Builds Let's Baseline my new to me 1993 Land Cruiser (1 Viewer)

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Back to Baselining...

Well after a fun project that was more of a build item, I have som more issues that still need to be dealt with. I have a number of small exhaust leaks to deal with, but first some background (read: long winded storytelling from a dad stuck in COVID parenting zoom school purgatory, who dreams of GTFOD and scratching the deep itch of wanderlust).

A few weeks ago I replaced another exhaust cushion, this one at the front of the muffler, after some severe low idle and near stalling at a stoplight. I replaced that cushion and things seemed to be better...however ive noticed my idle seems really low once the rig is warmed up. At stoplights its idling at 400-450 rpm, and seems a bit rough. After the exhaust cushion pooped out there has likely been lots of extra vibration and free play in the exhaust and I suspected that there were some leaks....so I busted out a shop vac and some eco groovy soap and went hunting around between rain storms.
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And I found that most of the joints in my system seem to be leaking, some significantly. The hardware is in terrible shape as well. I unfortunately am not great with the nomenclature of the exhaust components, so feel free to chime in if I misname anything. I have leaks in these joints....basically everything but the junction betweent he tailpipe assembly and the muffler.
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In addition I fount that a couple of the EGR pipe joints are leaking as well. So my best guess is that I am leaking in some air into the exhaust system above the O2 sensors (OEM Toyota that were replaced in 2/18) and causing the truck to have a low idle. Here is a photo of a foamy messy leak....
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The other photos are actually really unhelpful because of my camera and lighting, so this is simply an example of my method and NOT the totality of my search. More thought to follow...
 
More thoughts: I really haven’t properly inspected my vacuum system properly. I have visually inspected it, but I haven’t really attacked it with the various methods for decreeing leaks that I know about (carb cleaner / propane) mostly because I don’t really like the idea of catching my rig on fire...I think this is the other system. That could be causing my truck issues. In fact I know that my charcoal canister isn’t functioning properly, and needs addressing.

I do think that my current issues are most likely exhaust leak related, so that’s were I will begin. I’m a little concerned that the fasteners will be challenging to take apart and deal with, and I’m not seeing a relevant section in the electronic FSM I have on dealing with the Exhaust system.
 
Next Steps:
My research here on Mud (certainly not exhaustive) has led me to to two conclusions:
1. Using toyota gaskets will yield the best results for sealing the gaskets and having them last.
2. Replacing the rusty fasteners bolting the flanges together will also increase the likely hood that I will get the best seal. The theory being that these old rusty heat cycled fasteners will not torque fully. I’m not sure I completely buy that, but it will be a helluva lot easier to work with shiny new fasteners.

I’m struggling with the part numbers for these gaskets. The 80 series has three exhaust variants and it seem that these 93-94 models with their side by side cat may use different sized gaskets than the 95-97 but I can’t tell. I dislike calling my local parts counter. Toyota Bellingham hasn’t particularly impressed me with their parts knowledge. I know that folks here have recommended McGeorge Toyota, and I have bought from them before. I also had the privilege to buy parts from @Onur at LandCruiser Parts and Consulting, but sadly that seems to be from the before times and that awesome resource is now just a cool memory and sticker on my tool cabinet....Anyhow I’m rambling. Its just another opportunity to learn another system in this vehicle, which is always a great thing. More internet research...
 
OK, I think I managed to get a parts list gathered, but I’m reluctant to start spending money until I know these are accurate.
Any feedback would be very useful!

Gaskets (In Downstream Order):
EGR Gasket: 25628-66010 x3
Header to Down pipe: 90080-43036 x2
Cat gaskets: Front: 90917-06043 x2
Rear: 90917-06076 x 2
Y-Pipe to Muffler: 90917-06076 x1
Muffler to Tailpipe: 9091706072 x1

Fasteners:
Bolt: 91511-61035 x10
Nut: 94180-41000 x10
Stud: 90080-12007 x4
Nut: 90080-17187 x4
 
Waiting on Parts

I’m currently waiting on a few parts to arrive to address my many exhaust leaks. Hopefully the new gaskets get here in the next week or so. However in the meantime I’ve been dealing with some other issues that have been on the back burner.

My repair of my rear bumper strut ball stud didn’t hold up, I kind of figured that retapping the hole was a long shot. So I ended up buying a helicoil repair product and installed it and a new ball stud. No photos of my struggling with it, but I did manage to get it in. I’m glad I’m not drilling and tapping a more critical component. Anyhow it’s solved...again.

