3FE Owners Check-In (10 Viewers)

[91FJ80Super44]

^ Hope you replaced that with an aisin

I couldn't find one locally, and there are multiple reviews on Amazon about the aisin pump being fake, but I also needed the pump immediately because she is my daily, i purchased one at O'Reilly's for 55 dollars with a lifetime warranty, so if it craps out after 100k miles I'll have gotten my 55 bucks worth if it doesn't last I'll get a aisin pump

 

[GreatWhtCrewmax]

I don't think I'll remove the air pump yet. I know my 3fe will pass ca smog without the egr working. I'm hoping I get a green smog check tech who will miss the fact the egr is actually gone now. If I get lucky with my next smog check and after that I'll decide if I want to push my luck.

 

[Marco Lau]

I don't think I'll remove the air pump yet. I know my 3fe will pass ca smog without the egr working. I'm hoping I get a green smog check tech who will miss the fact the egr is actually gone now. If I get lucky with my next smog check and after that I'll decide if I want to push my luck.

you can disconnect some vaccum lines or put BBs in to disable the EGR easily and not having to remove it off the car when it comes time for visual.

 

[GreatWhtCrewmax]

I did that but my egr valve was stuck a little open. So even with no vaccum applied it was allowing some exhaust gas into the intake manifold at all times. No matter how I cleaned it I couldn't get it completely sealed up, so I completely removed it.

 

[AZFJ520]

1992 FJ80. 325k miles. All stock for now. Tucson,AZ

 

[UsedLuxury]

1992 FJ80. 325k miles. All stock for now. Tucson,AZ

Welcome man. The 3fe is a tough sumbitch. You will get to know the people that work at gas stations though. Any idea of its service records? If you have any questions this is the best forum for them.

 

[kickfli12]

1992 FJ80. 325k miles. All stock for now. Tucson,AZ

Get ready to drop some serious cash getting that thing where it needs to be But don’t worry, you won’t be the only one whose “land cruiser poor”

 

[Marco Lau]

Get ready to drop some serious cash getting that thing where it needs to be But don’t worry, you won’t be the only one whose “land cruiser poor”

Yep, my 91 is 1 owner from AZ, bone stock when i bought it. Checked my excel spread sheet recently and i have about ~$17k on it plus the rig itself....Love every min. of driving it tho, and its bomb proof now.

 

[SDmtnbkr]

Hello everyone, I was told a few different times to check in here to meet the cool kids lol.

Just picked up a mostly original '91 w/187k miles with ugly original paint from the second owner! I have a post in the main 80 forum if you wanna see more pictures and details "I just impulse bought an LC 80... and I'm already regretting it", but the gist is that I'm in CA and it wont pass smog because of a CEL, and has a few other big issues including front axle seals and water pump . Codes are 25, 26, & 28 so I got new denso 02 sensors that are about to go in.

Biggest issue at the moment is the water pump and cooling system.... the water pump went the moment I got home (PO says he's never seen it leak a drop lol). The clamps and hoses were so corroded I needed to cut a few of them off, and it was a nightmare getting the pump out, so now I'm waiting on replacement hoses and parts... I've searched and most everyone says go OEM, so I'm ordering the hose kit from Wit's End for the main 3, but for the smaller ones, do people just get hose stock and cut their own?

That's ok thought, because I have to deal with all the corrosion in the coolant system. The radiator is newer, all metal, doesn't have a drain petcock, and is unlabeled.... @91FJ80Super44 it looks exactly like the one you just installed (O'Reily? $500?), I'll post a photo below. I literally dumped piles of mineral deposits and rust from the cooling system, and there was not an ounce of coolant in it, just tap water (Ugh!). I hate to toss a new radiator, so hopefully I get get all the rust out.... we'll see. Might just remove it so I can gravity back flush it, since I don't have access to a pressure flush. BTW, thanks @e9999 for the amazing write up, it really helped me understand what I need to do. Question though.... since the w/p is out do I just connect a garden hose to the thermostat bypass hose and disconnect the block drain to flush the block?? And since there's no w/p to build pressure for the front of the block, can I also just stick the hose in the w/p cutout?

