Potentially buying an 09

Looking at a v6 2wd for my aunt, she wants something higher up and doesn't need 4wd and hates the look of rav4s so I talked her into a 4th gen 4runner (hoping to official join the forums with a 5spd/v6/4wd 3rd gen in the near future) and wanted to ask what was going on here...

Looks like someone didn't want to fool with removing the carpet to.. cut something or remove something right above the spare tire. maybe the spare tire got stuck and this was the only way to remove and replace the little pulley that holds it in place... Thoughts? I noticed it had some weird DIY fixes, even though it was a 1 owner corporate car all it's life. Like the shifter area trim piece was reattached with self tapping screws.. otherwise the car looks great and the engine and under body look flawless.

 

Welcome.