HDJ81 oil type (and change intervals)??

[83bj60]

Originally Posted by mac

So your saying that Japanese engine design is so different that a JP oil formulation is specified? How so? Does a German engine require European spec oil. And NA diesels- do they require NA spec oil?

The effect of Engine design on Oil.doc

Originally Posted by mac

Most of the mileage accumulated on 20+ year old 3b's and 2l's has been done years ago- when did oil formulation improve so our Toyota diesels could last so long?

Originally Posted by 83bj60

It's just too bad the general public unfortunately is not informed HOW oil formulations have cahnged.

Originally Posted by mac

Educate us- how have they changed?

Like I said, the general public is not informed how formulations have changed. That means you and me

The fact remains that oil companies do not publish formulations of their lubricants. As a matter of fact, they are considered proprietary. We only get to know that they meet certain standards (the API oil grades). However, certain folks have made analyses and published the results and in general, it is known that NA diesel oils generally have magnesium based detergents, while Japanese oils are more calcium based. Besides that, the Japanese oils have greater dispersants than NA oils as well.

In other words, two things: the consumer doesn't know if the oil he's buying suits his particular engine, and he can only hope that the formula is better than that of the oil his vehicle was originally designed to use.

Originally Posted by 83bj60

But you are forgetting the engine design difference and its effect on cylinder wall wear and the importance of specific formulations for specific engine designs to better clean cylinder walls in these engine designs.

No, carbon formation on the lands of the pistons and its long term effects on compression rings. Again, I refer you to the document above. I found it very well researched and very well written. Sorry I didn't make myself clearer the first time. Sometimes I go beyond myself assuming those facts are well known to those on this forum.

Originally Posted by mac

When I disassembled my beat-to-hell 1HD-T that had 1/16" worn off of it's #4 rod journal and valve/piston contact the cylinders spec'd out perfect- nothing wrong with the cylinder walls. Does this mean it was run on the correct oil but the bearings failed anyway?

Obviously... But can you tell me how long it had run on NA diesel oil?

As for the incidence of oil on BEBs, I agree fully that the BEBs are an issue, and it's been proven. I don't dispute that. Wayne, that goes for you as well; sorry I didn't make it clearer. There is an issue with the BEB composition. There is an issue with cavitation of the bearings, like you apparently saw on the mains, Peter, and it's been documented by Toyota researchers. And finally, there is an issue with upper cylinder and piston land carbon formation due to oil type, as discussed in the first referenced document.

For all these reasons I strongly recommend replacing the BEBs, using an oil with high calcium and a higher visocsity grade which will sustain cavitation shock better that plain jane 10W30, hence my recommendation of Synthetic Rotella 15W490 for 25-30C weather with extra calcium supplement.

As for using Synthetic Rotella 0W40, well, it's a free world. If you believe it works just as well, then great. I used 5W40 this winter untel late spring with excellent results for the first 10,000km. I just don't like to take unnecessary risks running it, especially in 30 degree celsius, knowing what I know. And yes I understand very well what 0W means. I also know that multigrade oils are based on lighter stock with lots of viscosity improvers (dino as well as synthetic) and that viscosity index improvers that give you that 40 do degrade with time.

[Enigma]

For us western Canadians, Canadian Tire has the Shell Rotella T 15w40 (4 litre jug-with fancy no spill pour top) on sale for umm, 13.99 I think it was. 2 bucks off anyways.

[83bj60]

Yep, Rotella is generally a good bet, proven by truckers, and works well in terms of keeping its pressure, resisting viscosity breakdown and evaporation. Definitely a solid choice. Now if only they had a synthetic summer version...

[allofthisforyou]

Hey guys, thanks for all the information (it has been very insightful). I apologize for responding so late but I have been working, vacationing, and exercising quite a bit over the last couple of weeks and I have had very little time to dedicate to this website.

First of all, I would like to thank tcurrie for explaining why the three oils that he(/she) mentioned are a better choice than the MotoMaster diesel oil that I am currently using (I didn't realize engines were designed to run on an oil with a specific chemical composition). I will make sure to switch over to the Shell Rotella 15W40 as soon as possible.

I will also change the BEBs, especially if it only costs between $100-$800 to do, just to be on the safe side.

Anyways, I've put a few more kilometres (~1000) onto the truck, and gone through about two tanks of fuel, but the consumption hasn't really improved (despite the oil, oil filter, and air filter change, and the inflation of the tires to the proper PSI). However, I did do a kilometre marker test on the highway last weekend and it turns out the odometer is off by about 10% (I have been getting closer to 14.5L/100km (if not less) the whole time I have owned this thing).

I was reading, in another post, that crushers adds "Sea-Foam" to the trucks he imports so I might try buying a can of that to clean the injectors, etc. (if not just have the injectors and fuel filter replaced) However, farmerzoe was recommending to not add any additives to the fuel or oil so I am just wondering if anyone else has used "Sea-Foam," or any other fuel additive/injector cleaner (such as the ones recommended by romey in this thread (Gen 49, Flashlube, etc.)) and obtained a measurable difference?

Part of the reason that I bought this truck was because I had the opportunity to buy a new vehicle and have always wanted a lifted 4X4. I enjoy fishing and camping and there were some places that my former vehicle (a 1986 Toyota Corolla), and my ex-girlfriend's brother's pick-up truck (1990 2WD Nissan) couldn't, or had difficulty, make(ing) it to. For example, for those of you who are familiar with the Lower Mainland: Starvation Lake, Ivey Lake (up the back), Clear Creek Hot Springs, etc.). There are also a few other lakes that I have read about that I have wanted to try fishing at but that a 4X4 is "recommended" for if trying to access. I also bought this vehicle, partly, because it was supposed a fuel-efficient vehicle.

