Author Topic: Scott Wilson's 1988 4Runner Build, Version 2.0 (Read 115977 times)

swilson · « **Reply #150 on:** May 09, 2018, 09:50:17 PM »

I previously planned to do one exhaust setup for the referee, then redo it after passing, so get my cats on the driver's side. Once I dug in on the exhaust I decided I could make it work with the cats on the passenger side. I took the heat shields I got my the 2000 4Runner I took my motor from and mounted them under the passenger side floor. I used the factory exhaust from that same 4Runner all the way past the cats. I just cut it on bandsaw right after each cat so I could change the angle on them a bit to work within the space I had. I can't imagine I'll get any grief from the referee, since I was careful to keep the distances factory, and just changed the angles a bit. I had to put a pretty big angle on that last flange, just past the 2nd O2 sensor though.

From there I created a new exhaust using some mandrel U-bends I had, some straight pipe, a Magnaflow muffler I picked up at the Land Cruiser Swap Meet 2 years ago, and reusing Toyota factory exhaust hangers.

swilson · « **Reply #151 on:** May 09, 2018, 10:05:54 PM »

Since the ORI's weren't charged yet, the front axle was still sitting at full stuff as I built the exhaust. The front driveshaft is about 1/8" off the first cat, and the 2nd cat gets pretty tight to both the 3link mount and the Xfer case crossmember. But I can fit my fingers in the gap on both of those locations. I plan to put a heat shield on the poly bushing for the xfer case crossmember near that last cat.

I charged the ORI's tonight. It's great seeing the 4Runner sitting almost level. Though, I expect I'll be sending the Alcan's back to get re-arched. The rear is lower than I would like, and next year I'll probably build a swing out rack for the rear. I hadn't counted on frenching the spring hanger into the frame like I did when I placed the order, and lost some height because of that change.

I'm basically ready to drive it, except that the engine still isn't running. Chuck who was helping me finish the wiring had to unexpectedly leave town for a week or two, so I'm scrambling to find help. I do really well at wiring new circuits, and wired my whole FJ40 from scratch, but I have the worst time trying to trouble shoot factory wiring though!

swilson · « **Reply #152 on:** May 09, 2018, 10:16:52 PM »

Now... DOES ANYONE HAVE ONE OF THESE LAYING AROUND?!

This is one of the coolant T's from my 88 3.0 V6 4Runner with a rear heater. It's located at the firewall, near the top of the back of the motor. Might be the same with a 4cyl with rear heater, IDK. Might be the same from 1984-1989. What I've found is that the newer models have much smaller diameter lines running to the rear heater. I'm having a horrible time finding one of these. They're not available from Toyota and my favorite wreck yard has none.

Please get a hold of me if you have one (that's not totally corroded out) that you'll sell me. Email scottwilson143 at gmail or private message. Thanks!

emsvitil · « **Reply #153 on:** May 10, 2018, 12:33:32 AM »

Take a look at pex brass fittings. You may be able to make one with a soldering torch and various fittings.

swilson · « **Reply #154 on:** May 10, 2018, 08:29:03 AM »

Thanks guys. Gnob had the exact one I needed and he's shipping it to me.

How did we survive before the internet? Lol

Ritchie · « **Reply #155 on:** May 13, 2018, 06:14:49 AM »

What size pulley are you running on the PS pump? I also have a 3RZ and had to switch mine to a 4.5". Originally I had a 5.375" and it was whining at low speeds while turning.
The build is looking good.

swilson · « **Reply #156 on:** May 13, 2018, 04:58:32 PM »

Oh, good... mine is 4.5" Thanks!

Ritchie · « **Reply #157 on:** May 14, 2018, 04:39:58 PM »

Scott,
What is your caster and wheel base set at?
Also, to rid of the OEM air intake pieces. I have an ABS part that matches the OEM diameter from the air box to the TB. Much cleaner and CARB certified.

Here is the best pic I have at the moment. It's the piece between the TB and the flex tubing I bought @ NAPA.

swilson · « **Reply #158 on:** May 14, 2018, 10:45:57 PM »

With Jeff's help... The 3RZ STARTED TONIGHT!! Woo hoo!

We only ran it less than 30 sec, but it sounded great!

Still more wiring to do. No CEL, oil, or battery charging warning lights.

swilson · « **Reply #159 on:** May 14, 2018, 10:50:34 PM »

Quote from: Ritchie on May 14, 2018, 04:39:58 PM

Scott,
What is your caster and wheel base set at?
Also, to rid of the OEM air intake pieces. I have an ABS part that matches the OEM diameter from the air box to the TB. Much cleaner and CARB certified.

I think it was 6°. I set it to whatever Brian said to on the instructions. I'll have to check on the wheelbase.

