Best Preventative maintenance for an 80 series? (12 Viewers)

[NoahWts]

I recently bought a 97 landcruiser off my uncle that has been in my family for around 6 years (Paid $5k). It just rolled over 308k miles and I was wondering some of the first things to really look at for longevity. I can do most maintenance myself (already changed the fuel injectors) and the engine has a relatively new head gasket and brand new belts.

 

[tmxmotorsports]

Replace everything

 

[smorkington]

hoses and fluids

 

[Kernal]

Drive it until you know more about how it runs, drives, etc. and read through the FAQ section for PM
Spend a few hundred hours reading in the 80 Forum
You can glean some information (ie to get oriented) by watching some You Tube videos for the 80 Series and FZJ80, but be aware,
some of them might not be 100% correct, so don't proceed until you've researched on the forum and asked some questions.
OTRAMM's videos are good.

A few routine items to consider if not done in the last 100,000 miles or so:
Front axle service (wheel bearings, trunnion bearings, CV joint repack, axle seals, ---)
Flush/replace all fluids including brakes, coolant engine, power steering, transmission, gear boxes
Ensure both the front and rear axle breathers work, better to bypass at least the front axle breather and run a hose up to the engine bay. Rear can be extended into the left rear quarter panel cavity.
Replace any old swollen water heater/coolant and radiator hoses and the radiator, Thermostat, and heat control valve if they're the originals.

Plan rust proofing the vehicle (not undercoating). There are many products depending if it's outside or in a body cavity.

For body cavities (inside doors, quarter panels, hatch, lift gates, rocker panels, cross members and anywhere water might get trapped consider 3M Cavity wax.

Order as many OEM Toyota parts (including trim/molding) as you can afford now before they become NLA (discontinued)

There are about 147 other items you'll figure out by reading on the forum

 

[manofthewoods]

I recently bought a 97 landcruiser off my uncle that has been in my family for around 6 years (Paid $5k). It just rolled over 308k miles and I was wondering some of the first things to really look at for longevity. I can do most maintenance myself (already changed the fuel injectors) and the engine has a relatively new head gasket and brand new belts.

The question(s) you are asking can only be answered when you decide what your goal(s) are for the vehicle. The goals could range from: drive it into the ground until it dies, to restore everything to as new as
possible.

Given that you're asking, it appears like you're not going for the drive it into the ground. But, still...
Are you wanting complete reliability? Extreme off road rock crawler fun?
A vehicle to drive around the block once a month?

Honestly answer your goals for the vehicle, reconcile that with your tolerance for spending money and time; you won't need advice from well intentioned internet strangers who will have different goals and budgets.

Happy trails

 

[NoahWts]

The question(s) you are asking can only be answered when you decide what your goal(s) are for the vehicle. The goals could range from: drive it into the ground until it dies, to restore everything to as new as
possible.

Given that you're asking, it appears like you're not going for the drive it into the ground. But, still...
Are you wanting complete reliability? Extreme off road rock crawler fun?
A vehicle to drive around the block once a month?

Honestly answer your goals for the vehicle, reconcile that with your tolerance for spending money and time; you won't need advice from well intentioned internet strangers who will have different goals and budgets.

Happy trails

It currently is my daily driver until I can get something more suitable. I don't drive far to work so the horrible gas mileage doesn't bother me. Reliability is the biggest factor in what I'm looking to do to it. Luckily the front end has already been rebuilt about a year ago and both diffs have been serviced.

 

[subzali]

This is a good thread to read

Should I buy an 80, costs of ownership?

There have been a few recent threads where questions have come up looking for cheap stuff or easy answers. In response to that I would like to offer some observations. The 80 Series Land Cruiser was, at the time, Toyota's Flagship vehicle in the United States. When new the 80 sold from the...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[ceylonfj40nut]

Find a Mud member who owns an 80 near you and have them inspect/ share for a quick idea. Honestly, you need to spend some time reading in the 80 series section FAQ area.

 

[effjay80]

Best wishes with your truck and tough to answer without knowing what has been already addressed. My triage list for my 94 started with all hoses and leaks especially cc radiator and cooling, then stuff like starter and alternator that was going to fail at some point.

I'm now down to the bottom of the list with the non functional CD player but thankfully have a workaround with the cassette player.

 

[Azca]

Lubrication and Cooling are your two biggest items to do. First thing is to clean the bejesus out of the engine bay and underside. Steam cleaning or dry ice is best but if nothing else, just use spray degreasers and several different size brushes. Not only does a clean engine run cooler but it is easy to trace leaks and so much nicer to work on.

