I have a question for all of you...

Comparing apples to apples (meaning, a new Toyota to a new "big 3" vehicle: Toyotas GENERALLY do not beat you over the head with endless STUPID problems that the big 3 knew full well were issues when they designed their cars.

Used: I had a 1982 Tercel - Toyota's cheapest car at the time. It went almost 150,000 miles and needed nothing but routine stuff. Big items died between 100k and 120k (alternator, water pump). Lived in upstate NY, so the car was bathed in salt for 6 months per year. There wasn't a speck of rust on it, except for where I drilled an antenna hole and didn't treat the area properly. The car was NOT rustproofed. The engine ran perfectly. Matter of fact, my mechanic thought it would be good to do a compression check around

120k miles. Numbers were perfectly even across all 4 cylinders. And, the clutch was the original. The only thing that ended its life was some drunk asshole who thought it would be a good idea drive into the back of the car while I was going 30 and he was going 70.

Thanks Doug,

I could agree with your info easy... you kind of agree (if i read right) that the big 3 seem to have problems, right?

So Im gonna pick at the brain a bit more, do you think it would be STOOPID to sell a 125 k mile 99 blazer (the ONLY reason I consider selling BTW is to get a pickup) and find a nice used 96 or so, T100 (specimins I can afford) with the vicinity of 130-150 kmiles on it, in the hopes that I would gain a little gas milage, and I get a decent no major problems pickup? Right now I get 17 mpg like clockwork, on my 65-80 mile round trip to work (80 if I go anywhere in this town). I can handle alts, belts, hoses etc, but I sure as heck dont want to make the mistake of getting any vehicle, that you find out via mechanic, "yeah pretty common to have engine failure at xxxk miles" because I owned a 81 Pontiac Grand Prix that grandad had, got it with 50k on it, it blew up at 70. Mine was not the only one, and I honestly thought I would be OK for at least 50k more miles...

I mean I could buy a not bad cycle trailer for less than 1000 for sure, but I dont see me pulling anything like a 20ft camptrailer with this blazer (has

4.3 v6). Yet I doubt I will the truck, but I want to think I could. BTW, I am nervouse about one thing on the Chevy, is all that the Automatic with 4x4 is a killer expense if (some people with maybe informed or not, opinions would argue to more of WHEN) it gives out. Hell I took it to a mechanic and he said there are several $100 updates to do to it, plus the cost of getting the maintenance done. add to that, the dealer even said when I had front end check that these s-10 blazers eat balljoints & Idler arms like wahing machines eat socks.

So I say to you, mechanics and Toy PU owners, is there history of tranny problems, warping head, getting hot, rearend problems? I read somewhere that many are having trouble with vlve cover gaskets, I fell I could probably handle that mechanical duty. Least I know what I am up against I guess where I am at...

Doug Kanter enlightened us with:

I don't think I'd ever sell a vehicle with 90,000 to get one with 150,000 even if you are going from ford to yota. regardless of miles, both are going to have to break some day. Dump the blazer or whatever it is and get a Toyota with 60 or 70,000 and your good for a while to come

That said, if I'm buying a used vehicle I'd pick a Toyota or Honda 9 times out of 10 over a big 3 model

anecdotal evidence to support this: my neighbor has a ford exploder. Last summer he went on a trip to Mass. from here in TN he took a rental car cause with the 90,000 he had on the explorer he didn't trust it to get that far and back without problems. He was right to do so, since coming back, he has dropped 2 grand into a new tranny for it. on the other hand, my 96 4runner has 150,000 and I'd drive it there and back in a heartbeat with no worries. I've had to replace the starter and waterpump (all done at the same time as timming belt) and that's it. we've never had any trouble with the Toyota and have absolute faith in its reliability. I'm going to be disappointed if the runner doesn't make 300,000 miles.

Dave

I can't offer history on the models you're looking at. And, if you look at discussions here like the "head gasket recall" question from yesterday, there *have* been a few issues, but Toyota handles them. Keep watching this conversation and see what others come up with.

