First time LC70 owner!

[nomadnic]

Good day lads and ladies,

I am brand new to the west coast, Vancouver BC, specifically, and I managed to be pretty timely in scoring a 1993 Prado, 7 seater RHD.

See attached photos. I'll try to get the engine one later today.

I am trying to narrow down a few details such as:

Confirmation on type of engine I have?

Pre heated glows after cold starts, sometimes dies upon initial turn over, and creates alot of smoke. My first guess is glow plugs?

Metal clanging sound on bumps right front? Wheel hub?

So since I am a new to this s***, what can I do to fine tune this diesel gem? Open to suggestions. I am an avid camper.

Also looking for a reputable repair shop here in Vancouver so let me know if you have any contacts or suggestions.

It is an awesome ride, drives straight, smokes a bit, but just great over all.

I recently sold my expedition project 2015 TRD Tacoma prior to the move, as well as my two low km Ranger dangers and 56 mercy M100 truck and my beater 95 YJ.

I've also owned mini cooper's, tj Rubicons, and older Tacoma, Skidoos, quads etc.

Buttt I am very excited to tackle my first diesel and learn from you all.

Cheers.
Nic

 

[Nas90tdi]

Congrats. Welcome. Several of us near you have the Prado. And between us, quite a lot of work and modification has taken place.
Engine is a 2LTE
How long are you letting glow plugs run? They need quite a few seconds or you will have a very smoky and rough start on that engine.
They could be bad as well. Listen for a relay to close under the hood left side after about 10 seconds. Then try to crank.

Clanging on bumps could be a few things. Doubtful its a hub. Check for loose brake shield. Maybe a broken shock. It's likely something loose or broken.

 

[Nas90tdi]

It may be possible you have the next series of engines on a '93. But, it's likely the 2LTE.

 

[Gun Runner 5]

Congrats .... Looks very clean.
Can't really tell from the photos but what is the color combo?

 

[GTSSportCoupe]

Congrats! These are great little trucks, but generally the engines are on the small side and prone to damage from overheating. These issues can be overcome with the right modifications and upgrades.

Easiest way to learn is to read what others have done. These are some of good build threads that come to mind. Very much worth reading through.

1992 LJ78 build/refresh
My LJ78 build thread...
A not so informative LJ78 'build' thread
1993 LJ79 from Malta

 

[nomadnic]

Hi guys thanks for the welcome.

So I nabbed some pics.

I seen to wet spots around the turbo.

I have a wee little red digital read out gauge on the dash that reads turbo Temps. I don't usually hit past 1100 on highway.

Ive read through the build links provided..
I am intrigued by the intercooler, oil catch cans, snorkels, and fine tuning. The unfortunate part about all of this, is I do not have a place to work on my car. So the thought of explaining this stuff to a mechanic from a forum sounds daunting.

I am kind of hoping that there is a shop here that understands these little rigs and the common mods.

I've attached pics of the engine bay.

 

[Dprio34]

Not, another Nic from Canada, I’m definitely not gonna be able to keep this straight @nomadnic !
Just kidding and welcome to the Forum!

Glow plugs are easy enough to inspect. Just pull them and have a peak at them.

Get about 6’ of length of hose from the auto parts store and re-route the PCV underneath the chassis.
(I got that tip from the other Nick) it will really cut down on the smoke, the black kind.

 

[nomadnic]

NICE.

Would you happen to have a picture of the routing of the hose? And what you used to secure it along the route?

Where do u guys buy parts from in this country that is Canada?

I.e. Glow plugs, prado parts?

 

[Dprio34]

Nic, and from the looks of the last pics you posted, I’d definitely replace the “intercooler” hose (aka Air Hose #1) and PCV hose.
Quite a bit of gunk on the right hand side of the engine.

Just use quality zip ties. I don’t have any saved pics of the routing, but will take some pics for you when I get back home if you’d like.

Consider removing the EGR system as well. Will cut down on all that crap from going into the engine and eliminate all the black smoke. @GTSSportCoupe already provided you the links.

Enjoy!
Don

 

[nomadnic]

Thanks Don! If it's not too much work I'd like to see where you exited the hose.

That's the Donnie difference (Ted movie ref).

Judging by the packaging you just hit up toyota for parts?

 

[Dprio34]

There are a lot of parts dealers and that was one of my first questions after purchasing my LJ.
Toyotapartsdeal.com is one of the faster shippers and best prices, but they don’t offer all parts.
Megazip has diagrams and have all parts but shipping is from Japan,
Toyodiy seems to have the most accurate part numbers, but no part diagrams, and high prices.

PartsSourq has good diagrams but will screw you on shipping and not communicate that certain parts are NoT in stock and charge in full for shipping.

CruiserOutfitters.com has a lot of axle and suspension parts at great prices and is a supporting vendor on the forum. Kurt is Very informative and helpful as well.

That has been my experience anyway.

Whatever you decide, do a sanity check and cross reference your part numbers since returning them in most cases is not a viable or possible option.

Local toyo dealers seem to want to rip your head off on pricing.

 

[Nas90tdi]

You definitely have the 2LTE from your pictures.
As Don said, just take a hose off the right side of valve cover, near the back, and route it down by the frame. No special route on that. There isn't anything that hot on that side of your engine to stay away from. You could add an oil catch can in that if you decided later.
On your intake between the turbo and the air filter there is a small hose coming off. You will want to just plug that off. That is where the crank vent previously went. It pulls vapor out of the engine, but also likes to pull oil through into the intake. Makes a huge mess.

To test your glow plugs, first take a multimeter and check voltage when the key is turned on on the buss bar that connects them. It should read around 12V for about 6 seconds and then will drop down to around 5V. If you are getting power, test the plugs themselves next.
You will have to pull them. Not hard at all, but take care with the plastic nuts on top if you still have the factory glow plugs. They like to spin the brass insert inside. Get an Ohm reading across the plug. From tip to the screw at top. Reading should be extremely low. If you are getting anything over 5-6 ohms, they are bad. Replace them all at once. If one goes they are all right behind and will just go one after another.
The Indirect injected engines are a very hard and rough start if the glow plugs aren't working right. Lot's of smoke and rough running.

Not sure Nick included this in his links.
Give it a read. Lot's off great ideas in here.
Ideas for improving the 2LTE

 

[JuanJ]

Hello,

Welcome to the madness.

Remember to idle the engine for a few minutes after driving at high rpm/high speed, in order to allow the turbo to cool down. POs, especially JDM ones, usually neglected this procedure, thus exposing the motor to overheating.

It is a small engine for a rather large body, but it does the job if treated properly.







Juan