Bought a 99 Limited with 325k, what maintenance?

Discussion in '4Runners' started by Bannerman, Jul 28, 2016.

  1. Jul 28, 2016 at 6:38 PM
    #1
    Bannerman

    Bannerman [OP] Tasteful Thickness

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2015
    Member:
    #166789
    Messages:
    7,469
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Johnson
    Charlotte, NC
    Vehicle:
    22 Tremor 402A, 22 T4R ORP
    I bought an extremely clean 1999 4Runner Limited with 325,xxx on the clock. CarFax shows timing belt and water pump replaced at 85k but it's just been oil changes since then. Don't want to dump a ton of cash into a 17 year old car but I want to take care of it and gets some life out of it. What's the first things I should do? New spark plugs, change transmission fluid, diff fluid?
     
  2. Jul 28, 2016 at 8:49 PM
    #2
    Husky Driver

    Husky Driver Kyna's chauffeur

    Joined:
    Apr 17, 2014
    Member:
    #127883
    Messages:
    729
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Kipp
    40°35'09.0"N 105°04'38.3"W
    Vehicle:
    2k T4R3 SR5 (Sport Edition Highlander SX) TRD
    Toytec Ultimate 3" lift susp w/ OME 891 rear coils, Bilstein 5100 shocks front & 5125 rear, ARB 'Roo Bar, Warn VR10k, 0.7, 2 & 11-meter 2 way radios, Nitrogen inflated 33" BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2s, FlexFuel E-85 conversion, AFe lifetime filter, Savage Offroad rock sliders, Ryno All Terrain 4.5mm skid plates, Line-X coatings on the armor, LifetimeLED & Rigid Industries LED headlights, UltraGauge 1.2, T3q 4.10 eLocker with armor from LROR, AmsOil lubricants used throughout. CBI plate rear bumper with swingaway, SPC Light Racing UCAs, ARB SS170HF Safari snorkel w/ Afrikaans centrifugal pre-cleaner, Tacoma antenna mod, TRD Supercharger w/ URD 7th inj. & URD pulleys, Anti-Dark engine bay lighting system. Having gone 250k, Aug 2016 was the time to replace the original clutch & get the driver's seat rebuilt/stuffed. Front & back Weathertech liners. Tundra front disc brake swap. Full length Rocky Mountain Rack with 40" lightbar & alternating strobe rear dust lights. I used a warm weekend in March 2022 to finally install my brand new, from old stock, 2000 4Runner driver's seat. $800 directly from the factory in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan.
    Do the timing belt again ASAP & every 100k. If it breaks, your engine is history. DIY for $200 or about triple that for a pro. All fluid & filter changes (with that many miles I wouldn't use synthetic). Plugs, wires, or here is everything for a tune up except the water pump/timing belt.
     
    InfernoTonka and MartyMcfly like this.
  3. Aug 22, 2016 at 7:47 AM
    #3
    jb10

    jb10 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2016
    Member:
    #180568
    Messages:
    67
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    James
    Vehicle:
    1997 4Runner
    ball joints. specifically lower balls joints. if you don't know how old they are you had better change them. failure happens often and its not pretty.
    add an external tranny cooler and stop using the tranny cooler on the bottom of the radiator.
     
  4. Aug 24, 2016 at 5:10 PM
    #4
    cory02taco

    cory02taco Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 19, 2012
    Member:
    #71007
    Messages:
    1,904
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Cory
    Maine
    Vehicle:
    2013 trd super sport
    The 3.4 is a non interference engine, so if it breaks you can just put a new t-belt on and run it. But absolutely change it before it gets to that point, like you said.
     
  5. Aug 25, 2016 at 7:29 AM
    #5
    Bannerman

    Bannerman [OP] Tasteful Thickness

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2015
    Member:
    #166789
    Messages:
    7,469
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Johnson
    Charlotte, NC
    Vehicle:
    22 Tremor 402A, 22 T4R ORP
    Thanks, I thought so but didnt want to argue with the free advice above. :)
     
  6. Oct 20, 2016 at 8:42 AM
    #6
    jaunty

    jaunty Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jul 8, 2012
    Member:
    #82164
    Messages:
    118
    Gender:
    Male
    Vehicle:
    99 V6 TRD Automatic 4x4
    Interested to hear how the rig is going. I'm looking at finding something like this (high mile 3rd gen).
     