I want to put my 2nd battery where the air box is sitting. My plan is that after the referee, I'll switch to the K&N. I'll modify it so that it's shorter, but it'll get me the E.O. Number I need for smog checks. I don't think a smog tech will notice I modified the aftermarket intake.

FRANKENYOTA91 · « **Reply #160 on:** May 17, 2018, 12:12:46 PM »

Just read thru the whole thread. Very nice work. Gives me some more ideas for my runner. Keep it up.

swilson · « **Reply #161 on:** May 21, 2018, 10:10:59 PM »

Went to put the hood on and found the aluminum radiator (which I had ordered to fit the stock '88 V6 4Runner body) sat 3/4" too high for the hood to close! Doh! Luckily I was able to drill new holes in the flange to mount it lower. Chased down some seeping PS fittings while I was there.

Installed the engine fan controller. Really nice unit that is variable, so it comes on really low and ramps up as needed.
http://www.dccontrol.com/constant_temperature_controllers.htm

Had to add some steel to the tranny tunnel since the opening for the auto tranny was so big and weird shaped. Then I got the shifter boots installed. Got the trim to fit around the boots, but it's not fastened down yet.

Mounted the emissions box using a gas tank strap and some delrin blocks to space it off the fender, so that the hood will close.

A friend came over and helped finish off the wiring... and tonight I piled the family in and went for a test drive! Well after first trying to go on a test drive and finding I had the lines to the hydro assist crossed! Doh! Easy fix and THEN we went on our test drive!

Exhaust sounds good... not stock, but not nasty. Engine had nice power. Steering was twitchy.... I think it's a bit over-powered. Once I got up to 40 MPH or so I got a check engine light. Pulled codes for VSS and MAF. Shouldn't be too hard to sort out, but won't have time until Wednesday night. Ref appointment is set for Friday morning... wish me luck!

I'm feeling pretty good right now knowing that even if the ref is a pain in my ass, I should still make it to Rubithon!

Ritchie · « **Reply #162 on:** May 22, 2018, 05:39:58 AM »

Looking good.
If you need a 5.375" PS pulley, I'll dig it up and send your way. That may assist with your steering twitch.

Nice work.

swilson · « **Reply #163 on:** May 22, 2018, 08:43:12 AM »

Quote from: Ritchie on May 22, 2018, 05:39:58 AM

Looking good.
If you need a 5.375" PS pulley, I'll dig it up and send your way. That may assist with your steering twitch.

Nice work.

I'll keep that in mind thanks! I need to drive it some more and see if it's something I can get used to.

Did more research on my engine code... it's not MAF, it's a 'out of range' for the front O2 sensor. Hopefully I new sensor clears that one up. And hopefully it's just a missed wire for the VSS and not a bad sending unit.

EASYRYDERDANGER · « **Reply #164 on:** May 22, 2018, 09:14:15 AM »

I like the stock intake box look!

:)bestgen4runner · « **Reply #165 on:** May 22, 2018, 09:22:44 AM »

Quote from: EASYRYDERDANGER on May 22, 2018, 09:14:15 AM

I like the stock intake box look!

You want a 3rz now don't You.

emsvitil · « **Reply #166 on:** May 22, 2018, 02:07:53 PM »

Quote from: liveoak on May 22, 2018, 10:19:29 AM

I really like the looks of that fan controller. A friend of mine has fried 2 of the flex-a-lite fan control modules but this dc control unit looks to be a better design. the tracers on the flex-a-lite circuit board are way too thin. let us know how it holds up

Have the fan controllers control a relay.

Don't run full power thru them and they won't burn up.

swilson · « **Reply #167 on:** May 23, 2018, 11:09:51 PM »

My first day driving it, the engine seemed to be idling great. Now I'm having issues. Replaced the O2 sensor and haven't seen that code reappear. Corrected the VSS wiring and haven't seen that code reappear. Then I got two P0441 codes and think I have those corrected tonight by fixing some incorrectly routed hoses to the EVAP box.

However yesterday I started getting idle problems once it warms up. When I'm in motion and throw in the clutch the RPMs hunt around. About ever 3 seconds it revs by itself. Then once I come to a stop it maintains a steady idle, but it's at 1800 RPM (measured by computer... the tach (with the 10k mod) shows 1200 RPM). Since it only happens when I'm in motion, I'm guessing I definitely have the correct VSS signal now.

I got advice that it was the idle/air control valve on the throttle body. Swapped in a different throttle body (with it's own idle control valve) tonight, but it made no change.

I'm open to suggestions on where to look next. I've got one more day to try to fix it before I have to reschedule the ref appointment again.

swilson · « **Reply #168 on:** May 25, 2018, 01:07:07 AM »

Checked for vacuum leaks, found none. Vacuum houses are routed just like in the photo. I've swapped the throttle body with idle control valve, MAF, and coolant temp sensor with known-good parts. They had no effect on the idle problem.

