Hi, I've been lurking here for a while and finally decided to post. I have been interested in an 80 for a while and just happened to find one for sale near my home.

It is a '96 locked all original with an ARB bumper. It's in great shape, but it has 209k on it. The owner has maintained it very well. The front bearings have been replaced and the engine bay looks immaculate. I'm just curious about the reliability of an 80 with this kind of mileage as it will be my daily driver. What major points should I look for when I go drive it?

This forum has been helpful and I have been learning more and more everyday.

 

80 is a great truck. I bought mine a few months ago. THe only downside is that you gotta spend some big bucks $$$$ to bring it back to pristine condition!! LEt me know if you need any help in getting parts, I can get almost 30% off toyota factory parts. Good luck. By the way, I was working at Tuscaloosa in summer of 2004. Nice little town

 

Leaking head gasket is a known issue that strikes randomly after about 80K miles. Worst case, it can lead to a long block replacement that runs ~$5,000. I'd also check locker operation cycle time. A good one should only take a few seconds to engage/disengage, sometimes with a little forward motion to help. Not too expensive to repair, but a messy job.