Maintenance of 95-00 tacoma's

Hi Folks,

I am just wondering how much does it cost and/or experience needed to maintain / upgrade 95-00 tacoma's. I only ask this because I do not have much vehicle repair knowledge other than changing oil and the common word I am hearing is to not buy a 1998(almost 12 yr. old vehicle due to maintenance costs).

I love the look of tacoma's however, and I can afford to buy the 1998 outright and would rather not own the stealer any money.

 

4 cyl. I have not looked at the frame yet, I am bringing a flashlight with me when I goto to look at it. I thought about bringing a hammer but I dont think the current owner would allow that...

 

Have the toyota dealer inspect the frame BEFORE you agree to buy it.

Maintenance on ANY vehicle is an open ended question. Maintenance and upkeep all depends on how well (or how bad) the vehicle has been maintained and/or drive in the past.

If you know how to change the oil...you are perfectly capable of doing any/all the maintenance. With a little research and some helpful folks on this forum...you can do just about any maintenance.

 

knock on wood, i hardly do any maintence on my 96(read 14 years old,131,000 miles)

I just recently changed swaybar bushings,and also steering rack bushings.

What has been done since i bought it 5 years ago;starter,new battery,brakes,lightbulbs,oil changes,sparkplugs,new tires(getting another set soon for winter)..aside from getting underneath the truck every summer, degreasing it,powerwashing it,scraping the frame from the bits of rust, and then painting it i dont do much else besides regular wash/wax and oil changes.

 

How can that happen? I only ask that because if I get the frame inspected from a toyota dealer and he says in unsafe to drive and stuff, I will get a rental and the money will goto the original owner( along with the truck being taken hostage.)

 

not true..they wont MAKE you do anything unless you sign a document signing over the truck to toyota thats up the the owner with the title do make that decision

 

100% positive?

 

yep..they need the title, which your name isnt on

 

You don't own the truck....

As a perspective buyer, you can request (to the owner) to have the vehicle inspected by Toyota. Chances are, they're not even aware of the rust warrantee. The owner can deny having it inspected..... and at that point, I'd walk away and find another truck.