1994 Pickup 3.0 - FREE - Worth it?
 

Hey guys!

I need some advice on future tech issues with a 1994 Toyota Pickup 3.0

I am in the market for a new truck and this Yota is my grandpas truck that he left for us when he passed. It has 103,000 miles...

Right now it runs and drives, the power steering seems to leak and a new radiator is needed. Also a new paint job...and some interior stuff.

My uncle is giving me this truck for FREE to build up and use. I would love to, but this would be my first Yota and I have been reading that these 3.0 V6s are TERRIBLE.

What would you do??

It needs to be registered, smogged, some work on PS and new radiator...

Even though its Free....its going to cost me some money....


Any advice would be appreciated!!

I say go for it. The 3.0 is not known for being Toyota's greatest engine but it is still far better than many others out there.

At 103,000 miles its still not even broken in yet. Unless it has major mechanical problems...I say just do a full tune up, change every fluid, and drive it.

Once you dump a couple hundred into it taking care of its issues it will probably be worth a couple grand or more if isn't all beat up.

Well I cant sell it...It has to stay in the family.

The only thing I am concerned about .. is lifting it, putting on some new rubber and then ˟˟˟˟ just starts blowing up.

Anyone else have .02 cents to throw at me?

is it 4 wheel drive?

What do you have to lose? It's free. Plus you'll learn how do your on mechanic work.

Yes its 4x4.

Yeah its free...but will still require some work that I COULD put into a newer truck that isnt as temperamental as the 3.0 V6

At 103,000 miles, I'd worry more about failures due to lack of use than things being worn out.
As was said, the 3.0 is far from a "terrible" engine. Probably 90% of them go 200K+ miles with no problems - mine certainly has.

Here are some things to do:
- Take the VIN to your local Toyota dealer and ask them to check what service bulletins and recalls are outstanding on it. '94 is late enough that it may have been manufactured with the upgraded head gasket, in which case it's no more failure prone in that regard than other Toyota engines.
- Find out when the timing belt was last changed. It should be changed every 70-90K miles. That's a fairly expensive item (labor) if it needs to be done, unless you can do it yourself. If you do it, change the water pump at the same time.
- A compression test on all cylinders will give you an indication of engine health. Likely, at that mileage, it will pass with flying colors.
- Ask about oil consumption. Should be minimal.
- Power steering leak could well be because someone dumped power steering fluid into it instead of ATF. Drain it and refill with ATF, and do that a couple of times over the next few months, and the leak may stop again as the seals swell back up to their original shape.
- Radiator is pretty easy to replace, and not all that expensive.

Nobody said you had to keep the 3.0 just saying.

Well, it sounds like you've already decided the 3.0 is a piece of junk - that's your prerogative even if your decision is based more on emotion than fact. Given that, you won't be happy with this truck, and you might just as well spend the extra $5000 to get a 1996 tacoma with a 3.4 - if you've got that kind of money and you can find one that cheap.

On the other hand, the rational approach would be to take the free truck, put a max of $1200 into it (if it needs a timing belt), and have a truck easily worth $3500 that will run another 100,000 miles. Your call...

Thanks for pointers!

ATF = automatic transmission fluid? really? into my PS?

I have never done a timing belt, but might as well. It might even be worth it to go through completely if I want to keep it for a while.

You guys are making me want to keep the damn thing! If it passes smog I think I will.

Absolutely. Just read the owner's manual. Regular power steering fluid shrinks the seals and makes 'em leak.

To further hammer this point, the 3vze is as reliable and capable as nearly every other engine of it's age. The only faults I've found with my two are a cramped engine bay and relatively expensive/futile performance mods. Keep it stock, run smallish tires (or at least properly geared with bigger tires), and don't dog it, and she'll run forever. Or at least for as long as you should need. Heck, I don't doubt my current pickup will outlast my fiances 2009 Ford Focus!

Give her a chance and take care of her, and she'll take care of you.

seriously, its free!! $500-700 for all your maintenance if you do it yourself. throw some new wheels and tires. pimp it with a strong hand.

Hahaha, I love the replies.

I think I'm going to go ahead and go through with this. Hopefully she passes smog!

I will make a build thread pretty soon here as well.

i would do it if it were me. it's free. even if the engine dies and you only use for the chassis and cab to build yourself a dedicated trail rig in the future, it could be worth it IMO.

you mention it runs and drives - great, just sounds like it's been sitting a while. I'd just start driving it and fixing the issues you mentioned, they're not that difficult to do on your own with minimal tools and don't cost a whole lot in parts. I'd suggest doing the timing belt just because of age not mileage. 3slow is a very dependable engine, I'd even say just as dependable as a 22re when taken care of. It's the people who expect toyotas to be indestructible (because of their reputation) and skip basic maintenance, that tend to have issues.

My guess is the rig will smog just fine once you drive it a little if it's been sitting. Doesn't seem like enough miles on it to have plugged anything up. If it doesn't smog, no big deal because even if you paid someone else to fix it, you're still going to be spending less than buying a newer truck. Example: replace engine with used to address smog = maybe $2k OTD = still $3-4k cheaper than the cheapest good-running Tacoma on CL.

If you do none of the work yourself and pay someone to fix it all up, you're still going to spend significantly less than you can pick up a Tacoma or 3rd Gen 4Runner for, and likely have a more dependable rig because everything's been fixed with no hidden problems...and it was your Grandpa's, so there's gotta be some sentiment there.


In regards to your comment about lifting/tires, then problems occur -- spend enough time researching older Toyotas and you'll see that thousands of people buy up a 20+ year old Toyotas every year, that's seen pavement all it's life, only to immediately lift it and start wheeling it without much issue...try doing that with a domestic vehicle...

Good luck and welcome to the Toyota Family!

Thanks for the advice highonpottery, its really uplifting to see 1000+ count veterem posters give me this advice.

The yota community really is something else!

I will probably do the timing belt like everyone has suggested and slowly bring it back into shape.

Im really excited to make a road worthy/trail worthy rig.

WOO YOTAS!

like everyone else has said: take it, fix it, drive it, love it...
and keep grandpa's memory alive and take it(him)along for the ride.

use the money you would spend on a "newer" truck and buy tools and parts, learn how to work on your truck, and fix it up the way you want.

if you don't like the 3.0, you can do a 3.4 swap AFTER you wear out the 3.0.

keep in mind that this yota could be passed on to your kids and the next generation of your family,like grandpa wanted, after all it is a toyota...

Free is always a good price.

X2, it certainly is especially for something that still has value.

Hahaha, I'm feelin the love from the yota family for sure.

Yall are awesome! Cant wait to get started.