200 series recommendations

If I was forking out $42,000 I would be looking at something a bit newer than a 10 year old Toymota.

I would suggest that he has a look at the Isuzu MUX, he could just about get a brand new one for that money.

Need a few wads of cash to keep a 200series on the road.
I had a 2012 model and it needed both turbos replaced before it hit 110,000km.
That was about $11,000 all up and about a year of having it going into limp mode.

Hey Lyndon, that looks like a dam nice car for the money to me! Don't know much about the 200's as we haven't gotten there yet. We have a 100 and a 2005 TD ute and quite a few other Toyotas as well. Good luck, Toni.

I have a 2009 200 series.....150,000K's....haven't put a spanner on it yet.

As with any car, have a good look over it and with any high tech diesel, get an injector feedback test done.

That looks like a really nice, well kitted out car to me. Ready to tour wherever without spending a razoo.

We have had our 2012 GX for 4 years now and find it to be a comfortable, capable and reliable touring vehicle.

Every make and model has some hard luck stories but at the end of the day, there are thousands of 200's out there travelling all over the place with no issues. (when we are virus free of course)

Toyota has very good dealer support throughout Australia as well so even if you have problems, help is not too far away.

If the service history checks out and a thorough mechanical report from a reputable mechanic does not reveal any problems, I think its good value for money.

Take it to a mechanic who knows 200’s. They are $30k+ to fix when the left turbo fails and goes through the motor from being dusted. There are plenty of “dusted 200” pages to check.
As others have said you’ll get a muX etc new for that sort of money, full warranty and more reliable engine.

I had a early model 200 series, don’t do it. The biggest piece of sh# t I have ever owned.

https://www.mitsubishi-motors.com.au/shopping-tools/special-offers#!vehicle/triton

This looks like a good buy for the same price
I don’t own one but pretty good value for money and brand new

Lyndon
The look of a vehicle is in no way an indicator of the mechanical reliability, nor does it reveal if it burns oil at an unacceptably high rate. They owner/seller won't tell you either. Yes there are many around but some do have problems, the trick is to be able to identify any potential problems currently happening with it. Just asking people here cannot do that.
The stated fuel usage may not really be true of what the vehicle actually delivers.
At over 200,000 km I would expect the injectors would require replacing soon to ensure reliability and acceptable fuel use and no disasters. There are 8 of them remember.

About other turbo comments. Dusted is when dust enters the engine, depends on the size of the grains of dust. Some small cause little damage in the short term, larger ones simply remove the turbo compressor vanes by sudden abrasion. I have replaced a large turbo which had NO vanes left on a CAT Dozer turbo. Could even feel where they had been. If the turbo destroys itself, then that isn't dusted, it is engine destruction.

The Triton mentioned may be cheap but there is a reason for that, however with some 4wding and town use as a mix it may be cost effective. Just don't load it up.
I would far prefer another brand.

Lyndon,
The width of the 200 at 1970mm is a pain to park if using it around town. Fantastic car on the road.
I use my 80 series around town 1900mm wide. Its the door damage I don't want. In NT the car space widths may not be so narrow. Also the 200 has no parking sensors.

That vehicle seems to be very tidy, but with the km's it has done, I would be getting it thoroughly checked over.

I have a 2010 LC200 60th Anniversary set up as a long distance tourer. Uses next to no oil. I stand corrected, but I think around 2010 Toyota fixed the oil usage issues? Mine has only 115K on the clock. As someone stated, 256K is getting up there for time to replace injectors, although some have had to be replaced a lot earlier than that. 8 x LC200 injectors will be around $4000 for non genuine, more for "genuine" Toyota, plus fitting & labour etc. Just something to consider. They are expensive vehicles to maintain. (I have just replaced the power steering pump on mine!!)

Also as stated, make sure the injector feedback values are checked. That should give a reasonable indication as to the state of them. Someone mentioned turbo squealing as a sign of stuffed turbos - that might have been the case in the scenario stated but you will find that most if not all 200 series have a distinctive turbo noise likened to a squeal and not the "normal" "sweet" turbo whistle we are all used to. (under load around 1500 to 200 rpm) That is just the way they are. It used to annoy the hell out of me, but you get used to it. There are a number of posts on for example the LC200 forum relating to this. It is a bit like the transfer gear noise on the 200. Distinctive whine in low range but totally Ok & "normal"

Along with any IFS vehicle, the 200 is no stranger to busting CV's. There are plenty of examples on forum posts you can find of 200's driving uphill, front wheels spinning, lifting in the air and coming back down onto the ground and bang. Again, no different to most other IFS vehicles. Perhaps not super expensive to fix/replace, but off road in the middle of nowhere without the parts/tools/know how to fix creates a problem. I am especially careful with my vehicle when off road.

Dusting is an issue that has raised its head more so lately and it is not particularly specific to the 200 series. It is caused by a not so good fitting of the lid on the airbox. Another thing to check on inspection. Lift the lid and check the "clean" side for dust on the inside of the lid and ducting to the turbos. I am keeping a close eye on mine. I have had small amounts of dust in mine but hopefully not enough to do damage. Fingers crossed !! A fix is to replace the factory airbox with a aftermarket one, but they are not cheap. Depends on how much you want to fix the issue I suppose.

Price wise, it looks around the right money, dependent on what you see on inspection - the k's are getting up there but perhaps average or a bit more at 25K per year.. The vehicle was probably around $80-85K new, plus it has the "extras" fitted now, although if traded, those extras would get you sweet-b-all extra from a dealer. Disclaimer - I am no expert on car valuations !!!

The LC200 is a great vehicle, especially for touring, but they are a heavy beast. The payload given is lousy and unless you have a GVM upgrade, it is very very easy to exceed the GVM (hence the reason mine has a GVM upgrade). Fuel consumption wise, being so heavy, is not what I call great. On mine, weighing in at about 3.5t loaded, I can get around 13l/100k on a trip, around town about 16 and when towing 2.6t, around 18-20 - give or take.

There are probably other little quirks that the 200 has, but all in all, I love mine and hopefully it gives me years more of good service.

Hope that all helps.

So why Lyndon are you looking for a vehicle for your nephew.

As a 27yo, is he not able to make his own decisions?

My father bought a car for me that I had no say in (but had to pay for) and it was something I was not interested in and sold it a couple of weeks later.

Tell him to have a look at the Y62 Patrols , he could get a Stl for the same $$$$ with a 100K's less and 3 years younger

I have owned my 2012, 200 series since new. Mainly use it around town when not towing a 3000kg caravan on extended outback trips, most of which is on dirt roads. Very reliable and never had anything go wrong with it. Reliability and serviceability are the main issue for me as we go quite remote and on that front it has not let us down. You get what you pay for. Would by another one tomorrow if need be.

Thanks for all the replies folks. Certainly seems to be some "possible" major issues.

After owning 3 x 70 series, 2 x 1HZ and now the FTE and NEVER had a single thing go wrong "that springs to mind anyway". Have I been lucky or are these models just SO much more reliable when maintained properly....

Cheers

Lyndon

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