• Since it is a family member, ask for maintenance history. Find out when the belts were replaced, air cleaner etc. Major items. This will give you and idea of what to expect.
• Use only Toyota repair parts unless the part is no longer available and then try to use OEM such as Denso. If not, you will be replacing the parts again much sooner than you would like.
• Lubrication, change oil and lube drive lines, u joints etc.
• All Coolant hoses,
• Find out how old the radiator is. If more than 10 I would replace. Same with the water pump.
• Coolant. It is important to understand history here, best to flush the system completely and use a coolant compatible with Red or Green.
• If the transmission has not been flushed, do a Rodney flush (look up on youtube).
• As stated above, all fluid hoses first, vacuum hoses next.
• Fuel filter
• Don't use wix or fram oil filters on the oil changes (too many incidents of filter and engine failure to chance). Mr. T, Mobil 1, Royal Purple. There was a chap on GM truck central that did a very comprehensive oil filter comparison in 2014. (Aloicious).
• Inspect rubber brake line hoses for bulges. If the exterior is cracked, it is probably time to change them anyway.

Get TOYODIY subscription and a Factory Service Manual (FSM)!

Be strategic with the work. If you are replacing the radiator, as an example, take the opportunity to replace all lines in that area such as the high pressure power steering hoses, water pump, belts, transmission oil cooler lines and anything on the driver side front of the rig. It is a good idea to accumulate parts as you go and replace at the same time instead of tearing the same area apart over and over again.

Don't fight things. It is better to take parts off to have ready access than it is to fight, give up, and rig things to make it work.

Again, as indicated above, these are not cheap to maintain. They are awesome vehicles but at this age, probably not the best choice for a daily driver. Parts are getting hard to find and cost 2 to 3 times (or more) of what a typical vehicle will cost. Go into this knowing what you are getting into.

 

[thatcabledude]

My advice is don’t baby it. They like higher revs so let it eat. I’m convinced some people’s 1fz issues are from always babying the engine like it could blow at any second.

 

[Devils Paw 80]

Why did you change the injectors?

Inspect all fluids and hoses. You'll probably end up replacing much of them. The plastic heater T and pesky heater hose are two common trouble areas for coolant leaks that should be high on the list for replacement.

 

[Tachycardic]

Every 80 will be different because no one truly knows how the PO treated it. That being said, assuming that it is in relatively good shape, consider the following:
- Oil and filter change
- Check brake/power steering fluid integrity and levels
- Check AT fluid, consider a drain and fill
- Inspect and grease the drive shafts/U-joints
- Consider replacing the diff/transfer case oils
- Check/replace air filter (clean tuna can)
- Check/replace the air intake hose (inspect for cracks)
- Inspect/replace PCV and grommet
- Inspect/replace all vacuum lines
- Make sure the cooling system is up to snuff--inspect/replace radiator and hoses if needed
- Consider adding a blue fan clutch, check/replace thermostat if needed
- Inspect/replace spark plugs, wires, cap and rotor
- Consider replacing the fuel filter and fuel pump/sock
- Inspect the battery/fusible link and consider replacing with new ones
- Inspect/replace brake pads and rotors
- Inspect/replace brake lines
- Inspect/replace tires
There are many more things to consider, inspect, and potentially replace, but I wanted to focus on straight forward and relatively easy things that don't take a ton of time to complete to make your 80 reliable and safe to drive.

Post picks of your 80.

 

[NoahWts]

Find a Mud member who owns an 80 near you and have them inspect/ share for a quick idea. Honestly, you need to spend some time reading in the 80 series section FAQ area.

I’d love to do that but I have not seen a single 80 series on the road since I’ve bought mine

 

[NoahWts]

Why did you change the injectors?

Inspect all fluids and hoses. You'll probably end up replacing much of them. The plastic heater T and pesky heater hose are two common trouble areas for coolant leaks that should be high on the list for replacement.

It had the stock injectors still in it with 308k miles and it was idling rough, changed the injectors and now it runs like a top

 

[ceylonfj40nut]

I’d love to do that but I have not seen a single 80 series on the road since I’ve bought mine

reach out to the N. carolina guys via mud. There is a club for sure

 

[thatcabledude]

Yeah, North Carolina has an active club.

NC- Olde North State Cruisers

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[LongDuck]

Were you born in this particular vehicle? What's your liquid net worth as of today (*including home equity)?

 

[lumbee1]

There's a TON of knowledge and experience in the 80's section on MUD.

Take a picture of your engine bay and post it here. Folks will respond on what needs to be replaced just based on that. You might have to take more pictures as requested but the feedback will get you on the way.

 

[Tachycardic]

Were you born in this particular vehicle? What's your liquid net worth as of today (*including home equity)?

If you’re implying that his 80 will bankrupt him, that’s unfair. New cars are expensive to maintain as well, and their parts availability can be worse.