What have you done to your 2nd Gen 4Runner today?

Out with the Old


In with the New

 

I joined the Club..!

My first Toyota 4Runner, despite having yearned for one for years, pretty much since 1994 when the one I just bought was built..

Looking forward to reading and learning on this Forum, already watched some great videos posted here..!!

 

Those graphics are sweet!

 

Got the timing issue squared away and the coolant leak fixed (forgot to tighten down a hose clamp which caused it to leak ) drove it into work today and I feel I am loosing some power so I need to check to see if I have a vacuum leak somewhere along with why my check engine light comes on once I start to drive.

Question for the smart people in the group:
when driving the idle will "stick" at about 2-2.5k RPMs and once i rev slightly it settles back down to 1k RPM idle. Any ideas what could be causing this? could it be due to a vacuum leak or some other issue that would trigger the check engine light to come on after it is reved (doesnt come on upon startup and initial idle)

 

I had similar issues with my 92. When I would rev the engine the check engine light would come on and then go back out. I put shutter fix in the transmission and took care of my issue. I believe it was the torque converter control solenoid sticking but mine is an automatic so not sure if that helps at all.

 

that might be whats causing my check engine light as soon as i rev it comes on and is throwing code 52 knock sensor. battery has been unplugged all night to reset ecu will check later today to see if its still coming on now that i fixed the timing because someone mentioned it senses for a specific vibration/frequency and if it doesnt get it at a certain rpm it throws the code. cross my fingers once i plug the battery in and fire it up that the check engine light doesnt come on

 

Took the 4runner to Old Nc 105 for its first trip after all the parts and suspension, wheels and tires

 

Fog lights, rock lights and a spare tire carrier!!!!

 

Wow.. That looks awesome..

 

Valve covers! Runner was out for 2 days! Had to buy a new cold start injector hose, pcv valve, pcv hose, a new vacuum switching valve, and vacuum lines and couplers. It was not easy.

 

Just did timing belt/water pump on my 92 recently. Also new knock sensor and harness, plus the manifold gaskets. Talk about a nightmare. She's my baby, but DU Toyota for putting that knock sensor in such a horrific place lol.

 

added a tool/recovery box got it for free from a friend and acquired a step hitch aswell for super cheep did a tune up last week need help with dit roof rack and help getting paint back in shape also noticed i might need a new steering stabilizer but slowly working it in

 

Picked up my newly decked engine block from the machine shop and began re-assembling the lower part of my engine today. She is coming along nicely.

 

New console, I also bought 2 seats in great shape if anyone is looking. I couldn't let them go to the scrapper but they don't match my interior.

 

Timed my engine and replaced all the idle wheels, tensioner, fan clutch, water pump and belts. Man they run a lot better when they’re in time!

 

parts saved

 

Gave her a bath today after not having one for 5 months and getting ready to go to Tahoe.

 

Sound deadening floors and doors in preparation for the new stereo!

 

New tag came today!

 

I got rid of my 3.0 and put in the 3.4. Best decision ever. Also put in a A340F transmission instead of the A340H so that I can one day...some day...put in a dual transfer case.

Got panhard drop kit ordered with the LVPS bracket for the rear brakes coming. Land Cruiser coil install, Ball join spacer install and new shocks coming in the next few weeks. Excited.

Oh yeah. I have a 93 4Runner SR5.

 

I like the spare tire rack. Is that the one some had stock or is that an aftermarket deal?

 

It's a factory 90'-91' tire carrier.

 

Is there any trick to open the tailgate on a dead second gen like this. Found a few at the local wrecking years but couldn’t get the tailgate down.

 

Maybe bring a battery? I'm sure it's stripped down past that point already though?

 

Today's mod - a Marlin Crawler Short Shifter. First impressions Holy Shift, Batman! Nice and tight. I knew it would be better but. Had no idea how much slop my original shifter had. MUCH nicer.

 

Finally went shopping at https://www.roughtrax4x4.com for some essentials..

Most notably the Steering Lock Covers to stop that creaking at Full Lock, and the Rear Wiper..!

Cannot wait to fit them next week..

 

It's So shinny for a 1991 with 107k miles ,acid washed the rims with home Depot cement etching phosphoric acid it removed the White oxidation,shined up the chrome too as no it removed rust spots. Cleaner wax with buffing machine on paint. It's like a mirror look at the reflections off the paint.

 

The past week I got busy fixing annoying little gremlins and replacing cracked interior trim,missing knobs and replaced the CV joints and headlight globes with LED's.

I found a couple of gen2 4runners in wrecking yards and managed to take home most of what I was after,reverse light switch,rear window relay box,rear left interior trim panel,rear floor carpet,console,drivers sun visor,
pedal rubbers and a fuse cover with the clip and fuse tweezers still in it.Paid $120 for the lot,I thought it was an OK deal.No spare relays or fuses though,I reckon Gatorgirl got to them before me!

