Hello guys I finally found and bought my 87 toy truck. I will be picking the truck up on Thursday and then bringing it to a garage to begin the 12 hour drive home.
I'm not overly mechanical and you guys know these trucks.
This truck was brought from Arizona 10 years ago and has been sitting for 10 years with the occassional start up and drive. The owner has just replaced some seals and gasket. He says it is ready for the drive home and would trust it.
My question is what would you guys do to the truck before you drove it that distance? I don't want to damage the truck in any way. Obviously I will be changing the motor and tranny oil. Also to help out it is the RE motor with 5spd manuel.
Thanks Scott O

 

basically check for leaks, oil,gas,coolant...and pull the fill plug on the front and rear end to make sure theres fluid and to make sure its not just sludge in there (ask me how i know) jiggle the drive shafts n make sure the u joints are still good, and uhhh make sure no creatures have made your new yota home

 

Welcome to Yotatech!!

Hmmm, well I guess I would look over all the hoses really well for softness or sweating. I think I'd be more worried about the tires than the truck! LOL!!! How's it run?

 

At least an oil change and cooling system flush and refill. And tire dry-rot might be an issue too so check them thoroughly. Also, fuel contamination may prove an issue so maybe carry a spare fuel filter, some fuel system cleaner and some drier (heet or similar, or isopropyl alcohol).
Check for signs of oil leakage on the ground, engine and around the engine compartment and check the differential levels, etc.
Start the engine and if it idles smooth and relatively quiet particularly at start-up (no signs of rod knocking), it's probably fine.
Beyond that, it's kind of hard for me to describe what I'd look for with a newly purchased used vehicle prior to a long trip.

How far are you planning on driving it?

 

For me personally I would give it a bit of a tune up to be sure. Lube the chassis change the plugs and drain/refill the antifreeze. Check all the hoses and belt for any damage. Change the fuel filter. no telling howw long it's been since it was changed and if old gas sat in it it is probably gummed up with varnish and old gas. Seriously go over the truck with a fine tooth comb before you start the long haul. Good luck man! even though the 22re is a strong motor sitting like that can cause unforseen damage but you don't know till you drive it. Do some smart prevenative maintanence and you should be fine

 

Wow, you guys are great and quick. When I said asap I thought it would be a day or so. Before I got a response. Thanks!!! It never cross my mind to check the diffs. The owner says it runs strong, and I'm not sure the actual distance but it will be about a 10 hour drive from Dixon Illinois to Sarnia Ontario Canada

 

cool, look forward to sein ya back here for much more info

 

I drove up to Montana from Southern California here to bring back 2 FJ40s. Went to the WalMart and had all fluids changed, including diffs, trans and transfer case, changed plugs. The stuffed my duffle bag with a couple cans of starting fluid, couple quarts of oil and gear oil, and a couple gallons of coolant. Then I drove 21 hours home with a Cruiser that had not been driven for more than ten minutes in more than 5 years towing the other Cruiser and made it with only one simple hiccup.

If you cover your bases, you should be good.

Congrats on the purchase and welcome!!!

 

also stop by any oil change place and ask if you can have a technicians inspection sheet, use it as your own checklist.

 

if you plan on changing filters and draining everthing put some seafoam through it before you change them all.

 

ET What is seafoam?

 

it is a fuel additive, an oil additive. it works very well to clean up an engine on the inside. I pull a vacuum line and suck about 1/4 of the can into the intake after the engine is warm. kill the engine while sucking it out of the can and let it sit for a few minutes. When you goto crank it up its going to smoke whitefor 30 seconds but it helps break up carbon deposits in the engine.after the engine warms up pour it in your oil before an oil change. I pour it in and let the truck run for 3-4 minutes and then drain the oil. Good luck on your journey.

 

I beware of the seafoam. It, like other engine cleaners, might dislodge something that is better off stuck inside the grime. I am not saying its bad, I never used the stuff myself but instead used carb/throttle body cleaner and marvel oil, I woud wait till I got back to Canada.
I saw en engine that blew up once from using 'crankcase cleaner'. Cannot remember the brand but it really doesnt matter, it was something that promised to clean the engine.
What killed it was it dislodged all the slime, grit and crap at the bottom of the pan, oil pump sucked it up and it clogged the strainer. END OF MOTOR.
I run mystery oil cus it cleans slow, it gradually disolves the crap and keeps crap from forming. My shop teacher, ASE platium cert. instructor, whom once built engines for nascar will swear by it. Don't expect a shiny motor after 1 oil change, but give it a year and it will improve.

And do not overlook the obvious. I once bought an old Dodge powerwagon down in south carolina while I was down there working. Truck had not been driven regularly in 6 years, but did make the short haul to the trash dumb about once every month or so. I went into autozone and bought new belts, hoses, fluids (include 2 gallons of water,just in case) and filters, and a can of starting fluid (lol). What the previous owner had told me, I forgot, that the truck had only 3 lug nuts on each front wheel.
Needless to say I drove the truck several hundred miles from jobsite to jobsite and actually made it to within 90 miles of home when the wheel (almost) fell off. Rim was ruined, lug studs were ruined and it was 1:00am. Had to have it towed the rest of the way.
Check the tires for broke belts, nails, air, etc, check the spare that its fully aired up, make sure you have a jack and lugwrench!!! (this caused me a world of headache with my new used Mercedes).
Always assume the tire will blow out on a sunday afternoon, and remember, wal mart tire and auto center is open 7 days a week, typically from 8:00am to 7:00pm.

 

I think you should beware of Walmart personally. They once installed my air filter backwards, put a 10 lb. difference in air pressure from one tire to the next, and left me w/o windshield wipers all in one visit. You'd be better off buying the stuff at Walmart and doing the work yourself in the parking lot.

 

WOW!

 

things posted above, didn't read them all. Download and print the FSM to take with you and take tools.