LJ78 startup issues (1 Viewer)

[crushers]

how long have you had it?
who did you buy it from?
was there a warranty with the purchase?
what did you pay for it?

you are expereiencing the same frustration that many LJ/LN buyers have and are. it is not a pleasant feeling. the next painful experience is how you will be getting rid of it. if you sell it to someone else then you are just screwing with them the way the seller screwed with you perpetuating the frustration and distrust. chances are you will take a bath if you sell it since many of the LJ owners sit on these for ages to sell.

so what do you do?

i would contact the seller, if a dealer or curber, and find out if any warranty came with the sale IN WRITING. email confirmation is fine since it shows intent. convince him to buy the vehicle back if it has been less than a couple weeks. it won't be easy but these people have to stop bringing in s*** and flogging it on the unsuspecting.

or

you can sell it to another unsuspecting soul.

or

you can drive it very carefully and hope it stands up till you get out of school.

the rest of the truck is bullet proof, it is the head (cooling system design) that is the issue. in rural Ontario you might get lucky, we don't have long gentle grades, we don't have long steep grades, we don't have long head winds to fight (strong ones we do but not an hour and a half at 110 steady bucking a head wind) so if you don't tow, stay off the 400 north and south, install the pyro and drive by it instead of the speedo and just drive carefully then you MIGHT get some use out of it.

up to you.

if you sell it then go find a Pajero, short wheelbase that is in realy clean condition and you will be happy. they are better on fuel, better performance and reliable. i have sold a number of the mits 2.5 diesels over the years and NO warranty issues ... period. i stopped bringing in the LJ/LN when the warranties were costing me more than the profit by 2 fold.

best of luck in what ever you decide.

cheers

 

[NWONTARIO]

I have had the vehicle for about a month. I bought it from a private owner in Winnipeg. I know for sure that there is no warranty... I think they must have heard about the issues related to the vehicle and just dumped it on me. Anyway, no hard feelings; I should have done more research. I ended up paying $8000.
If I was to install the new exhaust, pyro, turn up the boost, and put in a bigger rad, can I sell it with peace of mind? What is the typical price range of these vehicles?

 

[crushers]

used to sell for between $14K and $16K for very clean low km dwon to $10K for higher mileage and rougher shape.
now they sell for between $10K to $6K if they are still running.
if you bought for $8K then just drive it carefully. on second thought, i looked up Dryden on the map and you have some pretty good hills there and in the middle of no where.
i think you will have an issue with selling due to location.

i am not your conscience so you have to do what you feel it right.

i would say stick in a pyro and see what temps you are running at. if you stay below 1000C then you might get your monies worth out of her but keep the pyro temp down and the water temp down (no more than 1/2 way). maybe install an after market water temp gauge as well since the factory are great for telling you WHEN IT IS TOO LATE.

sorry, i wish i could be more positive...

best of luck in your decision.

 

[Clint79]

wow not that we got these prados in aus well ive seen 2 but there imported
It really sounds like these motors will last about as long as a motor with no oil
did they have probs with the motors from new is or it a age thing
Whats the motors model/id number/name were they avl in hiluxs or anything

 

[pradocruzer]

Hey Nmontairo. With 195,xxx km's your 2lte it has probably had head surgery already. The so called updated head is slightly better but still has a tendency to over heat and crack. Like Crushers said put in a ect and temp gauge. I use Prosport gauges and like them a lot. dberwin a member here put me on to the gauges and there great.
Does your A/C work?? You can also remove your condenser in front of your rad and mount a 16 inch electric fan. Put a switch in your cab that you can use on hot days, long climbs ect. I use a 82 degree thermostat instead of a 88 degree. John at Rocky Mountian Import can help you out with that. The 82 degree thermostat I feel helps the most of all and also make sure your coolant is in good shape. Another good idea is to increase your boost for the power lacking problem. I run twelve lbs of boost and it seems to like it. You can buy a boost adj valve off ebay for cheap. These are all cheap enough to try. Drive it for a while and see if you like it. I love mine.

 

[crushers]

the problem is that in Japan the speed limit is slower, the hills not as long and the engines can still arrive from Japan with cracked heads.
then the trucks come to Canada where the roadways are long, the hills long and the speeds we drive are higher. so a truck in japan might see 90 k/h for short periods, here in BC Alberta Sask and Manitoba they will be pushed to 120 and sometimes 140 for extended periods. in BC the hills are steep and long, the roads in the flat lands can be gentle but steady uphill bucking a head wind.
we drive them the way we are used to driving and they can not stand up to the steady abuse.
in rural ontario, Quebec, and east then they MIGHT last a bit longer but then you have the 401, 400, 407 and once again higher speeds are expected and BANG there goes the head.

the L series are s*** engines, simple as that.

but people still buy then thinking "it is a Toyota so it must be good" and THEN do a search.

