Good afternoon yotatech community. I am a long-time Toyota owner and have owned many in the past as well as the ones that I currently own, a 1985 Supra and a 1992 4x4 pickup. This post, however, is to introduce myself and ask for some assistance.

Yesterday I went with some dear friends to pick up a 1985 standard cab, 2wd, pickup for their 15-year-old son. He is a great kid and they trusted me to pick out a good starter vehicle for him. This was purchased from an elderly man who towed it behind a motor home mostly. His wife had become ill and they were no longer traveling. He was the original owner and the truck has 150,000 miles. The A/C doesn’t work, and will be converted to 134a, and then the standard fluid flushes, valve adjustment, bushing and seat under the shifter (4-speed), half-moon seals, etc. Y’all know the standard stuff. We need a couple of things though, and I thought I would reach out to the community.

The tailgate was wrinkled at some point and not repaired. We need one of those. In addition, since we live in the Dallas area there is significant sun damage to the dash pad and the surround on the climate controls are cracked. It is a stretch to find anything like that here in the SW that isn’t beaten to death and UV cracked but I thought I would try to reach out to any members here that may help, perhaps from northern climes. The interior and the exterior are blue for what that is worth. I look forward to hearing from anyone with leads, and I hope that I can help from time to time as I’ve worked on cars for about 40 years as a hobby and I am active on many groups as a collector of sorts.

Thanks for reading, and I look forward to ‘meeting’ you.

Ed Fisher
Dallas, Tx

 

Welcome to YotaTech!

You can get a dash cover to cover the cracks from http://www.dashmat.com/!

Does the heater control look like this or is the plastic surround cracked? If it's like the picture then it's just a matter of putting a new peel-n-stick faceplate! The faceplate is about $4 from the dealership and I can get you the part number if it's what you need (I also have the part number for the knobs too)... The second pic is the new one!

 

Oh my, that new faceplate is gorgeous! I have a local dealer here and I will try to source a new one, if not available I may indeed take you up on your offer. Thank you so much for the reply and the pictures.

Now I am stressing a little because the primary reason that Brian needed a pickup truck is so he could carry his cello and his sister's stand up bass. They are great kids, no fooling. Now I am searching for toppers or tonneau covers for the bed, which will be critical for transporting said instruments, and I can find nothing for that age. Uh-oh. Any good sources for that?

Also, I apologize for not doing a search on this next question, but are there online downloadable manuals for that vehicle? 1985 2wd, standard, plain jane truck.

Thanks again for the welcome

Ed Fisher
Dallas, Tx

 

If you want a new faceplate go down to the local Toyota dealership and order part number "81942-89102"!

As for the canopy, your best bet is to try craigslist... These trucks are pretty old now so finding new accessories for them isn't the easiest thing in the world :/

 

Welcome!

For the canopy the best place is craigslist, it'll be hit or miss but about the only option (unless someone knows somewhere else). As for the manual you used to be able to download it for free but as far as I know there were recently taken down, if someone has it they may be able to e-mail it to you or something. Sorry I couldn't be more help.

Good luck!!

 

Depending on how much is willing to be spent, you could opt for a Softopper. Although it appears that you have the lip of the bed visible from the outside(not sure which country of origin this is, Japanese bed or American bed), so you would have to bolt the Softopper rails down, instead of using clamps on the inside of the bed. Softoppers run about $700, expensive but still cheaper than a hard cover. Weather resistance is good from my experience. Just a thought.

 

And they look freaking sweet...

 

Thanks a bunch for the replies and the welcome. Y'all have some good looking rigs. I will scour Craigslist and the tip for the Softopper is a good one. I just went to the website and it looks like a great product. The only concern that I have for this is parking it in a high-school lot. Sometimes kids can be cruel and I would hate to see a slice in it. Even given that reservation it gives me a viable path forward and I appreciate it. Yes, they do look sweet.

The surround for the heater controls will be ordered right away. Are they double sided adhesive, or, how does one remove/replace? Any tips appreciated.

I'll look for the manual, if not I'm gonna have to try and find a good shop manual.
I much prefer those to the generic brands in the parts stores.

This seems like a great forum and I will try to introduce Brian at some point. He's a fine lad.

All the best to y'all.

Ed Fisher
Dallas, Tx

 

Toyota can order you a Factory Service Manual.

:wabbit2:

 

Ebay's a good place to find the Factory Service Manual (FSM).

For the tonneau cover, from your picture, it looks like you have the standard bed (short bed) which is still common size today. So you should be able to buy a new soft tonneau cover for it. However, as was mentioned, you do have the Japanese bed (the rolled lip is on the outside) so you will need to confirm width dimensions with whichever cover you buy.

For the tailgate, check to see if you have any self-service auto wrecker yards in your area, like Pick-and-Pull or U-Pull-It to pull off a usable tailgate. One nice thing about those do-it-yourself yards is that you can learn how to remove auto parts on an old wrecker, and if need be damage something while removing it (maybe a hidden bolt or clip that you can't see), without damaging the vehicle you own when it comes time to replace a part.

 

Thanks folks, both private and public, I was able to download the manual. That helps a bunch. I have started refreshing myself already. It looks as though the 22R is very similar to my old 20R that I had in a Celica and a 1979 pickup. Loved that motor! I'll probably change the front seal just because, even if it isn't currently leaking.

I will scour the local wrecking yards for a tailgate and other parts. I'm certainly not new to that. Now that it is getting a little colder out, or will soon, I can worry less about the snakes/chiggers.

Thankfully I have a little time until Brian gets his driver's license so I'll have a minute or two to figure out the bed situation and how best to cover it.

I really appreciate all of the support that y'all have afforded me. Thank you so much.

Ed Fisher
Dallas, Tx

 

You mentioned earlier that this truck was owned by an elderly gentleman who mostly towed it behind an RV. So it's possible that the majority of the listed odometer mileage is from being towed, engine not running? I would have to assume that the engine has very low hours/mileage on it if this is the case. Good score!

I would still check valve clearances, check timing chain guides for wear, and seal up any leaks, if it were mine. Good luck!