hello,
I just purchased a 1982 toyota pickup 4x4 which I plan to use as a daily driver vehicle for the winter and also to tow my Suzuki.

I have toyota axles on my Suzuki so I am somewhat familiar with them, but other than that I'm not familiar with toyota's althought I've always liked them.

Can someone tell me if my truck is a short bed or a long bed? I'll attach some pictures of it.

What is the SR5 package about and how do you tell if your truck has it? My 82 has power steering, chrome grill and bumper, tilt steering, and a 5 speed, do they all come with this?

I bought this truck today at a written-off vehicle auction (good price too). Unfortunately they didn't have the keys with it.
I read somewhere that a key blank with a very small amount shaved off each side will work in numerous toyota 4x4's. Is there any truth to this? If so what kind of key blank should i look for (pictures?)?
Would my local toyota dealer be able to sell me a replacement key if I were to supply the VIN number or some thing?

Last question - When the ignition is in the "ON" position and I turn on the turn signal(s), the tach needle seems to jump up about half an inch every time the signal lights. I'm guessing it's a loose or missing ground. What ground(s) should I look for that could cause this?

Anton

 

By the looks of the pictures it seems to be a short bed. 82 would give you solid axles front and back (nice setup), probably a 20/22r carbed engine under the hood, not sure about the sr5 package... tilt was an option as was the grill and bumper. 5spd was standard... and the key, hmmmm. Maybe just a new ignition w/ new key? Or call the locksmith's. Looks like a good project truck there! A little paint, tires and some tlc should go quite a distance. If you get real ambitous and sink a few bucks into it, it would make for a very nice ride indeed! The tac is probably a loose ground allright- Happy hunting!

 

Since you have the tachometer, that's a pretty good indicator that you have an SR5 as I understand it.

 

Measure your wheel base (center of front tire to center of rear tire) to determine if you have a short bed (ie. short wheel base) or long bed (ie. long wheel base).

103" = Short bed
109" = Long bed

And I believe 5 speed was an option. You also should have the 22R motor. I'm not sure about the SR5 package either. You might have that, because of the tach and the chrome options.

I love that interior man. Brings back memories of riding around in a 2wd Toyota of the same vintage when I was a kid. Everything is so mechanical. Looks like someone did a number on it though when they installed all those speakers!

Check out these pages for some more info :
http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/faq/
http://www.brian894x4.com/Toyotapick...nermodels.html

 

I measured the wheel base and it turnes out to be a long bed, 109" wheel base.

Thanks for the links on the toyota 4x4 history, that's some good reading.

 

sR5 options include :

bucket seats
5 speed trans
chrome package
tach
tilt wheel
power steering
a/c

possibly more???

at the very least get some spray paint cans and give taht beast a face lift

 

i think ac was an option even for sr5.

sr5 = sport rally 5 speed(back when it actually meant something)

the standard tranny was a l45 4 speed, but you could get an l52 5 speed with the sr5 package

that's gotta be the cleanest dash i've ever seen in a 1st gen yota, it looks almost new

note: the 4x4wire faq about toyotas has a lot of bad info in it. especially the gearing info. the '79s had 4.375 gears instead of 4.10, 1981 i think had 3.9s, but there's a lot of other stuff wrong. kind of like saying you can identify a '79 by it's round headlights and bucket seats, while it could also be an '80 or '81. just little stuff i noticed

 

anton you that truck definitely has a lot of potential it looks in decent shape rust wise for the year. i noticed it is missing the carpat pieces that go on the bottom of the door part of the sr5 package. those old factory buckets are a pain the back does not fold front. it had speakers in the door factory with a fancy black cover over them. i wonder why did that with the wood. to bad they had to butcher up the radio bezel. to get the pullout radio to fit in a older truck you have to cut up the frame work behind it. you get lucky to and get a 17 gallon tank instead of 12 gallons on a short bed

 

kyle 22r you were rite they do have a lot of stuff wrong on that history site. in 1981 they had 4.10 and thats the year the front gusset started. they all had power brakes. the 1981 trekker they show has round lites and they say they have square lites.

 

has potential. i have one the same year and they will run forever never had any problems. jusst doesnt have enough power with a four cylinder pushing
35s. but i was wondering if you knew what kind of motor i could just drop in and keep the same setup???

 

Nice old post bump!

A 22re would be a nice, simple swap...

 

i wouldnt change motors thats where your reliability is. gears would be cheaper and easier, in my opinion. in my '81 i have the stock 22r with about 300xxx miles with 5.29's and i could rost them on concrete if i wanted. Add a K&N, header, and weber carb if you want a little more pep but the motor you have is the best, again just my opinion.

 

i was thinking the same thing...welcome to YT but you sure did play thread archeologist with your first post. .

consider re-gearing to 5.29's for 35's and a 2.7 Tacoma swap

 

for godsake makesure you check the floorboards. and the frame of course. Also check your cab mounts to make sure it is going to stay on the frame

 

that truck IS a SR5, same as mine.....and yes please check your floors and especially behind your seats at the rear cab mounts, your frame MIGHT look to be ok but give it a couple wacks with a ballpeen hammer on the frame behind the cab, this will tell you if its rotted out