I decided I was going to cut out the lower core support and add back in reinforcement above the winch where there was more clearance.
I was under the impression my Sawzall skills were better than they actually are and nicked my radiator. V6 4runner radiator it is.
I am really happy with then end result. I only had to move the front bumper an inch or so forward from the factory position. I notched the grill to be able to access the free-spool lever. I only had to cut a 1 inch by 2 inch piece.
Almost immediately I had a big issue. The oil pressure issue reared its ugly head. On the first obstacle I tried, as soon as I got the truck on any kind of angle I lost ALL oil pressure. I turned the truck off and rolled to a flatter section of trail to start the truck and I could not get oil pressure. I let the truck run for maybe 30 seconds with no oil pressure. I revved it a little to see if that would help get oil in the pump to no avail. I ended up moving the vehicle under its own power with no oil pressure to remove it from the trail. I drove maybe 30 feet with lots of engine noise. Right as I got out of the way of the trail I FINALLY got oil pressure again. I let it run for a minute with oil pressure to let some circulate. I changed the filter immediately just in case it was clogged with debris from the whole ordeal. I called it quits for the day and limped back to camp. I thought there was more engine noise than usual, but honestly it could have all been in my head.
The next day we were heading home. I decided my least damaging option was going to be to trailer the truck home. The closest U-haul dolly was roughly an hour away. They did not have any smaller trucks to tow with so my dads 80 series was going to have to do. I drove Nekbone as carefully and easily as I could to the U-haul. It would make a pretty decent racket if I revved it too high. I just took it easy. As it tuned out the tow dolly u-haul had was terrible shape. I ended up with a 20' box truck and full trailer.
After an excruciating 7mpg 5 hour drive, Nekbone was back home and ready for teardown. I pulled the timing cover first. I found the oil pressure Culprit. You can see where the oil pump gasket was leaking on the suction side where the timing cover and the block seal.
The Crankshaft and the bearings had some major scoring. The above main bearings were the worst of all of the bearings.
I settled on rebuilding the bottom end of the engine without removing the cylinder head. I was content with the amount of (minor) blowby and the engine wasn't burning oil, so I left the pistons and head alone. I did remove the cam shaft to inspect the bearing surfaces and clean the oil passages. I also took this time to clean years of caked on dirt and oil residue off of the engine.
I used diesel fuel and a concrete mixing tub to catch the drippings.
As always with this truck I found some interesting things while removing the motor. Many loose/missing/wrong hardware. I found a cracked clutch as well. I have never really seen or heard of this type of issue. When I removed the cab to replace the floor pans I noticed the bellhousing bolts were loose and some were missing. There was a small gap between the engine and trans. I believe this allowed the input shaft to be at an odd angle and cracked the clutch. Weird for sure.
When I rebuilt the bottom end I cleaned up the engine wiring harness and alternator wiring. lots of loose wires just hanging around. My fiance got the coolant temp gauge working with a used cluster and I got the brake light and alternator (GM 1 wire) light wiring in order so for the first time in a long time the dash lights all work correctly.
The 33's I had were starting to split in between the tread so I figured I got my use out of my $200 set of tires. I found a set of fj60/SR5 steel wheels and mounted my 33/10.50/15 tires that were on my trooper. I like the look, not sure if I like it more than the aluminum wheels though.
Sure made it easier to steer without power steering though!
I ended up getting some procomp front springs for $50 a piece from amazon and couldn't turn down that price. I also went with second gen 4runner rear shocks up front. you have to swap out the bottom bushing, but the length is great. I just went with a 2" block in the rear for now.
