Concerns with a 91 taco im looking at.. what do I look for?

[goldenfiber]

Howdy everyone. I have been lurking this forum off n on for years. Finally joined. Currently have a 05 Duramax rwd. It was meant to tow my 5th wheeler around. That venture is now over with in life and I am moving onto the unpaved path. There is a 91 v6 4x4 5spd taco with 228k I am curious about. Hes selling it for $2500 and to me that is insanely cheap for one of these trucks. It doesnt look bad and I have requested more pictures. I want to know what to look for before i decide to drive 5 hours to look at it.

Thanks in advance everyone!

 

[cdthiker]

The v6 in that truck in the Toyota 3.0, also known as the " 3slow"
This motor is known for chewing through head gaskets, and having a stupid number of vacuum lines. On top of that, it is under powered, and tends to leak.

I had a 95 4 runner with that motor and was constantly chasing oil leaks. It had 185k on it and blew through a head gasket in less then two years / 30 k miles.

It is a problem with the location of the pipes and amount of heat generated near one of the cylinders. Or so I have read.

with that age and miles, I would think hard about getting it even if it had the bullet proof 4 cyl, I would run away from the v6.

A head gasket repair on that truck is going to cost at least what the asking price is unless you do it yourself. I also found that it was over all not super user friendly to work on DIY style.

I wish I had listened to the advice of look else where when I asked the same sort of question.

if you really want it, at the least take it to a trusted shop that knows these old yotas, or at least a yota dealership. Have them preform a leak down check on the motor wich should give some idea of the state of things and if there is a head gasket leak or not.
have them also inspect the entire rig and give you a print out. a truck that age expect to replace or need to replace most of the front end, suspension parts and fluids. Easily antoher 2500.

Point being, that few hundred you spend getting it looked at is a huge bartering chip. I got a thousand bucks knocked off the price of my 95 4 runner with that motor in it by doing this.

It still blew the HG with in 18 months so it was gone.

Good luck

 

[Christian P.]

Yes this is not the best generation for the Tacoma...personally I would stay away.

 

[goldenfiber]

Ive been leaning a lot more towards the 3.4 Tacomas. This one is more of curiosity. Another 2.5-3k gets me the ones I like better. Besides, that 91 generation style would be too small to make out of a camper sploring rig anyways, to me anyways.

 

[DaveInDenver]

@cdthiker, where you using factory head gaskets and Toyota Red coolant? I had a '91 with a 22R-E and it wasn't nearly as bulletproof as their legend says, I popped a timing chain at 187K that took it out. That is an interference engine unlike the V6s with timing belts, so I crunched valves into pistons. It got a complete rebuild, which went another 110K for me and is still going 3 years on with my friend who bought it. They are good engines, pretty reliable, but you need to watch the single row timing chain and the nylon guides, which are a major Achilles heel for them. The 20R before them is the real bulletproof motor, double row timing chain and metal guides.

They (like the 3FE of the same vintage) also go through a head gasket about every 100K. It's a byproduct of these being early cast iron block, aluminum head designs. They were still figuring out how to deal with the dissimilar expansion rates, coupled with people using incorrect coolant that erodes the gasket.

BTW, the 1991 is still a Hilux, not a Tacoma. Those were a mid-year introduction in 1995. The trucks from 1979 to 1995 were still Hilux/Pickup/Truck. IMO the 1989-1991 ones were the best ones. Still mostly simple mechanical stuff, made in Japan. In 1992 they started making some trucks in California. All Tacomas have been made in California (this factory is now closed), Mexico or Texas.

If the truck was in decent shape, $2500 is an excellent price.

 

[goldenfiber]

The ad says the radiator, timing set, water pump, upper/lower ball joints and cv axles are new.

 

[v_man]

The 3vze gets a bad rap because it is/was a poor engine by Toyota standards. The HG failure rate was high enough that Toyota put out a recall on it, which they might still honor, not sure though.

That being said there are still literally tens of thousands of 3vze's on the road today. Anecdotally, I see them all the time in the 2nd gen hilux and 4runners here in the Bay Area.

As long as you don't overheat them, you have solid chance at a very reliable vehicle. Personally I sold my 93 hilux with over 225k miles for more than that seller is asking.

Bottom line is beware of the internet in regards to the 3vze and gather as much info as you can about the truck from the seller before pulling the trigger.

 

[goldenfiber]

I am still torn between some of these Tacomas/pickups and Land Cruisers. I want to make a thread gathering details of all to better decide on since all I can find is consumer reports level of information. I want hard facts, not sales speeches between models.

With that said, I dont know which group to start a tread in.. this one or the Land Cruiser one!

The end goal is to have a reliable something to go exploring and camping in and eventually to go from Alaska to the southern tip of SA.