  7. Oct 20, 2016 at 8:45 AM
    #7
    Bannerman

    Bannerman [OP] Tasteful Thickness

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2015
    Member:
    #166789
    Messages:
    7,469
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Johnson
    Charlotte, NC
    Vehicle:
    22 Tremor 402A, 22 T4R ORP
    Still going strong, Leaks a bit of oil but that's to be expected I guess. My wife drives it just a few miles every day but I've taken it on a few 200 mile round trips so far and no issues at all.
     
    InfernoTonka and jaunty[QUOTED] like this.
  8. Jan 13, 2017 at 10:41 PM
    #8
    Booster

    Booster Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2017
    Member:
    #207226
    Messages:
    172
    Gender:
    Male
    Vehicle:
    1999 TRD 4Runner
    Bilstien Shocks 2.5 Inch Lift TRD supercharger TRD Exhaust Transmission Cooler K&N Intake Aftermarket headers Performance Parts Progressive Springs
    Pretty experienced with the 99' runners. On my second one. Bought 2 at the same time because the dealer gave me a crazy deal before new years.

    My stock 4 runner died at 245k miles. It was burning oil and coolant exponentially throughout time. Turns out the block was cracked, head gasket was shot, and the engine was just breaking itself. I ended up selling it to my mechanic- lesson learned, treat a problem when it starts...

    My current 4Runner was given to the dealer to have a TRD blower and a bunch of other upgrades. It's at 174k and i've been a bit more careful.
    I have the timing belt regularly checked and replaced. Trust me, no matter what kind of engine you have- timing belts are a nightmare.
    It started burning oil, so my mechanic redid the head gasket.
    Then the bad part happened. One of my cylinders stopped firing on start up, and tons of coolant was burning. Turns out my header was cracked. Got it all fixed.
    If your burning oil gets worse, get it looked at before it's too late.
     
  9. Mar 13, 2017 at 7:44 PM
    #9
    TeecoTaco

    TeecoTaco Liberty Biberty

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2017
    Member:
    #211739
    Messages:
    10,554
    SW Ontario
    Vehicle:
    16 Taco DCSB TRD Sport 6MT
    Modified the level of gas in the tank

    Dood, i know its been awhile...but the thread IS on the main page so....hows it working out?

    My third Runner...snared last October after a year or more of stalking! I'm second owner now...150k miles

     
  10. Mar 15, 2017 at 6:47 AM
    #10
    Bannerman

    Bannerman [OP] Tasteful Thickness

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2015
    Member:
    #166789
    Messages:
    7,469
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Johnson
    Charlotte, NC
    Vehicle:
    22 Tremor 402A, 22 T4R ORP
    It's been great, my wife drives it every day and have not had a single problem yet!
     
    TeecoTaco[QUOTED] likes this.
  11. Mar 15, 2017 at 7:35 PM
    #11
    TeecoTaco

    TeecoTaco Liberty Biberty

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2017
    Member:
    #211739
    Messages:
    10,554
    SW Ontario
    Vehicle:
    16 Taco DCSB TRD Sport 6MT
    Modified the level of gas in the tank
    Aces...good to hear. Only thing I have seen take down a 3rd gen runner, aside from sudden impact, is the dreaded pink milkshake (1sr hand) and rust...take care of them proactively and its golden

    P.S. take care of the timing belt aussie
     
  12. Mar 20, 2017 at 2:01 PM
    #12
    Pat_Sajak

    Pat_Sajak Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2016
    Member:
    #179118
    Messages:
    81
    Gender:
    Male
    North DFW
    Vehicle:
    08DCSB impulse red
    :bananadance:this is giving me hope! wanting to buy a high mileage 3rd gen. subbing for updates.
     
    TeecoTaco likes this.
  13. Mar 20, 2017 at 7:37 PM
    #13
    TeecoTaco

    TeecoTaco Liberty Biberty

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2017
    Member:
    #211739
    Messages:
    10,554
    SW Ontario
    Vehicle:
    16 Taco DCSB TRD Sport 6MT
    Modified the level of gas in the tank
    Dood, there is still time to be certain...i see some clean interesting ones listed quite frequently, but alas my driveway is full. There are even some lower mileage ones to be found. Do your due diligence on what to look for beyond the obvious...if you find a clean one, preferably from an anal retentive first owner jump on it, you wont be sorry.

    Now, lets define hope...the big white elephant on MY target list is a clean, original 84 or 85 Runner...Manual...with an ugly as fvck interior, cuz, they all were then...had one...sold it *SNIFF*

    But back on topic...I bought my taco 3 months after my Runner acquisition...I still grab the Runner on weekends cuz its Just. That. Fun.

    Happy hunting...let us know what you see out there!
     
    Pat_Sajak[QUOTED] likes this.

Products Discussed in

To Top