Guy bought a 1997 Toyota Land Cruiser Colorado for less than $4,000 but his excitement didn’t last

This guy thought he’d scored a bargain when he bought a Toyota Land Cruiser Colorado for less than $4,000, but his excitement was short-lived.

Matt, host of YouTube channel High Peaks Autos, had driven from Manchester to London, around 200 miles, to pick up the car.

The Cruiser’s owner had sold it because it was costing too much money to drive.

But Matt soon realized that his great deal came with some huge drawbacks.

DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie

Why was this cheap Toyota Land Cruiser Colorado being sold?

The Cruiser was bought brand new back in 1997 and stayed with its one owner ever since.

However, it wasn’t compliant with London’s ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone) standards.

This meant that the owner would be paying $15.81 each day to drive it, so he decided to trade in for a more compliant vehicle.

His loss, Matt’s gain.

Or so it appeared.

Matt said: “I’ve seen photographs, I’m really excited.

“It has a nice leather interior, and – this is the really important bit that makes this car really rare – it’s a petrol.

“I’ve agreed to buy this car for $3,793, which might sound like an awful lot for a 27-year-old car.

“But I’m thinking it’ll be worth $7,589 when it’s all done [up].”

And at first glance, the car looked as though it had held up pretty well over the years.

There was some minor damage to the rear bumper and the interior leather looks a little worn, but let’s keep things in perspective.

When this car came out, the Spice Girls were topping the music charts.

What we’re saying is, it’s been around for a while.

Matt was skeptical over whether the Cruiser would start, as it hadn’t been driven in months.

But it was nothing that a good old jumpstart couldn’t fix.

And it hadn’t been parked for quite as long as this mysterious pink McLaren.

The long drive home to Manchester

Before he took it for the long drive back up north, Matt opted to take it for a test drive to the nearest gas station.

It didn’t take long for issues to start presenting themselves, however.

“The brakes are a little bit grindy,” Matt noted.

“The engine sounds really nice, the brakes not so much.”

Once the Toyota started reaching 60 to 70mph, the steering wheel began wobbling.

He’d probably have had better luck using this pretzel-shaped steering wheel, and that’s trippy enough.

In its past life, this Cruiser had been all over Europe with its owner and his family.

But how would it fare traveling through the wilds of the UK?

Matt’s damning verdict…

Matt gave his assessment as he drew closer to home: “I’ll be honest, it was quite an unpleasant drive back.

“If you drive up [the highway] all day long for work, don’t buy a 27-year-old Land Cruiser Colorado.

“But I think you knew that already.”

Matt was limited to driving at 50mph the whole way, because of the wheel wobble situation.

“If they’re old tires, I don’t want to get a blow-out,” Matt admitted.

“I did get back in one piece, so I can’t be too hard on it.”

On top of that, because of the non-functioning aerial, Matt couldn’t even listen to the radio for the 3.5 hour journey.

He said: “It made for quite a boring drive.”

Gearbox or engine issues had also caused the car to vibrate when driven at high speeds.

So, all in all, not the best driving experience.

That old adage about ‘If it’s too good to be true’ proves appropriate once again.

If only this guy had learned that lesson when he went to pick up a 1965 Ford Galaxie that he’d found on Facebook Marketplace.

To see Matt’s assessment of the 1997 Toyota Land Cruiser Colorado, head over to High Peak Autos’ YouTube channel.