Thinking about geting an old Toyota truck, any thoughts?

[Dr. Jerryrigger]

I've found someone selling an '85 toyota 5 speed 4X4 (first year of fuel injection, last year of solid front axle) in my price range . The bed rusted off and was replaced with a wood one (yeah it's in my price range alright). They also said it has resent frame repairs.
It seems like an ideal vehicle for me in many ways. From what I've read it will likely get about the same mileage as my POS Subaru.
I was thinking since the bed is already wood, drastic aero mods would be simple to make.

I do know I could get much better mileage with a compact car and a trailer, but I only have on-street parking, and I treat my car's like old beater trucks.

Any suggestions or insight on these trucks, before I buy it, would be great!
Thanks

[suspectnumber961]

From what I hear they will do over 25 mpg...maybe 27. Frame rust is an issue....they tend to rust from inside...making the walls thin. I'd be careful and be sure the frame repair was done right. I have a Nissan about the same year...but the frame has almost no rust....couldn't find a Toyota.

[skyl4rk]

Driving technique can get fairly high mpg's. The Toyota Trucks do engine off coasting well with a bump start at the end. With the tail end easy to aeromod, you might surprise yourself how well the motor can do. It is a tractor motor, so use it at extreme low rpms for best results.

I would say if the price is right and you fit in the cab, give it a try. It should be reliable in any case.

[jamesqf]

I've got an '88. Kept track of the mpg for a couple of years - 10K miles - and averaged 26.5. That's with most of my trips having sections of rough dirt going up mountains, and often carrying loads of logs for firewood, etc.

I've had no problems at all with it: it often sits for a month or two yet starts right up. Can't speak to the rust problems: there's very little road salt around here, so most cars don't rust at all.

The one thing I would say is that it's overkill unless you're going to be hauling or driving rough dirt. It's not by my standards (which come from a lot of sports cars) a very good highway vehicle, as the steering's too sloppy and the cg too high for my comfort. But off-highway, if you put the transfer case in low range, it'll go just about anywhere, and with a load on too.

[sid]

I had an 1985 years ago for seven years. It averaged about 29 highway and 25 around town with a topper on it. The topper was about 4 inches taller than the cab, though it did slope up from the cab.

I got rid of it because of body rust problems.

[Dr. Jerryrigger]

Thank you all!
I looked at it today and it needs more work than I'm willing to put into it. So, not this time, but I'm still looking for a little beater truck. It would be nice to find a diesel (maybe Isuzu Pup) , but it's hard to fined anything with an extended cab (for my dog).

[arcosine]

I had an 86 2wd 4 cylinder that I got for free. It needed carb work. It was a nice truck. I sold i because I only drove a few times a year and insurance and maintenance was too much to justify it. I think the 4wd don't get as good mpg. You can check the .gov site for ratings. Yes I had an under powered 86 subaru gl 4x4 and then got a 87 honda accord that had more power and better mpg.

Find a Car

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by arcosine

I had an 86 2wd 4 cylinder that I got for free. It needed carb work.

Yeah, I had carb/emission problems with my '84 Toyota too, which is why I finally sold it and bought the '88 to replace it. So unless you really know what you're doing with carbs, I'd suggest going for the later fuel-injected models.

[UFO]

I love my '89 Toyota 4x4. It gets mid-high 20s with no special driving or mods.