he's gone

sorry for the novel, i **bolded the important parts.

Just after upgrading my front disks with the Tundra mod, and then putting the OME/ARB srpings and shocks all around, things went south. Then, of course, money dried up right about the time fluids started leaking.

97 4Runner SR5 with 230K, good service history up until we had twin boys in late 2008. Engine starts and runs fine, no smoke, decent gas mileage etc.

** Known problems
- both valve covers are leaking
- Rear diff is leaking from the front
- Clutch is slipping like crazy
- within the last couple of weeks the amount of oil leaking (while parked) has gotten outrageous, so i'm thinking oil pan is now leaking too. I haven't looked too close but it doesn't look like rear main.

** Looking for advice on what to tackle first, thinking I need to start at the bottom and work up.

Clutch, oil pan, and rear diff

** What Clutch?
I've been around here a while and when this clutch was put in i opted for a CenterForce which seemed to be preferred at the time. I do a bit of towing and haul decent sized loads around the NC Appalachian Mts. I thought my guy was going to get the single compound clutch but he got the dual. It wore out in less than 100K. Quite a bit of around town driving which is why my mechanic sold me on the Centerforce to give strong contact, but keep my left leg from going gimpy at too young an age.

found this list in this thread

Clutch
Pressure plate
Flywheel
Throwout bearing
Pilot bearing
Rear main seal
Tailshaft seal
Output shaft seals
Shifter seat
Input shaft seals
Starter contacts & plunger
Clutch fork & spring

** Anything missing from that list? A couple of years ago I replaced some of the MTF with Readline MT-90 and that helped a bit with notchy shifting, but it has reappeared.

Assuming the oil pan and rear diff are pretty straight forward and nothing else would be considered while doing those jobs, but i am aware that the front diff needs to be dropped to get to the oil pan. FWIW, I'm not a heavy user of 4WD.

I really need a clutch just to keep me on the road, it's been slipping like crazy. That's the main reason I'm starting down there, but i need to start thinking about the valve covers, timing belt, etc that goes with the top half.

:emptywallet:

thanks for any input

aowRS

You'll probably find that most of your valve cover bolts are finger tight, at best. Gently snug up the ones you can see.

Dropping the front differential assembly is not fun. It's heavy and it doesn't just drop down.

To replace the rear differential-to-housing seal, you'll need to pull both axles. If doing that, what's the condition of your axle seals & rear brakes?



Andreas

ThorInc

Just a quick thought when I started reading about the oil leak issue.........clutch slipping like crazy and "outrageous" oil leak, could mean rear main seal. If it is, you can probably watch the bell housing drain hole and once it's running and warms up, you should see the oil dripping out.

vital22re

iTrader: (2)

since you're starting with clutch, I prefer OEM parts. But get something reputable.
Clutch kit- pressure plate, clutch disk, throw out bearing, pilot bearing
rear main,
transmission input seal.

then
Full timing set- T belt, tensioner, tensioner pulley, idler pulley, water pump
crank and cam seals
do valve covers at the same time, Get a valve cover set so it has grommets and spark plug tube seals.

With oil leaks you start at the top. Generally the oil pans don't leak on these unless the oil drain plug is loose.

Good luck.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

I have tried different clutches

I think my next one although doubtful I will need one since mineare all new.

I would try the Marlin Crawler kit I think I paid about the same for the LUK kit in my Tacoma

he's gone

can't believe i didn't think about the valve cover bolts. My wife's old jetta had the same issue and I just tightened them up. that's first on my list.

i'm not going to do this work on my own. I considered taking a closer look at the olil pan until a buddy told me i would need to drop the front diff ... decided to drink beer instead.

if i needed new rear drums would i have to pull the axles?

