Ok, been looking for a while to get back in a 1st gen 4runner but they are as high as giraffe (you know what) and I'm working on a budget since I have 3 young kids and a wife that spends all of my money for me.

An old friend came across a super clean 1988 SR5 5 speed truck with the 3.slow. The kid had blown the head (shocker) and bought a jasper engine to put in it. Somehow the new engine lost a lot of oil quickly and now has a rod knock. He bought it and put a torsion bar lift and some 35's on it with intentions of putting rod bearings in it but hasn't gotten around to it and now wants to get rid of it.

I work as a svc advisor at a local GM dealer and I have a tech who could put rod bearings in it but am I crazy? Hopefully it won't need a lot since the engine is "pretty new". I don't really want to fork over all the cash to buy a 3.4 and harness conversion.

Has anyone out there done anything similar? I

Thanks for the input!
2001 Lexus LX470, stock and rockin michelins!

 

It is a 4runner btw!

 

Anything can be made good again, but at what price?? Your wants and needs rule.

I think it's worth 10 cents a pound as is.

 

Yeah, body is super straight and interior is one of the cleanest one's I've seen in a long time. I can pick it up for around $2200-$2500. I'm just wondering what I'm getting into with trying to put rod bearings in it.

 

There's no way to know whether the bearings will fix it , without taking it apart.

Its a crapshoot whether the crank is servicable, or not.

Do you get the first engine with it??

Even so, $2500 sounds high, unless its got $1000+ worth of very fresh tires and rims on it.