Well, I had hoped to post more fun stuff like a head unit install and sound deadening but looks like I’m in trouble mechanically.
the Story:
PO said the engine would peg into the red on highway trips / on grades. Engine had 312,000 miles so he opted for a top and bottom end engine rebuild - new OEM gaskets all the way around (head, rear main seal, side, and oil) new cylinder machined head (old one was cracked) new cooler thermostat (not sure if this was the way to go but hey, it’s there), new aluminum radiator, new electric fan, new temp sender, new green coolant, and a new starter.
Test drove on some little hills and held temp fine. Sold it me a few days later (I insisted on a warranty for the work completed from the shop and got it for 12k/12 months).
I drive 360 miles home and engine runs fine and cool the whole way except over the Grapevine on I5 (5-6% grade for miles). When it got hot (top line, not red) I pulled over to let it cool before starting up again. No other issues before making it home except some excess pressure at the fuel tank during the first fill up. Been fine since then on subsequent fill ups.
One day after getting home I go on a short errand trip with the a/c on and the engine pegs almost to the red. I’m stumped.
I spend the next few days burping the system of what seems like a lot of air. I wonder if the overheating could be caused by a crusty heater core (one of my trips revealed when the engine was at its hottest it would only blow lukewarm air via defrost even though when everything is normal I get nice hot air).
Continuous burping seems to be helping and I no longer run hot around town - just up a steep grade. I make a plan to have the water pump (only thing in the cooling system not new) replaced, new Toyota red coolant, and swap the “cooler” thermostat with an OEM 190 degree one. I’m also going to get the valves adjusted at or before the 1,000 post-rebuild mileage
I replace the muffler since the old one was rotted. The head pipes look good. I make a note to check the catalytic converts and o2 sensors soon. I notice a small oil leak near the rear main seal. I'm annoyed since it's a recent rebuild (maybe a week old at this point) but plan to clean the engine and see if maybe the slow leak was residual oil and not a new leak. I'll check again in a week.
I ordered some windshield wipers, a couple bushings, a hood rod clip holder, and four new OEM oil filters from Cruiser Corps. It would be a few days before I get the oil filters but I wanted to get some fresh oil in the Cruiser post-rebuild since I was at about 600-650 miles in.
I usually change my own oil but figure I'll have a shop do it now rather than wait for the oil filters to arrive in the mail. Covid's been delaying the post and I'm impatient. I go to a name brand shop and they do an oil change, top off fluid, check tire pressure, etc. They mention the oil leak and say to come back in a week and see how much oil I burn off in that time. They say I was a little low when I came in but not crazy. Odd.
I go home and park the car. Thirty minutes later I go back out to the car for some reason and hear a strange...gurgling sound? From the rear of the car.
Over the next day, I keep burping the system and add about a half gallon of distilled water to the system since I plan on getting red soon anyway. I just want to see if I can get the temp down via burping before the new parts and fluid.
Using an overfill funnel I see the fluid looks a little...brown. I was only using distilled water and the coolant looks green in the tank so this light brown color is off and unsettling.
I notice white smoke the first five minutes after I start the engine and then as it gets warmer, the white smoke disappears. Could be normal.
I turn the engine off after 20-30 minutes and let the it cool. While waiting, I replace the shift gear bushings. The old ones look like they completely disintegrated. I replace, button everything up and shifter is nice and tight. I take it for a short test drive and everything checks out.
Then I think, why not see if the latest burp session cleared the suspected air bubble? I decide to take up a steep grade and the temperature holds. I then experience a loss on power and the engine starts violently knocking. I immediately pull over and I start to put the car in park it shuts off and the CEL pops up.
I hop out and see oil dripping from under the car, what looks like oil on the rear drivetrain and inside of the rear passenger tire. I check the oil dip stick and it seems...dry? Not sure - it was dark and I was distracted. I didn't pay attention to the oil pressure gauge on the drive. I was more focused on seeing if the engine temp would stay low post-the-final-burp.
Long story but the night had suspicions cops, road closures and freak snowstorms about to roll in. In the end I got a flat bed row to a near-by shop who I'm hoping can take a look at it. It's not a Cruiser specific shop but I know them a little and they have an open parking lot that I knew I could park the Cruiser and leave the key in a drop box.