LN, LJ are the model numbers to look for and stay away from. the KZ are already starting to be imported and some are cracking the heads as well.

in the end it is the purchaser money ...

 

[NWONTARIO]

Thanks for the advice, pradocruzer, and Wayne. I have it up for sale to see if anyone is interested but in the mean time (and it sounds like there will be a long wait) I will install the exhaust, pyro, turn up the boost, and look into the other options such as a bigger rad, electric fan, and lower thermostat.
Around here I am fine to drive 90km/h on the highway. It's definitely not the 401. I prefer to drive 90 max with it anyway because anything more than that and it sounds like the engine is working way too hard. Pretty straightforward. I have to go to BC for school in January, though. I am wondering what the best strategy for driving in the mountains would be...
BTW, Wayne, the whole "it's a Toyota, it must be good" is PRECISELY the logic I used...

 

[crushers]

the best way to drive the mountains is using the pyro as your guide and TAKE YOUR TIME/ if the pyro starts to climb beyond 1200F then drop a gear and slow down a bit. even a slight decrease on the throttle will make a difference to the readings. the higher rpms will purge the exhaust gasses quicker, the slower speed will keep the water temp down.
remember, water temp and exhaust temps are completely unrelated so you can be running 900F EGT and still go into the red with coolant temps. the reverse is true, you can be perfectly fine with the water temp but the EGTs can be in the 1400F.
Rogers pass, Golden, Coqu all eat the heads as well as bucking the headwinds on the Prairies. remeber you will be going up hill steady and the prevailing winds are from the west so you have a double whammy when crossing the flat lands so BE CAREFUL.
finally, (as if there is such a thing) if you push it then a $4K - $6K bill is going to be yours when the head goes.

<i would drive down here, ship the truck by train from Toronto to Vancouver and fly out but that is expensive as well. $950 for rail and $300 for a flight but at least you know the truck will be there in one piece...>

 

[NWONTARIO]

Toronto is about 22 hours on the highway, so I think I'll take my chances and drive carefully out to BC. I only have to make it to Cranbrook...don't think there are that many high passes to get there(??)

 

[pradocruzer]

Hey Rowen. Sorry to hear about your first RHD purchase, even though nothing wrong has happened. I do agree a EGT and Coolant Temp gauge should be installed immediately. After the gagues are installed you can then learn how to dirve the truck and not let the engine heat up to much. I have been driving mine for 3 years and I'm going on my forth. I just got back from a 5400km trip with my truck and one other truck from Vancouver B.C to the Yukon and back in nine days (we were hunting and got a nice Bull Moose). I replaced my cylinder head every 1000k's and got great mileage on the way back because I lightened the load of five cylinder heads. Ha Ha Ha just kidding the truck ran great but a slow go. If you don't feel good about the trip out then don't take the truck. If you do, like Wayne said, take your time and don't get frustrated.
The only great advise I can give is please do not be afraid of your vehicle blowing up in your face every time you start it up no matter what car or truck you own. Trust me catastrophic failure can happen to any vehicle. It would suck to live in fear.
Here are a a couple of pictures of catastrophic failure.
The first is a 2002 Kia Reo with 68,000 km's. She was driving about 100km's an hour when the timing belt let go. Around $3700.00 later I installed used motor. The second was a Pontiac Transport with 131,000 kms's. The oil pick up tube fell of the oil pump while going down the Hope Princeton and bam a $4800.00 installed long block. Ball joints, cylinder heads and gaskets, transmissions, rear ends ect... can cost thousands even if you keep your vehicle in tip top shape. While selling your truck take care of it. Relax and enjoy I hope the best of luck for you .

Take care Jeff.

 

[buggyboy7]

Rowen, I'm also in this rather sorry club and have been through the pain and joy of 2L-TE/Prado ownership. As the guys are saying install the gauges and use them. I have done some major trips in very hot weather and high altitudes and found with a close eye on the EGT and H2O temp the key to keeping them down was keeping the revs up. One thing I don't see mentioned often that can be done quite cheaply is increasing the speed of your existing fan. This is done by putting a higher viscosity oil in the fan clutch. It may suck up a HP or two but I can't really notice the differance. Of course an electric fan like Pradocruzer mentioned is good too. Good luck with yours!

Wayne or John, What's the best way to bring up the boost? I shimmed the waste gate actuator over a bit and picked up a little. It scares me when that engine light comes on.