Charcoal Canister

Last summer I took my kids and the pup up to Hearts Pass in the North Cascades. It’s a favorite spot to escape to and an easy way to get little legs up to the alpine. The truck drove from sea level...literally...to about 6200’ on a warm summer day. When I arrived I could smell the old gas smell and hear the hissing from the canister area. I wasn’t sure what it was, but confirmed it when I tried opening the gas fill. Huge amounts of pressure were releasing from the tank...it was act kind of concerning given I was a long way from lots of stuff solo with my kids, but we obviously didn’t blow up the truck. That experience led me to research the CC and I finally got around to working on it.

I pulled the CC and did the test in the FSM and it failed. So I ordered the AC Delco ACD# 215-153 that so many have used to replace their failed Charcoal Canister with. I’m saving Toyota one With the thought I’ll rebuild it at some point, however the lower rubber hose tore when I removed it and I don’t think I can rig a replacement easily...but with a well documented alternative I may not bother.
The finished product.
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I have a new Toyota gas cap on the way as well so hopefully I can avoid pressure issues from here on out. I’ll save my old cap and keep it as a spare. I actually think it functioning correctly.

I also finally broke down a bought a physical copy of the FSM after struggling through the digital version I’ve been using. It’s been a life saver, but there are a few sections are Not for the 1FZFE and using the index and references will make it work so much better. I may pull the trigger on the supplemental wiring diagram as well. It’s in the mail and apparently coming in a week. I’m looking forward to using it.

Headlight adjustment
One thing that’s been bugging me for a couple of years was the oxidation on the headlight adjustment windows. I took some plastic polish and made them functional again. It was nice to adjust my lights!
Before:
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After!
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I used these. I had them leftover from a Moto helmet face shield polishing scratch remover kit...took about 10minutes to get them visable and they were in TERRIBLE shape! I have no idea how accurate my level indicators are, but at least I have a reference now!
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New Gas Cap
Side by side comparison shows a bit of deterioration.
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I’m not sure what I’ll notice from switching this out, but I can imagine that having one with a newer seal and valve can only be a good thing. I’ll hang onto the other as a spare.
 
A Little Motivation

Mrs. PNWTreeOctopus and I are dreaming up a trip to UT this spring. She isn’t necessarily interested in “wheeling”, but we would like to visit some spots we adventured in canyon county about 20 years ago (writing this makes me feel 41).

We’re currently dreaming over maps, but it’s a great carrot on a stick to finish the nagging issues the cruiser has that I’ve been willing to live with. I’ll intersperse some of those evolving plans along the way.
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Exhaust parts arrived! The varoius flange nuts and bolts are disintegrating. Searching firend pool for a reciprocating saw so I can cut the thrashed ones apart.

It also looks like I forgot to order all the gaskets I need...ack! The 3 EGR gaskets never got on the revised list. So this will be slower than anticipated. I’ll get some bolt carnage photos up later.
 
Well I’m feeling stuck...:confused:...pun intended. These bolts are literally falling apart. I bought a set of bolt extractors at the box store, that helped free a couple of bolts on my Catalytic converter shroud. However, I can’t seem to get to the two top upstream bolts holding the cats to the down pipes. They are hard to get to, I’m likely goin got have to pull the O2 sensors, but even with them out of the way things are extra tight. I’m not even sure if there exists a tool to get to them.

the second point of defeat, is one of my nuts holding the down pipe to the manifold stripped...I had a six point socket on there but it still failed. My ezout extractor isn’t deep enough to get to it. I’m worried about trying to back out the stud and shearing it. I’ve been bathing it in penetrating oil, but that’s my next move.

ive been lying in the driveway for 5 hours, it’s 42 and raining here in NW Wa, so I think I’m calling it a day. Now that I’ve been wrestling with the exhaust system I’ve decidEd I would absolutely rather rebuild my front axle than do exhaust work with these horrible old rusty fasteners.
 
Made some progress
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I needed a combination of Angle grinders, bolt extractor bits, Dremel cutoff and grinding wheels and my little impact driver to get the 8 bots holding the cats off. I’m almost there. Most stuff looks like it’s original to the vehicle, but unfortunately the muffler looks like it took a hit and is coming apart. When I drop it I’ll take some good photos.

These stubborn bolts are good teachers. This is my first exhaust rodeo, and while I know I’m not winning anything I am feeling pretty good about my progress so far. Unfortunately it is supposed to snow tonight so I may be out of luck for a couple of days while the weather is rough.
 
