On the verge of becoming a proud new owner... HOWEVER

[TM22]

Hey everybody. I've been wanting to purchase a 4x4 Delica for years and I'm now so close to fulfilling that dream.

However, the Delica I am looking to purchase has is a 1998 Lifted 4x4 L400 2.6L Turbo Diesel with 200,000km on it and these following issues when it was checked:

https://i.postimg.cc/903qY655/unnamed-2.jpg

What I'm asking is, how much $$$ do these fixes look like, and is it a smart buy?

Thanks!

[Morganizer]

Smoke upon startup and under heavy load sounds like trouble...however, I had white smoke on startup, and it proved a simple fix: the exhaust was sucking in fresh air past the gasket. If it's black smoke, or blue smoke could be way worse trouble and $$$.

Front tire wear sounds like worn out shocks. Easy to replace. Kinda hard to find parts. Or hard to find out the right parts you need, so you don't get the whole thing jacked up and taken apart and find out they don't fit.

Brake pads: You can do it yourself. If you can't, what are you doing buying a Delica?!!!

Oil seeping from rear of engine: typically the half moon seal, common problem. Change the valve cover gasket, and replace the rubber half moon seal with an aluminum one. Kit of seals and some gasket goo. This is the first fix I ever did on my Delica. I think I took photos and posted the whole thing on this forum.

Glow plugs slow: I suspect there's an issue that develops with a voltage drop across the join between the wire and the glow plug bus bar, so the glow plugs aren't seeing full voltage. Try cleaning that contact. Or, could be your ECU is faulty, and that's a $1000 computer!

Sounds like you'd be bringing this one back from the brink. Which you may well enjoy doing. One thing I've learned is: buy a used vehicle from someone who takes care of a car the same way you do. Sounds like this seller did not take care of problems as they sprang up, so has let things go a bit.

If I had to pay a mechanic for everything that needed to be done, I wouldn't be able to afford it. DIY and a bit of ingenuity is the name of the game. Not to mention finding parts for a vehicle that was never sold in North America.

[Ralph in Winnipeg]

It's a smart buy IF you have the time, ability, desire, knowledge and tools to do the repairs. I import vehicles from Japan so I can get quality, low km vehicles in excellent shape, with features not available domestically. 200 km is an automatic deal breaker for me regardless of what work it needs. You're very unlikely ever to sell it and come close to breaking even. I'd ballpark what a mechanic would charge to fix all the issues plus parts. Subtract that number from what vans in your area sell for. That's the price you pay. If you can do the work, you'll be ahead but most likely something else will be found as you progress.

The owner hasn't done the work knowing they couldn't sell the van for the amount they'd need to get out of it.

My two cents.

Ralph in Winnipeg

[TM22]

Smoke upon startup and under heavy load sounds like trouble...however, I had white smoke on startup, and it proved a simple fix: the exhaust was sucking in fresh air past the gasket. If it's black smoke, or blue smoke could be way worse trouble and $$$.

Front tire wear sounds like worn out shocks. Easy to replace. Kinda hard to find parts. Or hard to find out the right parts you need, so you don't get the whole thing jacked up and taken apart and find out they don't fit.

Brake pads: You can do it yourself. If you can't, what are you doing buying a Delica?!!!

Oil seeping from rear of engine: typically the half moon seal, common problem. Change the valve cover gasket, and replace the rubber half moon seal with an aluminum one. Kit of seals and some gasket goo. This is the first fix I ever did on my Delica. I think I took photos and posted the whole thing on this forum.

Glow plugs slow: I suspect there's an issue that develops with a voltage drop across the join between the wire and the glow plug bus bar, so the glow plugs aren't seeing full voltage. Try cleaning that contact. Or, could be your ECU is faulty, and that's a $1000 computer!

Sounds like you'd be bringing this one back from the brink. Which you may well enjoy doing. One thing I've learned is: buy a used vehicle from someone who takes care of a car the same way you do. Sounds like this seller did not take care of problems as they sprang up, so has let things go a bit.

If I had to pay a mechanic for everything that needed to be done, I wouldn't be able to afford it. DIY and a bit of ingenuity is the name of the game. Not to mention finding parts for a vehicle that was never sold in North America.

Woah, thank you so much. I really, really appreciate you taking the time to type all of that out to help a stranger.

I'll be taking it to a separate mechanic for inspect and compare the two reports, and then calculate the cost it would be to do these repairs and take it off the final sale price.

How much life do you think this vehicle has with 200,000km if kept under great maintenance?