Light duty offroady

Howdy, 4Runner folks! I’m Kahlin, this is the start of my 4Runner build.

I bought my 2001 4Runner with 139k miles on it. It was in a minor collision in the front and was rebuilt. Frame doesn’t have any damage so we’re good there.

When I got her she had been sitting in a back yard for 6 months. The rust had eaten through a brake line and the thermostat was sticking. I went to the the Junkyard ASAP and got an entire set of brake lines that looked practically brand new.



It lived the first part of its life in Indiana. With all the snow and road salt it has done quite a number on the under parts. Fortunately I live in Texas so when I find these at the junkyard they are primarily rust free.



Today I went and bought a load of parts with the intention of starting to get this poor thing road ready.



First order of business is to get it going down the road safely. I replaced the section of faulty line and pulled the thermostat to just run open for the time being. I’ve driven it a couple times since last week just to keep the battery charged.



Not only were some of the brake lines rusted through, but the front brakes are completely gone. The rotors have a significant amount of damage. The rotors will get replaced soon but as of today only the brake pads are getting replaced.

Tomorrow I’ll have more pictures of the crappy lines and new and old pads. Stay posted!

 

Welcome to the forum!

 

So, I ran into a couple issues. If anyone has dealt with a rusty car you know what I’m working with. In this situation your best friend is PB blaster, patience, and a butane torch.



Not only am I dealing with an abundance of rust. The undercarriage is cover in a rubberized weather coating. It’s not rhino lining quality and flakes off in some cases. In some spots I’m almost convinced that it’s done more harm than good.



This is the drivers side rotor. It’s in horrible condition obviously.. Lololol I was lucky enough to replace the drivers side brake pads with little issues. I replaced the rubber hose, hard line, and elbow connected to the frame.



I didn’t get so lucky with the passenger side. The slide pins that hold the pads in were completely seized. I tried my hardest to get them out but I was just slowly damaging the calipers themselves. I also tried to pop the brake line off at the spindle arm and the line broke clean off. I knew that I was going to have a tough time. Knowing what condition the vehicle was in, I opted for trying to find newer parts. But I got lucky enough to stumble upon some even better parts.



I found a CL add of a guy selling a power stop rebuild kit for a tundra.

After reading a bunch of write ups. I think I really found a great deal!! He was only asking $100 for the kit. Rotors, pads, new hardware, and 1 caliper included. All I have to do is order a new caliper for the drivers side. These are just pics I nabbed from his post on CL. I only test fit the rotor and caliper combo. I can confirm that 16 inch 4th gen wheels have enough clearance to fit the tundra caliper and rotor combo. When I get everything fitted I’ll post up more pics. Stay tuned!

 

15W/40 oil that's an odd weight. Is that what's recommended for that year vehicle?

 

Those brakes are a pain in the ass if you live in the north. My '03 had similar brakes (13WG) and I would usually just drive until the pads were gone, then I would buy new calipers, pads and rotors.

 

I bought it like this! I knew that the rusty bits were gonna give me trouble. Luckily I have a place to work on it. By the time I’m done with it it’ll look great.

A friend of mine recommended it. He’s put a couple of cars over 300k on the odometer. I like the idea of a less viscous oil since I live in south Texas. There will be a lot of hot days on the highways and the trails. But I haven’t changed the oil yet. If someone has some better reasoning otherwise. I’ll be more than happy to listen.

Yeah buddy the rust is a nightmare. It came from Indiana. Everything is rusted to hell. I just opted to toss the whole damn caliper on the passenger side too!

 

I'm in Wisconsin, so I have the same issue.

 

Personally oil sounds heavy to me but then again you are in Texas and I'm also no expert. I run the recommended 0W-20 but can also have temps range from 0 - 90.

 

^^^^I agree with this..

Here's the oil spec right out of the owners manual.



I would personally stick to what the manual says.

 

Yeah I'd follow the manual also if your that concerned go with the one 10W/30.

 

Right on guys!

Will do. I got to talking about it with a friend of mine who was a mechanic before he was a machinist. He made a really good point. He told me that a lot of the newer cars run 0W/20 and other really light oils because the tolerances are much tighter on the internals. An old famers trick to help minimize leaks and try to prolong the life of an engine when its already sloppy is to fill it with some really thick oil. My 4Runner has 139k on it....... Doubtful that I'm in that boat. But I feel like it would hold more true when you get into the higher milages.

 

That motor won't be "sloppy" for a few hundred thousand more miles

 

Your ok with a LITTLE heavier oil in year round warm climates but that being said todays oil is also hands down better formulated than years ago. With your mileage you should be fine sticking to the manual and changing it as directed. My '18 does call for 0W-20 and that's what I use. Half the high mileage crap they sell is snake oil but that's just my own opinion do your own research and make your own decision.