I'm on the hunt for a 4Runner. My dad doesn't know a dang thing about vehicles, so I'm not getting any help on that end. Which is more attractive to you?

03 with 138k 4x4 for $7500
07 with 115k 4x4 for $11,000
05 with 108k 4x4 for $10,900

Location on all 3 is out of state, so they'll all require a few more bucks to go get. These are just a few examples of what's out there, but not necessarily the ones I've narrowed it down to.

I can't decide if age or miles or a combination of both is more important.

That close, I'm not sure it makes much of a difference, but I personally think age is a bigger factor than mileage. Plenty of 20yr old vehicles with 150k(ish) miles that seem to be worn slap out. At the same time, you can find 5-7yr old vehicles with 200+ that look and drive like new, assuming proper scheduled maintenance. Just my personal opinion though.

Condition and how well its been maintained matter more than miles or year, but a lot of times they go hand in hand. Of those three, I'd look at what features are missing on the 03 vs upgrades I could do with the extra $3500.

Depends on if it is garage kept and well maintained. The heat in alabama will wreck paint and interior on them if kept outside for a few years.

I have a 2004 V8 4Runner it has 127,000 miles on it, and it has been a great vehicle so far. The only thing I have done to it besides regular oil changes is replace brake pads and battery a year or so ago and it was the stock battery.

The only problem that I know plagues these year models is the dashes tend to crack up on them. Mine started cracking about 3 years ago. Probably because it doesn't live in a garage.

Toyota had a recall that fixed the 04 dashes for free, but it expired last month.

Condition is the main thing I look at and the second thing is mileage. Age is the least of my concerns unless there is a specific year range that had known problems that need to be avoided.

I would get the first one if it's in good condition and keep the extra $3000+ for repairs and maintenance that you may never need.

As long as they are in good condition I don't see how you could go wrong with any of them...

2 years ago, I found a 2000 4 Runner with 132k on it.. I bought it for $7100. Sold it this year with a 155k on it. zonly put a starter on it in 2 years. Sold it for $7,000 guy still driving it today. Hasn't had an issue. I was clean top to bottom.

Mileage and condition are more important than age. People pay for body styles nowadays, which is absolutely stupid.

I'd say condition and how well it's maintained. Back in about 1991-1992, my brother bought an early 80's model Ford LTD from an old lady that lived across the street from my parents. The vehicle had always been garage kept and had only 8,000 miles. It looked like it came off a showroom floor. The problem is it had sat so long every seal and hose was dry rotted. It had other issues from sitting so long like carb gummed up and such. That car never did run exactly right. Just wasn't maintained.

All things equal , the 05 is not as good a deal as the 07 , IMO. 100 bucks more for a 2 year newer machine.

From the Gen 2 to Gen 3 I'd put a lot of consideration on how you'll use it. Assuming all 3 are V6, the 05 and 07 will have a 4.0 engine with more hp and more towing capacity than the 03. Then how they were maintained comes into play, IMHO.

07 turned out to be rusty from a little time up north, so it's out.

I figured something was up.

Dang. I just called toyota to check on this, and you're right. I wonder how many other 4Runner owners didn't hear about this, because they sure didn't advertise it.

A chit load. It was an unadvertised replacement that they got away with by no issuing and official "recall." I saw it on a 4runner forum last week while doing research and everyone that missed it is pissed.

I've got mine on "order", but that was 6 months ago. Doubt I'll ever see it.

The mileage difference ain't much. The 03 seems like a decent choice with price difference. If you plan to keep it, resale value doesn't matter.

I had gotten the airbag recall, so I got that done and flagged me for the dashboard. Only problem is there aren't dashboards lying around. We're talking about a 13-14 year old vehicle. There's not a warehouse with them somewhere.