Just read through this entire thread tonight. You two do exceptional work! Nice attention to detail and great earthy color. Bravo Zulu!
My Hawaiian HJ60 Refresh, Maintenance and Good Times (3 Viewers)
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We have taken on a pretty ambitious project with the 60, especially for a couple of peeps with our limited skill sets! So we wanted to install Air conditioning in the 60, which quickly morphed into redoing the entire cooling system! But we needed to start from scratch since it never had AC in it before, so the international search for parts was on. And boxes started showing up on our doorstep from all over the globe to our tiny island in the pacific.
Parts from Australia, Japan, the US mainland and Canada. Huge thanks to the number one parts guy @beno, who's worked a lot with Mike to source all the new parts we needed!
Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention we were determined to do all the work ourselves, despite knowing nothing about AC, electrical and cooling systems on a 24v diesel 60 series! But with a copy of the FSM and a desire for some chilled air blasting from our AC vents, we tore in to it!
As a starting point, the decision was made to source an entire used AC system from a similar year HJ60. The thinking behind this was that we could lay out the entire system to better understand how it worked and how it bolted in to the 60.
We would then install everything and then replace the 30+ year old AC parts that were not working....at least that's the plan.
Unfortunately, the plan hit a snag when we realized the previous owner installed the wrong FJ60 radiator into our HJ60, which has the upper radiator hose on the opposite side to accommodate for the AC compressor location. Since we needed an HJ specific radiator and all new rad hoses, we decided to completely refresh the cooling system. So we are replacing all cooling/heating rubber hoses, new OEM thermostat and thermostat gaskets, new OEM water pump and pump housing, new OEM thermostat temperature gauge, service existing OEM fan clutch with new silicone oil, all new OEM belts, and install brand new correct OEM radiator. Again, we have never done any of this stuff before (aside from replacing some cooling hoses on our 80), so should be fun how this all plays out!
The tear down went pretty smooth, no Broken bolts or impossible to remove parts, and took a lot less time then was anticipated. Photos were taken at every step to help identify how everything should go back together.....but a heck of a lot of parts have been removed, a lot to remember!!
First to go was the front grill and headlight trim, then disconnect and remove both batteries and battery trays as well as remove the radiator reservoir.
Next we drained the radiator coolant and disconnected/ removed hoses. Then unbolted the fan shroud and radiator and removed both. Really opens up the front!
With the old radiator out, the side L brackets were removed to put on the new radiator going in. They had some minor rust, so they will be treated for the rust then primed and painted. Here is the new radiator.....so shiney glossy black and new, thanks Onur!
Parts from Australia, Japan, the US mainland and Canada. Huge thanks to the number one parts guy @beno, who's worked a lot with Mike to source all the new parts we needed!
Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention we were determined to do all the work ourselves, despite knowing nothing about AC, electrical and cooling systems on a 24v diesel 60 series! But with a copy of the FSM and a desire for some chilled air blasting from our AC vents, we tore in to it!
As a starting point, the decision was made to source an entire used AC system from a similar year HJ60. The thinking behind this was that we could lay out the entire system to better understand how it worked and how it bolted in to the 60.
We would then install everything and then replace the 30+ year old AC parts that were not working....at least that's the plan.
Unfortunately, the plan hit a snag when we realized the previous owner installed the wrong FJ60 radiator into our HJ60, which has the upper radiator hose on the opposite side to accommodate for the AC compressor location. Since we needed an HJ specific radiator and all new rad hoses, we decided to completely refresh the cooling system. So we are replacing all cooling/heating rubber hoses, new OEM thermostat and thermostat gaskets, new OEM water pump and pump housing, new OEM thermostat temperature gauge, service existing OEM fan clutch with new silicone oil, all new OEM belts, and install brand new correct OEM radiator. Again, we have never done any of this stuff before (aside from replacing some cooling hoses on our 80), so should be fun how this all plays out!
The tear down went pretty smooth, no Broken bolts or impossible to remove parts, and took a lot less time then was anticipated. Photos were taken at every step to help identify how everything should go back together.....but a heck of a lot of parts have been removed, a lot to remember!!
First to go was the front grill and headlight trim, then disconnect and remove both batteries and battery trays as well as remove the radiator reservoir.
