mgibson

Hey There All,
Awhile back I saw a panel that was an OEM option I believe on ebay. It was for first gen 4runners and bolted in after you removed the back seats to cover the dip where the seats were in the bed, thus making the bed flat to the front seats and it would fold up allowing you to store stuff under it. I am kicking myself for not buying it then as it would be very handy now.
Anyone have any ideas where I may find this part?
Thanks~

mgibson

so has anyone even seen this part?

Intrepid

I have heard of this part, but they appear to be rare. I have never seen one.

amgraham

Same here.. Have heard of it but never seen it. They are pretty rare because when they imported the trucks it had to be classified as a 2 seater if it didn't have the rear seat and 2 seaters are more expensive to import.

Intrepid

Actually I had heard the exact opposite. I had heard that there was some sort of tax on 4 seat vehicles, so they imported them with the seat delete panel, then once they got here, threw it out and installed rear seats at port.

Injohneer

Au contraire,

Rember the old BRAT?


The reason they installed the rear seats - supposedly - was so they could lower the import taxes by making it a passenger vehicle with the extra seats, instead of a "truck."

Personally, I think they did it just to make the baddest offroad CAR in history.

amgraham

If I wasn't lazy I would attempt to research it I think it was something to do with carpooling and they wanted to discourage 2 seat vehicles or something. Hopefully somebody will post up with the answer.

amgraham

LOL! I forget about the Brat sometimes. Those things are cool.. You can put people you don't like to talk to in the back

gilby4runner

The import tax is the reason they quit making the 2 door 4runner? There was a 2nd gen on Ebay a while back and that was part of the description. It said that is was a rare find.

Injohneer

Here's a quote about the BRAT, from wikipedia:

American versions also had AstroTurf carpet and welded-in jumpseats in the cargo area as a tax dodge; the Brat could fairly be called a truck, yet the seats in the cargo bed reinforced Subaru's designation of the BRAT as a car - passenger cars imported into the US were charged only a 2.5% tariff, compared to 25% charged on trucks.

I've heard the same about the 2door 4 runner, but I haven't seen any figures to back it up. Wikipedia didn't have numbers either, but they did say:

Nearly all second generation 4Runners were 4-door models, however from 1989 to 1992, a 2-door model was also produced. These models are similar to the 4-door models of the time in that the bodies were formed as a single unit, instead of the fiberglass tops used in the first-generation 4Runners. Two-door 4Runners from this era are extremely rare, and were discontinued in August 1992, probably due to higher importation duties and owner insurance costs

Injohneer

OK, enough sidetracking.

Somebody over on Pirate had (has?) one...

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=476164


If they don't still have it, keep looking on Ebay, Google had a few hits there on Ebay. I can't view them from work though, corporate filter...

Intrepid

I hope someone can come with some facts, I remember reading something about it a while back, but I can't find the damn thing anywhere. :cry:

Injohneer

Look 2 posts up. I think Wiki is trustworthy...

gilby4runner

http://www.toyotaoffroad.com/Article...ry_4runner.htm
This first generation of 4Runner was available in 2 models. The first was a little more than a pickup truck with a covered cargo area. Its emphasis was on utility. With seats on the front only, the rear of the vehicle was intended to be used for cargo. The second was designed to carry up to five passengers. It included a rear seat (with seatbelts for 3 occupants) which could be folded flat for additional storage space. The passenger model was available in the SR5 grade, and included a larger fuel tank and more luxurious interior appointments. Both models were powered by the 2.4L 22R four-cylinder engine coupled to a five speed manual transmission with two speed transfer case, and all had manual locking front hubs.

Intrepid

Right, but I specifically remember reading something that said what I posted above. So I wonder, obviously Toyota was trying to find a loophole to beat the tax, but they were getting taxed as a truck regardless 2 seat or 4 IMO, so is there a larger tax for a 4 seat truck as opposed to a 2 seater? Having 4 seats didn't make it a car. Also, since Wiki isn't facts from the manufacturer necessarily, I don't see how it is 100% trustworthy since anyone can add stuff in. I am not saying you guys are wrong, I just want to find the info in relation to the 4runner because I honestly believed I had read the opposite.

InternetRoadkill

Those things turn up on Ebay every once in a while. You just have to keep checking.

ewong

I have a 89 DLX that I bought new that has the seat delete panel.

Back in those days - the 4 doors would get taxed LOWER than the 2 Doors - hence the VERY RARE 1990-1991 2 dor hard top 4Runner (cost MORE than the 4 door version)


VERY early 4Runners appear to have had a "bench" seat that was a "port add". Later ones had the nicer split rear seat.

mgibson

wow! got excited to see all the replies....thanks for the info (and trivia, ha!) there is one on ebay seems to pop up from time to time but no one bids b/c he wont ship it, bet that's the one i saw about a year ago and how i discovered it~

toyaholic

how about this one?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/84-89...QQcmdZViewItem

59.99 starting bid and 30.00 shipping.

gohawks

I believe that is WaskillyWabbit from our board here. Not sure, but I think so.