1986 Toyota Pickup Base review from North America

When I got it the truck had been parked for a year in an apartment lot after having a large (8" diameter) tree branch fall on it during an ice storm. A lot of water had gone down into the dash and it had many things wrong with it, but all were "little" things. A person at my office gave me the truck.

I cleaned out the dash and got all the water out. It seems to operate fine since it has been dry.

There was very little body damage and even still has very little rust.

I replaced the following myself to get a "rebuild" title and get it back on the road:

Windshield

1 wiper blade arm

both wiper blades

Bench seat

Plugs, cap, rotor button, and wires and set the timing

Front brakes complete - rotors, calipers, pads, front bearing seals.

Muffler and lead pipe (between muffler and CC) along with hangers

Stereo and speakers

Radiator hoses

Drive belt (only one standard V-belt for $3) which works the alternator and water pump

All the light bulbs in the truck since most were out.

My total expenses were about $950, including the taxes, title, and registration.

It is a great little truck and is my daily driver (60 miles per day round trip).

I consistently get 27 MPG! And it's only a 4 speed!

A little under-powered for a "truck" - I tend to overuse it on the farm - but it does pull my 16 foot dual axle trailer as long as there is only about 2800 lbs or less being hauled. I've had close to 4500 lbs being carried between the trailer and the short bed. The 4 speed helps here.

Seats are awful for longer distances - over an hour at a time hurts my back and legs. Original seat was worse since it was water-damaged, but even the replacement out of a 1994 is not very comfortable.

It uses quite a bit of oil (a quart in 500 miles - every other gas fill up) even when it only had 125000 miles that isn't what I expected from a Toyota.

It has never left me stranded, yet.