Faults:

Hello all, I owned one of these Toyota vans that you described, (1984-1989), and I had mixed feelings about. It ran fine, made some loud muffler noise, handled well and dangerously, but I had bought cheap and resold it cheap. The carped smelled, I felt every bump in the road and my back did not appreciate it. But I liked the gas mileage and the sense of reliability.

General Comments:

What I m looking for is information on converting these vans to use as campers and especially the possibility to cut one up and extend it length wise and even chancing making wider, as dodge did with one of their vans. I also considered adding a fiber glass top to give myself more head room. If someone has done similar things, please call (818) 832-9486 or e-mail MoroccaLA@earthlink.net.

Thank you.

Faults:

The alternator failed twice; once at 195K miles, and the second time due to my ignorance. Take care in washing the interior. Two alternators, totaling >$200 are 65% of repairs, yet. The hydraulic clutch line failed -replaced. Water pump failed at 209K -replaced. Thermostat failed (then removed), but the prior failure caused a small coolant-hose on the backside of the block to fail. It's been a work vehicle, and when I could'nt get my hands on the hose, I sawzalled a hole in the firewall to get access. Genius, I think? The carpet and ac ducts cover the blemish.

It has some rust along the wheel wells. The rear wiper, defrost, ac/heat and fan, lighters, hatch lock are kaput. In the driver's cabin: the icebox, ac, radio, cruise, are also no longer working. One front wiper's linkage is broken and will spring out if it gets any dry resistance. I paid $750 for it, and I used to pay $400/mo.on a Hilux Yota truck plus tangibles.

General Comments:

The Mystery Machine came to me in my moment of need. It was packed in the rear compartments with spare hoses and other extras. I have thought about trying to move onto something else, but I'm a purist at heart and its 19-23 mpg is decent considering the alternative. I have chains for it. I have slept on the benches once. And the list goes on about my attachments to her. It has a full power package with dual pop-up and power sunroofs, good handling and potential for being more reliable. But I have been more than satisfied with it for the money spent. Stellar deal, and respect from lots of jealous bystanders. After seeing so many episodes of Pimp my Ride I am seriously considering refurbishing the entire thing, but only to its deluxe, original design. I echo the thoughts of many of the other positive reviews for this worthy auto. It's my van, man!

Faults:

Replaced sliding glass window.

Rear door lock sticks due to dirt build up on the action. Easy fix though.

Replaced ball joints.

Ran hot. Replaced thermostat.

Speedometer cable broke. $10 fix.

Power steering pump leaks bad. Easy to get to, and the rebuild kit is only $12 bucks.

Beware of the latch that holds the seat up when you access the engine. They have a tendency to break.

Front blower motor will not turn on. If you know why. Please e-mail me at 2fast@cableone.net Thanks.

General Comments:

My wife really loves this van. I was not feeling the same way when I bought it for her, but now I really love it too.

I bought this van for $500 bucks and began working on it right away. Now that everything is fixed, I wouldn't sell it. The only thing that I am still having trouble with is the front blower for the air conditioning and heater.

Thanks for reading my review.