Well, I had to return the 1998 V6 5-Speed 4-Runner I was borrowing to my aunt, and now that I'm on my feet I'm looking into getting a 4-Runner of my very own. Initially I really wanted a 3.4L V6, but cash is tight so I started looking a 2.7L I4 3rd Gens as well. I've found one now that would really fit my budget, but I'm not sure if its a good buy or not.

Its a base model, 4x4, 2.7L, 5-Speed, but the real kick in the junk is that it has 290,000 kms (180,200 miles). My aunts 98 had 240,000 kms (149,200 miles) and still ran like a champ, the only thing shes ever had to fix was the starter. How is the I4 with miles? I know Toyotas are supposed to be indestructable but unfortunately I dont think they can violate the laws of physics yet. Do you think it will consume a lot or any oil? Should I be worried about the clutch?

At these types of miles what should I be looking at?

Initially I was a little concerned about power, but upon some research it looks like the ol' 3.slow makes the same amount of power as this I4, and the 2nd/3rd gens seem to weigh the same amount, so I dont think this will be too much of an issue, will it? I'm not planning on lifting this one, I'll wait till I can really afford a V6 3rd Gen and then lift and lock that.

Mainly I just need this to get me through a couple of winters here, basically just the 15 min drive to where I work and back. I will be doing a couple cross country trips with it though, so how will the I4 at about 75-80 mph?

Anyways, they are asking $5,500 USD for it, I'm hoping to get them down to a bit from that if it checks out ok. What would be a fair price? Its about $3,900 USD cheaper than the nearest asking price of any other 3rd gen 4-Runner in the entire province.

Thats for reading my long winded post,

Cheers

P.S. Here is the ad: 4Runner

Edit: That link doesn't work, sorry here is a picture of the ad: 4Runner Ad

 

Hey ocelot hows it going? I can't comment to much on the 2.7 but the 2.4 was a bullet proof motor all you had to do was stay on top of the oil changes and it would go forever. I got mine at 214K and ran it to 475k in 4 yrs with no troubles at all. It would burn about a litre of oil between changes. I ran rotella T 10w30 in it. The 2.7 is a bored out and backwards mounted version of the 2.4 i've heard it is a little more sensitive to running with low oil in hot/cold weather (because the cylinder wall are thinner i guess), but we never do that do we?. If you really want a 3rd gen. that would probably be the way to go. on the other hand you could look for a 94/95 2nd gen at about the same milage for a bit less cash except for the front clip its the same truck then you could get a 3.0 if you want with the 5spd. You might also want to pm Scofco he's a member out of the yukon with a 94 (i think) and can give you a lot of help. (Now I run crappy tire 5w30 full synthetic in my new beast with no troubles at all.) Cheers and welcome to the board Aviator

 

That 2.7 is a pretty tough motor. Some guy on TTORA has over 350k on one. The price seems pretty fair, but I always offer less. Start out at about $4750 is everything checks out ok. I would thoroughly check it out-including running the vin for through carfax.

 

Thanks for the great replies guys, keep it coming

P.S. Where is COTKU? I'm in sault ste marie ontario now... guess I should change my profile info

 

I'm really happy with my 97 sr5 4x4 2.7l 5spd. Not a lot of hills here, but there are some & I've yet to wish it had more power. Only 80k on mine, and i've only had it a few months FWIW. It has been from tulsa to oklahoma city a few times, about 90 miles each way with the cruise set at 80mph A/C on, it would have been happy to go faster if I weren't allergic to tickets. A big plus to the 4cyl + 5spd is i'm getting 19 - 21 mpg with mixed city & highway driving.

Good luck & let us know what you decide.

 

Awesome, thanks. I'm going to go check it out tomorrow morning. The fuel economy would be a sweet bonus too, although I wouldn't buy a 4Runner for that reason . I'm pretty psyched, hopefully it'll check out okay .

Cheers