Cujo31

Hey Gang!

New to the forums and new to Toyotas... Just purchased my first over the weekend. It is a '92 Toyota 4Runner SR5 4x4.... 4 door, V6 automatic, with about 156K mileage.

The body has its share of small issues... It is Wisconsin afterall so I expected some rust with the Winters we have... that is just cosmetic... she seems to be in good mechanical shape and I thought the mileage was pretty low... (around 10K a year). Her interior is in very nice shape, not stained up or anything. And doesn't appear that their is any leaks around the moonroof etc, one owner... and thankfully not a smoker. So I am pretty pleased with her so far...



I suppose my question is this, what kinda things should I watch for with this model Toyota? Is there any major quirks/bugs in this model that I should be aware of?

Any help or advice that you could give to a newbie would be GREATLY appreciated!

Thanks again!

Cujo

BTW....forgive me if I post in the wrong forum... I am still figuring out this 1st, 2nd eneration thing

EWAYota

Welcome to the board! Congrats on the purchase, looks to be a good looking runner.

I'm not to informed on when the dates where, but I know that some of the 90's V6's had head gasket issues. I'd check (or someone will chime in) to see if your Runner was part of the recall and to check if it had the recall done to it.

First mod I would do, unbolt those running boards if your looking to do anything trail wise with it. Doesn't take much to take them off and takes less to break them on the trails.

Welcome to the board and open your wallet!

Elton

welcome to yotatech .... i would see if the head gasket recall has been done

1989toy4wd

Make sure the recall on the engine was done, the 3.0 engines have a tendency over time to blow a head gaskets, which if not checked out will cause much trouble!! I cant think of anything else though!

1989toy4wd

Hahah i guess yall were to fast for me!!

CanTheWhales

Nice looking truck... I would scrap the brush guard and running boards and look into bigger tires... but it's your truck, do what you want...

EDIT: ^^ Hey, where'd you get that avatar... it's pretty cool, got one for a 2nd gen?

yotawheelin95

Nice truck, where are you located in wisconsin, i like the brush gaurd on it and plus its almost the only one you can find, im located right now in menomonie, let me know if ya know anywhere to wheel.

4mydogs

Hey, c'mon now!

Nice looking Runner -- enjoy it, Cujo.

excableguy

Welcome,and if this is your first 4runner, take a little note--the auto trans wont shift into overdrive until it reaches a certain ?? operating temp. I've had mine going on 2+ years and love it ( HG repl. before I bought it), but when I first bought it, I thought something was wrong with the trans since it wouldn't shift into OD @ first. It's not a major tip, but it helped to put my mind at ease after I bought mine. Other than that, I've just dealt with everyday things that anyone else would encounter

Cujo31

Thanks Guys for the warm welcome!

My favorite rig is my 1969 VW Beetle Baja:



But with it being -6* here in Clintonville, WI, it is a touch too cold to be riding around in a classic with no heat

So I started looking for something as fun and as dependable as my Beetle... and all roads led to a Toyota... I had owed a couple when I lived in TN... cars but VERY dependable... and so I decided I wanted something I could haul things in... could take on trips... and not have to worry too much about in the winter... so here we are

Thanks for the warm welcome... I am sure I will have TONS of questions!

Cujo

excableguy

oh BTW, I haven't seen pics of your rig, but beware of the saggy rear!

Cujo31

Well she doesn't appear to have the saggy butt sydrome

She did have a busted rear window track... dealership had to order a new one for her and will have it installed by Thur. I can't have a truck that I can't get the tailgate down on! The only other thing is that the PO left the antanae up at the car wash and it got broken... how hard is it to find a replacement? And to install it? Just curious.....

Other than that... she needs some minor body work... but she has a strong heater and that's a good thing here!

Excableguy: thanks for the tips... I'll keep those in mind.


Yotawheelin95: I am a lil ways away... over Clintonville way. Its not bad here... haven't found any decent trails yet....

1989toy4wd: I had heard about the head gasket recall program... I would assume the PO took care of that, but will do some digging to find out one way or the other... Can you run the VIN number by a Toyo dealer and find out if it was serviced or not???

Thanks again gang....

Cujo

faubrunner64

yes you can run the vin number and that would be the best way to find out if it was done! welcome to y.t. nice looking runner!

leebee

welcome to the forum, nice truck! i think you found a gem in the rough. as for the antenna, unscrew the top trim (4 slotted ring) turn the truck to on (dont need to start it) and the old stuff should be pushed out by the motor.

take the new mast (purch. from stealer) and feed plastic toothed section down through the top trim ring and fender bezel until it stops. turn truck off and the motor will retract it. screw the top trim ring tight and you are good to go.

lee

fthertime666

steering centerlink recall. Centerlink is the part that connects the two tie-rod
assemblies and bolts to the pitman and idler...in the center Bad a$$ bug
BTW!!

Cujo31

Morning all!

fthertime666: Thanks for the compliment on the Baja... she sure is a fun lil beetle bug to ride around in.... and thanks for the info on the steering centerlink recall... is this something I can also check with Vin# at el loco dealer?

On that subject, when I contact el loco $tealer, do I have to provide any special information other than VIN #? Will they know about these 2 recalls automatically or will I have clue them in?

LeeBee: Thanks for the great play by play on the antanae replacement... seems simple enought that even I can't screw it up!

Again... a BIG thanks to everyone for their insight and help.

Cujo

Paul H.

Welcome, any toyota dealer should be able to tell if the headgasket and steering link recall had been done, also check to see when the timing belt had been replaced, there should be a sticker on the fan manifold.

Cujo31

Ok....

So here is the scoop on Yukiko and her servicing....

Seems that:

in 06/94 she had her A/C recall done.
in 06/99 she had her Head Gasket recall done.

She has NOT however had her steering link recall completed yet... So I will arrange a time to do that in the VERY near future. Dealer Bob said it would take about 2 hours to complete.

On a side note, I asked Dealer Bob about the antanae issue... he priced me a full assembly @ $247 + labor or just the mast @ $109. Now excuse me for saying this... but $109 for a antanae seems like a freaking joke! hahahaha

and to think... I bought the one for lil Norna (the baja) at a swap meet for $2

hahahahahaha

Cujo

leebee

now you know why we lovingly refer to them as 'stealers'! by the way, my g/f, who isnt mechanically inclined, can change the antenna (shes watched me change mine a couple of times)!

lee

Cujo31

thanks LeeBee...

I think I can manage the change, but I think I'll seek a different source for the antanae if I can... anyone have any good aftermarket sources for these?

I did manage to find a place called Toyota Parts Cheap. com that listed the antanae for $48. Here is the link:

http://www.trademotion.com/partlocat...92&catalogid=1

anyone ever dealt with these guys? got a better suggestion? Let me know....

Just curious...

Cujo