hilux80

ok so im not gonna lie.....im new to the whole toyota truck thing although i have had a few other 4 wheel drives in the past. i ran across a 1980 hilux 4x4 with a 20r motor and 4 speed manual trans.everything works as far as i can tell. he did mention it was in need of new front axle seals. The body is pretty rough (i guess) has some rust through in the bed, floor pans, and in the driver side fender. the interior isnt all that bad. it has a 3 1/2 inch rough country suspension and 31 inch all terrains i bought it for 300 bucks and just wanted to see if this was a good decision....

p.s. i plan on tearing into it sometime next week and will post pics of my progress

camo31_10.50

hellll no!!!! terrible deal, i'll come tow that eye sore off of your property for free if ya want

of course it was a great deal!!! especially at $300!!!!!!

83

Yeah, if you can do the work yourself, it can be a good truck. A shop will charge you in the $600 range to do the front inner axle seals. But you can do it yourself for waaaay less. If you can weld, cutting the rusty floor panels out & welding in some good sheet metal is the way to go for that.

Definitely post pics!

cdg

I picked up a 1980 2wd in pretty terrible shape for $200. I was lucky - somebody had just started pouring money into the truck. It had 2 new tires (other two are fairly bald), lots of other new parts too. Got it running for 50 bucks. It was a flat deck replacement (not too badly executed). As it sits it still needs a lot but is useful enough to me. Mine is pretty rust free though.

So far to make mine useful I have put $400 into it. It needs seatbelts but is otherwise completely daily driveable. I anticipate putting another $200 into it to make it acceptable to my tastes and then it is going to need transmission work - another 300 bucks give or take for a bearing kit (or maybe I'll just try to find a good junkyard transmission). It will still be a little rough in terms of some dents and dings but it's my little work truck for when I need one once in a while so I won't worry about it.

What you need to know is that these trucks are reliable but sensitive. You should start with a good tuneup. With age the vacuum components can become very fussy. The 4 speed may get mixed reviews for highway driving. You can decide if you want to fix, replace, or make a new bed for it. I do like my wooden flat deck but many scowl upon such a bold modification. Changing the transmission oil is a critical service on any old Toyota.

Buying an old truck like this is never a good decision. It will gradually become a boon to your existence. They're definitely cool though and I don't regret the time, blood, sweat, and tears poured into any of my old vehicles.

camo31_10.50

yea i've realized that unless you wanna be working on your vehicle quite a bit...buy a new one.

or atleast one that is not more than 2 or 3 years old

with that being said, i love my '92 4runner LOL

hilux80

well i have a few things to say about this truck......first off......I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i pulled the gas tank, cleaned out the fuel lines, cleaned and replaced the tank, and rebuilt the carb and now it runs like a top. its been raining here for the last week so i finally got to play in the mud with it and it was hella fun.....this has been the first 4x4 ive owned that could make it across our creek without gettin stuck!!!
ill try and post some pics as soon as the weather clears up some