Had my eye set on a Vanagon Westy, but decided against that. I can still dream.

 

[kletzenklueffer]

The 89-94 model pickups (as noted, are not Tacomas, but better than Tacomas) are great, solid trucks and are reliable. Having had experience with the 3.0 V6, if I was shopping, I'd seek a 22RE 4 cylinder or plan to replace the 3.0 with a 3.4 JDM pulled engine. The 3.4 is solid and reliable with more power.

While the pickups are great trucks, they're small for spending a lot of time in.

80 series TLC's are in a class with no peers. That's no sales pitch. While there are other vehicles similarly equipped, a FZJ80 is a stout, unmatched wagon that is beefy throughout.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I am still torn between some of these Tacomas/pickups and Land Cruisers. I want to make a thread gathering details of all to better decide on since all I can find is consumer reports level of information. I want hard facts, not sales speeches between models.
-snip-
The end goal is to have a reliable something to go exploring and camping in and eventually to go from Alaska to the southern tip of SA.

Two different vehicles. Toyota started making the Land Cruiser in the 1950s as an offshoot of their wartime vehicles, similar to the origin of the Jeeps. By the 1970s the need for cheap 4wd vehicle to complement the Cruisers was obvious, so they took their small commercial truck, the HiLux, and gave it 4x4 in 1979. They even called it the "Son of Land Cruiser" in some ads. It's smaller, lighter, cheaper. Designed for a different market.

Personally had an FJ40 first and it didn't fit our use, two people, a dog, camping, bicycling, kayaks, climbing junk. The FJ60/62 wagon was too big and the 80 at the time was new, so way out of our price range. The XtraCab pickup was perfect and the 1991 I bought in 2000 I kept until 2015. Selling it for a Tacoma was a major mistake, but you live and learn. The 79-95 trucks and the 1st gen Tacoma (95-02) are small, so make sure it fit your needs.

I would avoid ones with carbs (the switch happened from 1985 to 1987, but 1988 pretty much even the cheapest trucks got EFI) since they are getting to be a labor of love to keep running, finding parts is a challenge in the U.S. OTOH a carb truck in South America is probably going to be a better choice, although 22R-E, 3RZ, 3VZ and 5VZ trucks aren't uncommon AFAIK.

It'll come down to what you fit in. Driving a mini truck, which is what the 79-95 trucks and 88-95 4Runners are called, is different than a Cruiser. They are tighter inside, lighter duty in general. I'd think unless you're young driving one from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego is going to be a challenge. I'm 46 now and I'm not sure I could go back to my 1991 now that I've been spoiled by the ride and size of my 2008 Tacoma. Even though when I was 27 that '91 was absolutely great.

 

[bkg]

3.0. Get a bad rap. Issues are easily addressed. And if that’s not desired, a 3.4 swap is pretty easy.

The 3.0 in my ex wife’s 94 4Runner was my second favorite engine of all time. Threw DOA heads on it and it revved to the moon and was a blast to drive. Favorite? The 3.0 in my old 88 4Runner...

Yup. I said that.

 

[goldenfiber]

Im more interested in what I can afford and with Land Cruisers, I can get neglected one from the late 80s., the 62. Those would too nostalgic for me to tackle. And obviously not out the box ready to go.

I do like the 80 series and that is one I can afford. I see a few options in both the Toyota and Lexus flavors that are within my budget. But mileage is in the 250k range. As far as having lockers or not, Im not exactly clear on that. I have never done any deep deep offroading to know the need for or not. Then, would it be worth the effort to convert a non locker to locker?

As far as the pickup goes, Im not sure what to look for. They all seem good. The 4 bangers and the 3.0 sounds like it would be under powered for what I would be comfortable with. When it comes to the 1st gen Tacoma I think any form of the 4x4/5spd would be good enough. As far as the Mcfly era and on of the pickup I think my suffer would be room. Im 5'7" and have stayed the same size since before the military and making a camper for the back sounds like it would be a tight fit. Especially for wanting to fit kitchen and cooking stuff. I like to eat good and cook good.

 

[Clutch]

https://expeditionportal.com/featured-vehicle-overland-nomads-toyota-pickup/

 

[cr500taco]

Before I bought my 97 Tacoma with the 3.4 over 10 years ago, I looked at a Toyota pickup with the 3.0 (I think it was a 94), which is what i wanted initially. When I test drove it it was a dog and I double checked under the hood to make sure it was a V6 and not a 4. Then I found my Tacoma and when I test drove that it had much more pep on acceleration. Both trucks were 4WD. I am glad I found the Tacoma. I still have it.

Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk

 

[4runnerteq]

Pass. If it was a 22RE then jump on it. Not the 3.0 though. I mean, it aint terrible, but the 22RE is much better.