Also, is an OEM thermostat recommended?

This is the metal connector between the lower radiator and water pump inlet hoses... I'm afraid of where all of this crap has imbedded itself along the way

 

[Marco Lau]

That looks like all copper/brass CSF radiator. I had nothing but bad luck with it, had it for about 6 months and overheated my motor 3 times...maybe you have better luck with it. I ordered an alum. radiator and tossed the CSF into the dumpster. Replace all 3 radiator hoses along with the 2 other smaller ones that connects from WP, OEM thermostat, Aisen WP, and use 50/50 toyota red plus a bottle of water wetter you should be golden. If you fan clutch is old, i would replace that too with a new Aisen unit....good luck, and clean rig nontheless

 

[SDmtnbkr]

That looks like all copper/brass CSF radiator. I had nothing but bad luck with it, had it for about 6 months and overheated my motor 3 times...maybe you have better luck with it. I ordered an alum. radiator and tossed the CSF into the dumpster. Replace all 3 radiator hoses along with the 2 other smaller ones that connects from WP, OEM thermostat, Aisen WP, and use 50/50 toyota red plus a bottle of water wetter you should be golden. If you fan clutch is old, i would replace that too with a new Aisen unit....good luck, and clean rig nontheless

I'm not too sure... I just searched and looked at a few different CSF radiators for the LC and the cap is located on the passenger side. Mine is located on the drivers side.... like this one from a few pages back on this same thread:
3FE Owners Check-In - Post #1503

Maybe they switched the design? He said he got his at O'Reily, and the PO is definitely not an OEM or CSF type of guy lol. I'm sure he just went to O'Reily and ordered whatever they gave him. Either way, It wasn't too hard to get to, now that I know the sequence, and I'm already spending too much money elsewhere, so I'm gonna give it a shot. I REEEEEEALY don't wanna buy a new fan clutch either. Can I clean the old one somehow? I didn't wanna start hosing it down, since there's some kind of electronic component to it right?

 

[Marco Lau]

I'm not too sure... I just searched and looked at a few different CSF radiators for the LC and the cap is located on the passenger side. Mine is located on the drivers side.... like this one from a few pages back on this same thread:
3FE Owners Check-In - Post #1503

Maybe they switched the design? He said he got his at O'Reily, and the PO is definitely not an OEM or CSF type of guy lol. I'm sure he just went to O'Reily and ordered whatever they gave him. Either way, It wasn't too hard to get to, now that I know the sequence, and I'm already spending too much money elsewhere, so I'm gonna give it a shot. I REEEEEEALY don't wanna buy a new fan clutch either. Can I clean the old one somehow? I didn't wanna start hosing it down, since there's some kind of electronic component to it right?

You can remove the fan clutch, clean it up real good and replace the clutch fluid with 15,000 cST silicon oil. Do a search on the forum. its been covered...

 

[Technician1985]

I'm not too sure... I just searched and looked at a few different CSF radiators for the LC and the cap is located on the passenger side. Mine is located on the drivers side.... like this one from a few pages back on this same thread:
3FE Owners Check-In - Post #1503

Maybe they switched the design? He said he got his at O'Reily, and the PO is definitely not an OEM or CSF type of guy lol. I'm sure he just went to O'Reily and ordered whatever they gave him. Either way, It wasn't too hard to get to, now that I know the sequence, and I'm already spending too much money elsewhere, so I'm gonna give it a shot. I REEEEEEALY don't wanna buy a new fan clutch either. Can I clean the old one somehow? I didn't wanna start hosing it down, since there's some kind of electronic component to it right?

I would strongly recommend throwing away your current radiator and replacing it with an all aluminum one. I used a radiator made for diesel land cruisers, you can find them all over ebay for cheap. Get the manual transmission diesel radiator and get a (large) trans cooler instead of running the lines into the radiator like the factory one does. I mean you can do whatever you want lol but I don't know why you'd take any chances with the cooling system here in CA. It's not that easy to flush the cooling system so you might need to just run it for a while then drain the coolant and repeat that process multiple times until it's clean.

