"Free" car a good deal or not? 2010 Toyota Highlander 3.5L AWD

General Discussion
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Yeah, my goal out of this would be to have an old cheap vehicle with a known history and in great shape once the timing set is fixed. I am waiting for the quote to see if it is worth it or not. Taxes, insurance, etc. are all a lot less as mentioned.

I personally see value in the simplicity of older cars. This thing isn’t super low-tech but certainly not like most modern cars. My friend bought a 2022 Highlander and said he is going to have to read all the books to figure it out. Lane assist and such can be a good thing. I had it act up once on a rented car in a construction zone. Workers were partly out in the lane so you had to drive around them on the shoulder. Lane assist thought I was going off road but collision avoidance saw the workers so the system got confused. Anyway, I do remember finding a way to turn this off until the car was turned off, then it was reset back to ON.

Anyway, here is a video of someone who is having a new long block installed in an oil burning 2009 Camry. The owner obviously saw value in a simple “below base model” car with a manual transmission since those cannot be bought anymore. I am sure this job exceeded the value of the car but not to the owner. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ug--U5FkTTo

It would be a no-brainer if this Highlander were a manual transmission but I don’t think that was ever an option for these cars. Like that Camry, this car is in great shape with no rust. The owner didn’t drive it in the winter. He had beaters to drive in the winters of northern IL and IA and would tell me stories about hitting a bump and some part of the body falling off! He said you wanted a disposable car in those areas. It is amazing that this thing has no rust. I see the Camry is also mentioned as being an Illinois car so I guess this can happen.

I will let everyone know what happens once I get a quote. Also, can a newer upgraded 2013 or newer type timing set be installed in a 2010 engine? I know this can be done on other engines but not sure if that is an option on this one.

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If you had bought my 1974 Volvo, you would have found documented evidence of maintenance that went beyond the mfr’s recommendations.

That car was certainly low-tech (by modern standards), yet it was plagued with so many recurring issues that whoever bought it from the dealership where I traded it in would have wound-up with an extremely unreliable vehicle.

“Older” technology isn’t necessarily better.

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I hesitate to offer any advice since it all depends on individual situations. However in keeping some of my cars for years and hundreds of thousands of miles, and buying both new and used, and keeping detailed cost per mile information, I will say that the cost of the fixed asset itself, is a fraction of the total cost. Doesn’t make much difference over th3 long haul if you paid $10, 20, 50 thousand or free. So th3 actual machine cost to me would make little difference compared to the long term cost and utility of the machine. Whatever money is sunk into the thing, ya got to be willing to drive it to get your money out of it or just buy new and take advantage of a warranty and trade in value. On one car (more than one) that I drove past 500,000 miles, I determined I would have been better off junking it at 350k instead of keeping it. I love giving stuff away to someone I think worthy but taking free stuff doesn’t excite me. Just my humble opinion is all.

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At 250,000 miles everything that moves is past it’s expected life, worn and should be expected to fail. So instead of “Free” you’ll end up being nickel and dimed on an unreliable vehicle with little or no resale value

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This guy seems to really have a thing for Toyotas and speaks highly of them. This channel comes up anytime I look up something on the Highlander or 3.5 engine and it seems he mainly works on Toyotas. I am thinking I am going to proceed with the repair as it will be around $3000 with parts and labor. It is in far better shape than the ones in these videos but I will let the mechanic take a good look at it before I commit in case there are some hidden surprises. I know the history and it has always been taken care of so if it is just the VVT-I, and associated fixes, that would be great. I might have him change the alternator and power steering pump while in there as this engine is really tight in the engine bay. It sounds like you are ■■■■■■ to not change the water pump and the shop has that in the price they gave me. I am thinking the head gaskets are overkill but it looks like the labor to do them at the same time as everything else is not much more. I will ask the shop if doing what is done in the first video is a good idea or not. Unless there are some surprises, this seems like a good car to have around.

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If you are going that deep in it, just pull and reseal the engine, rear main has 250,000 miles on it also, I assume… just saying…

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Not going back and reading everything again but only two things come to mind. I have been told by skilled mechanic types to never open up a high mileage engine. It will never be done right and the problems will just cascade out of control. Replace or leave it alone for about the same money in the long run.

Now I know many are die hard Toyota fans, never owned one myself, but it seems like there are a lot of issues with the dealerships. My BIL has a Toyota and it has had valve clatter since new, or at least that’s what sounds like.

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Don’t pay for a power steering pump repair

This car has electric power steering

I still think you’re potentially making a big mistake here

This is someone else’s high-mileage vehicle you’re intending to acquire. You’re assuming it really is in as good shape as the current owner says it is. No offense to your friend, but most people greatly overestimate their vehicle’s condition

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I would normally agree but I am very familiar with this vehicle and have ridden probably several thousand miles in it. It is clean and well-cared for. They do not abuse their cars and maintain them. It has 246,000 miles on it but it could pass for 46,000 based on its appearance. The engine uses no appreciable amounts of oil between changes. The Youtube channel guy says these engines run for many hundreds of thousands of miles and will not burn oil unless you go 50,000 miles between changes. I think ANY car would burn oil if you did that.