As far as buying a vehicle that old, I wouldn't do it unless I already had a mechanic I could trust, who could look the vehicle over completely. My wife & I did this when she was shopping for used cars a few years back. It cost us $50 per car, for 4 cars, and it was worth every penny. The mechanic found some NASTY non-routine problems, so she ended up buying something new. But, that won't always be the case. You just might find a bargain. However, I'd want to see service records. In my opinion, people who don't keep track of repairs don't care much about their cars.

What you want to know is whether the normal big stuff has been done already, like water pump, alternator, etc. If not, assume the vehicle will need one of those things about 3 days after you buy it.

Well, MPG depends on what truck you get and the options. On my '93 with

3L manual, 4x4, I get around 18MPG. But it hulls a bed full of tools all the time and I tend to run the AC on full blast most of the time.

That is the one thing I really like about Toyotas. They don't suffer from chronic problems. I have had quite a few Chevy and other of the big 3. It seems to me, once they get up in milage, they get chronic problems. Overheating, gasket leaks, etc.

My '93 just topped 317k and has not such problems. I just went through my first alternator at 310k. And unlike 2 Chevys, it didn't burst into flames as I was driving down the freeway. :) That was fun. It set other stuff on fire too and I ended up driving into a lake to put it out.

140k is a bit high. I would look for a new truck around 100k. At 140k, most if not all the stuff under the hood will be original. Most of the time, you are looking at a new/rebuilt PS pump, Alt, or AC Compressor in the 200-250k range. If you are handy with tools, it's not hard to fix. Depends on how many miles you plan to put on it.

Make sure with anything you pick has had the normal maint done on it. Toyotas do not like it when you don't change the oil.

I know I am preching a bit, but I love my Toyota truck and even with 317k on it, I would drive it anywhere today. My friends Chevy SUV with 170k, well, lest just say last month we had to drive 3 hours, one way, in 110 degree heat into the middle of the Desert. We took my truck. And I am still here.

I bought a 1995 T100 in Dec. of 2000. 3.4 V6/automatic. I paid $5K for it. It had 219,000 on it when I bought it. Had it been any brand other than Toyota, I wouldn't have even looked at it with that kind of mileage. At 242,000 it blew a head gasket. It was fixed at no charge to me under the Toyota recall. Also, the short block was replaced at no charge to me at the same time because the coolant leaking into the cylinders had pitted them. It currently has 311,000 miles on it and still runs strong. I've replaced the park/neutral position switch, plugs twice, plug wires once, along with numerous oil changes (mobile 1 5w30). Consistent

21mpg. city/hwy average. One thing I would recommend is that the auto transmission be flushed, not just the fluid drained and refilled. That's easily accomplished too. Did it myself. My truck is the nearest thing I know to bulletproof. If you have any additional questions, I'd be happy to answer them. Charlie

I have a 1998 T100 Xtra-cab, 3.4L V6, auto trans, 2wd, 104,000 miles (so far).

out of 10 over a big 3 model.<

Neat market information that can be gathered (from too numerous sources for me to mention here) suggests that people have brand loyalty when it comes to their vehicles over any other purchase. Chevy to Chevy, Ford to Ford, Toyota to Toyota, and so on. The crossover buyers go from American trucks to Japanese, but not the inverse. A Toyota buyer is likely to cross over to a Nissan or other import, but not choose a Ford, Chevy, or Dodge. Actually, that buyer typically does not even consider a truck from the big three. The only time that is not the case is when a buyer needs a new vehicle to tow the new 27' boat or fifth-wheel trailer. Truck for truck, the

*grocery-getters* are pretty much equivalent: The need for something more heavy duty separates the herd a bit: This is the faction that keeps Toyota and Nissan from becoming more of arunaway success. The day that The imports introduce heavy duty versions withoptions like dually rear ends and diesel engines will be the day that thebig three fall off the charts in sales and buyer loyalty.

