1997 Land Cruiser

136,000 mis
Power Moonroof
3rd row seat
rear heat
Gold Pkg
AM/FM/Cassette/CD Audio System
Burlwood Dash (looks discolored in spots)
Keyless Entry System (1 fob)
Leather Gearshift Knob
Leather Steering Wheel
Leather Seats
Power Seats
Privacy Glass
Running Boards
Alarm system
Excellent exterior and interior, front seats recently recovered
decent Michelin LTX tires
2 owner

white exterior and dark bluish gray leather interior
no towing pkg or locking diffs


$12,000.00

Worth it? anything in particular to look out for?

thanks,
max

 

Sounds good...


I, however, would hold out for the diff locks. Unless it is going to be just a mall cruiser. You will regret not having the diff-locks.

Oh, also see if the owner knows about maintence history. Especially the pesky, dirty, and $$$ birfield job.

 

What's the birfield job? Is this routine rebuild, or known problem that has to be corrected?

 

Birfields are the outer drive axles... a reversed CV if you will... they're also the weak point in any Toyota solid axle...
It's pretty routine... but VERY messy. You want to make sure they've been serviced and repacked w/ grease on a regular basis. If an axle seal has gone it's not a big deal, but it's MESSY. You'll need a box of gloves and a roll of shop towels for this one. If the front end is clicking when turning, you can usually swap the birfs side to side (left to right and right to left) and eliminate the clicking.. but that's a one time deal. After that you might wanna replace them. Oh... and IMHO stock Birfs are better for wheeling than Newfields and Longfields are better than stocks. I've only broken one Longfield, and I broke the star. I was breaking the shafts of the Newfields.