I think i'm going to pull the skid plate and clean it up in there before i hand it over to the mechanic. I hate looking like such a slacker and making them edal with all the muck down there. I'll take a closer look at the rear main, although i still think i need a clutch, lots of play even before i can feel first contact. There is no adjusting these clutches, right?

after losing confidence in my last guy, and waiting a week and a half to get my truck back, i'm kind of in between mechanics right now. When i talked to a new guy he talked me out of valve covers because they weren't leaking enough. that's about the time money dried up and i decided to just go with it.

but yeah, i would want to start at the top but i feel like the clutch is my weakest link. I don't put a ton of miles on it, and when i do it is usually just a 25 mile straight highway shot to the big city. That happens maybe once a week.

maybe its the disconnect betwen you not having enough coffee this morning and me having a few beers tonight, but i don't have a clue what you're suggesting.



have you tried the martin? you don't like the LUK?

have you tried the CenterForce? or is it old tech at this point?

Yotainmyblood

I had most of the same problems. I bought the clutch kit from Martin crawler, it has a heavier clamping force at 1200lbs and the pedal is easier than stock. I've had it in for 20,000 miles so far and I'm glad I got it. I read a lot of things about it before I purchased it, and everyone loved it. Take it from someone that has one. This is the one u want. Cause it sounds like your truck is ur daily driver like mine and ur only driver like mine. Plus it wasn't any more than a clutch kit from AutoZone. It cost me about 300 bucks and shipping was about another 40. But it should be ur last one u need. I have a 98 limited extra cab with 220,000 and hope to make it to at least 500,000. Mine had a leak also and I told my mechanic to change out the rear seal if needed to fix it. He put the clutch in for 250 bucks and said there's nothing wrong with the rear seal and tightened the valve cover bolts and it feels like I have a new truck that doesn't leak. It will burn about a 1/2 qt every 5000 miles, but that's pretty much normal. So good luck!! But I'm sure you will love the Martin clutch. Those guys have been working on those first gens for as long as they were made in the factory there in Cali. And they know there ˟˟˟˟!! They picked the best parts from the best manufacturers to put it together. Also people say go with OEM Asian. Which part of it is (clutch cover) . But my Toyota tech at the local dealer told me that Asian stuff isn't the same anymore, cause they sub alot of their stuff out and their clutch kit isn't what it was when it was put in the truck. He's a 4wheelin weekend guy and he even said that Martin was the clutch to get especially for the money.
Definitely do clutch first. I drove mine for two months after it started slipping cause I drove it like I was on ice, but when it goes , u will be sitting still. Mine went out the day before I was going to take it to my mechanic. I had it scheduled in for that Saturday morning, but with help from a buddy and a tow rope it showed up the night before. Also, definitely, no matter what anyone else says, HAVE THE FLYWHEEL RESERFACED!!!!!! That will be another 60 bucks, but it's crazy not to do it. Cause you know it got hot when it slipped. Get the clutch fixed first and then it should be down hill and cheaper from there. Good luck!!

83

If you do your whole list, you're looking at thousands of dollars. If you're having someone else do the work, the timing belt/water pump work alone will be $900 or more.

I replaced my valve cover gaskets and a few other things while I was in there. Definitely a lot more involved than the old "R" series engines, but not bad. There are great tutorials with photos out there to help you along.

I always say go with OEM but it's not a strict rule. It's just good to start with the assumption that you don't need anything better than OEM. In most cases it is the best. People love the Marlin clutch and if it's easier to depress than stock, even better. There's no need for a Centerforce. I have 270,000 miles on my 98, and it's been mildly offroaded very, very often its whole life. The clutch is original. There is no need for a more heavy duty clutch. That being said, if the Marlin clutch is the same price or cheaper, and easier to depress, then no reason to avoid it.

The rear main seal needs to be done right, and is easy to do wrong. Marlin has always recommended not replacing the rear main as preventative maintenance when doing a clutch, if it's not leaking. Because more times than not, after you replace the non-leaking seal, it will spring a leak because you didn't get it seated quite right.

As for the leak...you'd need to clean the engine to find out where it's coming from. My skid plate and front differential were caked with an inch of oil sludge when I bought the truck. You know what it was from? The 3 years my friend owned it and took it to oil change shops rather than doing it himself. If you don't drop the skid plate to drain the oil, it ends up running all over the place and building up on the plate. The front diff was covered because of the oil filter being removed carelessly.

Anyway you've obviously got a leak, but some of that caked on oil might just be from oil changes.

Good luck! When well taken care of these trucks last an amazingly long time with amazingly few issues.