Houston Craigslist (or find one on eBay there). Right now is a good time since the new model is coming out so there will be LX's being traded in. Forget mileage. Don't buy rust. Mileage under 200k is a non issue IMHO. 75k and three owners sounds like trouble either with the vehicle or just 3 people who knew they weren't going to own it long (1st two were prob leases). I don't trust lessees to care for a vehicle


Sent from my iPad
 
Thanks all great feedback! I never shopped used cars before and this was the 1st LC I looked at - I guess I looked like a perfect easy prey to the dealer.

Unfortunately I can't travel, but Carmax nowadays ships any 4WD nation wide to CO for free, with no obligation. Their prices are higher but still a good option for me since I can shop their nation wide inventory without travelling. They're already shipping a 1-owner 05 LX470 to me.
 
If it doesn't work out and you see one in DFW i don't mind putting a set of eyes and a camera on the underbody for you - or any other MUD member. Not looking to make a career of inspecting cars for folks but I'm new to the 100 series so any time spent I view as R&D


Sent from my iPhone
 
Get a smoker's / rust investigation from Carmax. They aren't very forthcoming about either bit of information. I ran through three different Carmax reps in TX, GA, and CO trying to get info on the undercarriage condition and whether the vehicles had been smoked in. The dealers at Carmax can't answer these questions directly, but have to have a purchasing agent check the vehicle out first. They in turn relay the information to the dealer, who may or may not get back to you.

I usually got a response with a few chassis pictures sent to me, but often the response about whether the vehicle was smoked in or not came back as "a slight smoke smell". That would be a deal breaker for me.


Sent from my iPhone
 
^^^ good info about Carmax.

Buying remotely has gotten increasingly easier, but it's still important to take the time (and spend the money) on doing due diligence. Get a friendly MUD member to get eyes on (I'm happy to volunteer in the Portland area) and have serious candidates professionally inspected.

I also learned to not completely trust the CarFax. I had a vehicle with a clean Carfax inspected by a dealer (not the seller) who found evidence of a serious collision that had gone unreported. I spent ~$300 to take a pass on that rig, but it was prob some of the better money I've spent.
 
X2 on the Carfax caveat. I looked at car once where the dealer stock number had been mis-reported on Carfax as the number of miles miles and Carfax would not correct it.
 
A little bit patience paid off today - found and bought a 05 LC, 1 owner, 120K miles, CO truck and rust free!
2015_1112_16323400.webp

All clean but doesn't seem to accelerate as strong as a v8 should.

BTW my Carfax subscription is still active, so just send me a message if anyone here needs a plate/vin check.
 
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