FJ40 guy... now also 4Runner guy

Hello all, I am looking to purchase a 2002 tomorrow and am excited about it. I am active in the FJ40 world as I have been restoring a '67 for 10+ years.

My son is starting to drive so I am picking him (mostly me) up a '02 4Runner tomorrow. More pictures to follow in the coming days.

Looking forward to contributing to this forum the way I have on Mud for the last several years!

Josh

 

Welcome.

 

Welcome from Indy!

 

Welcome, Josh!

 

Welcome

 

Welcome from Wisconsin! Good restoration project you're on.

 

Welcome!

 

Welcome!

I've had two FJ40s= a '69 and an '83. Had to sell the '69 I was restoring because, with an arm that was broken in 3 places and a 2x broken kneecap, I just couldn't drive it. I had just bought my wife a '29 SR5Premium. She gave that to me and I bought her a '14 RAV4. Both had very low miles ~20K. Paid cash.

Best decision we ever made! I love the 4Runner and she loves the RAV. Taken the "Blue Beast" on several 2K+ mile trips and it performed wonderfully, through a blizzard near Reno to the monsoons in AZ & NM. Here in the Cascade foothills, we have snow about 4-5 months per year and, except for the 30" storm last January, both have been fully up to the task (It took us 2 days to FIND the RAV -wife borrowed the "Beast").

 

Welcome from SoCal

 

Thanks, all! Well, it's official, I own a 2002 with 215k miles! I purchased from the original owner's son whose Dad was a meticulous linesman electrician in Northern California. He was religious about oil changes and stayed on top of maintenance. He kept every receipt so it was nice to go through them last night. It was garage kept so it's clean. The only issue I could find is the valve cover gasket and seals need to be replaced. Because he and his wife were in their retirement years, they would drive between their home near Reno in winter months, to their home in AZ. The engine compartment is super dusty so I will have it cleaned.

All that said, I am bringing it by Toyota for an oil change and a complete inspection tomorrow. Just want to start with a clean slate. I am sure they will find things but doubtful of anything catastrophic.

Here is a picture of my son with his new car, although I will be driving it more than him. lol

 

Here are some pictures of the engine compartment.

 

Nice find!

 

Sweet!

 

Nice rig. But I'd stay away from toyota scam artist dealers. They'll have a huge list when you pick it up.

Congrats on the 4runner

 

I just received a call from Toyota and fortunately, and somewhat surprisingly, they said it just needed a new valve cover gasket. All the diagnostics checked out "green". It's going to cost $750! for them to do it. I just don't know my way around this engine well enough to replace the head gasket perfectly myself.

In a couple of months, I am going to replace the original radiator with an Aisin, and OEM hoses. That job looks pretty easy so I can tackle that one on my own. I will also do the lower ball joints with OEM because I heard they should be replaced around now.

This weekend I am going to clean the engine compartment. That should be fun!

 

Welcome from the center of the bourbon universe.