Newbie 97 4runner Tuneup list... What should I check?
 

Hello.. I am longtime Toyota owner and have a 82 FJ60. Already got a lot of good information on this site. Thanks.

My brother just got a 1997 4runner V6 4x4 with 170K.It just passed smog so that was good. Seems to run good but want to make sure it runs strong for him while he finishes college. We are going to go through it and check out everything.Here is what I got so far. Please let me know what else we should check out.

Oil & Filter change
Transmission,Transfercase, front & rear diff. fluid change
Coolant system flush with new fluid
new PCV
new spark plugs
new fuel filter
(might check compression while we have the plugs out.What is a good reading? 170 psi?)
new air filter
lube driveshafts
clean throttle body
check brake pad wear
check belts

What else would you do if you just bought it?

Thanks,
:banger:

Do you know if the water pump and timing belt have been changed?

No... why?

then you might want to think about changing them...

It's not so much the reading as it is the consistency between cylinders. Let us know what you get.

Your list looks pretty good. You might want to check the diff breathers out, especially the rear one. They are known to rust and clog, thus blowing out axle seals. Speaking of axle seals, you just might want to pull the drums and do a quick rear brake inspection as well, checking for fluid inside the drum and overall condition of the rear brakes.

Cool. I will take a look at the rear brakes and the breather. I decided to skip the compression test since it runs good.

We got everything done yesterday except the front differential that requires a 10mm and 12mm hex . The previous owner even ran the black power steering fluid so we flushed the whole power steering system with 2 botttles of fresh ATF and then filled it up.

Also when we drained the transmission their was about 4 quarts that came out. So I put about that much back in but it those dipsticks are a pain in the ass and hard to get a good reading.

Anyone know anyway to tell if the waterpump and timing belt have been changed without having the records? I am going to read up on both and maybe that will be the next thing to do.

Another thing I am trying to figure out is why the spare is a 225/75 R15 and the door jam says 265/75 R15 and that is what is on all four wheels.

There's much more tranny fluid in there than 4 quarts. The rest is trapped in the lines and torque converter. There's much debate on whether to flush the whole system or just drop the pan and replace. Did you clean the magnets at the bottom of the pan? If so, were there metal shavings or was it pretty clean? If clean and the tranny fluid wasn't burnt, you might want to consider a full flush.

One other thing to think about in terms of your list is the spark plug wires if they haven't been done.

*Thread Hijack*
How do you check compression in the cyclinders?
*End Hijack*

Pull all the spark plug and screw a compression guage into the one being tested. Disable the electronics so the spark plugs don't get a spark. On the older cars I have had you just unhooked the wire going to the distributor from the coil. You want to start out with a strong battery. Crank the the engine over a few times and push the pedal to the floor so the engine gets max air flow. The guage has a valve and reads the max pressure and holds it there. You read the pressure and then repeat for each cylinder. I bought a guage for around $25 at a auto parts store that came with the different adapater for different threaded spark plug holes.

All the cylinders should all be around the same pressure. If they are low you can drop a small amount of oil in the cylinder and repeat and if the pressure increases then the oil help sealed the rings and your rings are worn. If the pressure stays the same and is low from spec. then it would point to valves. A cool thing to do to diagnoise a weak engine is a leak down test. A leak down test you apply compressed air to the cylinder at TDC when the clyinder is at its highest point and the valves are all closed and then you see where the air is leaking.

If you engine is getting old it is a cool test to do to see exactly where you stand.

Yeah after doing some reading it sounds like there is a lot of fluid in there. I was debating on a flush. I really don't want to drop the pan yet. The magnets are inside the pan..right? What about after a few months pull the plug on the pan and drain it again to put another 4 quarts of fresh fluid. Seems like it would slowly replace it all.

im in the same shoes here with the fluid flush... was thinking of having a place by me flush the tranny and i could watch as they did it. is there a benifit to do this via dealer vs reg shop other than price diff?

are the spark plug wires original? You might do those if they are.