Hello everyone..

I have a 1996 Toyota pickup longbed, 22re...I love this truck. Bought it a couple years ago..Since I've had it I've replaced the trans, and clutch..

The other day when I was driving it from OR to NV, I noticed the oil pressure gauge would start to bounce around. Sometimes it would read no pressure at all. I've heard the oil pumps on these things go bad from time to time..I just want to make sure it's the actual issue and not something else.

Thanks for your help...

 

Did you still have a full level of oil in it when you stopped? If you did, I would look had at the sensor, and gauge, rather than the pump. The 3 times the oil pump on my pickup has failed, it essentially dumped the entire load of oil onto the road in one shot. BLECH, no more oil. Granted, all the pickup has is an idiot light, but it's something, and I have no indication of an impending failure, like I would with an actual pressure gauge.

IF, however, your oil quantity is gone, or gone way low, yes, it could well be the pump, or it's 2 seals. It has the front crankshaft seal, and the seal of the pump body. If either one fails, and they do, the oil can drain rapidly. Fortunately, they're both relatively easy to replace. Also, the pump is easy to remove.

Give us a heads up of what you find
Pat☺

 

thanks for your help! I have been having to add oil to it. I just figured it was burning a little too much. Im replacing the slave cylinder and the clutch fork dust boot later today when it cools down. When Im under there I'll snap some pics and see if there's any seeping at the seals.

It does seem like the oil pressure increases as I increase the throttle..but then sometimes it will just read zero pressure and I panic and pull over.

 

Idle oil pressure of a hot engine is only 3-4 PSI. On a lot of gauges, it can LOOK like zero.They're just not made to read that low a pressure.

Check both seals on the oil pump. One goes around the entire circumference of the pump where it bolts on, the other is the front seal for th crankshaft. Usually the one the fails. Remember that if the crankshaft seal is leaking, chances are it will sling the oil off, up onto the front of the engine. If the front of the engine is covered in oil, chances are the crankshaft seal is going...going...

Getting the harmonic balancer off the crank is the really hard part of the evolution. The "RIGHT" way to do it, is to get yourself a pulley holder to keep it from turning while you try to loosen it. It's on with something like 68 ft/lbs of torque, so it's hard to break loose.
Me, every time I've had to do it, I put a breaker bar on it, and push it up against the frame on the passenger side. Pull the center conductor off the distributor, and have someone you trust with your life tap....I say TAP...the starter. Don't crank it, just tap it. Keep your hand holding the breaker under it, and open. The starter will turn it just enough to break the bolt loose. Be careful you don't loose the key the holds it matched to the crank properly. You will need it when you put it back together.
To put it back on, just block the tires, put it in 4th or 5th, set the park brake, and crank away with your torque wrench until it's at the right torque. Easiest way I've found to do it. NOT easy, that's a LOT of torque to put on a bolt, but the easiest, anyway.

Remember to have a NEW oil pump seal, as well as the front crankshaft seal. Don't try to reuse the small seal that goes all the way around the pump. You WILL get leaks all over the place. Replacing the crank seal is easy. Just grab a socket that matches the outside of the seal, and tap it out from the back. Comes right out. Tap the new one in, or, if you have access to a press, just press it in.
Be aware, when you go to put the oil pump back on, that you MUST use the bolts that came out of the holes back into the hole they came from. It matters. The easiest way I've found to hold the small seal in while replacing the pump on the engine is to put a small dab of thick, heavy, grease at every corner, and so on. Then put the seal into the groove on the pump. The grease will hold the seal in place, and just squish out of the way. Won't cause any fitment troubles.
Make sure the key that holds the harmonic balancer to the crank is in place before you put the balancer back on.

Good luck to ya!
Pat☺

 

Thanks for the information! I haven't begun work on it yet. Upon further inspection it needs a full tune up and other things so I ordered new spark plug wires, spark plugs. I need to get some hoses (just need to identify the ones on top of the valve cover) and a few other other parts. I found a pretty good video on YT showing a front main seal leak repair that tackles my oil pump issue. He goes over the two methods you mentioned about removing the crank pulley. The starter bump seems like the way to go..

I have a question about that fork dust boot (circled red in the above posted image)...How does the boot attach to the bell housing? I thought it would slip over a lip or something on the square opening, but it's just a hole. Do I just stuff that boot in the hole? That doesn't really make sense though...Thanks again for all your help...New to the Toyota world, and I definitely want to be mechanically proficient on this thing so i appreciate the knowledge.

 

WHICH hoses on top of the valve cover? There's a bunch, and at least 3 different sizes I can think of. The only hoses that are specifically sized and formed are the two for the PCV system. The rest, of two different sizes, are pretty much standard metric sized hoses, and not specifically shaped. Just cut to fit. Easy peasy.

Make sure they're OEM parts. They work best, although I put 100,000 on two different sets Bosch Platinum Plus 4 plugs in my pickup. Also, check that the plugs are gapped correctly. They may or may NOT be out of the box. 13 ft/lbs torque, without anti-sieze.

Make sure the distributor cap and rotor are part of your tune up kit. Same with a gasket for the cap.
Also, get a valve cover gasket set, and a PCV valve gasket. Those get brittle pretty fast, and if it breaks apart while removing it, you don't want it falling down into the valve train. Easiest to pull the valve cover before you pull the PCV valve gasket. While you have the valve cover off, set the valve lash. It really makes a pretty big difference. Check the PCV valve for proper operation while it's out.
Again, only use OEM parts. Gaskets, PCV valve, etc. Don't get a generic cheapie part, you'll regret it.

