97 T-100

i'm planning on taking a trip to guatemala this summer with the yota and was told that it might be hard to find unleaded gas down there. i've been living in mexico for about a year now and have had no problems finding regular unleaded, but if i do have to run leaded, is it true that all i have to do is disconnect my cataletic converter? i have a 97 t-100 with the 3.4 liter V6. thanks for the help.

Robinhood150

Bump, anybody know the answer to this one?

rimpainter.com

It will ruin your cat.
Leaded gas can interfere with O2 sensor operation.
It willl significantly reduce the life of plugs and create large amounts of carbon deposits.
Studies have show that running leaded fuel significantly reduces the life of the engine.

97 T-100

hmmm....will the performance of the truck be seriously compromised if i pull the oxygen sensor and the cat? i've driven a truck with a bad oxygen sensor before and all it did was gave me slightly worse fuel milage. should i pull the whole exhaust and put a straight pipe in until i get back to the states or should i take my chances with finding good gas down there? thanks again for the input.

rimpainter.com

I dont know how you could run without an O2 sensor. You would have to fool the ECU. The truck would run like crap, if at all.

Could you call the embassy or high-end hotels down there and find out more info about the availability of unleaded fuel? Are you sure you are not going to find any?

Los Gatos?

I would NOT run leaded gas....there is a reason your dash says "unleaded gas only," it's not just the catalytic converter, although you will certainly mess it up hardcore if you run leaded through it (it will be destroyed), the 02 sensors will almost certainly be fouled, and remember you have two of them, it will make the engine run bad to say the least, and you definitely can't run without 02 sensors. Also, I'd worry about the increased carbon deposits as well...the whole engine is designed for unleaded, who knows what else might be fouled if you ran say, a tank or two through it?

Edited by Robinhood:

pfdaxe

Check this site:

http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/world_america.html

Looks like alot of Central and South America countries have Toyota dealers that should be able to answer questions. Plus, since so many countries down there have Toyotas I'm sure you'll be fine. I couldn't see Toyota making leaded fuel Toys only for a few countries. But check anyway.

And if you can read spanish:

http://www.toyota.com.ve/p/faq_3.html

97 T-100

thanks for the info, the venezuela site says that you can't use leaeded gas in a toyota newer than 2000, so i'm still not sure about my 97. i'll keep looking, but will probably just go down and carry an extra gas can in case i can't find unleaded for a bit. i'll post what ever info i can find.

wynn

I lived in Guatemala for two years (06/93-03/95) and it seems they had unleaded most everywhere. I was not driving a car while I was there so I'm not 100% on this one. It is one of the biggest places (most people) in all of Central America.
What's more, 30%+/- of the cars down there came from the U.S. because every Nov./Dec. there are hundreds who drive home (to Guat) with new/used cars from the U.S.
The main things to worry about would be staying safe on the highway (Mexico) and the taxes they'll try and make you pay as you enter Guatemala.

Your best bet would be to e-mail someone at the Guatemalan Embassy
http://usembassy.state.gov/guatemala/

Good luck 97 T-100

-wynn
If you have any other ?s about Guat let me know.

Ben(Miami)

I was going to say, I haven't been to Guatemala, but if Honduras is any indication of the rest of Central America, there should be plenty of unleaded in the cities. Virtually every gas pump I saw in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula had unleaded.

I would second that statement. Though I have never done it myself, I have thought about before and consulted people who live in C.A. about driving down throught Mexico to Central America. The general consensus is that it's dangerous with regard to crime, and it WILL cost you. (So called "taxes" as wynn mentioned). Almost anyone with some sort of governmental affiliation will ask for "passage fees", or so I have been told....

Regards,
Ben(Miami)
'02 Limited 4X2

97 T-100

thanks for all the help. i'll be spending most of my time in the highlands, far from major cities, but hopefully it won't be too hard to find unleaded, i'll just keep the tank at least half full at all times and carry spare fuel. i'm not too concerned about crime, as long as i stay away from guatemala city my truck should be fine, but i know someone who had their truck stolen there in the middle of the day, she left it for 20 minutes and when she came back it was gone. i haven't had any problems in mexico in the past year that i've been down here, my combination of having a rather territorial dog and removing the EFI relay when i park for a while seems to be working. thanks again for all the help, i'll post some pics when i get back.

Zubaltec

It's not as big of a deal to run lead gas as you guys are making it out to be. If you take your cat out you can get a check engine light, it will come on every so often. Easy fuse pull and it will go away. Yes it can ruin O2's and foul plugs. If the only gas you can get is leaded you'll make it where you need to go.

John