Opinions about a 1992 4Runner 4x4

[K85 Octane]

I know someone selling a 1992 Toyota 4Runner 4x4 with 86,000 miles. I'm curious about it, thinking play toy I can tow behind my S10. I would probably register/insure it though, cause I'd like to drive it to my local mudhole. What does the brotherhood know about these trucks?

Also, I got a chance to drive it today, since it was in the parking lot and I needed to go to Home Depot. I ran it hard at every stop light and I never saw exhaust smoke or high temps. It has what sounds like valve train noises off idle, revving higher with my ear under the hood, I can hear a louder clatter, but don't know what it is. Might just be the fan clutch or something. Smooth idle, good neutral revving and return to idle, and decent driving. It has the 3.0, ~28" Trxus M/T in great shape, auto trans, and 4x4. It has ZERO balls but moves decent once your 30+mph, just can't expect anything when the pedal meets the floor. The gear shifter and 4x4 shifter are both SUPER sloppy. It wont stay in 1st gear unless I hold the shifter, otherwise it moves into 2nd. The 4x4 shifter is also the same, moving easily from 4L to 4H. Neither really feel that positive. The 4x4 light on the dash does not stay on either, seconds after putting it into 4x4, it flickers and goes out. I only drove it 3 miles on road, tried 4x4 and didn't feel a difference...so I don't think it's working.

Other than the tires, it's completely stock. History is VERY unknown. Even if I can get it for $400, I don't need a money pit, the Blazer swallows all the kind of money up already

 

[shady]

I beat my 91 like a baja truck and never thought twice about it Frickin loved that thing. They make a 350 conversion for it which I highly recomend. or even a latemodel 4.3 since it uses the same kit. but other than that It was the most capable 4x4 I've owned yet.

 

[63chevyll]

for $400 jump on it,

Thats a good deal, even if you beat it up the scrap it, it would be money well spent.

 

[fabjunkie]

x2

You could part it out and make money.

 

[ktmoutfront]

My brother is coming back from So. Ca. after Christmas with an empty trailer. I would give him that for it.

 

[K85 Octane]

How are those 3.0L motors? I'm not sure if it's the same motor, but my Aunt has a Camry that's around that year with 300,000 miles on it. How are the trannies and T-cases? I'm concerned with the shifters, but would probably rip all the plastic etc stuff out of the way and make the connections more solid. (if possible) Also, what could be the problem with the 4x4? It's electronic solenoids. If one is bad, that could set me back $$$. That's what I'm worried about, dumping money into a SPARE 4x4.

How is the computer and diagnosing stuff? Damn thing freaked me out looking under the hood, all those hoses and crap. Looked worse than my 85 CA Blazer

 

[shady]

the only isssue I know of with the 3.0 besides being gutless, is the water pump has a plastic impeller and is driven by the timing belt. if the water pump gets old it melts the impeller of and locks up the pulley. inturn burning up the timing belt Sucks a$$ and is not an easy fix. aftermarket pumps dont have the plastic impeller though so it should be a one time fix

 

[diesel4me]

Some of the V6's were recalled for bad head gaskets..I remember a friend buying a 1 ton dual wheel Toyota truck that had a blown motor,and he bought a low mileage used engine from a local salvage yard to replace it with--about three weeks after getting it installed it started skipping on one cylinder and he smelled coolant,so he had it towed to the Toyota dealer--they ran the numbers on the engine and found it was on the recall list--they changed the head gaskets for free!...(he always had a knack for stepping in poop and coming out smelling like a rose!)..

I saw an older 4.3 V6 not long ago,that my friend pulled from an 88 GM full sized pickup--I was looking it over and was surprised to see it is nothing but a 350 with two cylinders sliced off...I had a 229 V6 in GMC Cabalaro that was similar.I put a timing chain and gears for a small block in it,same parts!--water pump and timing cover too,and you could run a HEI or point distributor in it if desired too..
I thought one would make a neat powerplant for a light older hot rod or pickup,you could get decent mpg,and have sufficent power too...it appeared to me it wouldn't be hard to ditch the tbi and put a two barrel carb on it too,if you wanted to keep things simple and computerless!...I was kind of hoping the guy would have given me the old engine,but he wanted it back--probably to scrap it for a few six packs...
They are a nice compact size,and will fit into just about anything..

 

[63chevyll]

you can call with the VIN to a toyota dealer and have them verify if the head gaskets were done under a recal at a toyota dealer. Every single one of them needed gaskets and Toyota pretty much covered the 1st set

as far as plastic WP impeller I didnt know that, If I remember right they were iron or stamped steel.

they burn exhaust valves over 150-200K miles and do require a valve adjustemnt sometime in their life, which is a pain.

Toyota Auto trans in trucks and 4 runners are damn near bullet proof.....well, with no HP they last a very long time. So well Jeep put some of them behind their 4.0 liters. the V6s had stronger manual 5 speeds than the 4 clys.

the 3.0 has a nickname of 3.SLOW, around here due to the low TQ and high elevation with a auto trans

the 5 speeds at sea level arent bad.

like everything T belts, and related pullys with regular tune up stuff and they will last a long time

 

[K85 Octane]

I really wished, when I looked inside, I was going to find a manual. That would have made me happier.

