Hey there Yoda owners!

So I've been a sports car person my whole life, however a few of my friends have one by one gotten into the jeep / offroad scene over the last few years and it's about time that I stop riding shotgun when we go trail riding. Unfortunatly for them, my heart rests with 4x4 toyotas.

I'd like to get a pre 89 for looks however I figure before I go buying one I'll ask the experts. I've used the search tool here and I've done online research and I have a good idea of what i'm looking for.

Anyhow I'd like a 4cyl short bed single cab is possible, or an X if I find one I like. I'll be using it for trails and muddin' semi-often, yet I'll more so be using it as a winter "beater" for getting to and from work and school, I currently have two 3000GT's and I'd prefer not to kill them in the snow and ice.

So I see alot of these have head gasket issues as several of them I've seen listed for sale state that problem or that the head gasket has been recently replaced. I'm quite mechanicaly inclined however I'd like to know how often this occurs and how big of a project it is to replace them.

Also I've read that the transmissions are a weak point, how easy is it to source transmissions or trans parts?

Another Q is for my jeep friends, they can open a quadratech catalog and have pages upon pages of parts to buy, I know the Hilux's aren't as popular so I'm not expecting to open a catalog however what are the most popular sites or places to get aftermarket parts for these machines?

Looking on craigslist, I've found this one:
http://harrisburg.craigslist.org/cto/1895801341.html

What would something like that be worth (being the lift was done right, and that there isn't anything ghettofied about it). I'd need to source a trans for it, unless it's for some reason driveable and I can limp it 4 hours home aha.


thanks in advance!

-Matt


p.s. if any of you are interested, heres what I drive now and why I need a truck:

VR4 - http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g2...p/DSC00667.jpg
Stealth (blue) - http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g2...p/DSC01238.jpg

 

Welcome to yotatech, you will find all the info you could ever need here. These trucks are just about bullet proof, and building them up only makes them better. The 4 cylinder 22RE is prefered by most because with normal maintenance you can go over 200.000 miles with out any major repairs, the most common repair on a 22RE is the timing chain that should be replaced about every 150.000 miles. The V6 is considered by a lot of people here to be a not so good engine, its known for blowing head gaskets and for being under powered. The best transmission you can get is a 5 speed manual, it a very good transmission and can take a lot of abuse, the automatic transmissions make these trucks slow because of the power lose through the transmission, and an auto to manual swap is a very common upgrade that`s done to these vehicles.

The truck that you posted in the link is nice, but its over priced, and it has a bad transmission, if you really want it don`t offer more than 2500 for it.

 

First off, welcome. Myyota is right. The 4 cylinder 22r and 22re are the preferred engines of choice and you will notice that when shopping because everyone wants to sell their v6 and get a 4 cyl. They have adequate power, decent economy (mine gets me 22 mpg average) and are really reliable. Definately go with a manual transmission as well. The truck you pictured looks like its probably a total pile of garbage, and I would never pay that kind of money for a truck that needs a new transmission. A lot of guys prefer the strait axle front suspension (aka SAS) which is better for crawling and mudding and is all around just tougher. The Independent front suspension (aka IFS) is usually a more comfortable ride, but is more expensive to lift and doesnt offer the ground clearance that the SAS does. If your looking for a winter rig that also does a little off roading, either should suit you just fine. If you are a taller guy (ie 6' or taller) you would probably appreciate the extended cab a little more. Im 6'2" and definately needed the X cab to stretch the legs out.

Well good luck with your search and definately ask more questions here before you buy.

 

^ ^^thanks!

I wasn't going to give him a whole hell of alot for it lol. It's just locating a used tranny that is the pain.

I also found a V6 auto for sale relitivly close however judging by your post, it isn't a very good choice for what I want to use it for aha.

My uncle has one (which I should call him and ask him if he wants to sell / donate). He's got like 300k on it IIRC and has gone through 2 trannies and 2 timing chains, mainly used for plowing his driveway. If I remember the bed is rotting out though so that will likely not be a good candidate.

I'm going to keep searching however they're far and few between. I see quite a few on the roads however none for sale, may that be a good sign? aha.