After reading the model specs on Rising Sun Imports (RSI), and jdmcars.ca (JDMC) (which I didn't expect to be completely accurate, especially since most EPAs (such as those at fueleconomy.gov, etc.) are for new vehicles, but that seemed to be somewhat accurate considering that some people are getting close to 10L/100km, on the highway (@~100km/h) in these vehicles (when they are stock)), it seemed that this was the best vehicle I could possibly purchase: it would use almost the same, if not less, fuel than my Corolla (10L/100km w/ 87 octane (not much difference on the highway) and 8L/100km w/ 89 octane (not much difference on the highway)) at lower speeds/around the city (where most of my driving is done) and would be a great weekend vehicle that could go almost anywhere. The only down side was that the steering wheel was on the right-hand side (and would take some getting used to). The fact that the fuel consumption is supposed to increase at higher speeds was strange, but I thought that it was possible since this vehicle has a diesel engine in it and that diesel engines operate differently than gas engines.

Because I only go camping/fishing/use the highway once every two weeks or so in the summer (although I would probably do more of this if the vehicle was performing the way I expected it to) I didn't mind the fact that this vehicle would use more fuel at higher speeds. However, so far there hasn't really been any difference in fuel consumption in driving to/from work, or around the city, (between 50-75km/hr) with an empty vehicle, and no spare 35" tire mounted on the back, versus taking this vehicle up to Lillooet (via Highway 1) while it was loaded (~1000lbs (1 passenger, back seats folded down, entire trunk full of camping + fishing gear)), had the rear tire mounted, and had windows + moonroof open, @ 90-110km/hr (avg.)...

Maybe the guys running RSI + JDMC are full of shit, as crushers said, or maybe the increased torque needed to rotate the 35's makes the stop and go city driving consumption equal the highway fuel consumption. I haven't been able to find any figures on the differences between all city consumption or all highway consumption in this forum but from what I have read it seems that most guys on this message board that own HDJ81s are getting better mileage on the highway than around the city.

It is very possible that since this is a used car, and since it has probably been on a boat and sitting at the dealership for a month or two without being used much, that this vehicle just needs some maintenance work done to it. However, because I'm not sure what (if any) affect these things will have on the fuel consumption of this vehicle (according to mac the things that I have already done should have improved the mileage "significantly," although they have not resulted in any measurable changes), because I can't afford to drive a vehicle that uses this much fuel at this point in my life, and because I need some money to be able to travel across Canada + the USA in a couple of weeks, I'm going to, unfortunately, have to post this thing up on Buy & Sell and Light Truck Trader (as well as a couple of free classifieds sites) this weekend (don't worry mac, I won't sell it dirt cheap... I'd like to get back most of the money that I paid for it).

I don't think that purchasing this vehicle was a "poor investment" because, considering the amount of work that it already has done to it (lift kit, Rancho shocks, bigger tires, winch + bullbar, ex-air locked, etc.), the condition that it's in, and the amount that I paid for it ($14,060), it was a very good deal. As canucksafari said: "for the careful buyer who is willing to do some testing and maybe some repairs, [a] good deal can...be had." As it stands right now, I can use the money that I paid for this vehicle more than the vehicle itself (it's too bad that car dealerships don't offer a "14-day return policy" ) and someone that is in the market for one of these vehicles, is willing to do some repairs (or pay someone to do them), and wants a Land Cruiser with these modifications (or would want to buy a LC and do these modifications one day), can currently get a good deal.

Anyways, thanks to everyone for all the insights and maybe I'll talk to you again in a couple of years.

Finally, Jeff (if you were the Jeff that called me in regards to this LC): I apologize if you wanted to buy this truck. A friend of mine told me that he would buy it off of me and so I told you that I had sold it but, unfortunately, my friend was as reliable as a broken condom. Congratulations on your purchase, and I wish you many years of enjoyment in one of the most amazing vehicles ever produced.

[mac]

Sorry to lose you but it sounds like you have your head screwed on straight.

[Enigma]

Hi Rob, yah that was me, no worries. But before you do sell it, perhaps you should come by for a Coastal Cruiser club meeting. We are starting to get a few 80 series members now, and forgive me If I'm wrong (your last named sounded Polish), we have a few Polish guys in the club (all with 80's and 60's) who like to fish.
And don't forget Cruiser Days this July, at the very least a good opportunity to showcase your truck for sale.

[allofthisforyou]

Thanks Jeff, I'll keep that in mind. I'd love to keep this thing but unless I can get the fuel consumption down to a reasonable level I probably won't be able to. I'll definately keep the Coastal Cruisers club in mind though in the future (since I'll probably end up buying a Land Cruiser one day anyways). You're right though, my last name is Polish: my parents are Polish and I speak a bit of it (understand more than I can speak but I can speak enough of it to be able to carry on a conversation, without too much difficulty). I'm actually supposed to be leaving for a three week road-trip across Canada (one way) and the USA (on the way back) on July 19th but I'll see if I can post-pone the date of the departure for the 26th (since I'll probably need at least 2 weeks to sell this truck).

Thanks again,
Rob