Hello, everyone, new poster from NH here. I bought an 04 honda pilot from a used car lot and it had a bad torque converter/tranny rumble strip noise. I took it back to the dealer and they flushed the transmission thinking that would fix the problem. I argued that it still is bad and I wanted my money back. They did not want to give me my money back and I finally agreed to swap car with one on the lot. The only thing I saw that I was interested in was an 04 4Runner with V8 engine and 147,000 miles. At this point, rather than arguing again I am just going to look at it and swap tomorrow. I am asking everyone here what I should be looking for on this car when I test drive it and look it over tomorrow???? I know nothing about this car but it may actually suit me better than the Pilot since it has a towing package. I am a little turned off by the high miles and V8 gas consumption but the Pilot was nothing to brag about either. How do you make sure the 4 wheel drive system is working properly? just looking for any info to determine if this would be an acceptable swap. Thanks for a quick response since I am looking at it tomorrow!

 

Glad to see you took our advice! Check undernieth to make sure it doesn't have a bunch of new parts in one area, this might point to collision repair. Also check to make sure all the body panels are the same color for the same reason. As for checking the 4wd, take it for a test drive and find some dirt! Its the funnest way.

 

147,000 on that truck isn't anything to worry about as long as it has a good service history and has always been properly maintained. It shouldn't get bad gas mileage unless you make it do so. i would think it should have a new timing belt of may be in need of one at that mileage. test the 4 wheel drive by putting it in 4 wheel drive. Next time only go to a dealer if you are buying new or certified used vehicles i never buy new.

 

There are a couple areas of concern.
1) Frozen brake calipers. Not real sure how to tell this easily, only suggestion would be to see if it pulls to one side when braking. It's fairly common for the calipers to get frozen on these.
2) 4wd system. Put it in neutral and shift into 4 lo just to make sure it shifts nice and smooth.
3) Actuator. Check for leaks, it a common issue as well. If you look at the transfer case, you'll see a black box attached to the rear. Quite a few have had leaks from where the black box (actuator) joins the transfer case. It's a $3 o-ring but a $1500 repair if it's needed.
4) Verify that the timing belt was changed at around 90k miles. It definitely should have been done before, but if not that can be a costly maintenance item.

What trim level is the 4runner? Some are equipped with a hydraulic suspension system called XREAS. All Sport Editions and some Limited models come with this (not offered on the sr5's). It's pretty common for this to leak. Examine the shocks to see if there's any fluid leaks visible.

 

We have 180k on ours now. 2004 4runner sport, 4.7 V8. No leaks what so ever. The hydro suspension rides like a dream. Pulls our camper great. Only problem is I a caliper getting a little sticky. We love ours. And get over 20 mpg out of it. 147k on a well maintained 4.7 would not bother me any at all.

 

Thank you for he response. The truck is SR5 so no air shocks. I will try to crawl underneath and find the black box and look for any leaking spots. If they seem to be nice to me, maybe I will ask them to put it on the lift so I can inspect easier. What else should I be looking at underneath other than any wet spots indicating leaks? I do not know whether the timing belt was done. The carfax report shows one Massachusetts owner but very little service records so they must have brought it to a non Toyota or carfax reporting repair shop. I probably should take it in for the new timing belt and water pump if there is no records of it. Is there any way to find out who the owner is other than getting lucky and finding a piece of paper in the glovebox? I am now seeing many other happy owners on internet with many miles on this truck!

 

One more thing. You can register on the Toyota owners website and run the vin. It's free and may show something the Carfax doesn't. Any work done by a dealer should be there.

 

I swapped the Pilot for the 4runner today! They let me put it on the lift and I did not see any leaks around actuator or anywhere for that matter. It looked pretty good for a New England vehicle. It does make noises underneath, kinda like in need of some struts and shocks. I may be over sensitive but it seems like it vibrates and whines a little when making a turn? I think it might be a good idea to take it to a transmission or tune up place and have the tranny fluid flushed. Thanks Ark for the tips and also for directing me to the Toyota owners website. I entered the VIN and got a lot more information that made me feel much better about the car. There were three pages of service records and they were from Toyota! It was also a good sign when they changed the oil today and peeled off a Toyota dealer oil change reminder sticker on the shield. Makes me think it was serviced at Toyota all along and a little less worried about the 147K. They put two new tires to match the two good ones that were on there. Its a pretty sharp looking silver 2004 SR5 for which I paid 9,000 for. Thats about 4,000 lower than retail and about 500 less than average dealer trade in according to NADA. One weird thing happened already. I could not get the rear window to go back up with the remote and I was hitting the buttons and accidently pressed the panic. Then all of the sudden the car started! Is there some kind of remote starter that is on the stock fob? Why wont the fob close the rear window?

 

Don't know why the window did not go up with the remote, but if it has a remote starter the combo might be lock-unlock-lock. You have to do it fast.

 

Welcome to the family!! As for the rear window, it doesn't go up from the key fob, only down.

Do you plan to off road at all? If you don't or only very minor stuff, you should consider upgrading to the FJ Cruiser suspension. It's a great setup for the 4runner, excellent factory replacement. The shocks/coils from a 2007-2009 FJ Cruiser are a direct swap. I swapped just the coils, it rode much smoother and handled better. Here's a great deal on a full set of shocks/coils.
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/sale-s...uspension.html

If you off road, you'll probably want something longer than stock to allow for more flex. All depends on your intended use, but this would definitely be a great place to start considering the mileage.

 

I am bringing it back to the used car lot dealer. I have a one month warranty so I want their mechanic to fix the creaking noise it makes at low speed over bumpy roads. I think it may be bushings from the lower arm or sway bar. I really have no ideas. I want to see if they can fix the noise under warranty first and then I will go about looking at shocks. However, if I did have a nice set of shocks and springs, their mechanic could probably install along with the bushings and I could save on some labor if their willing to do it. I am not so sure after I already returned a Pilot for the 4 ruuner! Maybe i am pushing it a bit. The shocks are sold from the FJ cruiser thread. Does anyone recommend a stock replacement set of struts and shocks for the 04 4Runner (non air shocks)? I really dont four wheel with the truck. I pull a trailer with a couple of ATV's and do the four wheelin with the ATV's.

 

Keep your eye out for a set of factory FJ Bilsteins with coils. This would be a great setup if you can find it. For just shocks, Bilstein 5100's are a great option, they can be purchased for under $300 from ajusa.com (typically have a coupon listed on the homepage). I'd still advise picking up a set of FJ coils. They make a noticeable difference in ride quality and will also help prevent sagging in the rear when your towing.

As for the noise, there could be several causes. A couple of things to look at (or that the shop should look at) are the swaybar end links and the bolts holding the control arms on. It's common for noises to be caused from these items being loose. I know my swaybar end links were loose and it made a pretty bad clunk, tightened the bolts and problem was solved.