JR

Good Day All
Well finally finished doing some work on my truck a 1993 Pickup with V6 & 5 speed. New clutch, timing belt, adjusted valves, headers with exhaust. First questions has to do with the thermostat; for some reason I thought stock was 195F (90.5C) so that’s what I ordered from LC Engineering but the truck actually had 180F (82C). With the new headers and crossover pipe it runs at the exact same temperature that it did before. So should I install the lower temperature thermostat? Second question how much space should I have between passenger header and return fuel line.
Work completed and some notes.
1. Timing belt with new idlers and water pump, removing the crankshaft bolt was tough; placed transmission in 5th gear with parking brake on. It took two of us with a 3.5 foot snipe and a good snap to get it free, otherwise it went pretty well. Timing belt had about 220,000km (137,000 miles), although timing belt had many cracks I have seen worse but sooner or later it would have failed. Water pump was in excellent condition but I changed it based on miles. Idler pulleys bearings where still good but very easy to spin.
2. Valves adjusted, that was a pain overall but I did figure it out. Because I live 2 hours from the closet Toyota dealership I ordered a complete kit so I have lots of spares for the future. Exhaust valves where way out and was surprised that I still had 150psi per cylinder, intake where not bad.
3. Replaced clutch and flywheel, could not get pilot bushing out of crankshaft, grease trick did not work. Hopefully this does not come back to haunt me. All parts ordered from Marlin Crawler. Also separated transmission at intermediate plate due to minor leak, used Ultra Grey no leaks so far. Changed out both sticks seats, transmission one was totally destroyed just the black section was left, transfer was just starting to tear.
4. Installed LC Engineering headers and exhaust system. Only concern I have very little space between return fuel line on the passenger side, I guess I will need to bend it more.
5. Boss high output alternator. Added 2nd positive cable 4 gauge, upgraded all ground cables. The ground cables where either replaced with 4 gauge or I double the existing cables that where present. Have one cable to hook up yet.
6. Set timing at 14.5 degrees used to have 12 degrees and I also adjusted the VAFM 3 notches on the lean side. I usually run 91 octane fuel it has always given me better power and fuel economy.
Impression so far that overall I have better acceleration especially on the higher RPM’s. Cruising at 120km/hr (75m/hr) it is very slightly louder than stock. Hard acceleration it sounds a bit like a rice can inside vehicle, rear exhaust sounds good but it is much louder than stock. Not bad though with windows rolled up. Neighbors tell me it sounds sweat. Vehicle has S&B filter and box, the ISR have been removed. Will try it one day with homemade silencer to see what difference it makes. Will also post update on gas mileage once I make some longer road trips. Have only driven 250km so far but there is a lot less soot in the exhaust pipe. Winter time range with full load 1100 to 1200 km (690 – 750 miles) driven at 120km/hr (75m/hr). Full load vehicle weighs 2250 – 2430 kg (4950 – 5350 lbs).
Modes Done: OME front & rear lift kit / S&B intake filter / LC Engineering headers & exhaust / Marlin clutch / Boss alternator / Adjusted timing & VAFM / 2nd Gas Tank / Warn manual hubs / HD front sway bar.
To Do Yet: Lots / need to upgrade Stereo / Fog & Off Road lights / Mount spare tire in box / Reinstall HD rear sway bar / Road Radio / 13.8VdC accessory sockets / Bush Guard / Anything else that I can think off.

myyota

The stock thermostat for most toyota`s is 195 degrees, if it had a 180 thermostat in it then someone probably changed it in the past.

DJ99

When I was shopping for a new t-stat from rockauto.com, the different choices either specify 180F for OE type, or 195 for "alternate temperature". I took this to mean the truck came with a 180F thermostat. In my case, that's what is still in there, and what I purchased as a replacement. I'm not sure what the difference, good or bad, there would be in going to the 195F one.

vital22re

iTrader: (2)

with the 3vz i'd run 180, keep that hg popper cooler. You have have problems with pre ignition detonation with the 195 and bumping the timing like that.

mt_goat

180 is stock for the 3VZE. 190 is stock for the 22re. The 3vze has the t-stat on the return from the radiator is why it is lower.

