When I was 14 years old my sister and her husband pulled up in our front yard with a brand new 1986 Toyota 4x4 pickup, charcoal grey and chrome grille and I've loved Toyota trucks ever since. I think this was the same summer that Back to the Future came out, but I did not even remember that aspect of my obsession until just recently when I watched it again. What a brilliant marketing move by Toyota I thought! I even learned to drive a stick in that truck, when the BIL was too drunk to drive, and I was still 14 lol. Anyway, I've had a few Toyotas in the 35+ years since then but never the 84-88 pickup that I loved so much. As I got older (and bigger) I thought it would be just as good to own the same era 4Runner should the opportunity present itself.

I live in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin and this 4R popped up at a local junkyard, parked by the road (they don't crush classics, they say) for sale, for way too much money. Long story short (I hate long, wordy posts but hey it's my first) I kinda gave it a once-over after spending a couple hours in the yard on a Saturday. Did not even notice the ECU was gone! But the interior looked really good I thought and 95% of the rust was on the front fenders, which I figured was a much easier fix than the rear where I'd always seen it on other trucks of this era. A month or so later I made an offer they didn't accept, but the next day they dropped the price by $1,000. I made the same offer the next day and they accepted. It was probably a little more than it's worth to some people, but it was there, it was local and I've wanted one forever.

I crawled under that thing with a body hammer and beat all over that frame everywhere I could access and it was solid. Of course when I got it home and on the lift and removed the tank I found 4 spots about 6" or less. One spot was hidden by the tank and one on each side by the spare tire, the other I just plain missed! They've now been repaired. Will post more pics and questions (I have lots of them) shortly. Thanks for reading. Feel free to school me if there is a better way to post pics. -Jeff


Loading is much more fun with flat tires and no winch

 

Looks great! Much better bodywise than my new project 87.

don’t even try to fix the front fenders. Repros are cheap.

More photos please!

 

Thanks! Yeah I really wanted to save the fenders because of the pinstripes, but probably more trouble than it's worth, especially since it used to have the chrome rust-magnet trim!

 

I don't have many pics of it before it went on the lift, these were all taken a month or so before I bought it (and before someone stole the shift knob) Dash is in good condition, too bad someone drilled screws into it!

 

Pics of undercarriage (rear lift arms have since been relocated to rear axle) Had to put the spare tire on drivers front before unloading it. I was able to lower the spare with no problem, it may even be original, date stamp indicates it was either produced in the 43rd week of 1981 or 1991 (September 1985 build)
One of the rust spots was right behind the LSPV, can't see it in the pic though. Also I think most of the leakage up front may be from the A/C compressor, it is covered in ?? and completely wet

 

Here is where someone cut the AFM and brought it to the front desk of junkyard and tried to say it was from another Toyota pickup in the yard (94) he was asked to leave. Should be fun to wire back in!


Here you see a vacuum line disconnected and a fresh screw hole in the side of the intake. Can anyone tell me what part was stolen here? Also 2 more pics of engine bay if you guys see anything else missing let me know. I did pull the air box and it has a hole rusted through the bottom of it from all the crap and rodent feces that accumulated

 

Scanning my wife's FB for fenders and bumpers and came across this deal, for $120 I got a new front lower valance, not-new-but-better bumper and a spare tailgate, which is better than mine on bottom but worse on top it seems, but it was pretty much a throw-in and complete so I took it. Guy had the parts in a barn for years. I like the guy on the box, I call him Fragile Man

 

Made my first newbie discovery, a stamp on passenger front frame that's a mix of model number RN61 and last 7 digits of VIN, though the last 2 digits I can't really tell if they are exactly right, pretty cool to me!

 

I finally decided to try the back window, mostly so I could open the tailgate, and it worked perfectly! Now have much easier access to the cargo area.

 

Anyone know what these brackets are for on the sides of the top? I have not seen them on pictures of other 4Runners, guessing roof rack but they are only in the one place thanks

 

When I removed the drain plug from the gas tank, nothing came out so I put the drain plug back in, but it just spun, wouldn't get tighter or looser. It's obviously stripped, I got it out, but has anyone ever tried to retap the hole? Tank is in pretty decent shape, would be a shame to toss it because of a drain plug! Worst of all I didn't even need to drain it because all the gas had evaporated!!

 

Truck was last registered in 2003 and for all I know it hasn't been driven since. Junkyard claims they got it running just to make sure it wasn't locked up;

My immediate plans are;

[X] Repair rust holes in frame, clean out and fluid film inside frame channels
[X ] Replace brake lines from front distribution block to LSPV
[X] Replace main fuel line from tank to engine
[X] Replace fuel pump and sock, and fuel filter on engine block (and maybe relocate to fenderwell)
[X] Find an ECM
[X] GET IT RUNNING
[ ] Make a new list

Questions
Can I use the regular M10 x 1.0 brake line fittings? The ones I've removed so far have a ~ 1/4" flat area at the end instead of being threaded all the way
Should I test the fuel pump or just replace? I read that old gas is the #1 killer of pumps
Are the clips that hold the brake and fuel lines to the frame still available? Guessing no but worth asking
Would a used ECM be plug and play or is there any programming needed? I believe it can be an 86 or 87 ECM?

