Well, everyone is going to hate me.

My 88 22re can pull I-5 up the Grapevine at 70 (6% average grade), in 3rd gear all the way from Gorman to Tejon, and the needle never gets over 1/2 way up.

No one mentioned checking the radiator hoses... in particular the lower 2 hoses. Those are "suction" hoses and they tend to separate on the inside, which means when they fail the hose "internal diameter" shrinks and causes reduced water flow, so no obvious signs other than higher temps at high rpms and low vehicle speeds.

 

Haters gonna hate. What kinda rpm you run at 70 in third? I've been up that hill once as a kid (78 E250 van 351W/C6 with a 28' trailer) it was stupidly long!

 

I was bouncing around 4500-5000 most of the way up, and that was on the south side going north.

 

I'd feel mean, flogging mine like that! Jeebus.

 

I do that regularly. Have to blow it out every now and then.
But, for what it's worth, I've done that drive several times a year for the past 4 years or so, both ways.
I've added around 60K miles on it since I bought it going back and forth from LA to SF and up to OR and WA a few times.
And she looses about a qt of oil about every 4K miles.

 

A properly maintained cooling system in stock form should never get hot. A stock rad. is more than enough to keep the engine cool.

It was 98* this weekend (very unusual in Wyoming) and I went up a section of I-80 called the Summit, 8% grade for about 6 miles. I had a full load of stuff in the bed and the engine never went abouve 1/4 on the stock gague and 190 on the mechanical one.

The cooling system should be completely gone through every 5 years. I usually do the following

-take radiator in and have it tested and cleaned.
- New OEM fan clutch
-New hoses (including those under the intake and the IACV
-New dual stage thermostat
-New Aisian Water pump (whether it needs it or not)
-New Coolant.

Oh, by the way I have never had a Head gasket go any cooling system failures. Preventative maintence is the key.

 

I don't know if replacing the clutch fan and water pump every 5 years is necessary. Ive seen those parts last for 10+ years. But couldn't hurt to do those things anyways, especially if your already working on it.

 

Dumb question but I'm gonna ask anyway. should I put an electric fan on when I put my 4runner back together?

 

Sounds like you need a new radiator (stock 2 row is fine). I wouldnt trust the OEM cluster gauge either. Especially the ones in an SR5 Cluster, notorious for failing/innacuracy. I have two that don't work. I use mechanical gauges... even those can be innacurate so test it before you install it. My new SunPro is off 14F (it reads 14F cooler than it is) ... which replaced a 3 year old SunPro ... needless to say i wont be using SunPro gauges anymore.

Also, no ones asked what coolant he's using and what ratio.. maybe its too obvious but too much antifreeze creates an insulating effect and won't cool very well. It's purpose is to prevent boiling, freezing and corrosion.

Also try a new thermostat, 180F with a bypass nipple. if no nipple, drill ONE 1/16" hole.

 

I would not recommend using a thermostat that is colder than stock. It won't fix overheating if the old one isn't faulty anyway. Same with an electric fan.

 

I know some people bypass the fan clutch so it spins with the motor to help keep their vehicles cool

 

I think they usually do that when the clutch doesn't work anymore. Locking the clutch will make tons of fan noise and impact fuel economy.

 

Was just there Northbound and southbound last week. Played it safe and only did max 55 mph in 4th gear. Ruby Tuesday (she's red and I found her on CL on Tuesday 14Feb2012) does not have tach so I just went by recommended max speeds in each gear from user's manual. But then, when roads levels, I was passing newer cars, anyway. No cooling system issues. According to P.O. oversized radiator was installed when truck was purchased because he meant to tow some trailer.

 

Locking the clutch would tell you if your clutch fan was bad, op stated that he replaced the fan already. I still think its the radiator not being 100% anymore. We all know that having a system thats 100% working and you can push your vehicle as hard as you feel safe without it moving. This is not the case in this situation.
Look at the cost is all I was saying when I showed the cross flow Ford rad as an option. This is gonna be cheaper if you are spending lots of money on the rad.

In the end, I want to see the overheating issue solved.

Ps. Has anyone tried the new waterless coolant?

 

i live in florida.i have an 86 and 87 4x4 22r pickups.i do alot of towing and its hot ten months of the year.i installed a v6 radiater 3 years ago.i run a 180 thermostat and thats what temp it stays at.i also installed a real temp guage that is accurate.2 years ago i did the taurus e fan.if you are moving 2mph the fan never comes on.if you sit at a traffic lite 5 to 7 mins it willcome on for2 min and its back to185.lasdt august i drove 250 miles one way at 60 to 70 mph .fan came on twice at traffic lites onthe way there and twice coming home the same day.i have the fan thermostat set to come on at190-195 and off at 185 .yesterday i installed one in my wifes 86 pickup(v6 rad}with stock clutch fan.it runs 180-185 all the time .that is a work truck in traffic all the time makes for as bulletproof a cooling system as you can make.i will convert it to e fan soon.hope it helps.kenny

 

I'm having this exact same problem, I'll CC this thread to my own troubles! Info to come!

 

When i got my truck i was amazed at how cool it always ran even screaming up a hill with 31's and stock gearing, now i'm on 4.56's but still it shouldn't be over heating.

I do have a lot of rust in my cooling system because the previous owner used the wrong coolant which is ultimately deteriorating the metal which can eventually blow gaskets. I've since changed radiators, water pumps and put in the proper toyota red coolant.

That may have been your root cause..?

 

What do you mean wrong coolant? These trucks came with plain old green ethylene glycol. Rust often comes from using coolant that is too dilute. Usually people that keep topping off a leaky system with plain water also use tap water, which encourages scale.

 

Ill second that.

Threads called "extra steps to keep a 22re cool"
If you need extra steps, theeeen the first steps are not right to begin with.

Said it before, and ill say it again, these motors shouldnt overheat unless somthing is wrong. No matter what, unless somthings wrong. Wrong Wrong Wrong Wrong !!!!

So if your moter is overheating for any reseon, high rpms, towing, hot outside, your in a bad mood, theres SOMTHING WROOOONGGG!!!

Stop looking for ways to fix it outside of fixing it.

 

Really, you were amazed it wasnt broken?