I didn't disconnect the VSS because I hooked up a good scanner to the ECU and verified the computer is getting a good VSS signal. It was only 2 mph off at 45 mph

Not getting any check engine lights. I expect the ref to fail me in the morning because it won't idle correctly, but I'm going anyway to see if they find any other issues.

redneckcustoms13 · « **Reply #169 on:** May 25, 2018, 04:20:15 AM »

Fingers crossed.

jimbo74 · « **Reply #170 on:** May 25, 2018, 05:24:33 AM »

great looking truck!

interested to hear the results too

swilson · « **Reply #171 on:** May 26, 2018, 08:55:08 AM »

My ref appointment wasn't a total waste of time. I learned I passed the visual inspection, so I'm grateful for that. I've heard too many horror stories of refs that wanted to see the gas tank on the driver's side bc thats how it was done on the vehicle the donor motor came from, or ones that decided you cat was 1" too far/close down the line and want you to re-do it.

I hadn't put enough miles on it since working on it the night before, so my monitors hadn't set. That and the high-idle causes the engine to get not (not beyond what the engine fan & radiator can handle, but the ref said it was overheating, so he decided not to even run the smog test. His suggestion was an air bubble was in the coolant lines causing a bad temp reading, therefore causing the computer to mess up the idle. I'm pretty sure that's not the case, but I'll look into it.

I'm not any closer to solving this idle issue and will have limited time to work on it this next week.

I also figured out why I wasn't liking the steering. Because the tires were new it was easy to see that only the center of the tire had touched pavement. The tire shop had left them at 35 psi after they balanced them. I put them down to 28 and it rides much safer... that may be a bit high as well. I'll keep adjusting until the entire width of the tire is on the pavement.

gnob · « **Reply #172 on:** May 26, 2018, 12:32:11 PM »

Looking good. I always feel bad for you cali guys and the whole smog nightmare.
I just did new rubber, ended up at 15/12psi for a flatter pattern...37"E rated

300k · « **Reply #173 on:** May 26, 2018, 04:28:51 PM »

Quote from: gnob on May 26, 2018, 12:32:11 PM

Looking good. I always feel bad for you cali guys and the whole smog nightmare.
I just did new rubber, ended up at 15/12psi for a flatter pattern...37"E rated

I'd rather have Cali emission laws than the ones we have in the county. Totally ridiculous. The only redeeming exemption is that you can get "collectors car" insurance for vehicles over 25 years old.

swilson · « **Reply #174 on:** May 29, 2018, 10:29:38 PM »

I'm on the right track. I put duct tape inside the throttle body, covering the IAC port, and folded the tape over the end of the throttle body so it could not get sucked in. Engine would start and immediately die. If I cracked the throttle just a bit, it would idle like a champ.

The factory manual specifies the resistance you should measure between the pins in the IAC valve connector. On my original one, which was sitting on the bench, was way out of spec. I couldn't be sure the one currently on the motor was out of spec, bc it's in such an awkward spot I couldn't be sure I was getting my meter on the pins correctly... but it appeared to also be out of spec. So it appears I was dealing with two bad IAC valves.

Tomorrow I'll put in a new IAC valve and see what happens.

gnob · « **Reply #175 on:** May 30, 2018, 11:40:42 AM »

Ive seen the mechanical valve stick so the magnet cant move it. Make sure and double check.

:)bestgen4runner · « **Reply #176 on:** May 30, 2018, 11:58:39 AM »

Quote from: gnob on May 30, 2018, 11:40:42 AM

Ive seen the mechanical valve stick so the magnet cant move it. Make sure and double check.

This happens every time I see someone try to clean one.

redneckcustoms13 · « **Reply #177 on:** May 30, 2018, 12:02:22 PM »

Glad you werent here watching me clean mine then.

swilson · « **Reply #178 on:** May 30, 2018, 10:58:10 PM »

GREAT NEWS... it was the IAC valve. Turns out my original one was a rusty nasty mess... No doubt it was because I had the engine stream cleaned without covering the open throttle body. Whoops

Then while trying to trouble shoot it, the throttle body I swapped on also had a bad IAC valve.

It idles like it should now. Unfortunately, now I have a broken fan controller. Unknown if it's related, but tonight we wired up the AC and charged the system. Tonight was the first time the AC input to the fan controller ever got power. A short time later, while working on other stuff, the motor was idling away. I looked over and saw the temp gauge was pegged.

I shut off the motor and inspected the radiator fan. The fan or controller was emitting a high pitched frequency and the fan was not on. Supplying power to the fan makes it run strong. There's no sign of life at the controller though.

I'll call them tomorrow to see if they'll help me out. I ordered it before the house burned down, so I'm a couple days passed their 90 day warranty.

emsvitil · « **Reply #179 on:** May 31, 2018, 03:43:36 AM »

Are you a couple of days past if you include the delay for receiving it after it was shipped?

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