looking at 1993 toyota t100

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My family is in need of a used car and our local mechanic had someone selling a 1993 Toyota t100 thru them. It has around 240,000 miles. I have been told the car runs great, but the high mileage is really bothering me. Any body know anything about these trucks? Thanks in advance
 
They are great trucks but 240K miles is getting up there.

The T100 was a few years ahead of its time.
 
They are good trucks and hold up pretty well if cared for. Seems that the first few years of them were long-bed single cab only, no extended cab available. Size is more useful than the Tacoma, but still not full-size.

Drive it and see what you think. Do you know if it has the 4 cylinder or 6 cylinder engine? Auto or manual transmission?

There was a recall on a steering rod for those trucks. I was in one in a parking lot when it broke, no steering after that. If you get the truck, make sure this recall gets done or has been done.
 
Originally Posted By: drtyler
They are good trucks and hold up pretty well if cared for. Seems that the first few years of them were long-bed single cab only, no extended cab available. Size is more useful than the Tacoma, but still not full-size.

Drive it and see what you think. Do you know if it has the 4 cylinder or 6 cylinder engine? Auto or manual transmission?

There was a recall on a steering rod for those trucks. I was in one in a parking lot when it broke, no steering after that. If you get the truck, make sure this recall gets done or has been done.


I didn't remember the 4-cylinder.
Glad you did.
 
I love my t100. I have over 240k on mine and it runs amazing and I have no worries about it. Difference with your year though is that those v6s tend to go through head gaskets so maybe ask when it was last changed out, it can be a very costly repair.

regular or extended cab and for how much?
 
in 1995 they got the much better 3.4L engine. Still a good truck but plan on going really slow and burning a lot of gas with a 3.0.
 
It is a normal cab, and I don't yet know the price, but will definitely research how much the truck is worth. About the head gasket, When I looked on the carfax, it didn't have any headgasket replacements. I will have to ask about that. thanks
 
One of my previous jobs had a t100 with a v6 and manual transmission as a shop truck. Everyone, absolutely everyone raped that thing with wide open throttles, ripping through gears, or pulling away from a stop in 5th gear (can almost smell the clutch again) and that thing kept on chugging along. Oh yea, it had 548k miles on it last time I drove it in 2012. Original engine and tranny. Recently drove by my job and that tough truck was pulling out from a parking lot and lighting up those rear tires. Well... One of them. No LSD...
 
The most important thing to look for on these trucks is rust.
I am curious - OP, could you please tell us how much the asking price is on that truck?
 
Thanks everyone for the responses, As of right now I do not know the price of the truck as it will be for sale next week. But i did find some rust on the top of the bed. It hasn't rusted thru, but it is substantial
 
Rust on the top of the bed is probably just surface rust from paint being worn off.

Where you need to look is underneath the truck...frame, spring shackles, body rockers and corners, etc. You are looking for rot...rust that flakes off or comes off in pieces and has a rough texture. Smooth rust that doesn't flake is just surface rust and is harmless.
 
Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl
Rust on the top of the bed is probably just surface rust from paint being worn off.

Where you need to look is underneath the truck...frame, spring shackles, body rockers and corners, etc. You are looking for rot...rust that flakes off or comes off in pieces and has a rough texture. Smooth rust that doesn't flake is just surface rust and is harmless.

Yeah, you wanna look for the kind of rust that will cause a truck to break into pieces when it hits a bump. So its everything you can poke at from under a lift that's important.
 
Originally Posted By: CARJ
The 3.0L V6 is well known for head gasket failures. You will want to make sure it's been replaced.


Those failures (and the recall) were for certain 1990-1995 production dates of the 3.0 (the 3VZE).

A 1993 would be subject to the recall and probably does need the head gaskets replaced. Run the VIN - if they were done, Toyota will know. If not, then I bet Toyota will still cover it.

The real issue is that wheezing 150hp 3.0 in a near full size truck.

It's got great torque, but the cross-over manifold just choked the engine. Headers added an easy 30 hp just by letting it breathe.

As a data point- my old 1990 4 Runner is still on the road with its new owner, at 285,000 miles and the 3VZE is still running with the original gaskets in place. It was not subject to the recall (too early of a build date). It's a solid engine.
 
Well we ended up not getting the truck due to the reason that he wanted 3,200 for it. The mechanics that it was at found that it needed alot of work.
 
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