Don't even think of adding any kind of stop-leak to the coolant.
You can remove the radiator in less than an hour.
Get it professionally soldered.

 

it will probably be cheaper to buy a new radiator rather than repair the one you have.

 

I pulled the radiator out of the truck and dropped it off at the radiator repair shop that handles most of the commercial work for the port. They didn’t think it would be a problem to fix. They said “a day or two,” so I’ll find out soon enough what it’s going to cost.

 

$86 to solder the leaks, straighten the fins and pressure test the radiator at Seattle Radiator Works. That seems like a reasonable price.

 

While I have nothing against an aluminum radiator with polycarbonate tanks, there are those on this site who drool after an OEM all-"brass" metal radiator. You made the right choice.

 

Since I had to remove the radiator, it only seemed logical to pull the headlights and refurbish the assemblies. Anyone know what size screw is used to fasten the trim ring? Mine are so rusted, they’re more like distant memories than physical fasteners. I’d to pay the dealership $2 per screw.

Also, seeing as the radiator is gone along with the headlights, it seemed like the perfect time to replace the radiator support panel. The previous owner banged a pole and bent it a bit, so the passenger side lamp doesn’t mate up correctly with the headlight trim. Are there welds involved or is this a bolt-on part?

 

And, since I was randomly pull large parts off the truck, it seemed like the perfect time to replace the truly awful carpet.

 

There’s a bit of rust in the back corner in the driver’s side that I’ll sand out and repaint, and it looks like someone lifted the truck up with the jack under the passenger floorboard, but all in all it looks pretty clean for its age. Any suggestions for bending the bump in the floorboard back down. It’s bent up about an inch. I smacked it with a shot filled mallet but it didn’t move the floorboard at all.

 

two quick things:
1. Are you certain your engine is a spring tension and not a hydraulic tensioner for the timing belt? The new engine you got might have had hydraulic tensioner and so they removed the spring.
2. When installing the timing belt, the marks on the belt and marks on the pulleys will only be perfectly in line before you turn. Once you turn it the belt and pulley marks will not line up right again. But after one rotation, as long as your two cam pulleys are pointing up at the marks on the timing cover while the crank pulley is at TDC, you are good to go.

 

I got the timing belt installed and everything buttoned up. Decided to go ahead and replace the fuel injectors with remanufactured multiport injectors from Precision Injectors. I did it more for peace of mind knowing I’m not depending on 30 year old injectors out in the woods. When I removed the plenum, I noticed the gasket was wet with gasoline around cylinders 4, 5 and 6. Is this from spilled fuel when I pulled the fuel lines or is this something to worry about. I tested the compression last week and all cylinders were around 140-145. The engine wasn’t missing after I fixed the timing, plugs, wires, coil, distributor cap, rotor and spark plugs.

 

Did you crack the fuel lines open before pulling the plenum? It seems unlikely they would get saturated that way from the outside in. It looks like fuel coming from the plenum, which in my opinion can only be the cold start injector leaking. If you just ran the engine recently and the CSI was used (it is winter), maybe it is just residual from that startup. I wouldn't be overly concerned with it right now. Button it back up and if you have any sputter starts or long starts you can pull the CSI and test it for leak.
I don't have first hand knowledge of this particular phenomenon, just offering my opinion. Maybe someone else has seen this and can chime in.

 

After taking a second look, I think it’s oil. I thought fuel because that’s what I was smelling after disconnecting the cold start fuel injector line. But it didn’t evaporate. I must have contaminated the gasket somehow when I put it in. I have a new gasket, so I’ll make a mental note to check it the next time I remove the plenum.

I got the fuel system torn down and the injectors swapped out. The o-rings were old and worn on the injector cups, so someone de used to frost them with RTV to get them to seal. That can’t be the recommended solution. I got the cups cleaned off and the o-rings replaced.



I’ll need to check the compression when I’m done to make sure I have good seals on the injectors. Can I do that once the fuel rails are bolted down, or do I need to wait until everything’s back together? I’m trying to minimize the rework if I don’t get a good seal.

 

Oil isn't "supposed" to be in the plenum, but can get there through the PCV valve, so I'm not surprised to see amounts like you're seeing.

 

Well, damn. I was putting the final pieces together on the truck, tightening down the cold start injector, when one of the bolts snapped off in the plenum. Now, some people might point out that the cold start injector is usually attached with studs and nuts rather than with bolts. That's probably to prevent one from snapping off. Somewhere along the way the studs got replaced with bolts on my truck. I didn't know about the studs until I started checking the Toyota parts site.