An automatic transmission with that many miles would be more concerning to me, being a manual transmission guy. It looks like I shouldn’t be worried and that these are pretty much bullet proof. The 3.5L comes with a 5 speed auto while the 4 cylinder comes with a 6 speed. Both look to be great transmissions for reliability. I like to look at this site and overall this looks like a good model. 2010 Toyota Highlander Problems, Defects & Complaints

Basically when it went down, he went and bought a 2022 Highlander at a nearby dealer with the same engine but an improved VVT-I. He was planning to sell the old one for parts but got fed up with idiots calling, wanting to make “payments”, etc. Called a “We buy ■■■■ cars” type place and they said they would tow it for free but not give him anything for it. They never saw the car so probably thought they would be towing off a pile of junk. He was not against this but also figured I might want it and since it was in otherwise good shape, would rather see it used than sent off for scrap. It has leather interior which is somehow not cracked or worn. Again, I am familiar with the car, have ridden many miles in it and driven it as well. This is the first real problem, although major, that it has had.

I helped change a flat tire on it once and did notice how the underbody basically looked like a new car. They drove old rust buckets in the winter and kept two good cars garaged, having moved here from northern Illinois and Iowa.

I do know that some people seem to be overly complementary towards Toyota. I certainly think they are a good car but some people think they can do no wrong. This guy with the YouTube channel seems to feel this way. I always like to check this site before considering a car. 2010 Toyota Highlander Problems, Defects & Complaints This one checks out pretty well overall.

Now the guy on YouTube also speaks highly of these Camrys if the faulty piston and rings are fixed. Car Complaints basically says to avoid this one at all costs. 2007 Toyota Camry Problems, Defects & Complaints One of my friends once had one of these and definitely doesn’t think Toyota can do no wrong. Part of the problem was that his wife wouldn’t mention this to him until the low oil light came on. By that time damage was being done. It was burning through its fill in a week by the end. That being said, he was not impressed even before it started to drink oil.

I see that there is no traditional power steering pump. That was me thinking of traditional engine accessories, not the shop telling me that.

I figure the rear main seal is a good idea as well and will talk to the shop about that. I am going to also have the shop look it over first to make sure there are no other glaring defects that could make this a bad deal.

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We’ll just have to agree to disagree, in that case

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When a camshaft actuator gets stuck or fails to return to neutral position, it is usually caused by a sticking oil control valve (VVTi solenoid), and the condition is intermittent. A broken camshaft actuator would not be intermittent.

Every camshaft actuator/sprocket I replaced was because of a noise complaint, (they knock during start-up) or manufacture’s recall.

To remove the camshafts from the rear bank, it is best to remove the engine from the vehicle. The engine and sub frame are lowered from the vehicle however the transmission is not separated from the engine. Because of this, expect an additional 2-hour labor fee to replace the rear main crankshaft seal.

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that car will be a money pit. it will be one problem after another. your friend should sell it to a junk yard.

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One of the videos I found answered one of my questions. Yes, a better 3rd gen timing setup can be installed on a 2nd gen engine, essentially solving the VVT-I problems of the 2nd gen. That being said, it sounds like that would be a costly upgrade unless known good used parts from a 2014-2016 could be found. It would probably be worth doing this if the car was essentially new but figure it will be worn out by the time this engine component wears out again.

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From a 2GR-FKS engine as shown in the video? That engine uses electric camshaft actuators located on the front of the engine. You would have to replace the cylinder heads, computer, wiring harness etc.

2GR-FKS
2GR-FKS851×847 126 KB

The 2GR-FE engine in that Highlander has hydraulic camshaft actuators. Dirty control valves cause sticking actuators. You are making a big project out of this.

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Yeah, that is a 4th generation in the video if you want to call it that, not a 3rd gen. The 3rd gen is not as different as this one and the job would be much easier. That being said, it is probably not worth doing unless there is a known good donor for not a ton of money. He discusses all the evolution of the 2GR engine in this video.

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You could list it for sale now for $600 and if somebody bites, go pick it up and flip it.

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Why not drive the vehicle? Is this one too old or too new?

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Registration costs, risk of breaking down during an important trip, and if it does break down all the way flipping it for $600 now is no longer an option.

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What do recommend? Bicycle? Public transportation?
Do you believe the registration fees would be much greater than that of your old Ford?

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The original poster isn’t in need of a car currently. For example, in Illinois title is $165 + $100 minimum private sale tax, and a year’s registration is $151 ($45 for 9 month antique >25 years old). Registration is legally required if stored outdoors on private property.