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Thinking of buying an 86 Escaper.


JustJosh

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Hello everyone,

 

I'm thinking of buying a 1986 Escaper. Manual transmission, six lug axle on back, 70,000ish miles, 22 RE engine, worn but still okay interior and exterior, tires need replaced. Any idea what these are typically priced at? I've been searching around and have seen anything from $5000 to $10,000, but hardly any of the advertisements are recent. Also, other than the axel issue (not a problem here), anything I should pay particular attention to when I test drive? 


Thank you for any help you can provide.

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That's low miles for one of these. I think $6500 would be a good price. Because of the low miles as long as it runs smoothly. Check leaf springs and shocks. Does it bounce a lot. See if it has air bags in the rear and make sure they inflate properly.

I would pay more attention to the inside. Heater, air conditioner, refrigerator and water heater if they don't work it can add up to the cost of major engine repair. Ask that the fridge be cold when you get there, they aren't like regular fridges, take long time to cool. Check all other appliances. Check water pump and lines. Flush toilet. Like your buying a house because you are. 

Good luck

Linda S

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On 9/26/2020 at 10:29 PM, linda s said:

That's low miles for one of these. I think $6500 would be a good price. Because of the low miles as long as it runs smoothly. Check leaf springs and shocks. Does it bounce a lot. See if it has air bags in the rear and make sure they inflate properly.

I would pay more attention to the inside. Heater, air conditioner, refrigerator and water heater if they don't work it can add up to the cost of major engine repair. Ask that the fridge be cold when you get there, they aren't like regular fridges, take long time to cool. Check all other appliances. Check water pump and lines. Flush toilet. Like your buying a house because you are. 

Good luck

Linda S

Thank you. We ended up buying. It's going to need suspension work and new brakes but the appliances were all functional. We also took a long test drive, and it drove really solid. I've got a busy few days ahead, but I'll eventually post photos and some scans of original documents which are pretty cool. 

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Congrats on the buy, I have an 86 Escaper that I bought in June for less but needed a ton of work because of water damage from the roof AC added on. I don't see many Escapers so we will have to connect. These forums are great and I have been learning a ton.

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24 minutes ago, ajsotophoto said:

Congrats on the buy, I have an 86 Escaper that I bought in June for less but needed a ton of work because of water damage from the roof AC added on. I don't see many Escapers so we will have to connect. These forums are great and I have been learning a ton.

 It's going to be interesting and fun, but stressful too. The drive home was great, but then I  read a thread where someone couldn't get a mechanic to replace leaf springs because it was too rusted...now I'm anxious about that. My two biggest repairs are probably are going to be suspension and new waste water tanks. 

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I am redoing my entire suspension as we speak, I got OME springs and bushings, KYB shocks, replacement shackles and pins, and  just ordered my replacement airbags from 3t this week. Once I get the bags I will be dropping it off at a truck suspension repair place, they do lifted pickups and big rigs, because they have a garage lift and roof tall enough to get it up in the air and remove the rusty shackles etc. I will let you know how it goes and if anything I got didn't fit.

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2 hours ago, linda s said:

When you say OME springs what exactly are you talking about. What did you order and from where. Toyota only sells individual springs not a complete spring pack.

Linda S


Pretty sure this is Old Man Emu not OEM/Toyota... 😀

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3 hours ago, linda s said:

When you say OME springs what exactly are you talking about. What did you order and from where. Toyota only sells individual springs not a complete spring pack.

Linda S

Hi Linda, yes CTgriffi you are correct.

Based off these forums I got two ARB/OME CSCS010R and the matching ARB bushings from CarID because DesertRat and 4wheel didn't have them in stock. I got the shackles from Toyota Parts Deals like you have linked a lot to before Linda.

You are right I haven't posted much since joining, have had a lot of family medical issues during this summer so I have just been reading and learning from you all. Thanks for all the great information Linda and everybody else.

I will try posting more and ask questions.

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