What to look for in a 89-94 Xtra Cab?

[Montana Cruiser]

Can you guys school me in what to look for in a 89-94' (would that be 3rd gen?) body style Xtra cab trucks? I am a die-hard Cruiser guy, but will soon be selling my FZJ80 and either going for a FJ60/62 but the the Xtra Cabs hold some interest as well. Looking for it to become a reliable DD and a Expedition style truck. About all I know is the 22RE is bomb proof (I had one in a 1st gen 4Runner a ways back) and the V6 (not sure of what the engine designation is?) has Head Gasket issues, but once the HG is addressed, are they the engine to have?? I'd like to stick with an Auto, any problems there? Any input would be great, thanks!

 

[theside00]

I would stay away from the 3.slow after you get the HG fixed they are still a pain in the ass compared to the bullet proof 22re. Those years will be an IFS front end dont know if that matters to you or not. The 85 was the last year of the solid axle. Dont know much about the autos but heard when matched with the 3.0 it was crap, really slow and terrible gas mileage for the power. V8 gas mileage with 4 cylinder power. My suggestion would be to find a 1985 xtra cab with a solid axle and the 22re. Good base for a DD and expedition rig.

 

[2ndGenToyotaFan]

Lots of good reading here: Mytrucksmodifications

The 3.0 is a fine engine.... it's just hard to work on, doesn't make that much power, and has a few "quirks" The 22RE is the way to go, it can be built to make decent power and will keep running till you say "when". The autos are good transmissions, but they all suck power and steal gas mileage. As long as you're prepared for that, you won't be disappointed in the reliability. Of course finding a truck that's been taken care of is the hard part, these things go forever, despite lack of maintenance in most cases..... Happy hunting!

 

[Montana Cruiser]

Lots of good reading here: Mytrucksmodifications

The 3.0 is a fine engine.... it's just hard to work on, doesn't make that much power, and has a few "quirks" The 22RE is the way to go, it can be built to make decent power and will keep running till you say "when". The autos are good transmissions, but they all suck power and steal gas mileage. As long as you're prepared for that, you won't be disappointed in the reliability. Of course finding a truck that's been taken care of is the hard part, these things go forever, despite lack of maintenance in most cases..... Happy hunting!

Yeah, I have been hard pressed to find a nice clean one I like yet. I would really like to go for the 22RE, but I'm moving back to the mountains of western Montana soon and am afraid of it being a dog on the passes ..... might be able to get over that given it's reliability. I know there was a factory turbo version, is it easy to turbo a 22RE as a homegrown project? IFS is not a big deal to me, I'm just not going to be crawling over stuff and I like the looks of the 89-94 series.

 

[beyondlogic]

i dont have the xcab, but i just bought a '89 with the v-6 and standard and it has plenty of power and great gas mileage. i drove it about 180 miles and got almost 17 MPG, and it needs alot of work (tune up and none of the vaccume hoses are hooked up right.)

 

[toyminator]

I just found out the some of the 4cyl xtra cabs in the early 90's came with the weaker G58 5spd and chain driven transfer case. If the truck has auto locking hubs then it will have this tranny/t-case combo. These are much weaker as compared to the w56/gear driven t-case combo. I found this out because my buddy's truck just broke the reverse gear in the G58 tranny last weekend 4 wheelin.

 

[hoch]

Can you guys school me in what to look for in a 89-94' (would that be 3rd gen?) body style Xtra cab trucks? I am a die-hard Cruiser guy, but will soon be selling my FZJ80 and either going for a FJ60/62 but the the Xtra Cabs hold some interest as well. Looking for it to become a reliable DD and a Expedition style truck. About all I know is the 22RE is bomb proof (I had one in a 1st gen 4Runner a ways back) and the V6 (not sure of what the engine designation is?) has Head Gasket issues, but once the HG is addressed, are they the engine to have?? I'd like to stick with an Auto, any problems there? Any input would be great, thanks!

I was looking for essentially the same vehicle as you. (86-89 4Runner 22RE). Here is the big problem--there aren't many mint condition 4Runners/pickup's around. 99% of them I found were all rusted out and abused. You'd have to put in some serious work to get it up to par. It got pretty frustrating trying to find "The One." After months of searching, I stumbled upon a 2001 Tacoma Double Cab that was very clean. Jumped on that and it's been great. I figured the money I would've spent getting a 1st Gen 4Runner up to par would be about the same cost as this Tacoma.

If I were you, I would go for 94-95 Truck w/ 22RE and 5 speed. Even with the 5 Speed, they are dogs, but will get you where you're going. My friend has an 87 4Runner 22RE 5 sp, and going up mountain passes, it does strain quite a bit. OR, you could get a Tacoma with a 3.4L. The auto transmissions are pretty good and you've got plenty of power to go up those passes (I live on the foothills of some bigger mountains, so I go up them quite often). The get good MPG's and you can find plenty of clean models. Plus, the TRD's (and some non-TRD's), come with the rear e-locker.