Gladys' Build Thread (1 Viewer)

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Joined
May 24, 2016
Threads
18
Messages
71
Location
Baton Rouge, LA
So, I've had Gladys for about two months now, and I figured it's time she had a build thread of her own. She is a 1988 FJ62 with about 175,000 miles and is my daily driver for the time being.

As of now, I'm still working through all of the baselining maintenance and doing some troubleshooting to address an intermittent high/rough idle issues. Other than that, she runs just fine.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that there was already an OME lift installed on the truck (PO did not mention it, and I did not know at the time exactly what OEM/OME suspensions looked like).

Here's what I've done so far: new belts, all new fluids (except for Rodney transmission flush and rear diff - diff drain plug is completely rounded out, which is fun...), air filter, fuel filter, PCV valve/grommet, plugs, wires, dizzy cap, rotor, radiator cap, fuel tank cap, fuel pressure regulator.

The PO installed a new fuel pump, added an ARB front bumper, and did some extensive bodywork to repair rust and touch up paint and add bedliner. The only rust I have found is on the C-channels in the rear, the crossmember that the rear bumper attaches to, one potential spot at the bottom of the tailgate that's covered in paint/bedliner (so I cant tell if it's been properly removed or not...), and a few spots of surface rust on the A-pillars, on one fender under the hood, and under the gasket of a tail light, which I will eventually get around to cleaning and touching up.

I just cleaned my cold start injector and installed new bushings in my shifter, which I highly recommend if yours is loose (was a quick and cheap fix that made a huge difference). I also, had to do some rewiring of the tail lights and brake lights to fix a poorly installed trailer wiring harness.

Up next:
- Rodney flush
- Rear diff fluid
- Clean throttle body
- Check TPS setting (ended up needing new TPS)
- New fuel pulsation damper
- New O2 sensors, along with new exhaust downpipes and reworked exhaust (to include single aftermarket cat)
- Upgrade headlight wiring
- New thermostat
- New fan clutch
- Brake pads
- Suspension bushings
- Fix loose roof rack

In the future:
- Valve adjustment
- New wheels and 33x12.5 tires
- New seat covers (one of the POs installed some custom camo replacements - not just covers...)
- Front axle rebuild
- Address slow windows
- Fix rear hatch lock
- Mitigate rust at rear of frame
- Clean and repaint surface rust spots

Added to the list and completed:
- EFI temp sensor
- Steering stabilizer
- Sway bar end links and bushings

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Truck looks great.
Personally, I would put checking valve lash at the top of the list. Tight valves can give a non-smooth idle. & if exhaust valves get too tight they will burn/warp, which = loss of compression in that cylinder.
 
Nice cruiser! Looks like you are off to a great start!
 
Thanks, guys. And, yes, the valve adjustment is being moved up on the list after another discussion about an exhaust "blip" along with the high idle.

I've never done anything like a valve adjustment before, so this will be a new (and hopefully good) experience. It seems pretty straight forward, and I'm mainly just worried it will take me too long to get it apart and everything gets too cool by the time I make the final adjustments. Worst case, I may just end up having to do it twice, but the second time will be much quicker ;)
 
After the valve lash, she'll love you more!
 
So I finally had a chance to clean the throttle body today, and I really wish I had thought to take a photo. Holy lord was it nasty! A guy with me who's owned several cruisers said it was the worst he'd seen. I also swapped the fuel pulsation damper while I was at it.

Anyway, she's idling smoother than ever now and has much more pickup at low RPMs (more pickup being a relative term, obviously). We're not quite at 650 rpm in park but getting there. Down from 1100, anyway. :)

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So my old tires were on the verge of becoming dangerous, so I went ahead and pulled the trigger on some 33x12.50 BFGs and some Eagle Alloy 15s. I'm definitely happy with how it turned out. The driver rear tire rubs a little on the exhaust when taking fast right turns over bumps, so I am thinking about just going with a turndown at the muffler for now. The exhaust is aftermarket, so I am not sure if the tires would have fit with a stock exhaust or not.

In the process of replacing the bushings on the front end to get her ready for the new tires, I went ahead and changed out the sway bar endlinks, sway bar bushings, and steering stabilizer. She drives like a dream now!

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Alternator went out, so I took the "opportunity" to split the shroud to get better access and now I'm going to change out my water pump and fan clutch.

I'm also going to replace some hoses and fix some wiring connections here and there while I have access and I'm still waiting on the alternator to come back from the shop.

Oh, and the coating was literally all that was holding the battery tray together. No joke, it was completely flexible and crumbling apart when I took it out.

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So, I got word from the auto electric shop that my alternator is completely fried... while I'm waiting on the replacement alternator and for my other parts to come in, I decided to go ahead and tackle the knuckle rebuild.

Judging by the birf soup coming out after pulling just the cap assembly, I'd say she was loooong overdue.

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