All I can think of for now, appreciate any input

Jeff

 

I'm surprised the rear quarters are in such good shape. Looks like a great pick. There aren't many left up north. Post some pics when you get to the tailgate. I'm interested to see how you repair it and what the inner 16 gauge support brackets look like. The upper was bad on mine, and the inner brackets on the body, not the tailgate, needed repair.

 

The missing item on the intake is the A/C idle up valve. No longer available but there is a post somewhere on this forum showing how to fit one off another model. Sorry no link right now.

The bracket on the top is aftermarket for a rack or light bar? Definitely not factory.

Brake lines are supposed to be M10x1.0 I have used 3/16 brake line with the original Toyota fittings. I always save them.

Just pull the fuel pump and sender out and get them beck in shape. You will probably need a new one. Get a Denso.

I recently got a truck running that sat many years. I dropped the tank and cleaned it, new pump and sock, new fuel filter. While the lines were disconnected I blew them out with compressed air. I squirted carb cleaner into the fuel lines until it started coming out the return line. I let it sit overnight and blew out the crud. When it was hooked back up and primed with clean fuel it started right up. You might not get that lucky?? Blow out the vent line too. Mine was plugged.

My wife and I bought our first new vehicle in 1986. A red 4Runner with the same interior. She HAD to get the automatic. Yuk. It had 450 K miles when it got totaled.
We don't get rust here but our paint and interior plastic get wasted by the sun. You could make some bucks selling interior parts to us out here. That dash alone with NO cracks, damn!

I just took apart two 1986 pickups. A 2wd and a 4wd. I might have a lot of the clips and stuff you need. I'd have to dig in my stash. There are people here in Tucson that have a LOT of Toyota trucks they part out. If shipping isn't too bad you might find deals on rust free OEM parts.

I had a 1986 ECM. I "think" I let it go with the engine. I'll look. It was for a California emissions truck though.

Aftermarket fuel tanks aren't that expensive but they don't have drain plugs. I've heard.

Good luck with your build!

 

I saw somebody on CL or FB selling parts including ECMs recently on the east coast. Will try to find it again.

I’ve sold parts on ebay and was surprised to see most of my interior parts shipping westward. Rust is our problem in New England!

 

Here's the thread on the A/C idle up valve.https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116...p-help-304870/

 

the hardtop brackets are aftermarket, used to mount a roof rack. the front rack would usually be mounted on the door gutters, thus why only one pair of brackets on the hardtop.

appears to have aftermarket cruise control, too.

 

I was surprised at the rear quarters too, it appears that being off the road the last 20 years did a world of good for this truck. There is rust through at the very back of both rear fenderwells, inside and out, maybe the size of a baseball. Are you talking about the hinge brackets that support the tailgate when it's down? The one on the passenger side looks new compared to the other...meaning it still has paint! The top of the spare tailgate is completely rusted with a thin piece of chrome adhered to it. I will probably stick with the original tailgate, main problem with it is the seam across the bottom is separated. Maybe I can find a way to 'mend' it back together!

newbie question, what's the rod across the bottom of the tailgate for?

A couple more pics of the hinges...

 

Hey thanks for all the answers AZ! From what I read on the link you shared it sounds like you can use parts from a Camry etc. A/C idle up valve, but the 4R valve housing still has to be used? I could be wrong, some very wordy explanations on there that I probably won't fully grasp until I get my hands on something. I assume the truck will start/run/drive without this A/C valve? I barely use the A/C in my daily driver, I drive with all the windows down every chance I get! and it's 10x better with a power rear window. The only other time I've had one of those was in my 2006 Tundra, which I drove for 10 years and sold for a 'work commuter' 2011 X-Runner.

I was hoping to just use some pre-made brake lines and bend them into place, but I guess I'll just buy a roll of the copper-nickel line and use the old fittings.

I got the pump out of the tank, only breaking half the bolts! The sending unit however, tiny phillips screws...no way those are coming quietly. I know new tanks are fairly cheap, but so am I! But given the circumstances probably the best option.

The dash was one of the things that helped convince me to buy it. Last night I found instructions for a windshield cover, the ends of which were folded into the cab and suction-cupped to the inside of windshield and the door closed. Thinking he used it while parked and probably saved the dash. I don't/didn't know the PO, just know that he was a Service Mgr at a local Toyota dealer that would bring home old trade-ins that needed work. He had an 83 Celica liftback with a new rear axle in the back! This 4R had a new E-brake cable and some other cable, maybe a speedo cable, in it. Anyway the junkyard bought like 30 cars from his estate sale.

Thanks again for all the info, there's an ECU at a yard about 2 hours away, will probably just have them mail it to me it's only 60 bucks. But if you have any frame clips available that would be awesome! Let me know thanks!
Jeff

 

Thanks yeah if you find something let me know, I think all I found on eBay was a place that would refresh the ECU and mail it back to you? Car-part dot com has plenty of them, too, one of my favorite sites!