Update on this topic: After reading this thread, I pulled my starter out last week (yes, it was a pain to wrestle it out of it's black hole!) and went to a starter/alternator rebuild shop and the guy GAVE me the new contacts! I asked how long I could expect the starter to last, telling him it now had over 180,000 on it, and he said I should get another 100,000 out of it! He said it's one of the best starters made and about the only thing that ever goes out on them is the contacts. He said Toyota's alternators were the best, too. That was good to hear! My contacts actually only looked dirty, but I'm replacing them since it's apart. Anyway, great write-up and much appreciated! I would have dropped $100 to $200 for a new starter had this not been posted! Not what I needed after just purchasing new suspension and an adjustable panhard bar, etc.! 
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'97 SR5 4WD 3.4L 4Runner - Evergreen, Sway-A-Way Racerunners, diff drop, steering rack & sway bar urethane, OME 890 coils, N86 shocks, Sonoran Steel adj. panhard bar, 32" Revo's, Sport/Highlander hood, Deck plate, TRD filter, '99/'00 front grill, clear turn lenses, IPF lights front & rear, Thule/Rocky Mounts roof rack.
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