so, im new here to YOTATECH. just got rid of my POS volkswagen jetta and wanted to get back into a 4x4. couldnt think of anything better than a yota or jeep, so i started my search. found this 4runner f/s by owner and thought it to be in decent shape and round-a-bout worth what they were asking. its a 1997 4runner limited w/o the e-locker. its a one owner and was bought at the toyota dealership here in town brand new. i had to wait about a week for the owners to recieve the duplicate title and might i say after having this baby a few weeks ill never be without a toyota in my garage. this thing is AWESOME. it goes everywhere my lifted 97 f150, sry sadly no pics, with cheap mudders on it and more with hwy tires!! it rides more comfortable than most suv's ive ridden in and its 14yrs old. that says ALOT. i dont see how anyone can stand to not own one of these! so anyway. here it is











THE BAD:
valve covers leak on both sides, but not too too bad.



the toyota symbol is missing. easy fix though once i find one


they mustve drove onto something. not sure if i can pull that dent or not, but im not bothered by it. and pretty sure i can work some magic on that step, but they're coming off soon anyway.



THE GOOD:
a NICE kenwood aftermarket radio


BRAND NEW 265/70/16 Firestone Destination LE(highway) tires. might be tax season before my runner sees a more agressive set of tires.... but at least i dont have to worry about these for a while.



THE INTAKE IS COMPLETELY STOCK. i was try to stray from tampered vehicles. i only trust my own work. lol


THE MEHH...
she's just getting broke in from what ive read on this site! lol


hope yall like it. let me know what ya think!

 

Looks good and a good price for a stock one. The 3rd generation 4Runner is one of the best vehicles Toyota ever made. And Toyota made a lot of great vehicles.

You might want to tighten up the slack in your throttle body cables there, that can improve driveabilty...

 

yeah, i need to do that. i might replace the throttle cable it has a lot of resistance to it anyway. like its got some kinda of sticky glue inside the sleeve

 

Looking good.

Funny, my 97 also has the sticky throttle thing... Takes a lot of force to push down on it, and I indeed tightedn up the cable itself at the throttle body and it make a huge difference.

The leaky valve covers are completely normal. Obviously the passenger side one is an easy fix, the drivers side takes the good part of the afternoon to finish.

 

Welcome.

My sis had a Jetta TDI. Insane highway MPGs. But it was not put together well. VW has cheapened the Jetta so much that this year's model has drums for rear brakes. On a car? Please.

Here is a link for the valve cover gaskets. It will probably take you close to a day to remove and replace. If you have any questions, just give a holler.

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f2/5...beware-149594/

 

i may have a toyota emblem for ya... shoot me a pm ill have to look

 

Nice score. The valve covers just need to be tightened down. No need to replace. It is periodic with these trucks for some reason.

I just am about to roll 190K on mine. Drives great. You got a great truck. Your seats are in much better shape than mine. But I am a big guy and hard on them.

Congrats!

 

that's an awesome write up on how to do the vc gaskets! i'll definitely be following that. also, im having trouble finding a thread that actually answers the question that adding extra breather holes (deckplate mod) to the airbox does anything at all?...

 

It looks like your front seat bottoms have been re-skinned with new leather. Very nice. Congrats on a great purchase.

 

consider pandora's box opened with a comment like that!

welcome to the party! i think i have a gold toyota emblem if the above person comes up dry- just let me know.

-scott

 

That is a nice score. I was lookin this winter and people wanted 6k+ for those and no locker.

 

I have done the deakplate mod. I don't think it helped in any way. IMO skip it.

Another popular mod is the airaid intake tube. It's just ok. It cleaned up my engine bay but I don't think it provided any power either.

Also, the reuseable cloth air filters that use oil to trap dirt can cause issues with the MAF (oil can get on the element/sensor). I suggest leaving the intake as is and use toyota paper filters.

Now, I know that is not as fun as intalling new intake componets. But I have done them all and didn't get anything out of it. That being said, I didn't go back to stock either. Just helping to set expectations.

IMO the best "modification" for a daily driver that sees some offroad action is the TruTrac limited slip "locker". I that think it's awesome! You said you don't already have a factory elocker so the TrueTrac is a great subsitute. The pros are that is "on" all the time. You never have to decide if you should use it. It is undetectable during street driving and acts like a real locker off-road (unless you are rock crawling). Cons are that's it's a big-time job to install. You need a real good diff specialist to install it.

Also, you may want to get a new radiator to prevent the Stawberry Milkshake. The Koyo A1998 radiator is a good option. Some third gens have a problem called the stawberry milkshake. Getting a new rad is cheap insurance.

Lastly, if your brakes feel like they are sticking, it may be the real axle seals leaking gear oil onto the rear brakes.

Nice truck they are solid!

 

I sold my 4runner 6 months ago and I'm now searching for another one since the Jeep Liberty I bought is a piece. You got a good deal. Good luck!

 

I actually just purchased a trans cooler to totally prevent strawberry milkshake from ever happening! I actually got the truck from the owner of a local transmission shop.. lol

 

Congrats on the purchase!

 

great price and leaves a lot of room to do your own repairs and mods.

 

Nice ride at a good deal too! Now I feel like I got ripped off paying 7k for a 2000 Tacoma SR5 4wd.!!! As Man4God mentioned, you can snug up those valve covers a little and stop that oil weep.

 

Nice find! I would just do the valve cover gaskets, easy enough to do right yourself and not very expensive. Seems like you're finding the quips about 4runners; good call on the tranny cooler. Forget the deckplate, not worth it.

 

GREAT find! The valve cover gaskets are fairly easy to replace (I just replaced mine at 145K). Congrats on the purchase!

 

Deckplate: It sounds cool, I'll give it that when paired with an exhaust, but offroading the air filter just gets dirty more quickly.