So I got to it and finally my back window now goes up AND down,it's still a little sketchy but that's caused by the console button being a little intermittent,if I give it a slight wriggle it works fine,I guess 27 years of coffee spillage has gummed it up a little,I'll chase a better one next time,the one in the new console was not working at all.All the trim,back seat knobs etc all went in and now it looks way better.The carpet needs a clean as it has some grease stains on it but isn't torn like my old one,all the left over front end bits and interior forward of the front seats was thrown in the back and had dirtied it up ,I figuring the parts missing had all gone for Hilux owners because from the front seats back the trucks were all mostly intact.I'ts funny,I've had my 4Runner since January and I've only seen two on the road,I didn't think they were particularly rare here but maybe I'm wrong.

I installed the LED's into the headlights and had the same problems with my light bar and high beam light not working afterwards like a lot of others with Toyotas,I googled it and spent a bit of time farting around changing the polarity of my relay,finding different switch points etc,in the end I gave up,got onto ebay and ordered a driving light harness with relay,switch,fuse,all covered with "shrink" with H4 and H3 headlight adapters with it.It took half an hour to fit,looks neat and apart from coiling the excess switch wire under the dash it was all made to length.I still don't have the high beam dash-light but the light bar works again and at 35 bucks delivered I'm not complaining.One thing though,because the Led's run hot these have a built in fan at the rear of them,they went in no trouble at all but they poke out so far out the back I couldn't reinstall the rubber dust shields.
I'm not convinced the LED's are a whole lot better,I seem to be picking up road markers and reflective signs from a lot further out but high and low beam seem a bit wishy washy...lack punch,if you know what I mean.
There's a lot of wildlife around here,kangaroos,wallabies,wombats and the deer are in plague proportions,I was hoping for a dramatic improvement from the intensity ,I think I'll give them a trial for a while and see how I go.

The CV joints went in,I did it on floor stands,it took me around an hour and 45 each side,I ended up dropping the lower control arms,top of the shockers and swung the sway bar out of the way,I just could'nt get the space to swing the inner back in without doing that.It was tight on the boots too so the extra space made it safer as far as not tearing one.I had a lot of trouble re fitting the cir-clips to the outer shafts,I'm going to check those in a couple of days to make sure they are still seated properly in the channel.So far so good,the trucks driving nicely and no more CV clicking at full lock 4WD!

....and I gave her a wash and polish

 

Scraped and scrubbed the undercarriage today. Found the oil leak and a wire in the knock sensor harness, the part sticking out of the block, that has a compound copper-y fracture. The wire looks like it was pinched by something. Going to do the bypass method to see what it's like as well as the actual replacement after that test, because SCIENCE.

Stopped myself from laughing when a licensed Toyota mechanic in a dealership garage told me the knock sensor does the same thing as a Honda's crank position sensor. I'm calling "not it" but am I wrong or was she...?

Bob the Gunkman now resides on my porch, born from the medieval shield that comes standard on a 4runners undercarriage.

 

Replaced the steering idler arm with a ProForged unit and rebuilt the Steering Gear with a Gates seal kit. Flushed and bled the PS with some Amsoil Synthetic ATF I had left over. Man is that stuff ever pink in color!

I took apart the removed original OEM idler arm and sure enough the lower bushing was in about 20 pieces (230K miles and 27 years). Unfortunately the tapered shaft was loose in the arm and I can't rebuild that. But my son's 4Runner has had its idler arm replaced too so I took his idler arm assembly and salvaged his shaft/arm as the housing was badly rusted inside where the bushing seat area is but the tapered shaft was still solid in the end of the arm.

McMaster-Carr has SAE 841 bronze bushings that fit the OEM housing (22mm ID) and shaft (18 mm OD). They cost less than three bucks a piece. The flange diameter is a bit smaller in OD than the OEM bushing but seems adequate supplying 850 lbs of axial thrust load capacity. The radial is 1,200 lbs and I'm betting these bushings will last forever over what the OEM plastic bushings provide. I used McMaster-Carr part number 6659K37 (18 x 22 x 22). There is no axial or radial slop in the fit and it is like better than new.

So now I have a spare and man does it glide nicely with some fresh grease. Out on the trail, up from Silverwood Lake, a few weeks ago there was a chap with a 92 running his IFS with large rubber. Common practice for him was to carry a spare idler arm. He had snapped his off that very day at the base of the arm were the 18 mm diameter shaft is adjacent with the arms forging. It was a classic reverse bending induced fatigue failure. This prompted the idea to see about rebuilding the two dead units I had.

The ProForged units are supposedly made with pivot shafts that are bigger than 18mm. This shaft diameter is the weakness in the OEM design both from a structural standpoint and also from a PV standpoint in how this shaft must act as a bearing surface in the bushing when steering the vehicle and keeping the alignment as the suspension works over rough terrain. So for all three of the Toyota'a I have in my family the 1990 Pick-Up is 2WD 3.0 V6 and shares the same arm.
It is shot too but at 340K miles.

I am glad I purchased 4 bushings.