When is enough maintenance to warrant keeping your Taco

Its asinine to buy an oem carrier bearing even with any sort of discount. Spicer #

$100 211750-1x Center Bearing Compatible with Select Toyota Models 1995-2021

211750-1x is an oem Toyota bearing in a Spicer box. Made in Japan too. $80 from Drivetrain America.

 

Thank you. OEM is $110 for me. If I ever change it, I will get Spicer for $70

 

Actually, I do tend to laugh when someone notices frame rot on their truck that is old enough to drink and want to get it recalled. I understand if they just bought it, but I've seen people who've owned their trucks for many years, and apparently this is the first time they looked under the truck, lol...

The 2nd gens still have an issue with frame rust, though not as bad as the first gens (newer trucks, too, though). IIRC the newer trucks do have at least partial composite beds, but that just means THAT part won't rust... In some areas, especially the ones that still salt the roads, it's next to impossible to own a vehicle that doesn't have rust on it. Some people do, but they are super anal retentive about washing the road salt off and keeping it in a garage, treating/coating the frame every season, etc...

 

$8000.00 cost and a easy $3000.00 a year for the last 8 years this is all parts maybe $ 500.00 labor on the alignment rack .

Around $32,000.00 give or take a $1000.00

every one gets to the point where another dollar is to much sell or give it away someone will be happy to spend $10,000.00 getting it up to speed without a thought

 

Right on...best thing about my 95.5 is I do not have to worry about emissions here in NY either

 

Agree. I did find one a few years ago. LevelTen in New Jersey. They build transmissions for extreme use conditions. Hang on to your wallet. Send in your old transmission and $3,998.00. A Toyota OEM reman is only $1,873.27 with core.

https://www.levelten.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=48

 

@vettehigh Just my mindset, not preaching here:

I've bought a lot of older vehicles over the years, not just the two 95s I own now, and not just Toyotas. Here's my rationalization, oops, I mean thinking way.

When I go to buy the vehicle, I judge whether I could get it to safe, daily driver status for what I feel would be market value in that condition. I mean purchase price plus immediate needs parts, but not catch up on all periodic maintenance. I mean get it stable enough to drive to work each day without squeezing through the steering wheel with nervous tension because I think I am about to break down. Basically, could I break even if I did the work, then turned around and sold it and felt okay handing over the keys and that person would be safe. My labor would be free.

If I can, then I buy it. The rest of the money I put in I just equate that to any payment/insurance I am not making on a vehicle that I would have borrowed to purchase and to the normal cost of owning a vehicle.

 

+1. Very similar approach here. I've done this with five other Japanese vehicles from the 1990s "golden period" for quality.

 

How about those 90s Accords or any Honda from the 90s really for that matter? Such well built and designed cars. One of my fave all time 4 door Japanese sedan is that early 90s Accord

 

IMO, the old saying "You can pay me now or pay me later" applies here? You seem to be way ahead of the game at the moment?

 

My 98 is my hobby/work truck/camp rig. So - after spending similar amounts on mine I just quit looking at how much I spent. Thanks for the parts list with part numbers!

 

$2800, that's all

 

See, though, here it gets more philosophical. Do you really want to be driving a 20+ year old truck for the next 10 years, all while paying for little fixes and things along the way? Don't get me wrong -- they're great trucks. But they lack a lot of todays safety stuff, features, comfort, noise isolation, refinement, lighting, etc. That's fine when you're 23 and single. But chances are good your GF is going to get tired of it. Your wife may hate it, especially when her friend's hubbys are driving them around in nice cars. It will suck for driving kids around. What if you end up with a 45 minute commute? Sitting in traffic in a stiff-riding, bouncy tin can gets old.

 

No kids, never will have kids, can't have kids anyway, will never marry, just engaged....If I ever need to commute, I will get and old school Camry or Accord

 

i recently salvaged a rear window slider with pure Toyota glass from a wrecked '95.5 taco
i was very easily able to gently place that on a blanket over the rail for the journey back home
the 2nd and 3rd gen trucks are so big I would not be able to do this without fear of dropping the glass and breaking it by laying it down over the rail
i sit in traffic with an MT playing with the stick
my 'upgrade' to the 21st century features will be one of those sharp looking Corolla Hatchbacks
if your GF can't love your taco for what it is then i dunno
my bouncy tin can is like one with the road (although a well-paved road it likes much better than pot-hole filled my locale is riddled with)

 

Wise, wise man.... Debt free is such a mentally relieving and stress free way to live. At least for me it is. Everybody is different

 

+1 for that.

 

there is 'good' debt and then there is 'bad' debt

 

There is no "good" debt.. There is "necessary" debt.

 

Hence my statement, 'everyone is different'... Just saying regardless of views on bad or good debt, etc... Living debt free provides much less stress in my life. So I understand and am very happy to hear when others mention it too. The mainstream would have you believe EVERYONE goes the debt and credit route otherwise you can't get credit, can't buy a house, yada yada. It's intentional misinformation they spread to keep the cycle going.
There are a lot more of us debt free life types than I ever imagined