Test drove a 94 4Runner with a 3.0, 5spd, power dls, power windows, moon roof, 158k mi for $6k....Good deal or not?

 

Go to kbb.com and fill in the blanks.

 

Thanks for the tip....according to the kbb...it is a good deal...thanks again

 

So are you gonna buy it??

 

Thinking about it.....Need something besides my 88 Runna....I think I'm just going to keep my 88 for a trail rig and get the 94 for my daily driver....

 

158K seems a bit high as far as miles. Be sure to check that the owner was taking a good care of his truck and most important, ask why he's selling it.

-- Andrey

 

Seems a little pricy to me considering I can get a little over $8k for my 96 with 100k miles on it. KBB prices seem to be high lately IMO. Low ball the guy...you can always raise your bid

 

Very true PoBoy.....But it was at a Used car dealership and the guy that rode with me when I test drove it said you can tell if the miles on the truck were highway or in-town miles by the wear spots on the pedals....and according to the wear spots on these...they were probably all highway miles...

I agree with you Andrey...158k did seem like alot considering I've got 168k on my 88 4Runner...lol

According to the kbb...the price was $7,528 for the options I plugged in.....which is what was actually on the truck....So for them selling it for $5,995 I thought sounded like a good deal....But I'm going to try and talk him down....

 

cough, cough, unless the pedal pads had been replaced by "someone." I would get the VIN and pay for a Carfax report or you might find a free carfax deal or something. Are you planning on paying cash? if so, take 4500 or 5000 and wave the green papers in front of his face, I bet he takes it. make sure it was never flooded out and have the engine and chasis {sp.} checked too. sometimes the welds on the chassis will show stress tears if it's been in an accident and the frame was stretched back in to shape, don't buy it if you see any of these tears. inspect all the ball joints and bushings and also grab the drive shaft and make sure it doesn't have a lot of play, a lot of play could either mean bad ujoints or worse, diff probs. take a flash light and look inside the inspection hole in the bell housing and see how the inside looks. look inside the valve cover through the oil cap and make sure there's no foreign matter in there, like saw dust, which was an old trick back in my dads day to quite a noise (malfunctioning) engine until the lemon period expired. if you get it, it would a good idea to change all the fluids (brake, clutch, diffs, gearbox, oil, steering (if so equipped), etc..) hope this helps. oh yea, I have almost 100k on my '98 so that would be about right on for me. I guess when mine is 9 years old it will probably have that many miles on it.

 

It sounds like a good starting point. As for the miles, mine has 148k and runs great. I'd try to talk them down but in my area that is a good deal. The truck sounds very well equipped so that may contribute to its higher value.

 

You may want to look up the price on http://www.edmunds.com. I've found it to be a little more accurate on used car prices. Yes, Kbb is a little on the high side.

This may be a stupid question but I didn't see the answer. Is it 4WD?

Also you may want to keep in mind that when you buy from used car dealerships that they get all their cars at wholesale from dealers. Unless it is the used car lot at the dealership which I'm guessing it isn't. This means that they don't know the history of the car or why it was originally traded in. Run a carfax and call the previous owner. As for that pedal thing, I think it is a bunch of BS. Don't get sucked in by the used car salesman.

Be careful.

Good Luck

 

93_Runner06: Yes, it's 4 wheel drive and the guy did buy it at auction so I'm sure he doesn't know the history of it.

keisur: Some really good ideas there....Some I would never have thought of....Thanks for the advice.

 

I've noticed also that used car prices vary a lot by what part of the country you're in. I think for us here in Maine the prices seem to be lower than other parts of the country, so an on-line price would probably be high for us. I'm not sure if the web site you used takes location into account when figuring a price. Just one more thing to factor in.

 

In my area we don't get rust so as long as a vehicle doesn't get in a wreck they are prisine used - worst thing around here is the paint will get eaten up by all the intense sun if the car isn't garaged.

Check the rear tailgate closely for rust. This is a known problem area and the tracks often rust leaving the rear window down and useless. Call a dealer with the VIN# and see if the V06 headgasket campaign was performed (not officially considered a recall - whatever).

 

Actually when I went to kbb I had to put in my zip code so it could give me an accurate statement according to my state....

 

Doesn't sound like a bad deal at all to me. I bought mine for about $6,600 w/ 183K miles. that was last August, the only major thing I had to do to it was replace the clutch (that was my fault though) other than that she still runs strong as hell and is in great condition w/ 193K miles on it now.

 

158k is NOTHING hehe. 258k and I'd question it hehe.


That said, you should find a 3rd gen. I have a 2nd gen and believe me, it's still a truck. Get a 3rd gen, they are a much, much better daily driver. 2nd gens get ˟˟˟˟TY gas mileage, a 5spd would help, but a 2.7 or 3.4L 3rd gen 5 spd would get DECENT gas mileage...wow...imagine that lol