Also a good idea to replace the radiator hoses. There are three, Top, bottom, jumper. It's the jumper most forget. It goes from the pipe the bottom hose goes to, to the water pump inlet. A short, 90° Bend, hose, right under the power steering pump.. May as well flush and refill the radiator coolant when you replace the hoses. Don't forget to burp the system once it's refilled with new coolant. The cooling system has a bad habit of hiding air bubbles in it that will make it run hot. Replace the thermostat while the system is drained. The Toyota Red coolant is the best choice. 50% miz with distilled water. No tap water. Tap is OK for flushing, but for a fill, distilled is the way to go.

Lube every grease zert you can find under the truck. U-joints, double Cardan, ball joints everything. I do mine twice a year, spring and fall. Drain and refill the transmission, and the differentials.

If the brake fluid and the clutch fluid are darker than what comes out of the bottle, bleed the system completely. Brake fluid absorbs moisture out of the atmosphere, and that makes it work less well. Don't forget the LSPV! Many people ignore it, and wind up with a mushy brake pedal due to bad fluid, or air in it.

Yes, the rubber peice on the bell housing has a ridge around the bottom (the big end) that just seats down in the square hole. Easy to install.

Replace the three belts, as well. Pretty easy, and a good idea. Make sure to tension them correctly.

It sounds like a lot to do, but it's really not. I do mine every spring. I save the parts I remove, and keep them in the truck. Plugs wires, thermostat, whatever.. No fluids, but parts. If something you install fails, you can put the old one in to get you through until you replace it.

Have fun! The first couple of runs through, it's a learning experience. After, it's just like putting the key in the door lock. You do it all without really thinking of it.

Pat☺

 

Sorry for the delay in the update! Had a baby last week so she's been ruling my life..Finally have some time to handle some business.

Heres a pic of the engine bay..I just need to identify these two hoses so I can complete my parts order. I really need to get this thing up and running again. I have a valve cover gasket set. The engine is dirty because my radiator was kicking coolant out and dispersing it all over the place..Changed that a while back.

 

Those are the two hoses for the PCV system. Positive Crankcase Ventilation. The PCV valve is between the hose and valve cover in the rear. Be careful removing the PCV valve from the valve cover. The grommet that seals it to the valve cover get's brittle, and can disintegrate easily. It's best to remove the hose from the Throttle Body, and then remove the valve cover before you remove the PCV valve. That way, the bits and chunks don't fall down into the valve train.
It's a good opportunity to test or replace the PCV valve, too. Do NOT replace the valve with a auto part store generic cheapie. Always go with OEM!

It's also a good opportunity to set the valve lash. The FSM has a very good, easy to do, write up on "how-to". It's a bit of maintenance that really should be done once a year, or every other year, at the least.

An easy way to keep the valve cove gasket in the groove in the valve cover while installing it back onto the engine is to put a little dab of thick, heavy duty grease in a few locations around the valve cover's circumference. The grease holds the gasket in place while setting it down onto the engine, but doesn't interfere with the fit of the gasket at all. It just squishes out of the way down the groove.

Have fun!
Pat☺

 

Doooood! you are a WEALTH of invaluable information..Thanks for all the info. Thanks for taking the time to explain everything to me. I'm getting all those parts ordered so I can get this thing back on the road.

Here's what I'm getting so far:



Is there anything else I should get since Im gonna be in there?

 

The PCV hoses are two different hoses. One from the PCV valve to the TB, one back to the valve cover from the TB. Not just one hose.Two totally different hoses. Make sure you get the two different preshaped, different sized ends, hoses, not just two of the same hose.

Also, make sure you don't over-torque the spark plugs. 13 ft/lbs ONLY, no antiseize.

Get a large tube of Silicone Dielectric grease. Put a dab in both ends of the plug wires. It really makes a difference. Keeps dirt, grease, and oil out, makes sure you get the best possible electrical connection, and makes sure the rubber boots on the ends don't stick to the plugs or the distributor towers. I use it in every electrical connection I open in the engine compartment. It not only makes for better, safe connections, it makes them easier to take apart again if I ever need to. It's also great for o-rings. It keeps them soft and they last much longer before they get brittle and break up.

Good luck! I'm glad to be small assistance to you.
Pat☺

 

Sorry for the time in between updates! Between this pickup and my FXR, I've been tied up! Finally got most of it done. Replaced the vent and PVC hose. Swapped spark plugs, wires, distributor cap/rotor(should be in mail today), and valve cover gasket set. Everything looked pretty good..Didn't check the valves of anything technical as there was no issues before.

I have a question about the oil pump still..Everything looks good at the oil pump, so I was thinking it was maybe the sending unit? The unit and wire located under the oil filter?

Anyway...here's an updated pic with a slightly cleaner valve cover...When it's all done, Im gonna pull out the degreaser and clean the whole engine bay..It's kinda driving me nuts how dirty it is. Gonna try and knock out the slave cylinder right and fork book right now..

 

Here's a little update with pics...sorry for the long delay.

I have a leak somewhere and seeps through the fork dust boot cover. It doesn't look like it's oil. I hope it's not trans fluid. I had the transmission and clutch replaced last year.