Found another 96: is this the one?

Do you think the extra wheelbase will hurt it off-road compared to my single cab? I loved how light and maneuverable my 98 was.

 

I wheel an extra cab, it's been very rare that I've gotten hung up, but I'm not stock either...

 

Also is it safe to lock the front in an IFS Taco? I’d be wary of breaking a CV

 

It has a Truetrac in the front and a factory e locker in the rear

 

Would you really need it? You mentioned not doing hard/technical trails.

 

Maybe with the extra wheelbase since they might lose traction easier, idk though

 

Extra cab?

Like @Speedytech7 said it's a non-issue.

Get bigger tires.

 

It has 33s which should be ok for now. Not sure about going bigger than that in a first gen without it turning into a basket case, I know plenty of people have done it though, I’ve even seen 37s on the stock IFS

 

Again, just based on what you mentioned a Tacoma with rear locker and 33s is more than enough.

It's more than enough for a lot of people actually.

 

I might’ve asked this before but should I be concerned about the head gaskets since it’s a 96?

Wasn’t there a recall on the early 5VZs? Would it be about the same risk as a 1fz-fe?

it has 233k so I figure it must’ve been done by now but idk

 

lol I couldn’t tell if you were joking or saw some rust that I missed

 

No, your’s looks clean

 

Apparently the PO said he replaced the engine but didn’t have proof when the current (2nd) owner bought it last year. Is this a red flag? Maybe it was because of the head gasket issue?

Didnt see anything on the carfax or Toyota service portal about it.

 

Engines are replaced for many reasons; just do your due diligence when inspecting it in person.

 

I wonder if it’d decrease the value if the engine isn’t numbers-matching though.

The engine in my LC is original. Oh well, as long as it runs strong I’m not too concerned.

 

Are you already looking at getting rid of a Tacoma you don't have?

 

Lol no I'm just not sure if a new engine is a plus or a minus tbh. One the one hand it should be fresher but in the other with an original engine at least you know it's been taken care of to get to that point. I thought the 3.4 could do 300k easy on the original components with decent maintenance.

 

It could.

I got rid of my 5VZ 4R with almost 300k, and the 5VZ Tacoma had about 285k.