12HT-swapped 1988 HJ60 in Melbourne (5 Viewers)

[AussieHJ6X]

G’day y’all! Finally got around to signing up after a long period of lurking. Hopefully I can give a tiny bit back to the community after all I’ve learnt from everyone.

I grew up in rural South Australia, where Toyota is king, and learnt to drive in a 1991 4Runner (HiLux Surf), so I’ve always loved old Toyotas. After many years of owning an X-trail, but wanting a LandCruiser, I took the plunge and bought a 1988 HJ60 with a 12HT swap. I had considered a 120 Prado, but ultimately wanted something more rugged and mechanical that I could learn to work on myself (not to mention the 60 is the most beautiful off-roader Toyota ever made)

At the Ochre Pits between Leigh Creek and Marree

The body has about 450,000km, but the engine is barely broken in with less than 100,000km on it

Sitting in the driveway next to my girlfriend’s ‘85 Corolla

Now that daylight savings has started and there’s actually time to spin wrenches after work, I’m planning to spend the summer doing a few repair/resto/upgrade jobs, which I’ll post about on here

Looking forward to getting involved in the community!

 

[AussieHJ6X]

First major thing I’ve done was a rebuild of the rear brakes. Have never worked on drum brakes before, but I figured you have to start somewhere!

The backing plates were a bit rough, so I cleaned them up, treated the rust, and re-painted

Cleaned up the existing hardware where I could, and replaced anything that was too far gone, along with shoes and drums, with new stuff from Terrain Tamer.

Altogether an easier job than I was dreading, once I got the hang of it. The second side was much quicker than the first!

Also adjusted all the brake components per the FSM to make sure everything is working properly.

Now I just need to trust the job I did enough to back it down our steep, narrow driveway…

 

[AussieHJ6X]

The sedimenter/water filter mounted on the frame rail is apparently often overlooked when servicing, and I’ve heard they can rust out completely. Rather than just draining it I wanted to take it off completely and make sure it was working properly (including the float sensor)

Plenty of people advocate mounting a second fuel filter inside the engine bay, but I appreciate the simplicity of Toyota’s design here and would rather restore OEM parts where possible.

It came off pretty easy - just 2 bolts and a bit of wiggling to get the fuel lines loose. Make sure you clamp these off properly or you’ll end up covered in diesel (whoops)

Pretty muddy on the outside (which we h8)…

But nothing that some elbow grease can’t fix. Still has the original sticker!

I’ll give the outside a quick coat of paint to make it look far shinier than anything else underneath the car

Inside had a lot of gunk, so I’m glad I’m giving it a proper clean. Don’t want that in my engine…

A quick multimeter test shows that the float is working correctly which is a good sign.

There is a bit of rust inside, but thankfully nothing serious. Going to treat that with evapo-rust, rinse it out with fresh diesel, re-install, prime the fuel pump, and should be good as new!

I’ve seen people mention that when you’re changing filters is a good time to use a fuel system conditioner/cleaner like liqui moly, but don’t have any experience with those sort of products. Is it worth it? If so, any tips or recommendations for what product to use?

 

[dmjay]

Good on you mate, there are plenty of people here in OZ that can help out with 12H-T info.

 

[AussieHJ6X]

Good on you mate, there are plenty of people here in OZ that can help out with 12H-T info.

Good to know. Lots of useful general info on here, but the Yanks don’t tend to be too much help when it comes to the diesels

 

[ceylonfj40nut]

Well done! Way to use the kitchen sink. You have a great combo set up. Body style and drive train. Many goose up the 12ht with fuel and boost. Personally, I feel its best stock for it to last longer. Definitely a beast of an engine. Love the barn doors and full float rear axle. There are aftermarket water separators of your OEM fails. Engines Australia has parts for the 12HT. They are getting more rare to find. I would collect parts when you can.