 

[rghouse]

Grease your knuckles!

Just a reminder to all new owners that your steering knuckles need greased about every 75k (Haynes).

I didn’t get the memo or didn’t read the right forums, but mine just went 40k and the birfs started clicking. Just topped them off and it only took a half an hour.

1. Locate and clean plug so nothing drops in. It’s right above knuckle with a square head
2. Remove plug, poke in a zip tie or the like to see what’s in there. Inspect for gear oil, should not be runny or smooth.
3. Top off with NLGI #2: this part is under huge debate. I used 18 pumps DS, 30 pumps PS based on my assessed level. Will check again next week. normal top off Is about 6-10 pumps I think. Overfilling is not a major problem, it weeps out at the balls.

Inspect the knuckles for leaky grease/gear oil mixture too every oil change.

 

[91FJ80Super44]

Hello everyone, I was told a few different times to check in here to meet the cool kids lol.

Just picked up a mostly original '91 w/187k miles with ugly original paint from the second owner! I have a post in the main 80 forum if you wanna see more pictures and details "I just impulse bought an LC 80... and I'm already regretting it", but the gist is that I'm in CA and it wont pass smog because of a CEL, and has a few other big issues including front axle seals and water pump . Codes are 25, 26, & 28 so I got new denso 02 sensors that are about to go in.

Biggest issue at the moment is the water pump and cooling system.... the water pump went the moment I got home (PO says he's never seen it leak a drop lol). The clamps and hoses were so corroded I needed to cut a few of them off, and it was a nightmare getting the pump out, so now I'm waiting on replacement hoses and parts... I've searched and most everyone says go OEM, so I'm ordering the hose kit from Wit's End for the main 3, but for the smaller ones, do people just get hose stock and cut their own?

That's ok thought, because I have to deal with all the corrosion in the coolant system. The radiator is newer, all metal, doesn't have a drain petcock, and is unlabeled.... @91FJ80Super44 it looks exactly like the one you just installed (O'Reily? $500?), I'll post a photo below. I literally dumped piles of mineral deposits and rust from the cooling system, and there was not an ounce of coolant in it, just tap water (Ugh!). I hate to toss a new radiator, so hopefully I get get all the rust out.... we'll see. Might just remove it so I can gravity back flush it, since I don't have access to a pressure flush. BTW, thanks @e9999 for the amazing write up, it really helped me understand what I need to do. Question though.... since the w/p is out do I just connect a garden hose to the thermostat bypass hose and disconnect the block drain to flush the block?? And since there's no w/p to build pressure for the front of the block, can I also just stick the hose in the w/p cutout?

Also, is an OEM thermostat recommended?

This is the metal connector between the lower radiator and water pump inlet hoses... I'm afraid of where all of this crap has imbedded itself along the way

So the radiator came from AutoZone... Mine actually runs 15 degrees cooler than with the original plastic one, so I am extremely happy with mine, and i tow a trailer with mine about once a week down and back up a mountain, and the temperature doesn't move, so my current opinion is that it's actually really good, and it has a lifetime warranty so my advice for you would be to get it running with a new water pump and everything and go from there,
Also sweet rig
Cheers,
Happy Cruisin'

 

[Slowdriver]

New owner here, former Jeep guy (I finally have some sense in my old age).

1992, 190k miles... rockauto is my new best friend, $700 of parts in route, not counting the new BFG TKO2's in 33x10.5R15.