It has some leaks, tranny or T-case, also the rear axle. No big deal. I noticed a clunk while driving over stuff like speed bumps at an angle, sounds like something up front, like a motor mount or crossmember lose.

I may get a little more serious about this. Only problem, I don't have any room for it. Might end up doing a deal with a co-worker to store it at his house

 

[nvrenuf]

Toyota does not use plastic impellers on their water pumps.

The 4Runner sounds great for the price. What I question is using an S10 to tow it.

 

[K85 Octane]

hahahaha

it's an idea
I have a mudhole/playground less that 15 miles from me. Thinking of flat towing it. Can't really flat tow the Blazer

 

[shady]

Toyota does not use plastic impellers on their water pumps.

The 4Runner sounds great for the price. What I question is using an S10 to tow it.

The one in mine was They showed it to me at the dealership I had it fixed at. I wa stold it was a common problem It happened to the guy I sold mine to also.

 

[lectric80]

3.0's used a plastic impeller on the water pump, dealt with it in several Toys I have worked on. 3.0's also tend to have head gasket problems, but there are newer head gaskets available to solve this. The head gasket problems are really with just about any manufacturer. With an auto, it isn't going to be really fast, but it is a pretty reliable little engine, and a reliable trans.

As for the 4x4 issues, check the solenoid on the passenger side fender near the heater box may be burnt out or have no vacuum line. Usually it is cheaper/easier to grab one from the junkyard. Sloppy shifter on the t-case can usually be adjusted.

Vacuum lines on Toyota's are a nightmare, they put what seems like thousands under the hood. One of the few things I like about the 22re in mine, way less vacuum hoses than my old 22r Celica.

If you can pick it up for $400, I say go for it if it is in usable shape. Immediately swap the timing belt and water pump, even if they say they were just done. Rattles at the top end are usually rockers that haven't been adjusted, just takes some time to do it. I was trying hard to find a decent V6 4Runner and couldn't find anything that wasn't going to take a ton of work for less than $2-3k. Finding 5 speed V6 4Runners isn't easy, most who bought them opted for the auto, but there are some out there. I would take the auto, just be prepared to be passed by everything on the road, including all the semi's that have speed governors, they will still outrun you.

 

[89GMCK5]

92 Toyota

I bought my wife a 94. Same truck basically. The 3.0 is notoriously slow, Toyota's designation is 3vze, nicknamed the 3slow.

I have had decent luck with ours, it's a pain to get to the plugs on the passenger side, you have to remove the intake to get to them and the pcv valve.

They do have an on going problem with the head gaskets, as mentioned. You can get onto a couple of the Toyota forums to have a couple of the guys on there check your VIN for service or at least recall history. In some cased Toyota is still covering the repairs under the recall. There also have been a few folks whom got new reman motors out of them, rare but they are out there.

It's very reliable and a decent little rig for around town and daily driver. Our's has 185,000 on it, decent on gas, about 18-20 mpg depending upon how you drive it.

My thoughts on those cheap trucks is that they will suck some money to make repairs, but it is much cheaper transportation than a $400 / month car payment.

I purchased an on line type of factory manual for it, let me know if you have any questions. It certainly is not the greatest, but there are a lot of resources out on the web for them also.

I say snag it.

Good luck.

 

[mpio13]

go back and tell them your concerns with the 4x4 and the engine noise and offer $300 cash, they'll bite on that.
Sound like a good spare 4x4 though, low miles! My buddy had one and did a doubler tcase in it. That thing climbed everything and anything like a champ. I like Toyotas too, esp the 4 Runners. Too bad its not the 3.4 engine, much better platform. Plus, as stated in previous replies, Yota really stands behind their products. Even older vehicles and does alot of repairs and services for free under the right conditions, and my experience with them is that they're always looking to satisfy their drivers. Like how they're replacing all these early tacoma frames for free for example.
Do it.

 

[63chevyll]

I have a slightly modified 3.0 in a 2wd standard cab and it runs very good.

But my wp s were both steel. I'm.very certain mine were not plastic

 

[nvrenuf]

The one in mine was They showed it to me at the dealership I had it fixed at. I wa stold it was a common problem It happened to the guy I sold mine to also.

I worked at a Toyota parts dept for 15 yrs and never saw a plastic impeller.

The head gasket problems were a combo of electrolysis and faulty gaskets. They changed the design/material/something 3 times before the problem finally went away. We had regular stock deliveries daily and were doing so many repairs we still had to keep 5~6 gaskets set on the shelf.

Something else to watch, there is an idler bracket assembly that the fan clutch bolt to, it looks a little like a sbc water pump, when they go bad they're very expensive to replace.

 

[K85 Octane]

So I'll update this. My co-worker called dibs on this truck before I did. He was actually driving it for a couple days and that's why it was in the parking lot at me work. He is going to buy it and I'll be helping him some to fix it. Not me physically, but help him NOT get boned by some "mechanic". He's a good man, but knows nothing about vehicles, almost like the last mechanic that helped him.

VIN # JT3VN39W8N0079610

Can I take this to a dealership and see if there is a record of changed parts? Or are they going to give me crap for it.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

You can call the dealership and ask if it's got any recalls. The government also has a site that will do the same.