-----

I'm about 5' 7" so I should have no issues lol. The cars I drive are for midgets anyway. I remember reading that about 80% of the 4bangers were manual trannys so that shouldn't be too difficult to find, most I see listed on craigslist are manual. I feel as most cars/trucks that are modified and sold are typicaly already beat to ˟˟˟˟. I also found a nice 85 4cyl 5spd for sale although it's a bit out of my price range, which may be negotiated of course. I figure it'll be a month or two before I find the right one.

Matt

 

Ok, I'll take a stab at it...

All the made in Japan trucks will serve you fine. Whether it be the 79-85 Solid Front Axle, or Independent Front Suspension 86-95.

All Toyota trucks have a fully boxed frame, and vary HD for their size 8" differentials made in the "Ford 9" drop-out" style that is rated at about a 38" tall tire in its final form.

I've seen and studied a lot of IFS's and can tell you, there isn't another one like it out there. At least on a mass produced level.

The Solid Axle is wanted by many b/c of its cave-man simple simplicity, and it's flex is far better suited for off road than IFS... Of which the two were never even intended to compete.

Of the 79-95 trucks there were 3 body style changes.

The 79-83's are the 1st gen and the only thing you have to watch out for is the trannys that had a non removable bellhousing, and the front axle gusseting, which more material was added through the years.

84 was the 1st year of the 84-88 body style and more heavy duty-er trannys.

85 is the most sought after as it had the fully gusseted axles, and there was a chance the truck was EFI as 85 is the 1st official year it was offered as an option.

86 was the 1st year of the IFS front suspension and all the truck throught this body style had a bad bed design there panels were actually caulked together. And I've heard, though not confirmed, Ford made the beds.

That is the source of all the 84-88 bed rust issues... As far as I can tell.

84-88 xtended cabs offered 6" of room behind the front seats IIRC. As per frame diagrams. Again, IIRC.


1986 and 87 trucks had a Turbo option to TRY and satisfy american consumers lust for power... Back then you had power or longevity, not both, and pansy $%^ americans hadn't figured that out yet. The RTE's offered nowhere NEAR the reliability and durability of a 22R/E due to very poorly designed Turbo, manifold and the engine management.

1988 was the 1st year of the V6... And IIRC Asbestos head gaskets were still able to be used, and the head bolt was a 14mm.

No major changes to the 1989 year, where the body style changed again.

This extended cab actually had room, 12" IIRC from frame diagrams.

It was also around this time Asbestos was being banned and Toyota had to change the HG material that was being used...

It was also around this time Toyota, and it's infinite wisdom decided to change the head bolt to a smaller 13mm... And guess what? A nation wide head gasket was issued, that to this day I believe is still active.

Only it's, "One shot, one kill". Have a truck in question? Take the VIN # to the dealer and ask to see a service report. If it's on there Toyota did it, they will NOT do it again... If it's not, you are lucky. Toyota will do this job for FREE!

Engines: 20 and 22R up to 84 have the same deck height. The 22RE, the EFI version of the 22R was de-decked. So earlyier heads should not interchange, and require serious milling to do so. It should not be done.

The nothing special 22RTE is decompressed at both the head chambers and piston volume. And the block has a oil and coolant provision for the Turbo's cooling and to dump out its oil supply through the block.

V6... Not really much to say here. With it's bad press and lack of power it never really caught on. Popular mods include headers b/c of Toyota and its infinite wisdom again and the oh so stupid cross over pipe Toyota had to use when they sewed the V6 into the compact engine bay.

Most popular mod to do here is the 3.4, 5VZ swap... The Tacoma's used... It's basically a bored out 3VZ block with twin cams, as opposed to the 3VZ's single.

Auto trannys: Here again, Toyota and it's infinite wisdom... The A340H. "H" means Hydraulic. The Transfer Case of this unit can not be separated, shares fluid with the tranny, and is how the 4WD operates. At severe angles the front diff will stop pulling. Found on all V6 and RTE trucks... And yes, 4x4wire is wrong.

The A340f... Does not have this case. It's a great tranny IME. Had plenty of power, though it was sleepy and used on a truck that had 33" tires... A 5 speed would have had the same effect. It would even power brake the tires... Talk about shocked...

Aisin trannys are very good units and respectively heavy duty.

All V6 and AT trucks have a chain driven TC. All 4cly 5speeds with the rare exception of one (The 4cyl ADD IIRC), have gear driven TC's.


