Any Toyota HiAce owners?

[BajaHiAce]

Just purchased a Toyota HiAce and wondering if any members here might own one as well.
It's a JDM import. One owner and less than 60,000 miles.

Specs: 1989 Toyota HiAce / 4x4 / Diesel / AT / RHD / Manual locking hubs / Hi-Lo transfer case

Super stoked and looking forward to the build...

 

[BaltoCharlie]

How did you get this into the country? I have tried for years and finally gave up. They could not meet USA stnds for emissions, bumpers and other stuff. The diver side is on the right and US does not like that as well. Very cool van none-the-less, would have replaced my VW syncro.

 

[Kolockum]

Those are cool rigs. I believe there still is one rolling around Snoqualmie pass in Washington. They are pretty rare.

 

[JHanson]

I can tell you this: Everyone thinks Land Cruisers and Land Rovers are the toughest vehicles on the planet, but after years of watching HiAce 'matatus' hammering down washboard roads in the back of beyond in Kenya and Tanzania, with a dozen and a half people crammed inside, I think they're the uncrowned champs of durability.

 

[BaltoCharlie]

Those are cool rigs. I believe there still is one rolling around Snoqualmie pass in Washington. They are pretty rare.

I bet it has Canadian plates. Canada allows them into their county. Lots of climber in the NW love this ride.

 

[Kolockum]

I bet it has Canadian plates. Canada allows them into their county. Lots of climber in the NW love this ride.

Originally from Canada but registered in Washington. Took him a year or two to get it into the country. I believe he ended up going through a company that specializes in importing them. All said and done he ended up paying 10 - 12k for it.

I was pretty impressed with the performance of the vehicle. I have seen him driving around the parking lots at the ski resort pulling out cars. By the end of the night he had more beer then he knew what to do with... well not actually, he knew what to do with it, but you get the point.

 

[Zaggnabit]

I had the previous version of this. 1984, 4x4 with the ice maker inside.

It was my Dads but I inherited it with 82k miles. I sold it with 427k miles. It's still running around town. The man that bought it uses it to take his grandsons to baseball practice. Maybe the toughest vehicle ever built.

Mine got slower every year and it was never more than "underpowered". I should never have sold it.


My stepbrothers Father is a Toyota Service chief up in Maryland and he told me that the American Service people hated them. They are hard to work on and run forever. The engine under the seat is a nuisance. But it's Toyota tough.

If you have the dual sunroofs, be careful with them. They pick up junk in the tracks worse than any design I've ever seen and that big secondary roof will leak like a sieve. It's worth replacing the gasket as soon as you get a drop come through.

You will love that thing. Take care of it and it will take care of you.

 

[BILL98388]

I believe that we can all import this type of vehicle...from importavehicle.info:

"Vehicles over 25 years old are Department of Transportation(DOT) exempt from meeting federal motor vehicle safety standards(FMVSS). Over 21 years old are Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) exempt. To meet California smog exemption requirements, the car must be older than 1976. This does not make cars newer than 1976 impossible to import to California, but there are extra requirements, and testing."

Bill