JR

Thanks everyone, so it looks like I will need to pick up another thermostat or reinstall the old one. This would explain why the trucks runs at the same temperature with the headers installed.
No pre ignition or pinging. Truck has more power on the highway, idles just like it used to. Truck has better pick up under normal acceleration and you really notice the kicks as the RPM's increase. Exhaust pipe still has very little soot build up compared to before.
Once I get a chance to do a good highway run with a full load I will have a better idea if fuel economy is the same better or worse. Drove into a strong headwind today but truck was empty and no big hills but it zipped along with no problems.
Oh I forget to thank all the people that have posted advise problems and solutions, this have been very helpfull.

JR

Well I reinstalled the used 180F thermostat into the truck. Temperature gauge reads a hair lower. Maybe I should add a second temperature gauge to be on the safe side.

Hooked up homemade silencer the one that goes to the intake just before the throttle body. This has reduced the rice can sound dramatically as well as moving it up the RPM range from 3000 to 4000 RPM. Might have given up some acceleration which is odd because prior to the work being done I could not tell the difference with or without it except for the noise.

Truck has more power on the highway; made a trip with about a 300 pound load and did not have to downshift to pass. Will keep everyone informed how things go.

JR

Well so far everything is working fine. About the rice can sound, found that the connection between the intermediate pipe and the input to the muffler was loose. Tighten it up somewhat but it still is loose, afraid to tighten more and break the pipe clamp. Might have to have it welded on, this has reduced that rice can sound affect but it is still there under hard acceleration at 4000RPM plus.
Reference gas mileage it is still to early to tell. Forgot to mention that I have dual tanks, removed the spare and installed a NWMP (North West Metal Products). Tank holds about 100L or 26US gallons (22UK gallons), NWMP told me that it would hold about 22 gallons which I thought would have been in US but it appears to be in UK gallons. Great for range but you pay for it when it's time to fill up. Ran regular gas the first tank and averaged 17.2mpg US (20.6mg UK). Short highway trip (mixture of regular & premiun gas) trip at 50% load but into a strong head wind (30m/hr) averaged 18.5mpg (22.2mpg UK). Also was playing with timing and VAFM, as before it seams to like about 15 degrees advance and 3 notches lean. Computer does adjust timing based on fuel map and knock sensor, changing from premiun to regular shows up within 100km (62miles) in a loss of power and fuel economy. Really likes Costco premiun gas but I suspect that Costco is selling 93 octane versus 91 octane that we normally get in Canada.
There is no doubt in mine mind that the headers and exhaust has improved the power; girlfriend's 92 with P235R15 (stock is P225) versus my 93 with stock LT31x10.5R15, her truck was always faster but not anymore. Girlfriend's truck has timing set @ 12.5 degrees and VAFM is 2 notches lean with premiun gas as I had filled it up the last 2 times. Walks up hills that I had to downshift before, followed the girlfiend 2 weeks ago and everytime she passed I had to back off accelerating or I would end up in her back seat. Damn I should have replaced the camshafts when I had it open. So power is up, best 2hp gain (for the naysayers) I have ever felt but still to early to tell if fuel economy is up. Girlfriend also noted power increase on passing now she wants me to the same to her truck.
For those that say that it is to loud I hardly notice the difference when cruising down the highway at 120km/hr (75m/hr). It is only under acceleration that you really hear the headers and free flow exhaust, girlfriend likes the sound of it.
I wish it was easier to adjust the computer because I believe that we can get another 10 to 15 HP gain with adjustments. Overall I am happy with the improvements but I probably should have done the oversize valves and camshaft upgrades. Yes I know a swap would have given me more power, so would a jet engine.