2004 Cruiser; Introduction & Log

[CSMcruiser12]

Updates;

-Dry lubed the window tracks, which improved the window speed
-Dry lubed the door hinges, helped big time

-Started to touch up the largest scratches. Still have work to do.

-Took out AC fan blower motor. Used electric cleaner liberally. Slight humming/buzzing that had been bothering me is now gone

-New Whiteline steering rack bushings arrived.

Right now I'm planning this work for next month, to be done essentially all at once.
-New tires - Cooper AT3 LT275 /65 R18 113S C1 OWL
-Adjust torsion bars to level L/R
-Install rack bushings
-Alignment

Seems like all those should be done at once more or less. ???

 

[rjones]

How is it all coming along?

I'm looking at a '04 LX, ~200k miles. Interested in whatever else you have found. Thanks for posting.

rj

 

[CSMcruiser12]

How is it all coming along?

I'm looking at a '04 LX, ~200k miles. Interested in whatever else you have found. Thanks for posting.

rj

So it's been about 6 months now...and I'm still loving it!

I drive about 1,000 miles each month and it has been great. Not even a single issue has come up. Just did the initial maintenance and repairs to get it back to spec, so to speak. So much info here to tell you how to get a good experience out of this vehicle. I do plan to do some more major service later this year, T.Belt, WP, etc.

Best money spent was on the steering rack bushings + alignment. Ride is solid, quiet, smooth.

I'm still very happy with the decision.

 

[CSMcruiser12]

Here's a shot with the tires. Sitting a little low here on the drivers side, this was pre-torsion bar adjustment.

 

[rjones]

Looks really nice. Thanks again for posting your experiences!

rj

 

[CSMcruiser12]

I got pretty lucky yesterday. Popped the hood to top of some wiper fluid and found the upper radiator hose facing imminent death. Took the wife's car to autozone and grabbed a replacement. Put the new one on and topped with Toyota coolant. Didn't burp the system...is that strictly required on these trucks?Ran great today.

 

[2001LC]

Burp by letting cool down over night, then top radiator and bring up reservoir level a bit. Do this each morning while cold until reservoir holds slightly above low line.

Notes:
Hose should not be touching plastic engine cover. Something not right.
OEM is best practice on these hoses.

 

[CSMcruiser12]

Thanks! I'll use that method.

The new one that's not semi exploded just clears the plastic cover..

 

[2001LC]

Perhaps old hose was on backwards!

 

[CSMcruiser12]

After the radiator hose incident, I decided to go ahead and get the timing belt service done.

Let Duggy's Garage take care of it. Gives me a lot of peace of mind to know an experienced cruiser mechanic has been in there, replaced a ton of stuff, and given it a clean bill of health.

(2001lc you were right. Something was up with that old hose. New OEM doesn't touch)

 

[CSMcruiser12]

Also installed a Blue Sea USB charging port a couple weeks ago.

 

[2001LC]

You may want to give these 4 hoses a second look at each end. Squeeze end while looking into hose, if cracks appear replacement is a good idea.

 

[Rolocado]

Also installed a Blue Sea USB charging port a couple weeks ago.

View attachment 1502758

Which model is that?

 

[CSMcruiser12]

Blue Sea Systems Fast Charge 4.8A Dual USB Charger Socket Mount, 12V/24V Amazon.com: Blue Sea Systems Fast Charge 4.8A Dual USB Charger Socket Mount, 12V/24V: Blue Sea Systems: Sports & Outdoors

 

[yarrie303]

Here is my market research...

Love the Curve! Looking at 100's now!

 

[geanes]

Blue Sea Systems Fast Charge 4.8A Dual USB Charger Socket Mount, 12V/24V Amazon.com: Blue Sea Systems Fast Charge 4.8A Dual USB Charger Socket Mount, 12V/24V: Blue Sea Systems: Sports & Outdoors

Ok, stupid question: does it light up at night? I don't see anything in the description. If it doesn't, my wife wouldn't be happy......need to keep her happy = me sometimes asking stupid questions.

 

[CSMcruiser12]

Ok, stupid question: does it light up at night? I don't see anything in the description. If it doesn't, my wife wouldn't be happy......need to keep her happy = me sometimes asking stupid questions.

It does not light up. That would be cool if it did. It's not really a problem b/c I just keep a cable in the car plugged in, so its not like I'm having to fiddle with it all the time.

 

[CSMcruiser12]

The current project started with the goal of fixing the rear subwoofer. It was blown out and would buzz at volume. I figured the foam was toast as most guys have shown before. No surprise here.

I ordered a 5.75" speaker foam kit off Amazon. I'll post that up when I'm done.

Oh yeah...look what I found! Might have been causing some noise

 

[CSMcruiser12]

Of course while you're in there you might as well do a Noico treatment.
It was hotter than stink here in Houston, so there was no way I was doing a "full" application. I've had good success in the past with spot coverage on the most resonate panels. I may put more down when I go back in to put the subwoofer assembly back in.

After reading all the threads here about sound abatement, I downloaded a dB app and used it on my morning commute before the Noico install.

My "baseline" is on my morning commute, AC off, left lane of freeway, 70mph, phone held above center console. The app was reading 69 dB. I haven't replicated the drive yet, but initial impressions are good.

And to finish off the weekend, I added some generic Autozone weatherstripping to the driver and passenger doors after reading about the effectiveness of the LX OEM strip on another thread. For like $10, I figured I'd give it a try. It was too wide but I easily trimmed it with a razor blade. We shall see what it does for wind noise.

And got her all cleaned up after a crappy week of weather.

 

[Aggie04]

It does not light up. That would be cool if it did. It's not really a problem b/c I just keep a cable in the car plugged in, so its not like I'm having to fiddle with it all the time.

How was the install? Having a hard time finding anything online. Did you remove the cigarette lighter altogether and replace with this?