All Toyota's made in Japan, in my experience are VARY high quality pieces. Hilux's are often thought of as the "base" model, or underneath the quality of the high dollar, extremely high quality Landcruiser, and I'm here to tell you... Aside from a quarky Transfer Case, or shoddy V6, you will find the same level of quality on a "Mini" you will find on a Landcruiser.


Can't say the same for the 2 Tacoma's I've parted out, and the fact they're all under recall... And those Toyota couldn't re-frame, they crushed...

Sad to say, but all made in USA Toyota's have lower quality, and all "Americanised" Toyota's have slipped as well...

Like the quote I found, "Toyota built em right when they gave you what you need, not what you want." Unknown.

 

holy carp... did I just write that?

 

ouch my eyes hurt

 

your eyes! It's 3:00 in the mourning, and I just wrote all that!

I'm literally like this:

Not to mention all the stuff I left out...


coffeeee.... no wait! sleeeep....

 

nice plethora of information!

I think it was around 93 they stopped bringing the mini from Japan and started building them here...

ever notice how parts catalogs and manuals reference 89-92... weird

 

that service campaign is still on going. did one this year and there is not an expiry date in the headgasket or center link recall campaigns.

this is canadian info though so ....

 

who are you and what did you do with tried4x2signN.

I tell you what that thread right there should be a sticky somewhere on here for those looking to buy one of these.

 

sheesh....that was a perty little story.

let me add 4 cents.......the 22re is a bit of a dream to work on too. for a newbie like me to be able to "refresh" my engine successfully kinda speaks volumes, for me, at least.

i will say this...as the original owner of my 92 truck with just shy of 196,000 miles.......i have the automatic trans.....no issues with it, ever. not gong to win any races either though.

we have a 3vze (88 4runner sr5) and are tearing it down to rebuild it. so far, again, it's not as hard as it is intimidating. underpowered??? meh.....again, not gonna win any races i'm sure.

for me....it's anything pre-95 that i keep my eyes open for. so definitely that is the year i max out my search for.

OP...where are you?

 

holy effing christ! lol. That was ALOT of information, can I paypal you a tip or something for that? ahah


I actualy found an 85 4cyl efi with the solid front, I'll have to call that one =)


thanks for all the information, that's ALOT and saved a crapload of time for me. You should repost that and sticky it or something

 

PHEW! Here it is! lol, I thought it was deleted...

I'll go back periodically and edit it...

I left out 2L-T's... That love to crack heads...

Gears, Diffs, and Trannys... And details about the IFS.

 

So I found one and I think I'm going to buy it:

1985 - 4cyl - red - 148k miles - new head gasket, timing chain and other minor work

frame is good, interior is very nice (minus arm rest) Body has a few rust issues. Around the fender right above the wheel is very rusty, some small holes. Bed has the same issues, rust around the wheel well. (all 4 wheel well areas have rust) Both in salvagable shape for sure. I intend to fix them and put on some flares.

Truck is red, I'd like to paint it satin black after I get the body work situated. I'd like to go with some slightly larger tires for wheelin' purposes. Comes with stock wheels and tires with about 60% tread and black wheels with 2 good tires and 2 slashed tires. (f some people).

Going to be a little bit of a project however something that seems as if it'll be fun and not a huge headache. Asking 2500, said he'll take 1800. Am going to look at it asap.

Matt

 

grats man good luck post pics of it wen you get it. since you are going to work on it take a lot of pics before so you can make a build up thread

 

Yeah I wouldnt let that one slip away for that price. You could always take the bed off and build a flat bed with a roll bar and all that great stuff. Probably be easier than fixing rust holes.

 

Well I'd prefer to keep a normal bed, for praticality purposes lol. I'm still living at home so part of the leverage is getting the parents to agree to it since it'll be in their driveway. Dad's always wanted something he can put a trailer hitch on so he can get a small boat for lake fishing so I'm trying to convince him that way.

I may go out and check it out tomorrow

 

Hey if thats the case then do what you need to do. I totally understand the whole convincing the parents thing.

 

The only thing i'd mention is insurance. Now i'm not sure if it's just my crappy insurance but i pay out the a** for my '86 4Runner. It cost me almost as much as my V8 Camaro does… Insurance says its "not safe" due to its lack of airbags and high rollover risk…

With that being said, I LOVE my 4Runner. I have just under 1/4million miles and she's still going strong! 22re + 5 spd = win!