Hey,

You and Lhead really helped me with this, now the problem is that the couple of dealers tried to help me expect to get more like 25 mpg, to which I seem to be finding out is almost out of the question... Well one of the T100's (sr5) was 2wd, 5sp version with a nice fiberglass topper on it. So now Im starting to pull my hair out, need good milage, so probably have to find me a tacoma sized something. but last Toy i rode in of that stature, seemed to ride like a lumberwagon.

I see (others are saying it too) gas up to 3 by xmas, or least next summer, at that rate no matter what I buy I wont be able to change my mind. It usually takes me 5 years to save up for a vehicle, but I havent had that luxury for quite a while, and 50 bucks worth of gas a week (2.15 gallon here) just to make it to work aint helpin none.

I hate to have 2 beaters, but I think that is going to be the route I take thou, one to haul stuff, and one of those 30mpg puddle jumpers to drive to work in. so I will be hunting one of them 80'-90's toys I think

Mikey Darden enlightened us with:

Are you sure you need a pickup truck? What will be its purpose?

Well,

No, (sigh) I wont *need* a pickup much longer, if I spend every extra penny just owning/driving it to work, but I do "occasionally" like to borrow dad's boat and goto the lake (60 miles), and each month we take 3 motorcycles to a competition that is 120 miles from the house. my problem is the daily spending is cutting into the play time money, you know? I drive 65 miles round trip to work, blazer s10 gets 17 per 200 miles I travel, filler up at

35 bucks about every 2.5 trips, *IF* I dont do anything when I get home.

Well last night I made the mistake I pretty much made one fellow really happy, I almost gave my 99 blazer away. I am seriously looking for a decent xcab, 2wd 5sp toy t100 if possible, live in Kansas. But now, I had my mind set to buy one (with harvest money that isnt there) for this 95 t100 xcab

2wd, 5spd, sr5, 114K miles, with topper that matches, but not sure I can get it bought for 7thou. that figure is almost 1000 more than I have, but could borrow for a few months from parents if I need to. they are asking 8900, they have had it a while though, not even sure they still have it, I have the recent add though. Going to call as soon as I hit send.

I Pray that if I do do this, I am not faced with similiar problems I was facing with my 'known' condition Blazer, needing a very little front end work, 2 new tires, and ya know things that help you think you want something else after a while...

Doug Kanter enlightened us with:

It's a tough choice. I was in the same situation 2 years ago. For half the year, I tow a small boat about 3 times a week. Its weight fell within the towing limits for quite a few cars, like Corollas & Camrys, but at the advice of my mechanic, I took those cars (during test drives) to a place that specializes in trailers & hitches. In both cases, they said a hitch would have to be bolted through holes drilled in the trunk pan, and that's an immediate invitation to rust. So, after exploring about a million other cars, I almost bought a Crown Victoria. Real wheel drive, better for towing, and 25-28 mpg on the highway - not great by today's standards, but better than my truck. Then, I began reading news articles about the special feature Ford built into those cars: Exploding gas tank. :-) I went with the pickup truck. I'm keeping costs under control my combining more trips, and crushing any ideas my teenage son has about being driven to 183 different places each weekend. I showed him the gas receipts recently - he was shocked.

I think most 2wd with the 5 speed and 2.4L get around 24MPG.Some say 26, others have said around 20MPG. A lot of it has to do with how you drive.

I don't know what is going on with the ride quality on newer Toyotas. My friend has a Taco Prerunner with TRD package. The ride is quite stiff compaired to my '93. Maybe it's the TRD with stiffer springs and shocks. I don't know.

Get the 3.4L engine. It has more HP (150HP V 190HP) then the 3.0L and gets better MPG. If you are worred about MPG, I think they still offer the inline 4 R22.

Have you considered a small to medium sized street bike? There are a lot of bikes that will do better than 45MPG.

Tony

I bought a Harley Superglide for this very reason. Get 40 MPG compared to 19 MPG on my Tundra. If just wanted a bike to ride back and forth to work I'd do like you suggested and get a small street bike for over 50 MPG in city. davidj92

Speaking of transmission flush, how did you do it at home. I need to flush one myself, but couldn't think of a good way to do it at home without expensive equipment.