Next we drained the radiator coolant and disconnected/ removed hoses. Then unbolted the fan shroud and radiator and removed both. Really opens up the front!
With the old radiator out, the side L brackets were removed to put on the new radiator going in. They had some minor rust, so they will be treated for the rust then primed and painted. Here is the new radiator.....so shiney glossy black and new, thanks Onur!
With the radiator and fan shroud out of the way, it was time to remove the fan, fan clutch, thermostat and housing, water temp gauge, and belts.
The thermostat was a bit difficult to get out as the PO had glued it in place with some blue glue.
Continued to the back of the engine to remove all of the rear cooling/heater hoses near the firewall. They will be replaced with all available OEM hoses. The rear heater was removed by the previous owner, so the metal pipes going to the back will be plugged and left in place.
The thermostat was a bit difficult to get out as the PO had glued it in place with some blue glue.
Continued to the back of the engine to remove all of the rear cooling/heater hoses near the firewall. They will be replaced with all available OEM hoses. The rear heater was removed by the previous owner, so the metal pipes going to the back will be plugged and left in place.
You two don't hold back! Keep it up doing awesome! Working on my a/c as well! Still sourceing the high side line in front of the condenser! Just make sure that you flush your piping with nitrogen during the vacuum phase! Then charge it with the proper amount of oil/refrigerant.
chappohj47
Chappo Built
Just read this thread fantastic build love the color
Also, pull a good vacuum (with a good pump) for 20 minutes (no less) to be sure any moisture is out of the system.
We decided to test fit the AC compressor bracket and compressor to see how they bolted in. We needed to remove what looked like an engine lift hook and the bracket that the alternator slides on. There is an attachment on the AC bracket to replace the one for the alternator.
The bracket bolted right on to the engine and the AC compressor to the bracket.
We were a bit nervous it wouldn't fit, as the bracket with the pully is quite large. But the compressor and AC belt look like they come very close to the other belts and pullys, and very close to the fan blades as well. Is this normal?
Next to come out was the water pump and pump housing. Will be replaced with new OEM one. Also to come out was the big air filter can. It will be cleaned up and painted before going back in.
I'd say we are pretty well committed to this project at this point. Hopefully everything goes back in as smoothly as it came out. Still waiting on some parts to fly over to Hawaii, so the reassembly may take some time.
The bracket bolted right on to the engine and the AC compressor to the bracket.
We were a bit nervous it wouldn't fit, as the bracket with the pully is quite large. But the compressor and AC belt look like they come very close to the other belts and pullys, and very close to the fan blades as well. Is this normal?
Next to come out was the water pump and pump housing. Will be replaced with new OEM one. Also to come out was the big air filter can. It will be cleaned up and painted before going back in.
I'd say we are pretty well committed to this project at this point. Hopefully everything goes back in as smoothly as it came out. Still waiting on some parts to fly over to Hawaii, so the reassembly may take some time.
Pretty close tolerances, the good news is the blades will flex away from the pulley when RPMs go up, air resistance and such...and the pulley and fan are fixed to the motor so their orientation to each other shouldn't change...the spacing from fan to radiator is more important IMO as you have to consider flex of motor/body mounts changing the clearances. I just measured mine, I have about 1/2" of clearance as well (1.27 cm for you metric folks).
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The large AC bracket for the 2H came from Canada, and was pretty dirty and rusty when it arrived.
After a thorough cleaning and degreasing, it was apparent the rust needed to be treated before painting. Mike had read online about some people having success soaking rusty parts in a mixture of water, vinegar and dish soap. Figured it wouldn't hurt to try it out.
Here it is after a day and a half in the the vinegar and dish soap mixture. We were really impressed with how good the mixture did at removing all the rust. We soaked some of the other bracket pieces in some Evapo-rust for a comparison. The vinegar/dish soap mixture worked as good if not better then the Evapo-rust....and much more economical!
It was rinsed with clean water and thouroughly dried with a heat gun. A final wipe down with acetone, then primed and painted. We used a high temperature ceramic engine enamel primer and paint. It's supposed to withstand 500 degree temps and be resistant to oil and fluids. Since its attached to the engine, it seems like a good durable choice.
After a thorough cleaning and degreasing, it was apparent the rust needed to be treated before painting. Mike had read online about some people having success soaking rusty parts in a mixture of water, vinegar and dish soap. Figured it wouldn't hurt to try it out.
