Which old and cheap Toyota is in its best shape after all these miles? It’s time to get a professional opinion about the state of our cheap Toyota trucks. As always, we go to our friend Toby, a professional mechanic and owner of German Auto in Boulder, Colorado. Toby works on many trucks and Toyota vehicles as well, since these are very popular in the Colorado mountains. Let’s see what he has to say.
Big thanks to our friends at Falken Tires and Rider Justice for sponsoring the Cheap Toyotas series! Find out more about the Falken Wildpeak R/T tires. Another huge thanks to the team at Rider Justice. They are a trusted personal injury law firm with a specialty in helping motorcyclists and overlanders after a bike or vehicle accident.
Toyota 4Runner
This is a 1999 Toyota 4Runner with over 250,000 miles on the clock. This is Tommy’s vehicle.
Toby immediately notices a mild exhaust system leak just by the sound the engine is making. Turns out this 4Runner’s catalytic converter may have been stolen and the replacement one was not welded back in a great way. It has some visible engine oil leaks, but they are not too bad. The tires are worn out, and the rear passenger-side axle seal is leaking.
After we visited Toby’s shop, this 4Runner experienced a rear shock failure (the shaft snapped). Also, Tommy is having a problem with an engine misfire. Tommy replaced spark plugs, and spark plug wires, but a bad fuel injector was the culprit in the end.
Toyota Tundra
This 2008 Toyota Tundra has a 5.7L V8 and over 225,000 miles. This is my truck.
It drives well and sounds good. However, Toby notices a loose radiator fan support. It’s hanging by one bolt. This can be bad if it comes off and hits the serpentine belt system. The truck also has an airbag system malfunction light. This may be due to a fender bender in this truck’s past and a damaged sensor. This airbag problem is an expensive fix – it costs over $800 with labor.
Toyota Land Cruiser
Nathan’s 1995 Toyota Land Cruiser has over 160,000 miles. This is the least of the bunch.
Land Cruisers are known to be well-built and reliable. It’s mostly the case with this one also. Look underneath it in the video.
Join the video below for all of the details.
