The Toyota Landcruiser Owners Club

[Wandering Willy]

Hi Auds

I know you are going to enjoy your new car. Can you give a brief description so people here can offer advice for that series?

I can give a long list of things I do when I get a car. I work on the assumption that it has only had the basic garage type work done to it and replace a lot of things which may still have life in them. However, it gives me a chance to see any potential problems (like worn CV/UJ joints, tired brake hoses and stuff which wears but only gets replaced when it breaks).

I only have the sort of tools and equipment that comes with a normal house (concrete drive, small garage and a toolbox) - no pit or 4 post lift to get underneath.

If I give a list of things to check/replace you have to use your own judgment as to the state of what's there currently but initially I tend to change more than is essential so that I can set a baseline for future maintenance.

Replace:
Wiper blades, all belts (including timing), brake pads (I like EBC greenstuf pads), engine oil, oil filter, air filter, fuel filter, brake fluid (bleed/drain via wheel cylinders - start with furthest from master cylinder - rear left?)

Check - replace if condition poor:
Radiator/heater hoses,
Transmission fluid (if automatic) / gear box oil
Axle and transfer box oil levels (replace if oil discoloured/dirty)
All bulbs including dashboard - upgrade headlamps to xenon/halogen (more light)
Tyres - check condition, replace to have 4 identical if possible (rotate regularly to keep the same)
Batteries (may be 2). Top up, clean, paint tray to stop rust
Shock absorbers for damage, leaks and condition of bushes
Change radiator fluid if discoloured or quality doubtful (use Toyota if automatic as prevents A/T fluid cooler rusting). Put sample in freezer to see if mixture is good

Tasks:
Check inside sills including door bottoms and flush/paint with waxoyl
Check bodywork under rear end - rear axle back to bumper - for rust, paint (hammerite is good)
Remove and grease bolts for sump guard and bash plates (one bolt at a time, they are usually badly corroded)
Adjust handbrake (start at rear wheels for correct setting with cable slack, then set cable length)
Grease UJs and prop sliding joints. Don't overfill the slides (3 pumps only?)
Clean engine and bay with warm water and a brush - a soft 'dustpan and brush' brush works well
Flush muck from outside of radiator with a hose - spray from rear to remove dead insects, etc. Don't use a pressure washer or a fierce spray
Ditto for intercooler if fitted
Give car interior a good clean - hire a carpet cleaner and do seats, carpets (headlining?)
Check air conditioning works, get topped up if performance poor and complain if broken
Spray inside car with smell remover if stale (e.g. car ex-smoker)

Sorry if this looks a bit of a muddle. I have tried to condense it as much as possible but some points may be unclear or irrelevant. Once done, you have a reference mileage for future maintenance work (e.g. oil changes). Some parts - like old belts and pads - can be kept as spares, at least for emergency use as you know they are correct for car.

I keep a little notebook in the car and write down a description of each job as I do it plus any tips for repeating later on. This also gives me a record of what repairs/maintenance was done when and at what miles. These days I also take a lot of photos which I store on my PC as these cost nothing and can be very useful when re-assembling or checking condition later.

As you can see, I lead a very dull life! However, if any of this story helps, you are welcome to do the same.

Willy

[Google]

[gilghana]

Also depends on where you are going with your vehicle...  Okay, from your post it sounds like no overlanding but maybe you get the bug?  From bitter experience (Landrovers) I realised that after a certain mileage/age certain things should be changed - I realised this after getting stranded a good few times!  Even though I had overhauled the diffs, gearbox, transfer box and injection pump, fitted new driving members, checked drive shafts, changed new hub bearings and fitted a reconditioned engine it was the ancillaries that got me (I had bought a long block engine).  Water pump, alternator, pulley idler, radiator hoses, clutch cylinders all gave me so much strife I ended up buying a Landcruiser...

Joking apart, with a high mileage vehicle going overlanding or places where you REALLY need reliability then I would consider replacing (with new or in some cases re-man):
w/pump
alternator
all idlers and belts
all water hoses - incl. heater lines
Clutch master and slave
Clutch disk and release bearing
Starter motor

 I would also consider changing engine oil (and filter), gearbox, transfer box and final drive oils then running it for some time before sampling all the oils (i.e. sending them off for proper spectrograph analysis - informing them what type of oil and where it is used of course!).  This procedure can give you a very good picture of what is going on.  
Gil

[Audzatstods]

Further update for you.

Today we spent having a good look round the car, for a change it didnt rain this morning so i washed and polished it, the paintwork is pretty dull and really needs Tcut to bring the shine out. The exterior isnt too bad, there is a long scratch on the the passenger side, (obviously been the victim of some mindless vandal) and also various scuffs and small dents, nothing that really concerns me for the age of the car. However one problem that i need to sort is it only has one key and it doesnt open the drivers door, well i say doesnt, but the lock doesnt turn and only having one key i dont want to force it, ive sprayed copious amounts of WD40 in it but its still reluctant to turn even a small bit. The key fits all the other locks and ive found a set of metal tags in the glove box with a code on it so im going to call toyota tomorrow to see if it relates to the car and get another set made. There is a separate fob on the keyring which does flash red when you press either of the two buttons but does nothing, im going to put new batteries into it and then hopefully i will get some kind of response from it.

The interior is ok, again i cant expect a 12 year old car to look and feel like new, the leather is worn in the normal places, drivers seat is the worst but its still intact so all ive done is give it a good clean, the roof lining has various grubby marks but i plan to use carpet foam cleaner to remove these. Again the only interior part i plan to change is the trim around the radio and heater controls, someone has tried to remove the radio with screw drivers and its a tad messy, ive cleaned it up and removed sharp edges but if anyone knows of a breakers yard that i could get these then please drop me a line.

