Questions about buying potential tacoma

Hi,

I am looking about buying this 2001 tacoma 4x4 TRD OR Manual with 160K miles for $8200 out the door.

https://www.howorthautogroupweather...racab-V6-4WD-for-sale-in-Weatherford-TX-76086

It has a bilstein lift, frame is clean, engine sounds good, and clean inside. The truck has lived it’s life in east Texas with two owners.

Cons are has seep around the trans and the transfer case, no cruise control, busted cv boot, and not sure about the timing belt.

Does it look like a leak in the trans plus a leak at the transmission rear seal? Also do y'all think it’s a fair price? Theres also some oil on the left side of the rear axle. I can’t tell what that is. Any ideas? (The truck is out of town and my friend went and looked at it)

Thanks

 

Overpriced IMO

 

What do you think would be a fair price?

 

The boot needs fixing. Leaking seals? Assuming you are going to pay someone to do the work. Sounds expensive.

 

I can do quite a bit. Would need to research it first before attempting it. Not sure what seal that is on the transfer case. My though right now is it’s just a seal, as long as the fluid isn’t low then no damage has been done. Then I just keep an eye on the level if I don’t fix the seal right away.

 

Maybe like 6k or less. Where I live you can get a pretty nice double cab for 9k.

 

Do you live where OP lives?

Assuming there is nothing major needed on the truck, outiside of normal wear stuff, this is a $10k+ truck anywhere on the west coast.

OP, just get it inspected. It'll be the best money you ever spend on the truck. If there's major issues it saves you the hassle, and if there isn't, it reassures you and lets you know exactly what you need to do to it. Any problems that come back are also instant haggling points. If they give you any push back on that it's an immediate red flag.

 

Agree

 

I’ll definitely get an inspection. The guy said he won’t budge on price. It seems fair compared to some I saw online in OKC. It’s the exact truck I want V6 4x4 with locker, manual trans, j shifter, extra cab for the 6ft bed, and red.

The truck is outside of Dallas.

 

From what I can see online, 1st Gen Tacomas with 4x4 aren't exactly common or readily available around there. So if it's clean and it's what you want good luck.

 

I would say the price is ok. Prices have gone up in Phoenix for these trucks. That doesn’t mean they are selling though. The mileage is good though. But, just remember that everything in pictures looks better. It’s going to be dirtier than it looks. It’s going to be more scratched than it looks. And the stuff will show it’s age. If you can handle doing some stuff go for it. There might come a better looking one later on or it might not.

 

Yeah, noticed in the pics of the truck, it's still dirty on the inside.

@4XMountains if it still looks dirty when you go to see it, try and get them to throw in a detail. It should at least be cleaner than what it shows in the pics.

 

Looks like they are also selling "we tote the note" financing. That's another source of income for them. I doubt that cash would matter.

 

$8200 out the door is a little high but doesn’t sound all that bad to me. In DFW area I’d say around $7500. You rarely find Tacoma’s with that low of mileage in that condition. If you’re able to do most of the maintenance yourself it wouldn’t be a bad deal. IMO.

 

I’ll see if they can sweeten the deal some how.

It’s listed at 7500 cash but after ttl it’s about 8200. They had one guy look at it before me and have two after me which I mostly believe.

Any ideas on what seals are leaking?

 

I have no idea on the seals, but most 19 year old vehicles are going to have some type of leaks and issues. Were the valve covers leaking? They’d probably be asking closer to 9k if it didn’t have any leaks.

That place mostly sell 1st gen Tacoma’s, tundras and 3rd gen 4runners.

 

$7500 and they fix all the leaks at the mechanic of your choice.

 

The prices on these are getting higher and higher. $8k for this isnt too bad. I hope to sell my 2000 for a similar price but mine has a few more bolt ons.

 

Is that mud in the center a/c vent??

Looks to me like that truck was beaten like a dog. Interior is not well cared for, looks like undercarriage wasn't cared for either. Clever photo work on the exterior, but paint still isnt in best of shape. I hesitate to ask whats under the hood.

It looks like a great project or hobby truck, but it should be priced as such, in my opinion. Good luck with that one.

 

I think that's about as good of a price as you'll get from a dealer on a V6 4WD 5MT with that mileage. A slow seep from the transmission and transfer case wouldn't worry me too much, mine looked like that when I bought it and I haven't had any issues.
It's an 18 year old truck so the chances of finding one at a dealership in perfect shape isn't good. Probably worth getting checked out by an independent mechanic, but if it drives good then I'd consider buying it.