Lets buy a 100 series!!

Of course the legality of the car should be looked at (a full check of the VIN etc) and things like a complete service record, absolutely no gaps is good and you may want to check some out with a simple phone call. Dont always believe what is written. The neater and more official they look the better chance is that they were done properly. The following may help.

Personally for an allrounder keep the eyes out for a 2005+ model. One thing we all want is good lights. Ours (2005) has the double headlights. You may want to get more. But just the standard have been good for us.

If the car does not have tow bar then more than likely it has been a taxi to take the kids to school and not towed anything and the motor should not have been strained. But then again a tow bar is good to recoveries provided it is the one that is mounted directly to the chassis.

Look out for any signs that it has done any extreme off road work. Multiple rock marks on the rear diff and on the underbody protection. Especially heavy marks on lower wishbone arms. I wouldn't worry about "bush pinstriping".

If it has low mileage how much are the seats worn.

Then get a mechanic ywho you can trust and ask for an evaluation. Pay if necessary.

I wouldn't go past a 4.2TD GXL auto. We are tickled pink with ours.

Phil

Hi nootsa200873.

The first thing you should do is go to lcool.org and join it is free. It is a forum for landcruiser owners. Therein you will find a 100 series section, it contains all to be known about these vehicles. Ask the same question there and you will get answers based on experience.

With your budget you should be able to find a vehicle with reasonably low clicks, bearing in mind that 150,000 clicks is reasonably low if the vehicle has been looked after.

You should be able to find a good nonturbo diesel six or a petrol six. if it is a petrol model look for dual fuel. I have an dual fuel 80 series with a petrol motor it is the same motor in the 100 series, thirsty on petrol. There are plenty out there that are dual fuel.

If it was me I would be looking at carsales.com.au and see what is for sale It will give a good idea of what is available. You will do a better deal privately than a dealer.

If you are mechanically inclined it may pay you to find a vehicle with no extras and fit them up yourself, plenty on the second hand market. It is a valid point re tow bars as most of these vehicles have been used to tow caravans, horse floats etc.

Roof racks, tow bar, bullbar and winch are all handy but not essential you just need to work out what you actually intend to use your vehicle for, plenty of winches on the front of vehicles that never get used.

I guess what I'm saying that if it was me I would be buying a bare low mileage suburban taxi and then be adding the extras as it need them.

I have two cruisers an 80 and a 100 and have purchased both in this way and added what I needed. This has allowed me to spend more on the base vehicle as I wasn't paying for all the extras at the time.

Avoid vehicles that have been modified suspension lifts, after market turbos, huge wheels and tyres etc. Whilst they look great, they can indicate the vehicle has had a hard life and can deliver problems down the track.

Test drive many be for you commit this will give you a feel for the vehicle as different varients drive differently.

There are many cruisers in your price bracket on the market, welcome to the club and have fun!

Hi Chris, When you find some suitable vehicles, just have a good look underneath for scrapes and dings on sills and diffs. Look inside for water stained carpets, corrosion on alloy engine parts like alternator etc. This may give you some indication of the work and treatment they have had. You only need to to go to the Patrol forum and Lcool site to see what some mugs do to their 4x4s. Have a look on UTube at people crossing rivers, some stuck in mud up to the windscreen, scraping over rocks that really are almost impossible to cross etc. Just be careful what you buy, your new found vehicle that is intended to give you and your family some joy and security, may turn into your worst nightmare. Dont be hasty in buying something because you have limited time. My thoughts only. regards Michael

you should be looking at the v8 100 series as well.
extremely cheap to buy. plenty of power, and even better on fuel on the highway than the 6 cylinder petrol, and can get down to 12ltrs on the highway driving.
as soon as you load the weight on bars, winch and stuff economy drops.
cheap, good on power, and arent too bad economy NON TOWING. small amount of weight.

Hey there, me again,
In addition to my post the other day, I think I may have found a Landcruiser 100 series to buy. I have checked all the items suggested by you fine folk, and all looks ok. The only one issue that I found is an auto transmission shift problem. The shift between 2nd to 3rd under power, flares up before taking 3rd. Also, maybe connected to the same problem, is the kickdown, did not seem to take correctly on a couple of occasions. Does anybody out there have any thoughts on known auto transmission issues with petrol 100 series landcruisers? Some suggestions say an auto service may fix some shifting issues. Again, any help would be appreciated
Cheers Chris.

Just a follow up to my problem here. After test driving the car, and finding the flare up in the transmission, the owner took it to an automatic transmission mechanic. Within 5 minutes, he found the kickdown cable not in its correct adjustment, and also the throttle position sensor out of adjustment. (Recently the rocker cover gasket had been replaced, and these items not put back in correctly). After finding and fixing these problems the mechanic called the owner and said to come and get it, but the owner told him to do a full check over and service of the auto. I went back yesterday and test drove it again, and it changes like brand new! All good, and I bought it!! Woo hoo, I am finally an owner of a 4WD!
Thanks to those who gave me helpful advice, much appreciated.
Chris