I could get a used replacement plenum for $60, clean it up and install it, or I could try to extract the bolt first. It sheared off below the surface of the plenum, so grabbing it with pliers isn't an option. I do have bolt extractor bits, but I've had mixed success with them. I'm wondering if it's worth the effort to try and fix it. If it's likely that I end up cracking the plenum, or I have to drill the bolt completely out and tap the hole again, then the $60 is probably the better way to go. Are there other options besides using the bolt extractor or drilling the bolt out entirely? Should I even try?

 

If your option is to chuck the plenum into recycling, then there is no reason to not try.

Soak in PB-Blaster or other penetrating oil. Try a left-hand drill bit. (In a reversible drill.) Push fairly hard. Often, as soon as the bit catches it will drive the bolt out.

(I assume you over-torqued or otherwise stressed the bolt going in. If you break a bolt trying to remove it, it is often frozen in place so well that the extractor (smaller diameter) will break as well. Still, I would try to drill it out, and re-tap if necessary. This isn't a high-load application, so even a poor job well do it.)

 

I was able to back it out using a reverse drill bit. I used a torque wrench to take it to 13 ft lbs so it wasn’t jammed in too hard. Who knows what happened to the bolt or even where it came from. I ordered OEM studs to replace both bolts.

The engine fired right up after I got that sorted. I found two problems when I took it for a test drive. A fluid leak on the driver’s side of the engine and timing marks. The fluid looks like coolant or power steering fluid (it would be nice if they weren’t both red). The PS pump is new and the fasteners are torqued to proper values. I examined it carefully but didn’t see any signs of leaking. While I was poking around under the truck, I pushed back the linkage boot on the transmission case and a few tablespoons full of fluid poured out. Thin liquid. Definitely not gear oil. It looked almost like coolant with a bit of motor oil mixed in. I saw some wetness around the seals, but not a lot. How could I possibly have coolant in the transmission?? If it isn’t coolant, what is it? I changed all the fluids recently as part of the work I’ve done and the drain plug looks dry and clean. I didn’t see any leaks until I test drive the truck.

The engine was running really well, but I decided to double check the timing. The timing mark was off the chart advanced. It would be about 40 degrees past TDC if the scale extended that far. I tried to adjust it, but there’s not enough room on the distributor racket to get it to 10 degrees before TDC. Pushed all the way, the mark was around 10 degrees past TDC, and the engine was running badly and making lots of ticking noises. I put the distributor back about where it started and the engine smoothed back out. I don’t see how I could have installed the timing cover incorrectly yo move the marks that far. There are only so many holes to attach it to the block. I have no idea what else it could be. I check a dozen times to make sure the timing marks lined up when I installed the timing belt, and the engine runs much better now than it did before, so I thought I got it right.

Any suggestions s about the mystery fluid or the timing? I’ve put a ton of time into this truck already, so I’m tempted to live with the timing mark being off if it’s running fine. The fluids have me more worried. I did notice that the pipe coming from the heater core was crumpled a bit. I tried to straighten it out, then tightened the hose clamp way down. Could a leak from where the heater hose connects at the firewall make its way into the transmission case?

It feels like I’m so close to being finished, but both problems make me wonder if there are still major problems I haven’t diagnosed yet. Thanks for your input.

 

Here are a couple of pics. First is of the boot that the fluid drained from, the second of the seal on the transmission.

 

13 ft-lbs is WAY too much torque for the two bolts that secure the CSI to the plenum; no wonder you snapped the bolt. the 13 ft-lb spec is for the UNION bolt (the one that carries fuel in it).

the two bolts that secure the CSI to the plenum take about 70 in-lb.

for reference, 13 ft-lbs is about 18 N-m, while 69 in-lbs is about 7.8 N-m.

 

Of course, you’re right. 69 in lbs for the two bolts. I checked my notes, and I’d written down 13. I have no idea where I got that number. Fortunately it was easy to get the bolt out, and the replacement oem studs and nuts only cost a few dollars. In the end it wasn’t too expensive of a mistake.

Thanks for pointing out the mistake. I probably would have busted the replacement hardware in pretty short order as well.

 

the 13 ft-lbs is for the union bolt that attaches to the CSI and carries fuel. when removing it, you need to replace both crush washers. i never undo the union bolt, unless it shows leaks at the washers, simply so i don't have to replace the single-use washers.

the CSI can be inspected/tested without removing the fuel union bolt - just remove the two small bolts from the body of the CSI and gently pry the injector outwards. no need to replace the paper gasket if done carefully, either.