So, friends, any ideas? Those are the facts and I have some ideas but hoping for your thoughts. I'm posting some videos over the last few days - you can see them here (pardon the language in a couple...) There are a handful of vids but they're pretty short.
the Story:
PO said the engine would peg into the red on highway trips / on grades. Engine had 312,000 miles so he opted for a top and bottom end engine rebuild - new OEM gaskets all the way around (head, rear main seal, side, and oil) new cylinder machined head (old one was cracked) new cooler thermostat (not sure if this was the way to go but hey, it’s there), new aluminum radiator, new electric fan, new temp sender, new green coolant, and a new starter.
Test drove on some little hills and held temp fine. Sold it me a few days later (I insisted on a warranty for the work completed from the shop and got it for 12k/12 months).
I drive 360 miles home and engine runs fine and cool the whole way except over the Grapevine on I5 (5-6% grade for miles). When it got hot (top line, not red) I pulled over to let it cool before starting up again. No other issues before making it home except some excess pressure at the fuel tank during the first fill up. Been fine since then on subsequent fill ups.
One day after getting home I go on a short errand trip with the a/c on and the engine pegs almost to the red. I’m stumped.
I spend the next few days burping the system of what seems like a lot of air. I wonder if the overheating could be caused by a crusty heater core (one of my trips revealed when the engine was at its hottest it would only blow lukewarm air via defrost even though when everything is normal I get nice hot air).
Continuous burping seems to be helping and I no longer run hot around town - just up a steep grade. I make a plan to have the water pump (only thing in the cooling system not new) replaced, new Toyota red coolant, and swap the “cooler” thermostat with an OEM 190 degree one. I’m also going to get the valves adjusted at or before the 1,000 post-rebuild mileage
I replace the muffler since the old one was rotted. The head pipes look good. I make a note to check the catalytic converts and o2 sensors soon. I notice a small oil leak near the rear main seal. I'm annoyed since it's a recent rebuild (maybe a week old at this point) but plan to clean the engine and see if maybe the slow leak was residual oil and not a new leak. I'll check again in a week.
I ordered some windshield wipers, a couple bushings, a hood rod clip holder, and four new OEM oil filters from Cruiser Corps. It would be a few days before I get the oil filters but I wanted to get some fresh oil in the Cruiser post-rebuild since I was at about 600-650 miles in.
I usually change my own oil but figure I'll have a shop do it now rather than wait for the oil filters to arrive in the mail. Covid's been delaying the post and I'm impatient. I go to a name brand shop and they do an oil change, top off fluid, check tire pressure, etc. They mention the oil leak and say to come back in a week and see how much oil I burn off in that time. They say I was a little low when I came in but not crazy. Odd.
I go home and park the car. Thirty minutes later I go back out to the car for some reason and hear a strange...gurgling sound? From the rear of the car.
Over the next day, I keep burping the system and add about a half gallon of distilled water to the system since I plan on getting red soon anyway. I just want to see if I can get the temp down via burping before the new parts and fluid.
Using an overfill funnel I see the fluid looks a little...brown. I was only using distilled water and the coolant looks green in the tank so this light brown color is off and unsettling.
I notice white smoke the first five minutes after I start the engine and then as it gets warmer, the white smoke disappears. Could be normal.
I turn the engine off after 20-30 minutes and let the it cool. While waiting, I replace the shift gear bushings. The old ones look like they completely disintegrated. I replace, button everything up and shifter is nice and tight. I take it for a short test drive and everything checks out.
Then I think, why not see if the latest burp session cleared the suspected air bubble? I decide to take up a steep grade and the temperature holds. I then experience a loss on power and the engine starts violently knocking. I immediately pull over and I start to put the car in park it shuts off and the CEL pops up.
I hop out and see oil dripping from under the car, what looks like oil on the rear drivetrain and inside of the rear passenger tire. I check the oil dip stick and it seems...dry? Not sure - it was dark and I was distracted. I didn't pay attention to the oil pressure gauge on the drive. I was more focused on seeing if the engine temp would stay low post-the-final-burp.
Long story but the night had suspicions cops, road closures and freak snowstorms about to roll in. In the end I got a flat bed row to a near-by shop who I'm hoping can take a look at it. It's not a Cruiser specific shop but I know them a little and they have an open parking lot that I knew I could park the Cruiser and leave the key in a drop box.
So, friends, any ideas? Those are the facts and I have some ideas but hoping for your thoughts. I'm posting some videos over the last few days - you can see them here (pardon the language in a couple...) There are a handful of vids but they're pretty short.
