david.creativeartist

Hi, I feel like a loser.. I just bought my first Toyota 4x4- 1986 short bed for $4,000 last week. It looks beautiful.. I test drove it, it ran perfect, new parts, etc... I drove it 1.5 hours home, no problem. Next day I had this guy install a car stereo.. once it was all hooked up, tried to power up stereo, wouldn't work, then I turned on truck, lights went dim, 25amp accessory fuse blew, and my truck wouldn't keep idle?????? I watched the guy, he did a good job as far as I know, we disconnected it all... next day went to two mechanics and now they say I only have 50PSI in cylinder #1 and other 3 are at 150PSI... Truck runs like crap.. This all happened out of no where. I am already financially in debt, my current car doesn't work, I'm in school, getting married, and working two jobs and paying off previous school loan... Previous owner has no clue- of course.. It passed smog last month. I'm told truck needs rebuild or new motor- wow! I had truck for one day and it crapped on me. Is this just absolute coincidence???? car stereo and compression failure???? PLEASE HELP, ANY IDEAS???????? I don't want to invest in a refurbed motor and still not fix the correct problem?? Could there be ANY electrical significance in this matter that may have affected the compression someway somehow??? Please Please HELP!!!!

gary_the_4runner

i say coincidence-
sounds like you need to pull the head.
the motor might be fine, if it is only affecting one cylinder.
is there white smoke coming out of the tailpipe? do you have milkshake in your radiator or oil? could be a blown head gasket. but at first glance seems like a valve issue, or maybe a cracked head.

sounds like a booty-fab wire job too.
people on this forum will need more info to answer your questions.
lesson learned: pre-purchase inspection and carfax before any purchase=cheap insurance

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

I perhaps sense someone is being taken advantage of.

I knew you were in trouble when you said you had someone install a stereo

Before starting home did you at least check the coolant and the oil . Did you check the coolant after you got home??

Did the truck run hot at all??

Was a coolant system pressure check done??

It is not right but I just rebuilt a truck for a good person that had no clue what he was looking at when he bought his truck.

Hard call to make since you never drove one of these trucks you have no real idea if it ran like it should.

You paid that much for a 86 I hope it is in perfect condition !!! It appears that it is not.

To bad so many people never post where they live. As help could be close at hand

Terrys87

iTrader: (1)

As far as your electrical.. I would say to remove your stereo and see if that helps solve your electrical problems. I have seen to many that stick in an aftermarket stereo and wire them in wrong. It cost a little more for the adapters and when in a tight fianacial bind, it can be tempting to scrimp on the adapter when you are thinking you can save a few bucks by having it hardwired.

Being that you are already $4000 deep into this truck, and your situation, I would suggest possibly looking at having the head redone and new headgasket or if the head is bad you could get a new one for around $250. Have someone that you can trust maybe go over the motor and run test to give you a better idea as if it is the top half or the bottom half of the motor.

From what you are saying about the truck, I am assuming that they took pretty good care of it and you might luck out and have a solid bottom half.

I am by no means loaded with cash, but when I was strapped fianancially, I had to learn to work on my own cars to save money and the 22r/22re is a great motor to learn on. There are alot of build threads on here and plenty of people here that want to help and enjoy helping you. Several newbies have done it and we all started somewhere.

Like Wyoming said, put your location up and you might have guru in your area that could help.

david.creativeartist

Thanks for the replies! Truck ran great, didn't and still doesn't over heat. No white smoke coming out of tail pipe, radiator fluid looks perfect, oil is a little black- hmmm??
all seemed fine when I bought the truck. I drove over the city, highway, up hills, etc.. Coolant system pressure check wasn't done, I work two jobs and so my only time to buy the truck was late at night ;( ... The truck is in near mint condition, super nice.... definitely eye catching, I get a lot of compliments on it. But I do live in Santa Cruz, California- ANY HELP direction, if need to, where to purchase motor, etc.. thanks!!!

Fink

Best thing to do is just remove the very last thing that was done to it (i.e. stereo).

I also agree with wyoming, in saying that it appears the vehicle was not properly inspected prior to purchasing.

Fink

Fink

It's not like the truck is done for, you just have to start isolating where the problem is.

Don't even think about replacing the motor yet. That will just compound the problem and given that you paid $4,000 for the truck, you'd be in for way too much money after a swap.

Fink

david.creativeartist

Thanks... I would love to work on it myself, but I have two jobs and school.. .I'm strapped and I was only able to check it out late at night. I wished I checked it out more.. I already removed the stereo immediately have failure... So, I'm just confused.. I have a deep sense it's not my motor- hmmmmmm ????

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

Sounds almost like stereo wiring blew something electrical related to truck running properly. Seems hardly coincidental.

Compression doesn't just go bad overnight without warning signs or symptoms.

:wabbit2:

Fink

I agree with Wabbit, I doubt this is coincidental.

Sounds like you just need to find a shop that does good work and take it to them - not sure what else you can do if you don't have the time to troubleshoot it.

Fink

richard212

take it to a diesel electronics mechanic we are expierenced with more dc electrical than any other mechanic out there

david.creativeartist

I feel the same way too.. .Hmmmm Thanks everyone... I really appreciate it and I will look into Diesel Electronics...

smogman

Now thats funny. As I recall, they just started using electronics in diesel's in the 90's. Gas motors have been using electronics starting in the 60's.

Try replacing the fuse and take the stereo out of the truck. Sounds like your stereo guy used a wrong wire for a ground. disconnect anything he touched and tape it up. I see stereo guys using test light to check for ground with out the vehicle running. Then when you start the truck that is no longer a ground and it shorts.
If you gave this same story to the shop that did the compression test they should think about another profession. Sounds like you have an easy fix but you need a qualified technition. Might be a diesel guy might be a toyota specialist might even be a electronic specialist. But I can tell you there are plenty of qualified people to fix this you just have to be willing to spend money. If they quote you anything less than $150 just to look at it, then they are probably not qualified.

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