Project Truck

The Forester’s done — this is the fun one. A second, cheap vehicle that’s old enough to be interesting, simple enough to work on, and — the actual filter — has low miles for its age. A 30-year-old truck with 220,000 miles is a parts donor. The same truck with 90,000 miles is a survivor someone babied, and that’s the one worth buying.

Three categories, in order of how much character-per-dollar they bring: an old 4Runner, an old Toyota pickup or first-gen Tacoma, or a Jeep Cherokee (XJ). Live listings + the buying guide below re-derive from scripts/garage_finder.py → data/garage_listings.yaml.

Before anything else: check the frame. Toyota ran a well-known frame-rust recall/buyback program covering roughly 1995–2000 Tacomas, 4Runners, and T100s after frames were perforating and failing structurally. Any Toyota truck or 4Runner from that window needs the frame rails and rear leaf-spring hangers inspected before you fall in love with it — a rusted-through frame isn't a project, it's a paperweight. A truck with buyback/frame-replacement paperwork is actually a plus, not a red flag. Idaho salts roads less than the Rust Belt or coastal Pacific NW, but check harder on anything that spent its life somewhere wetter before landing here.

The three candidates

MOST CAPABLE

4Runner — 2nd gen (1990–95) or 3rd gen (1996–2002)

Solid rear axle (2nd gen)Huge aftermarketCult following

The 2nd-gen is boxier, has a stronger solid rear axle, and is quietly becoming collectible — clean ones aren't cheap anymore. The 3rd-gen rides better and is still affordable. Both offer a bulletproof 4-cylinder (22RE / 2RZ-FE) or a punchier V6 with a real weak point — see below.

Watch: the 3.4L V6 (5VZ-FE, 3rd gen) and 3.0L V6 (3VZE, 2nd gen) both run a timing belt, not a chain, on an interference engine — a snapped belt destroys the motor. Confirm the belt's been done in the last ~90k miles or budget for it immediately. The 4-cylinders are chain-driven and don't have this risk.

SIMPLEST TO WRENCH ON

Toyota Pickup (pre-1995) or 1st-gen Tacoma (1995–2004)

Cheapest entrySimple mechanicalsLegendary reliability

Same drivetrain family as the 4Runner of its era. A regular-cab, manual, 4-cylinder truck is about as simple and beatable-up as it gets — this is the "drive it into the ground and don't cry about it" pick.

Watch: same V6 timing-belt caveat as the 4Runner if it's not the 4-cylinder. Same frame-rust window if it's a 1995–2000 truck.

CHEAPEST, BIGGEST COMMUNITY

Jeep Cherokee XJ (1984–2001)

4.0L I6 — nearly indestructibleUnibodyMassive aftermarket

The 4.0L inline six (1987+) is one of the toughest engines ever put in an American vehicle — pushrod-simple, torquey, and still supported with crate replacements today. Unibody construction means lighter and better on-road manners than a body-on-frame truck, at some cost to "real truck" feel. Cheapest way into this list by a wide margin, and the XJ community is still enormous.

Watch: aging electrical (dash grounds, wiring harness gremlins are the XJ's signature annoyance), and unibody rust in the rockers/floor pans/rear shock towers — this is structural in a way frame rust on a body-on-frame truck isn't. Prefer the AX15/NV3550 manual or the AW4 automatic; the earlier Peugeot BA10/5 manual (1987–89) is a known weak point.

Live listings — Boise metro

Scraped 2026-10-02 by scripts/garage_finder.py. Current lean: a manual, 4x4 pickup — still picked on price, not a hard filter, so listings whose title says both 4x4 and Manual float to the top of each category, then it falls back to miles per year where mileage is known. Craigslist search pages don't carry odometer or drivetrain reliably; individual listings sometimes do once you open them.

Honest read on today's inventory: thin. Three listings total across all of the Treasure Valley right now — a $1,250 '89 Toyota pickup with no listed mileage, a 4x4 '94 Cherokee Sport at $9,999, and a 2wd '99 Cherokee at $2,200. None of them is a confirmed manual, and none is the genuine low-miles find this hunt is looking for. These vehicles trade mostly on Facebook Marketplace and by word of mouth, not dealer lots — re-run the scraper periodically and check the FB links below rather than treating today's list as the field.

Classic 4Runner (1990-2002) — 0 listed

Nothing listed right now — check Facebook Marketplace below.

Toyota Pickup / 1st-gen Tacoma — 1 listed

Listing	Year	Price	Miles	Mi/yr	4x4	Manual	Where
89 Toyota Pickup	—	$1,250	—	—	—	—	—	view →

Jeep Cherokee XJ — 2 listed

Listing	Year	Price	Miles	Mi/yr	4x4	Manual	Where
1999 Jeep Cherokee Sport-ONE OWNER!(2 Wheel Drive)	1999	$2,200	—	—	—	—	Boise Bench	view →
1994 JEEP CHEROKEE SPORT 4X4	1994	$9,999	—	—	✓	—	NAMPA	view →

Facebook Marketplace

This is where old project trucks actually trade. Saved searches (150 mi around Boise):

Classic 4Runner Toyota Pickup 1st-gen Tacoma Jeep Cherokee XJ

What to check on an old one

Frame / unibody rust — see the callout above. Get underneath with a flashlight and a screwdriver (gently probe suspect rust, don't stab good metal).
Timing belt records (V6 engines only) — if unknown, price in an immediate belt/water-pump job before it becomes a destroyed engine.
Title status — clean vs. rebuilt/salvage matters even more on a cheap old vehicle; a rebuilt title on a $5k truck is a different conversation than on a $30k daily driver.
Cold start — smoke color, idle roughness, any death-rattle from the top end.
4WD actually engages — old transfer cases seize from disuse; test it in a dirt lot, both high and low range.
Manual transmission feel (if equipped) — clutch chatter, grinding into gear, and on the Jeep specifically confirm it's the AX15/NV3550, not the weaker early Peugeot box.
Electrical basics — every gauge, all lights, A/C blows cold. Old wiring is where these vehicles nickel-and-dime you.
Suspension/steering play — expected on a 25-30 year old vehicle to some degree, but excessive play or clunking over bumps means ball joints / tie rods / bushings, all doable DIY jobs but worth knowing about before you buy.
Parts availability check — before buying, search the exact model/engine on RockAuto or the model's forum (yotatech.com for Toyota, naxja.org / cherokeeforum.com for the XJ) to confirm it's as easy to source as reputation suggests. It almost always is for these three.

Data behind this page: data/garage_listings.yaml, generated by scripts/garage_finder.py — re-run it periodically, this category turns over slowly and today's list is thin.