Potential 5th Gen Limited '22

Hey everyone,

I'm looking at purchasing a '22 Limited - Nautical Blue - this afternoon. I have two questions:

1. What should I look for as 'trouble' areas in a used 4Runner, as this will be my first one?

2. It is at a dealer with 33,242 miles, a clean Carfax, and they are asking $45,998. How much wiggle room, if any, will there be on an out-the-door price? It seems to have been at the dealer for a couple of weeks.

Thanks for any input!
Tim

 

1. Frame for rust and shocks for leaks because the XREAS system is expensive to replace with factory but you can easily convert to regular shocks.

2. Generally Runners don't have wiggle room because every wannabe IG offroader wants them but at least not so much the limited.

 

Last week I sold my 22 Limited to a dealer for 43,000 and it was sold within a day of being on the lot at 49,000. Mine had 33,000 miles. If it’s clean, sounds like a good price.

 

Thank you for the quick replies! Yes I was gonna look underneath the best I can, will be bringing a flashlight for sure lol. I figured it was a decent price, I'm hoping it looks as clean as the pictures.

 

I have a 22 Limited 4WD and wouldn't sell it for $45.9. Not a chance. Not any vehicle out there half as good.

But... in your case about the wiggle room:
Making an offer on a vehicle doesn't cost you a dime. Hit them with something lower and worst that can happen is they counter. Maybe you get it for less, maybe not.

Whippersnapper's advice is good - rust (body panels, frame rails, etc.) and suspension. Also run a paid-for CarFax (even if the dealer provides you one). That will show if it was in an accident (assuming insurance was involved). You do want to know for sure if it's been in a big accident.

Good luck and welcome aboard if you get it. The Limited is a super-nice vehicle in every way. Loaded with creature comforts that only the Limited has (like ventilated seats, etc.) but still tough as nails as it's still a 4Runner. My wife lets me drive hers every now and then. Otherwise I'm in the 21 Venture (and no complaints there either!).

 

As said above look out for suspension leaks.
Sure the XREAS suspension are the most comfortable suspension system even better than highend after market suspension (atleast to my taste), if they start leaking you are looking at a hefty bill like 3000bucks if you want to replace with same XREAS shocks.
Of cause you can remove XREAS and put poor mans shocks.

I would also check for the automatic running boards, make sure they work smoothly.

I would check the functionality of both heated and ventilated seats. Make sure the seats don't have any dirt stuck in there and fans work good.

I would also check the 4wd system. At my house the Limited is the on pavement car and I exercise center diff lock & 4wd low range time to time. There might be owners who never user 4LO and may not engage or have trouble engaging 4LO.

Since Limited have the option of 3rd row and without 3rd row pick whats best for you. In my case I need 3rd row from time to time. But if you don't need 3rd row, skip it. You will save cargo space and weight. One person commented on one of my videos saying the 3rd row is whopping 250lbs..!!

 

Oh how I love the internet, and groups like this! Thanks for all the insight!

 

For a couple of hundred dollars, an independent third party pre-purchase inspection is worth it. Might also give you a some of the wiggle room you seek but more importantly, peace of mind.

 

Check engine for any coolant/seep or leak. Also possible oil seep leak from the covers. It should not be a common problem but I had both i my 2021 limited. Also some other threadd in the forum with same issues so even thought not common it is happening.

 

I just saw a 2024 limited in IL for $49.999.00 - only 5,200 miles - facebook listing

 

I'm also thinking should I panic buy due to tariffs for my kiddo which will not drive for atleast an year.
Since no new available thinking on new(ish), less miles 4Runner Limited / GX460.

 

Welcome to the board OP.

 

I would check the engine compartment. I would remove the 13 clips of that black sheathing that is over the radiator and check to make sure that that is fully covered with primer and paint. I would also check under the vanity cover to make sure there's no rat crap down in those crevices.

An overlooked area are the bolts holding the seats down. Much emphasis for flood damaged vehicles would be external and drying carpet. Those bolts can tell a lot of stories. You may have to unclip cover or two, but it is well worth it.

Toyota offers their service records in a program called Service Lane. I would look at that prior to purchase as well. Carfax is a joke.

Low mileage 4Rs for sale usually have common themes. Problems or problematic owners. There's a lot of people who buy 4Runners for the status or outward visibility. It's a lot of maintenance. Brakes wear out faster, the engine design is ancient and has just been modified to fit in the modern era of pollution compliance.

If somebody bought a 4Runner and then realized it's too expensive for them to drive, what other levels of responsibility did they neglect? If they didn't have money for gas, did they have enough money for oil changes?

 

Not sure if problematic owners or just a bad build. I bought mine 2021 in 2022 as used with 35,000km for the alleged reliability as like to keep cars for longer periods of time. My father always said if it is pretty new and being sold there must have be issues, well I did not listen and sure enough, I had so far:

- coolant leak at the pulley in from of the engine. Engine had to be lifted to properly replaced
- valve covers oil leak.
- steering wheel shake that no amount of wheel balancing can fix.
- starting to rust behind the garnish on the tail gate. Very visible and annoying on the white colour.
- heating fan make a squeaking sound in winter. Drives family insane in winter. I tried cleaning, lubing it up, nothing helps.
- JBL stereo likes to have random attack of static from all speakers.
- random but very aggressive steering wheel shaking starting at above 45 miles/hr. As speed increases it get so violent that can not hold the steering wheel. Happens 3 to 4 times a year.
- the collision avoidance system thing is very finicky, few times it slammed on brakes where normal stop would have suffice.

I wish fast wearing brakes would be my biggest issue. I would love to dump it but still have few years to pay as we bought it in the peak of car shortages so overpaid as my other car died and we were kind of in a rush.

 

When I bought my sr5 it looked like it came straight from a dirt rally lol. I washed it and thing runs good. Fuel trims are 0.5 + or -, MAF readings are consistent, cats are doing their job. Pretty sure it was rode wet and put away dry. Previous owner broke it in well lol. No hiccups at all

 

There's a 21' Nautical Blue Limited for sale near me, the mileage is slightly less, but the year is one year older than the one you're looking at. At any rate, the price lines up with yours. So, I dont think you'll have a lot of wiggle room:

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for...A&modelCode=4RUN&state=TX&clickType=spotlight

 

None of this is normal (some hitch rust is normal unless you fluid film it). I suspect major accident that was hidden from you.

 

Agree as we purchased this vehicle based on reviews and reliability hoping for a long time of trouble free ownership. In reality we are not enjoying it, we put more trust and trips in my wife's 2014 Santa Fe XL with 200K on it. Having said that it was purchased from Toyota Dealer, clean record, no accidents. full history all checks out. (At least on the paper).
The hitch rust I have fixed that with some elbow grease, I'm not liking that I have a rust coming out of from behind the garninish on the tail gate where the licence plate is attached. It started showing up this winter. We do use a lot of salt here in Ontario but still that is crazy for 4 year old car.

 

Whelp car looked and drove great, so I put a deposit down last night. Hoping to pick it up tomorrow morning. I'll post a pic once in my possession!

 

It's a 3 year old car.. are runners that susceptible to rusting that fast?

 

Depends on where it lived and if it was taken care of by the previous owner. I don't live in the rust belt but I would want some kind of undercarriage sprayers in the garage to neutralize the salt.

 

Nice!