Hey, long time lurker. First time poster. This might belong in the wiring section, but I'm a noob so it's going here for now. Please move if needed.

I recently added an 86 4runner to the family. She's a 5 speed with 180k, but evidently the engine was rebuilt recently. I love her very much. When I first got her the temp gage in the truck would occasionally not function. Then the check engine light came on and I was having some problems starting her up (she idles rough and then dies if I don't press the throttle). So I pulled the codes and only got a code 4. Alright. That makes perfect sense.

So I ordered the part, which I guess ended up not being the right one, but what I'm concerned about is that when I got in there I saw some crazy ass wiring. Pictures attached. All the pigtails I find online for the 22re have one wire and my truck only seems to have two, the connector also seems to be square whereas mine is round. And I mean it's pretty obviously *seriously* messed up.

I'm a super self-sufficient person, and I like knowing how to wipe my own ass, but I only started driving a year ago (went right to the yotas got a 98 taco first), and I'm still admittedly a total novice when it comes to mechanical stuff. The only thing my taco has needed was a clutch switch replacement. lol. I'd love some feedback from someone who has looked at more of these engines. What am I dealing with here? What should I buy, where should I buy it, and what should I do about the ugly wiring job.

Ugh, I hate being a noob. Thanks in advance for any insight. I love this truck and I want to treat her right.

And yeah, one of the grommets on the valve cover needs replacing in a bad way.

 

That's ^^^ not the Temp Gage sender. That's the coolant thermo switch (TSW).

Temp Gage sender is hiding under around the intake manifold / Throttle Body. I think this is it...
It takes ground from it's mounting thread so make sure the thread on the block and the sender are clean to bare, shiny metal.


BTW, This is how I fixed the damaged wiring of that TSW...