It’s amazing how many rust-free Toyota trucks still emerge for sale, seemingly kept in a vault in some West Coast community since new. The truth of the matter is, these trucks simply didn’t rust away in places like Oregon and California the same way they were absolutely ravaged in the rust belt and northeast. A smart business model these days is finding these trucks before they hit eBay, shipping them to the east coast, and listing them for what is likely a respectable profit. The seller of this clean 4×4 Hilux pickup notes it has had just two owners from new and has under 100,000 miles. Find it here on eBay in Chester, New York, with bids to $15,000 and the reserve unmet.
The colors and decals are very attractive, and while the graphics kit may look brand new, it’s entirely possible they’re original if the two prior owners kept the truck indoors when not in use. The matching bed cap still appears to be in nice shape with no obvious paint fading or damage to the rear glass and locking mechanism. The 31-inch tires are the perfect size for an import truck of this vintage; I’ve gone with that size on two of my Isuzu Troopers from the same era and it’s the perfect fitment. This Toyota retains its factory steel wheels and manual locking front hubs.
The interior is in phenomenal condition and the theme of white and brown/gold continues inside the cockpit. The seller claims this Toyota looks like it has 9,000 miles as opposed to the 97K on the clock, and I’m inclined to agree. It really is stunning inside, with a crystal clear gauge cluster, crack-free dash, lustrous black surfaces, warning labels still affixed to the dash, and spotless upholstery. The Toyota has the preferred manual transmission that helps to get the most juice possible out of the durable-but-anemic 22R four-cylinder engine. The seller notes the Hilux retains all of its original paperwork and manuals, hopefully residing in that still-latching glovebox.
The engine bay looks as good as the rest of the truck. The 22R is a mill that doesn’t require a thick stack of receipts to feel safe buying one with big miles, but if it’s as under-used as this one is, the likelihood of a breakdown is even smaller. The carbureted mill is simple to work on and spare parts are still plentiful, which are two more big reasons why a vintage Hilux like this is still so popular among car and truck enthusiasts of every stripe. With a truck that has clearly been loved as much as this one has by its previous two owners, I’d feel safe buying this one sight-unseen, but the underbody photos should convince anyone on the fence that this is a dry, rust-free survivor that will only continue to appreciate in the future.
Awesome looking truck. I remember when the Toyota Truck (Hilux) looked like this. Compared to the current Toyota Tacoma, I’d prefer this any day.
I had a company truck that was a 1986 2 wheel drive with this engine. It had a column automatic with push button overdrive. Not exactly fast, but it sure took a beating from many drivers. One time someone left the keys in it over the weekend and it was stolen. It was, however, found on the side of a road in the next town the following Monday with an empty gas tank.
Interesting options load on it. At first I thought it was a DX with graphics added, but it’s an SR5 with no additional options packages.
These trucks at this time were about as close as Japanese cars sold in America ever came to being optionable a la carte, but most people seemed to go with either a completely basic model with only maybe a radio and step bumper or a full-boat SR5 with the chrome grille/styled wheel package and velour bucket seats, in-betweeners like this seemed less common.
I don’t think the new owner will be happy with what he finds on the bed rails when he takes off the canopy!
What do you mean? It looks perfect. Like it hadn’t seen snow or road salt. If only all Toyotas of this vintage were this lucky.
I think we can all agree, it was this truck that turned the tide. Longtime American truck buyers, finally gave in and bought this Toyota. The 80s were a crazy time. We had the S-10 and the Ranger, but there was this heave-ho to US products attitude, Toyota was the buzz word. I don’t know if they were any better, they sure rusted faster than ours, I suppose, after the Vega and Pinto, Americans were leery of any 4 cylinder, and here was a proven unit. All my construction buddies bought these, used them in all weather, and got MAYBE 5 years, but all trucks rusted, mechanically, they simply were the best. Pretty sure it’s a carb model, so be ready for the “high idle” and “stumbling”, F.I. took care of all that, and I wonder if people today know what “locking the hubs” even means. Be comical to see one stuck, “here’s your problem, right here”( turning hub lever to lock) although even THINKING of taking this in the snow, would be foolish. Hey, again, in ’85, $3grand was one thing, $15gs,,not so sure. It’s obvious this truck never saw a flake, and someone dragged it across the country, to an area that you’ll never find another, I guess for $10grand profit, I suppose I’d do the same thing. For those areas, they simply don’t exist. Changed our world, it did. One of the very few Asian vehicles I had, was an ’84 2wd, that my ex brother in law bought new. It had 230K on it, and in all those miles, all he did was tires and brakes. Not many others could make that claim. What would it take for these knuckleheads to give us trucks like this again?
My first vehicle was a 1984 two-wheel drive Toyota pickup with a 4-speed manual.
It gave me 10 years of trouble free driving.
Most people don’t realize that those 22R engines actually need a decent amount of maintenance (timing chain @ 100k mi)
They are slow and those trucks beat you up because you sit low and they have really stiff suspension. I just remember always getting to my destination tired especially if it was a couple hour drive.
It would be a great truck to own but not as a daily driver
My oldest brother had one just like this. His was blue, his had a 5spd manual gearbox with an extra lever for the transfer case and manual locking front wheel hubs. I think his was powered by the same engine this was, a 22R 4 cyl. engine. He used his Toyota for many things, skiing, hiking, camping, etc.