Need Help Buying 97

[4805]

I Am Looking At A 97 4 Runner Limited With Trailer Hitch 129000 Miles, Private Party In Arizona. Runs Great. Front Leather Driver Seat Tore And Woren On Side. Asking 9500. Is This In The Ball Park -- Want To Drive It Another 100 K. It Has Also Had Excelent Care, I Will Continue. How Many Miles Should I Expect The 4 Runner To Get.
Thank You - New To Board Looking For Help

[Brian R.]

For a reasonable price, check:
http://www.edmunds.com/tmv/used/toyo...x.content..1.*

Even though you believe all the mainenance has been done religiously, I would still bring it to a mechanic you trust and have him look it over carefully. Make sure they have proof that the timing belt has been changed.

You can expect that truck to last forever in Arizona if the schedules maintenance has been done on it. The engine should last 300k if you do the scheduled maintenance. There are some caveats to the frequency at which you should do some stuff.

What will kill it in Arizona is the dust and sand. Use the best air filters you can buy and change them often, particularly if you go in the desert alot. Consider buying a resusable oil-treated air filter element like the AMSOIL or the TRD filters. Also, change your oil more often than you would in a dust-free area.

Check the u-joints, sleeve yokes, propeller shaft splines, and the double cardan joints for wear and play. If it has been in the desert alot, these things collect dust and sand and will wear out quickly unless they are hosed off afterward and greased often. If the truck makes a clunk noise in the rear when you let off the brake at a stop light, the splines and sleeve are dry or worn out. Might only need greasing with moly grease to make them work well again, but they might be worn out and gaulled. Make sure the mechanic checks them out if this noise is there.

[Axo]

I've had a 97 SR5 2WD since new. These things are a rock if you maintain them. I've got about 164,500 on mine.

A couple of suggestions, the timing belt was due at at 120K make certain it was changed. The shocks do wear out, I just replaced mine for the first time and it made a big difference.

Lastly, there a quite a few forums out there that have great ideas for simple to magnificent performance modifications to the vehicle. My favorite among these is yotatech.com.

Enjoy a solid vehicle.

[mgwold]

Just bought one here in Seattle! Am new to the 4Runner crowd but so far so good.

Paid just under 15K for a nice clean one and it's got 90K on the odo.

I know there are plenty out there but it always depends who has let their teenagers drive them!