Thanks
Keith

 

[crushers]

the light is not an issue, if you have a boost gauge then (well this is what i did) is just disconnect the waste gauge activator line completely and see what boost you make. if need be then install a $5 boost controller (do a search here and you will see what i am talking about).

 

[pradocruzer]

Hey Keith. I use a NXS boost controller from Ebay shown below it's cheap, simple and easy. The ECM on your 2LTE is capable of controlling the fuel ratio to about 14 lbs of boost max. If you exceed about 14 lbs of boost the ECM goes into a fail safe fuel control mode and in my truck it feels like the e brake comes on slightly and there is a power loss. When the ECM see's an over boost situation, it dosn't know if a vacuum hose failed, or the boost pressure sensor has failed ect.. so it runs the fuel system in a fail safe mode to stop engine damage. At this point the orange check engine light comes on and then goes out when the boost pressure is back within the max limit. If you run 13 lbs of boost you will see a initial spike of 14- 14.5 and then it will settle to 13 where you set it at. 13 is about the most you can get without the check engine light coming on (at least in my truck). If you buy a boost controller I recommend you use a boost gauge or fuel pressure gauge to set the boost controller to the the boost you wan't to run. If you don't have one then install the boost controller and make the check engine light come on and then back off till the light dosn't come on this will be your max boost the ECM can handle. I run around 11-12 lbs of boost. If I run a slight bit more I see no performance gains and I feel that my turbo dosn't need the extra stress for no reason. Also rember that the higher boost pressure you run the hotter the intake air charge will be that's why an intercooler is a great idea.
Good luck.

 

[pradocruzer]

Sorry I forgot to add that I'am playing with an idea to put in a bleed off valve inline with the vacuum hose to the boost pressure sensor. The idea is to bleed off a pound or two of boost so the ECM thinks I'am running 11/12 pounds of boost but in reality I'am running 13/14 pounds of boost I don't know if anyone has tried this but less fuel + more boost should = cooler 2LTE. When I get around to this I will let you know. Hope I don't open a can of worms!!
Take care

 

[buggyboy7]

Thanks guys,

And yet another LC project to impress the wife.

 

[grease_guzzler]

Sorry I forgot to add that I'am playing with an idea to put in a bleed off valve inline with the vacuum hose to the boost pressure sensor. The idea is to bleed off a pound or two of boost so the ECM thinks I'am running 11/12 pounds of boost but in reality I'am running 13/14 pounds of boost I don't know if anyone has tried this but less fuel + more boost should = cooler 2LTE. When I get around to this I will let you know. Hope I don't open a can of worms!!
Take care

Some of the australian surfs are doing something similar Toyota 4WD Surf Owners :: View topic - Fuel economy mod for $2
I think an in cab rheostat off the boost pressure sensor would be a nice way to control fuel delivery and hopefully lower temps

 

[pradocruzer]

Hey grease_guzzler. I red what they are doing in Oz. The difference between my idea and theirs is I want to be able to dump off boost in quarter pound intervals through the whole boost range. If my ECM see's 2 pounds of boost I am really producing three pounds. The ECM will be one pound behind all the time or what ever I set it to in quarter pound intervals. The last thing I want is a major lack of power. I find that my engine has a tendency to over fuel especially under heavy load at full boost. I will try a mechanical pressure bleed and try to fine tune with my EGT. If this works a rheostat might be a great answer. There is no need waste fuel, it only makes bad economy and excessive heat.
Thanks for your input.

 

[NWONTARIO]

Sorry to be off topic here...well, back to the original topic I guess...
I thought my starting issues would be solved by the new contacts and plunger, but they have been installed and I still have a prado that won't turn over half the time. The system worked flawlessly on the bench, but once it was put back in the vehicle, it would go back to the same old problem. Does anyone have any other ideas/ experienced a similar problem????

 

[pradocruzer]

Hey NWONTARIO. Get some one in the cab of your truck and make them start the truck until it fails. Once you hear the clunk and the motor dose not turn over don't let them release the key. While the clunk has happened and the key is in the start position (key fully turned forward) tap on the starter motor with a hammer if it starts right away suspect the starter motor, brushes so on and so forth. Bench testing is great but there is no load on the starter. Lot of guys will jam a two by four in the gear to simulate a load. I have done this lots but then stuck it in the car and the starter still dosn't work. Load is hard to simulate. Try this first and if you have no luck let me know. I also agree contacts usually are the problem.
Good luck.

 

[HZ Cruiser]

~~~~simonliew~~~~

How much are you selling your HZ77 for??

I have a HZ73 that I'm considering selling if I can find a nice 77 to replace it with.

I'm looking for something with a bit more room for the family.

Your truck is VERY nice!!!!

Cheers