My needed repairs. any thoughts? (1 Viewer)

[Baran]

I just droped my 1994 80 off at Dan's Toy shop in Tucson. This is the first time I have had it looked at since I bought it about 6 months ago. I just wanted a plan of attack as I know very little about automobiles ( I build computers for a living). and wanted someone to give me a breakdown of what needed to be done. I Will be pinching pennys to be able to get some of this stuff done, but as it is completed I will be studying what Dan and his techs are doing so I can start to learn about doing my own PM and also light rebuilding work.

This is a priortised list of what they gave me as a sort of plan of attack please give me you thought on how it sounds.

1)Coolant hose from block to heater pipe is leaking coolent. Also, Radiator shows signs of restriction (possiable stop leak use). Recomened new radiator, thermostat, coolant bypass hose and a full coolant system flush with chemical and fresh water - $1050

2)alternator is weak with accessories on - $450 (includes replacing drive belts).

3)Valve cover gasket and distributor o-ring are leaking - $325 (includes replacing torn intake hose)

4)Power steering pump is wet - $400

5)Transfer case flange and speedo gear apper to be leaking - $250+

6) rear main seal may be leaking - $650 but need to fix obvious leaks first.

The truck runs great right now but I do want to get this work done over the next 6 months or so.

It has 142K miles on it so I was realy expecting a bigger bill then this but it is still a lot for me right now. I know that buy getting this stuff done I will keep my baby on the road for many more years.

Can someone also recomend a good referance book for the 1994 LC.
Keeping this LC in good running order is going to become a hobby I know. Right now i don't even know how to change the oil / filter or spark pluges.

 

[agomez]

water pump, thermostat, hoses, and radiator flush first... DO NOT over heat the engine....

 

[DesertCruiser]

water pump, thermostat, hoses, and radiator flush first... DO NOT over heat the engine....

I agree. This should be number one on the list that was given to you.

 

[Baran]

they did not mention replacing the water pump. should this be done with the new radiator, system flush ect?

 

[agomez]

my bad saw power steering pump assumed water pump....if the pump is orignal I would change...mine went out around 115k...overheating the 80 can lead to some very expensive engine repair bills ....

 

[e9999]

that's a lot of $$.
Besides possibly the rear seal, seems like all this stuff is pretty easy to do. I would think somebody with minor mechanical aptitude and a FSM should do it all pretty easily. No better way to learn.

Yes, evaluate the rad first. Hoses are trivial to change and may only need tightening.

Also check the $$ to make sure it's not ridiculous as they tend to be...

 

[73SoCalCruiser]

$$$ seens high... Search ebay for a radiator can get one for less or less money yet take the radiator out drop it off to be rodded out and save some money.

 

[80 Cruiser Rod]

Can someone also recomend a good referance book for the 1994 LC.

Good question: What would be a have to have repair manual for the 94 TLC?

 

[Lugboot]

Good question: What would be a have to have repair manual for the 94 TLC?

For $10, an electronic Toyota FSM is the Bomb. Check out this thread, also listed in the FAQ:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=128021

And NaterGator makes it stupid easy. Best $10 I spent on my truck.

 

[Baran]

Wow thanks for all the replys!

i would love to be able to do a lot of this work myself but I live in apartmet and do not have any auto tools to speak of. This is also my daily use auto so I will be need to borrow my wife's when it is in the shop. I can't have it out of commision for more than a day or two.

I wish I had a garage and could just work on it anfter work and weekends going slow and learning but for right now I think I have to have a shop do it.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

The block to heater hose they're talking about is the PHH (pesky heater hose) we refer to. If it blows, it can leave you stranded. It's not too difficult to change and I'm sure there's someone in your area that's done it and would look over your shoulder while you did yours. It's $20 in parts, $40 in coolant, and time to do it yourself.

 

[e9999]

Wow thanks for all the replys!

i would love to be able to do a lot of this work myself but I live in apartmet and do not have any auto tools to speak of. This is also my daily use auto so I will be need to borrow my wife's when it is in the shop. I can't have it out of commision for more than a day or two.