I thought that maybe the car may have been broken into and someone has tried to pinch the radio and the drivers lock is a different hence the reason the key doesnt turn, but maybe the fob is supposed to open the door and as ive never used the key in the lock in my other car then maybe its just stiff?????

The engine compartment looked pretty clean and all levels were spot on, doesn appear to be leaking any oil and starts on the button, but i will need to have it serviced as i never got all the information from the garage, they say they are waiting for the dealer to send it to them, so id imagine i probably wont see it, so im as well getting the local garage to give it a check over.

Never got my documents back to change the number so couldnt take it for a spin, so hopefully will get them this week.

Anyway further updates will follow

[Audzatstods]

Right today was the first long run in it, and my only quibble really is the steering wanders too much for my liking, i shall get it checked out but maybe its a case of just getting used to it!!!

But after sitting for nearly 5 days, it started fine and the brakes werent sticky and it seemed to run fine, so overall im quite happy with it apart from the steering.

Do you get a quickrack for these things???

[Wandering Willy]

From your earlier contributions, I think you have an 80 series. Is that correct?

If you are not sure, that's an Amazon up to late 97 (roughly). But look on the engine side of the bulkhead and you will find an aluminium plate with the code number of the car. That's the Toyota code not the VIN number. It should begin 'HDJ80' I think. This code number gives you the reference for the engine type, gearbox, paint and trim as well so it's quite useful.

If I am correct, the steering is done via a sort of gearbox with a lever coming out of it that picks up a drag link to the steering mechanism on  the wheels. If the steering is wandering, it's not unusual for the gearbox to have a bit of slack in it. To some extent you can remove this slack and improve the steering. The workshop manual sets a limit to what Toyota thinks is acceptable. With the car stationary and the engine off, try moving the steering wheel to turn left/right. There will be a bit of free play. That's where the measurement is made and it's about 3-4cm. Any more than that and it's worth adjusting the slack in the box.

The adjustment is easy provided you observe a few restrictions on what not to do. If you check as I suggested (see the Max Ellery or Haynes manual for the correct slack value) and you think it is worth adjusting I can give you a few notes on what to do.

If your car is not an 80 series, it may be a Colorado which has a rack and pinion steering mechanism. The rubber bushes holding the rack go soft with age and that lets it move a bit. New mounting bushes are required. Again it's not a huge job and worth doing. The point of mentioning this is that we need to know the model/series before advising on what to do to fix problems.

I hope that helps and good luck with your new toy

Willy

[Audzatstods]

Hi Willie,

Thanks for that, its a 96 p reg 80 series, i was told its an Amazon but it doesnt say that anywhere on the body, like a little badge or label and the log book is away getting changed now.

Its going into the local garage tomorrow to get serviced and checked out, he is going to have a look at the steering and see what he can do, so hopefully it will be sorted out tomorrow. The air filter looks to be minging, so maybe i shall also notice a change in acceleration too!!

Again i shall post a further reply tomorrow night once i have it back.

Cheers

Auds

[Audzatstods]

Well i got the car back yesterday, the garage couldnt really find anything wrong with the steering apart from poor tyre pressures and the tracking was out, it is vastly improved, but still has a wee bit of play, so maybe Willie you could pass on the information about doing the little adjustment through the gearbox in case this gets worse over the coming months.

But i have to say,we are absolutely totally impressed with its performance today in the snow, we had a fall of between 6 and 8 inches of snow overnight, and our farm road had drifts of 12 and 18inches, which the landcruiser ploughed through with no hassles at all, i fully expected to have to get out and dig, but we got out no problem at all and i have to say that our Range Rover with all its fancy gadgetery i think may have struggled !!!!

Just going to see what like the mpg is going to work out as its going to be used everyday now.

[Wandering Willy]

The steering mechanism on the 80 series uses a worm gear (like a big screw thread) turned by the steering wheel to rotate a piece of a gear wheel. As this has  only part of the circle, it's referred to as a quadrant. The gears sit inside a cast iron box mounted on the bulkhead with the steering column passing into one side and a lever arm coming out of another. The lever arm links to the wheels.

The adjustment is via a threaded stud or bolt which sits on the top on the metal box but is held in place with a lock nut. Put simply, you loosen the lock nut and turn the stud or bolt into the box to take up the slack between the gears.

HOWEVER

There are a few things to watch out when doing this.

The gears normally wear most in the straight ahead position. If you tighten the adjuster (bolt or stud) with the wheels straight ahead, there is a risk of damaging the mechanism when you turn to full lock.

To avoid this, the normal procedure is to put the front end on axle stands to lift the tyres off the ground a bit. Then GENTLY (more later on this) turn the steering to full lock. Then do the adjustment. Then turn the wheels to the other lock and check that the steering isn't binding.

Turning the steering wheel
It is very tempting to wizz the steering from lock to lock like some sort of rally car lunatic. When the road wheels hit the end stops there is a big strain on the front axle, birfields and track rod ends which can damage them. DON'T DO THIS. [sorry about the capitals!]

The adjustment won't remove the wear from the gears but will take up some of the slack in them and the bearings making the steering more positive.

It's a good time to change the oil in the gearbox as well. Similarly, this won't remove any of the wear but will help the gearbox continue to operate.

There are some ball joints on the linkage from the lever arm to the wheels and these should be checked for wear as well. A small amount of play may be acceptable but not much and if you have any doubt as to their condition; change them.

If these changes don't result in a big improvement you should be able to get a rebuilt box or one from a breakers yard to rebuild. This design will never be as direct as a rack and pinion system but it is good when you tackle rough roads (less kick-back when the wheels hit a rock or pot hole).

Good luck

Willy