I had my niece check out a 1990 V6 pickup. She thought it looked good, and bought if for me, but on the drive home, noticed a burning oil smell. Her friend was going to drive it to me (~350 km), but now is worried about a breakdown on the way. I'm of the opinion that Toyota engines are really durable, so even if the rings were worn, it would be unlikely to break down on the drive. It might just be a simple gasket leak dripping on the exhaust header. For that matter, it could be a squirrel climbed through an oily section and transferred the oil to a hot pipe. I suggested a longer trial drive to see if they could locate the problem and get a feel for how well the engine is running.

I know, not a lot of info, but regarding burnt oil smell in general, is this a "likely to break down on a long drive" or just a "probably not serious" problem? If I was driving, I'd keep a jug of oil with me and just stop and check the oil level occasionally.

If I manage to get the truck here, I'm sure I'll have more questions ... and more information for the questions.

 

If there’s no visible smoke then I say drive it.

 

I'm with you on your analysis and reasoning...just my $0.02

 

Throw a quart or two and a funnel in the cab before the drive and check the oil level every so often. Shouldn't be an issue

 

The truck arrived with no problems. Their guess is stale gas. I'm not sure how long it had been sitting. Maybe sitting too long also lets some oil seep in where it shouldn't.

Yay! New truck!