I wish I had a garage and could just work on it anfter work and weekends going slow and learning but for right now I think I have to have a shop do it.

yes, that complicates things, although keep in mind that with the kind of $$ you'd save by doing it yourself,

- you can buy all the tools and keep them afterwards
- you could rent a car for several weeks
- buy a case of beer for a buddy to use his garage

...

 

[Rookie2]

I would love to be able to do a lot of this work myself but I live in apartmet and do not have any auto tools to speak of. This is also my daily use auto so I will be need to borrow my wife's when it is in the shop. I can't have it out of commision for more than a day or two.

That's too bad, because alot of the stuff on your list falls in the 1 to 2 banana range. They're not cutting you any breaks on the cost there either (particularly 1, 2, 3 and 5), except the rear main repair is reasonably priced.

Leaks/seapage are generally not a big deal. You've got time on those. The coolant system is a big deal. Did you ask them if it would be possible to power flush the radiator? Have you opened the cap and looked in it yourself? Does is have sediment sitting on the top of the cores? What about the coolant reservoir... does it have sediment in the bottom?


Rookie2

 

[Baran]

I would be intrested in fixing the PHH. I do have a good friend with a garage and I could always rid the bike to work if I had to. is swaping the PHH a hard thing to do as far as getting to it?

Could you recomend tools that I should have? say with a budget of $500.

 

[Baran]

there is no sediment in the coolent resovior but I do think there is sediment on the cores. when i first started adding 50/50 I added it to the res for a couple of days and it was taking quite a lot but I think it was really low. now when i take the cap off it is full and only seems to like to take coolent from the res I keep filling this and it keeps taking more but it is not leeking very badly at all anfter it sits for 5 min the leak stops completly. There is though a very powerful smell of coolent after you drive the truck though.

 

[e9999]

the PHH is a pain although not difficult technically. Reading the posts here will help a lot though.


First thing you got to do is get a FSM. Then read, that'll help you figure out what tools to get. But the stuff you mentioned would require only "normal" tools like sockets, wrenches etc. Go to Costco and buy a set or 2 of general mechanical tools if you don't have them already. Usually much cheaper to buy in sets than by individual wrench etc. Or look up Craigslist.

Stuff can be deceiving. For example, speedo gear leak can be just one Oring, all of 50c, IIRC, but the dealer or a tech may tell you you have to replace the whole thing....

 

[Rookie2]

I would be intrested in fixing the PHH. I do have a good friend with a garage and I could always rid the bike to work if I had to. is swaping the PHH a hard thing to do as far as getting to it?

Could you recomend tool that I should have? say with a budget of $500.

Not going to lie to you, the PHH is a PITA to replace, but it's about $20 in parts and couple of hours of squeezing and cussing. There's a lot of info. on here about replacing it. Get a piece of silicone hose at Napa and two Breeze constant torque hose clamps. Cut the old clamps off with a dremel, cut the old hose off with a utility knife (careful not to score the metal pipes) and work the new hose on.

Good time to do the coolant flush too. Get a prestone flushing kit for $4 and two gallons of coolant and go to it. But if you've got flow issues with you're radiator, you need to get that figured out. You can probably get a new radiator for between $300 to $400. I think you could do this whole #1 for less than $400 bucks and a day to day and a half.


Rookie2

 

[Baran]

also the truck has always ran cool. the thermostat goes from cold in the morning to half way between C and H and never goes above it even on the Drive stright from Las vegas to Tucson only stoping for fule and fluid lvl checks.

 

[Baran]

yea I will get the referance mentioned above and some tools. I would be willing to spend the cash on a new RAD just to breath some new life into the turck and the alternator that is in the truck now it an aftermarket one non OEM I really want an OEM replacment.

 

[Rookie2]

also the truck has always ran cool. the thermostat goes from cold in the morning to half way between C and H and never goes above it even on the Drive stright from Las vegas to Tucson only stoping for fule and fluid lvl checks.

There is a pretty large "dead" spot in the middle range of the factory gauge, so it doesn't give very good feedback on how your coolant system is functioning. Read up on Raventai's temp gauge mode for how to get a full range reading gauge.