1994 Toyota Land Cruiser

[GeoTracker90]

Hey guys,

My wife just spotted a 1994 Cruiser at the local Ford dealer. It has approx 140K miles and a new trans. What would be a reasonable price for this critter?

If I go and check it out what things should I look for? Mechanical items? During the test drive? Other things?

The sales man is going to check the pricew and call me back.

Thanks for any help you can offer.

Mike

[GeoTracker90]

Also, What kind of fuel mileage for a stock vehicle can I expect?

Thanks.

Mike

[Pokey]

Look under at front axles- lots of goop- plan on front axle rebuild.($700)

rear main seal leak is common- but not troubling if the whole underside isnt covered......typically this can be viewed as Toyotas built in anti rust-undercoating device....

startup- see if it starts and revs past 1600- common O-ring issue. codes are tough - since they may have just reset everything and cleared it.

if it has lockers--see if they engage on slippy surface- or if they dont engage they may be seized.

See if you can spot the PHH as well as other leaks from hoses.Heating issues are the main culprit for HG issues...

HG is the major issue with these. look for leaks in back of block/valvecover/head area near #6-- look for sludge in coolant bottle---unscrew oil fill cap---look for white deposit on the underside of cap.

94 has the brass radiator---see if its original or replaced......orig in good shape is what you want.

Due to the HG issue---you either want confirmation that its been changed---or plan to bank $1500 reserve funds which will help you figure out price to offer. (ifyou do your own HG work--plan on less).

Locked 80s in good shape with records of all work---id pay 8k given 150kmiles.
w/no records and visual inspection looking good---Id offer 1500 less.......and plan to put the HG repair $ aside.

w/ issues like axle rebuild-ac/starter/alternator service possibly pending with an original parts/misc serviced vehicle.....you could be starting at replacing any of those fairly soon. Id subtract those costs from 7k to come to the 5k ballpark with 150kmiles.

For reference- im looking at a HG done-150k mile locked misc one today-offered at 6k and i will likely drop a quick 1k+ if above things dont show being rebuilt-repaired-replaced via the sellers records.

My current 120k locked 94 was purchased with a stack of 4k in receipts for
7k less than a year ago when gas prices were merely at $3.00 gallon here in CA. now they are approaching $4. and this cruiser is going to see weekend use. As gas prices shoot up === deals on these abound and rightfully so--they are gas guzzlers and not daily drivers unless you own oil stock or ETFs and your commute is short.

MPG is 14city- 16hwy in good shape. tired ones drop to 12city-14hwy. Built ones drop to 10mpg if you have a strong tailwind.

If you have a Prius or Corolla in your quiver- its a nice weekend adventure rig.
Lots of info on the ih8mud site. Good luck

[adventureduo]

http://www.sleeoffroad.com/newbie/newbie100.htm

[MoGas]

Am I the only one concerned that the transmission has been replaced/rebuilt with a mere 140k? Something doesn't sit well with me about that.

[24HOURSOFNEVADA]

Am I the only one concerned that the transmission has been replaced/rebuilt with a mere 140k? Something doesn't sit well with me about that.

X2.

While my motor is at the machine shop, I called a few tranny shops to see wht a rebuild would go for. You know, "While the motor is out kind of thing." The prices ranged from $1200.00 to 3000.00 for a bench rebuild. I called four shops in town to get these estimates.

The quote I liked best was "You know those are pretty good tranny's, we don't see them very often at all. In fact, I can't remember the last time we did one."

I would say a new tranny at 140k is a little premature.

[AndrewP]

X2.


I would say a new tranny at 140k is a little premature.

Maybe, but the Cruiserheads here, or on ih8mud, are not like normal owners. A normal owner never thinks or cares about the transmission. They never check the fluid. They never change or flush the fluid. They never adjust the throttle cable. They never look for leaks. They don't care. (Period)

So, the average unserviced, ignored and abused 80 series tranny probably goes about 150k miles. The problem with the one you are looking at, is that the rest of the truck has likely been treated the same way.

If this this one has a new Toyota tranny, you are $3000 ahead. If it has a rebuilt tranny, by and unknown rebuilder, I'd probably pass, since you won't get a warranty.

[Brian894x4]

If the tranny really went south due to lack of maintainence, the diffs and T-case are probably filled with the same oil as it came from the factory and the engine drain plug probably hasn't been removed too many times either.

My guess is the tranny actually overheated and probably blew a seal, which required it to be pulled and either rebuilt or replaced. Probably was used for towing and perhaps the owner ignored the A/T temp idiot light. Maybe combined with old tranny fluid.

In any case, I'd probably keep looking. If I knew the headgasket was replaced by the dealer recently, they maybe.... I know 80s are rare in some areas. I can imagine they might be fairly rare in Idaho. They're a dime a dozen in other places like California...but with gas prices going to the moon, I'm sure more and more will come on the market and cheap.

80s are like houses...the bubble is over.

[Boston Mangler]

Am I the only one concerned that the transmission has been replaced/rebuilt with a mere 140k? Something doesn't sit well with me about that.

X3

If the tranny really went south due to lack of maintainence, the diffs and T-case are probably filled with the same oil as it came from the factory and the engine drain plug probably hasn't been removed too many times either.

Yeah, ya might wanna keep looking

[GeoTracker90]

Guys,

Thanks for all of your insight. Sorry that I haven't responded to this until now.

Well the sales man never called back with the price. So if he's not interested in selling I'm not interested in buying. We also had a couple of other things come up that have temporarily taken us out of the market. We'll see what happens by the end of the summer.

Thanks again.

Mike