98 Taco Says Hello

Hello everyone, I bought my first truck about a month ago, a 1998 PreRunner. It was really an impulse buy, because I really did not even really need a truck at the time. But here are the events leading up to it:

A couple friends and I went camping at Inks Lake State Park in Burnet, TX and we brought along some kayaks. It was my first time kayaking and I had so much fun that I knew I had to get one myself. Then I realized I would need a truck to haul around my new yak (not true, although this is how I rationalized getting the truck), so I started looking once I got home.

I found a 1998 Tacoma PreRunner listed on Craigslist at a dealer down the road from me. Now, I had never bought a car from a dealer before so I was a little wary of doing so, with all the rumors you hear of such people. I took my time with a couple test drives here and there, KBB, Edmunds and other used car guide prices and even a third party inspection of the vehicle. I talked the guy down about $1700 before TT&L so I think I got a pretty good deal, this being below the average price.

There were only a couple things I was concerned about with the vehicle before I bought it, one of which was a vibration that could be felt in the steering wheel while driving. The taco had BFG Mud Terrains on it which was the likely suspect. Sure enough, after taking her home and putting some new BFG ATs on her, the vibration disappeared. The other was a jerk in the engine/transmission that was felt after the brakes were released after coming to a complete stop after driving for a bit. The ASE tech said this was due to weak motor mounts. I have yet to correct this problem.

So I am very pleased with my first truck so far, because now I can carry the kayak I bought too, as well as my mountain bike, dog, etc. I am glad I bought it and only drive her to the gym and back during the week and to the lake on the weekends. There are a number of things I want to do to it and have questions, but will post that in the appropriate forums of course.

So, just saying hi and thank you for providing this great site! Here she is at the lot before I bought her:

 

Congrats on the purchase and welcome to TW!!!

 

welcome to tw....glad you got a tacoma!

 

welcome and impulse buys are the best

 

welcome.