As promised:

Bolt Carnage!!
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I finally managed to get all of the exhaust components downstream of the headers off of the vehicle, not counting all the various heat shields on the body. Many of the nuts gave me a very difficult time, and I used a bolt extractor to grab nearly every one. There were a few special cases that I cut or ground off. I’ve decided to replace my muffler based on this seam coming apart and a very large dent (it may have caused the seam to fail) from one of the previous owners.
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In an effort to make things go faster I cut the muffler off of the Y-pipe. My skills and tools made it impossible to access the top rounded nut and bolt on the flange from muffler to Y pipe. It was very satisfying to commit and just use my neighbors Sawzall. The other components look pretty good given that they are all old. My cats are original, I found the little TEQ logo on them. The look pretty good, but there is a rope like gasket loose in one of them. I’m not sure this is a deal breaker, but I think for now I’m going to keep using them. Here’s a photo of the odd bit that is loose.
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So, I’m putting in an order for a Walker direct fit muffler after reading about others success there. It’s much less than the OEM version, which is currently about $650 if you can find one. The walker is $150 shipped to my door. My current plan is to take a wire wheel to the flanges and mating surfaces to clean out all the old gasket remnants and inspect all the welds carefully to check for any signs of failure. I have most of my gaskets on hand, but I‘m lacking a couple. The cats use three different gaskets. The two upstream gaskets are identical, but the left and right downstream ones are both different. The cats appear to be the same, but sure enough the old gaskets were different sizes. It makes for a confusing order without have them in your hand to compare to the different part numbers. Thankfully I was able to actually compare them and verify the additional ones I need to order.

So much learning! Hopefully the reassembly with shiny new nuts and bolts goes a little quicker and easier. So I’m back to waiting on parts....which I still need to order!
 
Still waiting on a few more parts before I bolt the exhaust back on. My order from McGeorge Toyota is taking a long time to process, I assume it’s cause North America is buried under snow. I did manage to take my wire wheel to the exhaust parts this evening. I’m not quite done....
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O2 sensor gasket was really attached...I’ll finish this up,with a Drexel and or tiny files to get the rest of the gasket off this.
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While I’m waiting on the final exhaust parts I opted to start another baseline project.
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Muffler finally made it from Walker. It’s in reasonable shape considering how it was just in a crumbling cardboard box. I’m going to pick up some high temp exhaust clear coat and give it a couple of coats while these final gaskets arrive.

I’ll start my seat gear project when my kids are not trying to kill each other and sleeping.
 
Parts Runaround

I should have know it was too good to be true. my eBay seller failed me. I ordered the gasket for the PAIR system (pipes to PAIR valve) and the seller listed 5 for sale. However after nearly 2 weeks and a couple of messages the just cancelled my order and send a refund because the part is discontinued and apparently their stock number were wrong. How irritating.

So I’m at a decision crossroads and I just went out and pulled the rest of the PAIR system off. I just can’t justify working this hard to keep a system on that isn’t even on the other 1FZ-FEs in the 95-97 year range. Furthermore I don’t have to pass any emissions....for now. I‘m going to use the Wit’s End keychains to do it because I like that small business and they Have done well by me in the past.

Bu-bye
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So the next question is do I also do the EGR?
 
You could now move the O2 sensors up to the exhaust manifold. I did this when I went through the exhaust system. I can’t say my engine runs any better but the sensors are now in a much cleaner/dryer environment.

I debated the egr delete when I had the intake manifolds off and was cleaning up all the intake related parts, injectors, new vacuum hose, etc. I decided to leave all of the solenoids and the egr valve in place but deactivated the system. I also placed a thin aluminum bock off plate/gasket between the egr and the upper plenum. I went this route just in case I need to sell my 80 for some reason and some one from an area that does require emissions testing is interested in buying it. These parts are not easy to re-install like the PAIR system would be if a guy found himself needing to do so.

I can’t tell any difference in how the engine runs and fuel economy seems to be the same. Some will argue that egr is a good thing and I suppose it is on a microscopic level. All I know is that our intake system will stay cleaner without engine exhaust being sucked through it leaving behind carbon deposited.

Now that your PAIR system is gone you can get a coolant return pipe from a 95-97 model and make room for a food warmer tray bolted to the side of the head above the exhaust manifold.
 
I love the food warmer tray, but I’m not sure my copilot will ever be interested in eating food warmed from there.

I did some EGR delete research, and it seems more involved than I’m ready for. Perhaps if there were a reason, but currently I believe it is functional. @baldilocks I haven’t considered moving the O2 sensors up, but I suppose keeping them farther away from road grime would be a good move since everything is already out. Now that I consider it I can’t really think of a reason not to. I suppose when I finally have to replace the other exhaust components it will open up the 95-97 exhaust components.
 
The food warmer warms cans of soup to the perfect temp. Hot enough to enjoy but not too hot to hold the can. Also warms sandwiches and burritos nicely with dry heat.
 
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