Here it is after a day and a half in the the vinegar and dish soap mixture. We were really impressed with how good the mixture did at removing all the rust. We soaked some of the other bracket pieces in some Evapo-rust for a comparison. The vinegar/dish soap mixture worked as good if not better then the Evapo-rust....and much more economical!
It was rinsed with clean water and thouroughly dried with a heat gun. A final wipe down with acetone, then primed and painted. We used a high temperature ceramic engine enamel primer and paint. It's supposed to withstand 500 degree temps and be resistant to oil and fluids. Since its attached to the engine, it seems like a good durable choice.
WOW, that's beautiful! Love those pictures!!!
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Just a suggestion always use new receiver\drier and if you can flush the condenser both ways and same for the evaporator if you are not replacing them. When it comes to putting the system under a vacuum the longer the better I tend to let the vacuum pump run all night before charging the system and make sure to put just enough refrigerant oil on each component and try not to overcharge the system with refrigerant. If you are converting to R134a make sure all the O-rings are compatible and remove about 10-15% of the original charge.
Love the island shots makes me want to go home every time I see them, thanks for sharing the awesome view @Aloha Jen
Love the island shots makes me want to go home every time I see them, thanks for sharing the awesome view @Aloha Jen
I would take apart that used hvac box, it's not unusual for rodents to make a nest against the evaporator core. Dead rodent air conditioning makes for some nasty air. I hate cleaning them out. Unless the evaporator looks brand new, I would install a new one, same with heater core. Both are a pain to replace normally. Also install a new expansion valve. Toyota expansion valves tend to get lazy after they are old and hamper cooling performance a awful lot as a result. That dryer is bad, so that will need replaced. Install all new orings. I just get metric generic ac orings kits from napa. Dip orings in ac oil before install. I would probably just use a new condenser too. A lot of stuff from rock auto works fine. Do a good job now and it will work great for a long time. The ac compressor-flip it upside down and drain the old ac oil out. Their should be info somewhere on how much oil to put in the compressor, condenser, evaporator, and dryer. I would have it vacuumed and charged professionally. It's not that much money and is more accurate. I haven't done a r12 to r134 retrofit for a while, but the charge amounts between r12 and r134 are different. Those brackets look really great all painted up. Have you guys considered plating some of your parts like original?
Work on the 60 is coming along slowly as we wait for parts to cross the Pacific. But getting everything that comes out cleaned, removal of any trace of rust, then primed/painted. Got the air intake box (actually more of a cylinder) out and associated parts, as well as cleaning up the fan shroud.
There was some visible rust, but was much more underneath the original paint.
Wire wheeling exposed the extent of the rust.
Nothing cancerous or pitted badly, so decided to use a rust dissolver on it.
There was some visible rust, but was much more underneath the original paint.
Wire wheeling exposed the extent of the rust.
Nothing cancerous or pitted badly, so decided to use a rust dissolver on it.
The navy jelly rust dissolver worked extremely well. Brush on the gel, leave for 15-30 mins, hose off and the rust is gone! Even removes paint, especially if there was rust underneath it.
Then primed and prepped for paint shortly after to avoid flash rusting.
Then primed and prepped for paint shortly after to avoid flash rusting.
Ive seen that Loctite stuff for sale at various stores. Kinda wondered if it really works.
We have used the loctite rust dissolver and the rust neutralizer. Rust dissolver is always better, but needs to be rinsed/washed off with water. So kinda impractical in interior roof/panel cavities, and that's when the neutralizer was used. But the rust dissolver was very effective and seemed to prep the metal very well for painting.
I had posted about my issue with finding it, here is some discussion about mine:
AC compressor plug photos
My plug was off the main harness on the same line as the plug that went to the temp sensor for the thermostat.
Took advantage of everything in front being out to address any rust on the inside of the radiator frame and then paint. Very minor rust, but we are taking care of all and any rust for long term piece of mind.
Also cleaned up and painted the air intake parts inside the ps fender. The metal bracket was treated with navy jelly before painting.
Wasn't really necessary to paint the plastic housing, but made it look shiney and new!
Also cleaned up and painted the air intake parts inside the ps fender. The metal bracket was treated with navy jelly before painting.
Wasn't really necessary to paint the plastic housing, but made it look shiney and new!