 

[UsedLuxury]

Oh s*** boys. Crawled under the ol 92 today. Wanted to hit those grease zerks. Pro tip for the midwest LC owners, ignore those leaks. My frame will never rust. The Exxon Valdez and my rig are facing the same fines from the EPA.
Rear diff input shaft seal is leaking, T-Case leaking, Oil pan leaking, Birfs.....Leaking, Some odd ass leak around the intake runners dripping onto the exhaust flange, radiator also leaking. I knew about the oil pan and radiator but the rest is new. I have a new OEM oil pan gasket and radiator so those will be first. The T-case leak looks like it might be just the speedo cable, rear diff is just the input seal.
The front axle has been clicking for a while now so I don't know about just doing a reseal job. I have a pretty aggressive clunk coming from the front end. I am guessing the the birffs are shot. I might try to buy a front axle to harvest parts from. I want to keep the OEM birfs if I can, but 5 hundo for new OEM parts isn't going to happen. If anyone in the PNW has a axle laying around that needs a good home let me know.

 

[Technician1985]

Oh s*** boys. Crawled under the ol 92 today. Wanted to hit those grease zerks. Pro tip for the midwest LC owners, ignore those leaks. My frame will never rust. The Exxon Valdez and my rig are facing the same fines from the EPA.
Rear diff input shaft seal is leaking, T-Case leaking, Oil pan leaking, Birfs.....Leaking, Some odd ass leak around the intake runners dripping onto the exhaust flange, radiator also leaking. I knew about the oil pan and radiator but the rest is new. I have a new OEM oil pan gasket and radiator so those will be first. The T-case leak looks like it might be just the speedo cable, rear diff is just the input seal.
The front axle has been clicking for a while now so I don't know about just doing a reseal job. I have a pretty aggressive clunk coming from the front end. I am guessing the the birffs are shot. I might try to buy a front axle to harvest parts from. I want to keep the OEM birfs if I can, but 5 hundo for new OEM parts isn't going to happen. If anyone in the PNW has a axle laying around that needs a good home let me know.

Rebuild the front axle with one of the kits and use the wits end seal tool and use an OEM axle seal. The birfs themselves may not be shot. Replace the drive flanges. Make sure nothing else is ****ed up in there. Again, rebuild the front axle with one of the kits and properly grease and torque everything, give special attention to the wheel bearings because they could require several adjustments.

The speedo cable leak is normal fix it eventually just make sure the transfer case is full. Replace the radiator ASAP and if you can, replace the entire cooling system and all the hoses at your earlist convenience.

 

[GreatWhtCrewmax]

Advanced the timing today. Made a huge difference in the cruising ability on highway driving. Just adjusted it a little bit by ear, haven't heard any pinging yet I went ahead and filled up with 91 to be safe though. Gonna keep a close eye on it for the next couple days.

 

[UsedLuxury]

Rebuild the front axle with one of the kits and use the wits end seal tool and use an OEM axle seal. The birfs themselves may not be shot. Replace the drive flanges. Make sure nothing else is f***ed up in there. Again, rebuild the front axle with one of the kits and properly grease and torque everything, give special attention to the wheel bearings because they could require several adjustments.

The speedo cable leak is normal fix it eventually just make sure the transfer case is full. Replace the radiator ASAP and if you can, replace the entire cooling system and all the hoses at your earlist convenience.

I have another mud member near me that is going to help me check the front axle. I am hoping the birfs are ok enough for another 30k.
I need to price out the kits, looks like the tool from wits end is priced well so I think ill pick that up. I've done wheel bearings a few times. Absolutely hate them but the work is easy.
When I have the rad out I will be checking the health of the cooling system. I have a pulley making noise and I am not sure which so that's also on the list. I plan on getting the AC worked out. Having r-12 laying around is nice.
Input shaft seal on the rear diff is like 12 bucks for OEM so I think I will do that while it's on jack stands.
I am hoping to be done with these issues someday so I can spend money on a new audio setup. Hard to spend money on something that doesn't make sure I get to work.

Advanced the timing today. Made a huge difference in the cruising ability on highway driving. Just adjusted it a little bit by ear, haven't heard any pinging yet I went ahead and filled up with 91 to be safe though. Gonna keep a close eye on it for the next couple days.

Any idea what kind of MPG you had before? I'm interested in seeing what it has dropped too. Im guessing you are still running all smog stuff because of your state.