# Toyota 4Runner 2010–2024 Pre-Purchase Checklist

Canonical: https://carcasefile.com/vehicles/toyota-4runner-2010-2024/checklist/

> Printable pre-purchase inspection checklist for the 2010–2024 Toyota 4Runner: the generation-specific checks that separate a good one from someone else's problem.

Case file · TOYOTA-4RUNNER-2010-2024 · Field document

# Toyota 4Runner 2010–2024 · Pre-purchase checklist

Bring this to the inspection. Every check below is specific to this generation's documented failure modes, not generic used-car advice.

[← Full case file](https://carcasefile.com/vehicles/toyota-4runner-2010-2024/)

Check 01

Scan for stored codes and check CEL history. P2440/P2441/P2442/P2445 point to the secondary air injection (smog pump) fault on 2010–2013 cars. Verify whether Toyota's warranty enhancement already covered it.

Check 02

Fill the tank at the test drive. If the pump keeps clicking off or fuel backs up, the EVAP vent filter behind the rear wheel is clogged. Cheap to fix, but a useful negotiating point and a sign of heavy dusty-road use.

Check 03

Work every door lock from the fob and the switch. Dead or intermittent actuators are extremely common; budget one or more.

Check 04

Look hard at the frame, control arms, and brake/fuel lines on any truck from a salt-belt state. 5th-gen frames are far better than the recall-era 2003–2010 trucks, but surface-to-structural rust still happens.

Check 05

Check the passenger-side dash near the airbag for cracks; confirm the open Takata airbag recall (2010–2016) was performed via VIN.

Check 06

Feel for power-steering fluid weeping at the rack on higher-mileage or heavily off-roaded examples.

Check 07

On 4WD trucks, engage and disengage 4HI/4LO on a test loop and confirm no warning-light cluster (VSC/A-TRAC). Usually a calibration or sensor issue, but verify.

Check 08

Ask for the transmission fluid history. Toyota's normal schedule never replaces the fluid: the 2010-2014 guides inspect it, the 2015-2024 guides check the transmission for leaks. Its towing and heavy-load schedule replaces it at 60,000 and 120,000 miles. Use Toyota Genuine ATF WS.

Walk-away signals

None outright, but 2010–2013 California-emissions cars need the SAIS fault verified · 2010–2016 (confirm Takata airbag recall was completed)

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