I met a guy that has one of these trucks with 80,000 original miles. It's yellow and has a metal camper shell. He has replaced the head gasket recently, as well as the master brake cylinder. It appears to be in really good shape from the photos that I've seen. It's kind of far from me, but I want to drive out and see it. Unfortunately (well, sort of), I recently bought a really low mileage 1995 Toyota truck. My wife would kill me if I tried to have two of them.

But I want to buy it bad! Would it possibly be a superior truck to my 1995? I'm afraid that with its' age, it would have lots of problems. It has the stick shift, whereas, mine is an automatic. But you sure don't see many of the 3/4 ton long beds. Are these trucks as reliable as mine? It sure seems like a good deal.

Thanks for any input.

 

the 1980 would have the double-row timing chain, which will last extremely long. In general, more than 200k miles (I've heard of 400k from time to time). Outside of that and the fact that they're basic vehicles with not a lot of stuff on them, there's not much to go wrong on them.

With it's age, yes, many things will likely have to be addressed (this goes for any vehicle of that age). It is probably going to cost you more purely from it's age. It may need a good tightening up of just about everything, almost anything made of rubber that hasn't been replaced should be looked at, possible wiring issues, rust and corrosion, etc. Sure, general maintenance costs are low on something like that outside of age-related issues.

Theres also the issue of gearing and gas mileage. I don't know what the 3/4 trucks are geared to, but if they're built to haul more, I'd expect at least a minor hit on mileage. Comparing trucks that are 15 years apart is a toss-up though. What you gain in one area, you may lose in another.

If it was me, though, i'd stop looking for the greener pasture and focus on making the grass you have grow better. You probably have a good clue of what problems to expect or plan for with the truck you have. You don't know what hidden issues lurk in going after a different used vehicle. It's also (generally) easier to get replacement parts for newer vehicles unless they're so freaking old/classic/popular that there's a major market for aftermarket restoration parts

Yota pickups come up often enough (not sure about your area exactly, but a few a month generally). There will be the right one come your way when it's time. Set your priorities and needs firmly, and get the go-ahead from the wife

 

Good answer! I probably knew that, but it's good to hear someone else say it. My 95 Extended Cab Truck (w 60k original miles!) is really in great shape and running like a Swiss ....er, Japanese watch. I spent so many months trying to find it, I keep obsessively looking at CL wanting to buy another one. And $2500 seems like a pretty good deal. Maybe I'll just buy it and flip it. I have to go out that way to buy some headrests for my 95, anyway. Man, were they hard to find! I'm hoping the headrests from a 1994 will fit my 95. I found a totalled 94 w the seats intact, same color as mine.

 

As a fellow craigslist obsessor, I totally get where you're coming from.

$2500 for an '80 with 80k miles? unless it's in really good condition visually and mechanically, you're still going to struggle to get more than about $2200 after negotiations. It's not like it's one of the hot 70's celicas, it's a truck. People who buy those are going to expect to pay truck prices even with low miles. If you could talk them down to $1500, you could somewhat easily net yourself a few hundred on an easy flip. Otherwise, you'll be holding on to it, or gambling with rather low or nonexistant margins (or you're taking it to mini-truck shows and shopping it around to the people who would most want one, yet who also know the value of those things, and will lowball the **** out of you whether you are or aren't their buddy).

 

Mr. Troll, Thanks for the input. You're right. I'm going to quit obsessing about it and get out to Kennedale and get those headrests, rear lens, etc. from that totalled 94 truck.

Now, if I could just find a passenger side fender in dark blue..........