My new '90 FJ 62 Santa Cruiser

[FJ Silver]

Hi Guys,

New to IH8MUD, Although I have been studying this forum like I have never studied anything before this last month.

So this is my Santa Cruiser and Jesse James. They both just have such big nosses.


1990, CA, FJ62 with 224K. Runs really smooth. Have not done compression yet. Starts right up and idles nicely around 650 rpm. Has a winch, roof rack, 4 inch lift, ARB compressor and allot of dents. I am going to try and remove the dents myself and repaint the spray can way.
This truck has been well taken care of most of its live although by many different shops so there are some funny aftermarket things.
The PO had it sit for a while over the winter and rats took over. Build a nest under the hood and next time they drove there was a bit of a highway bonfire. All the hoses where replaced but some of the wiring has been chewed trough and not fixed. Most of the wires that are damaged involve the air compressor.
Part of the nest was right on top of the transfer. The thing were the arrow points to, the wire is completely striped of. Do you guys know what it is and were to get it? The rest seems pretty easy to fix.


The 4x4 (4H, 4L) work fine though although the 4wd light doesn't come on.

The check engine light comes on about every min. for about a minute. and then go's away.No matter if engine is hot or cold. with no difference in performance when it comes on. Code 22 and 71. What I did so far is just cleaning the EGR temp sensor which was pretty filthy, so i'm sure the EGR and intake a pretty black and clogged. I'm thinking about a new EGR, temp sense, gasket and such and clean the intake. The other one is water temp. sensor.
The temp. gauge on dash sits between 1/4 and 1/2. So I guess mechanical sensor to really see what the temp is? I'll probably replace that sensor as well.
Again performance doesn't seem bad.


Then there is a bit of a up and down wobble at low speed in the tires. Not sure what that could be.. And around 64 mph the truck starts to vibrate quit a bit. I red stuff here about the driveline. I'll have that looked at.

The steering is quit crappy. i feel like the PO put power steering fluid in there instead of ATF. Not much power in the steering. The truck sways from left to right quite a bit. So when I steer the response feels delayed and like your in a boat more then in a truck.. Also I feel like the wheels are directing my steering wheel. Any thoughts on that?..

Working on the kick down cable now for some smoother gas pedal action and getting the PO dogs smell out of the inside.

Appart from the regular tune up stuff. plugs,dizzy, valve adjust, all fluids, Seafoam.
Any thing else for a truck with this many miles you guys would recommend doing?

Really appreciate this forum and all the time and effort everybody puts in!
Enables the Cruiser addiction.

Thanks!

 

[hambone008]

Nice find. Best color for sure! How do the knuckles look? Whats that pic you have posted of the Tcase? Is that the wire that turns ur 4wd light on. My 4wd works great also but no light. Other than that sounds like you have a good plan. Check a Rodney flush for the tranny and maybe check greasing all your driveshafts and chasis.

 

[FJ Silver]

Thanks Hambone. It's my neighbors truck and I'm going to pay them $3500 for it today..

Concerning the rodney flush, It shifts really nice now. It's old, it does the "clunk" when i put it in reverse and the shift linkage is pretty loose. But it gears up and down nicely. So I'm almost afraid to F something up there. The ATF fluid looks clean, But I would like to know what's in there and have it be synthetic. The mobile Dexron 6 a good choice? Same with the engine oil. I'm looking around for the best oil with some decent zddp values.

Yeah the picture is of the Tcase. and on top to the left there is 3 sets of fused wires that attach to the wires that you see in front and some other places. All chewed trough... I am not sure about the knuckles. Haven't had the wheels of yet. What would I look for in the knuckles? I am thinking of repacking the front over the winter.

Thanks,
G

 

[Aseif007]

Nice looking cruiser. My first one was that color so I am partial to it. I am located over the hill in Campbell and I can lend you a hand or a tool if you need.

I would not put synthetic in the tranny until you verify that your seal between the t-case and tranny is still good. That $3 seal keeps the ATF and gear oil from mixing essentially. Looks like you may need to at least replace the seals on your t-case, that would be a good time to check the seal I was talking about and check the condition of your idler gear and the splines on the output shaft of the tranny. You may want to look into the oil galley plug fix, and the front knuckles condition. I've got lots of parts and am always around to help. Welcome to Mud.

 

[Aseif007]

The sensor your arrow points to is the sensor that tells the car if your front wheel drive is engaged so it makes sense that your light does not come on. I may also have the wires somewhere in my wire pile that may fix it, but you would still need to buy the sensor.

 

[FJ Silver]

Thanks Aseif007,

Some help would be really welcome!
I Have an organic farm here in Scotts Valley so I can trade you fruit & veggies for your time if you would be into that. I'll soon also be in the Los Gatos Farmers Market maybe a good place to meet one day.
Thanks for the advice, I'll send you a PM.

 

[hambone008]

Rodney flush is super gentle. Just drop the pan clean the screen and start the flush. It's not a power flush so no danger of pushing anything around. Good piece of mind. My knuckles were letting grease past the wiper seals so there was some grey goo (gear oil and grease) all over the ball and slinging on the inside of my wheel. Oil galley plug is a great point too. Mine was already done not the most professional job but it looks like it's held for a while. As for the clunk in reverse and sloppy linkage mine is the same. And likewise I also have tranny fluid seeping into my T case. Lol sounds like we need to get together and write a book. Well keep me posted and I'll do the same.

 

[FJ Silver]

Sounds good Hambone. I geuss Zen and the art of FJ62 maintenace has allready been written . I can't find much in the old maintenance records of the P Owners about front end work. But it looks like it needs some attentions. I also found the rear sway bar has broken off of the top right part where it connects to the chassis.

The Rodney flush seems like a good idea. 224K on it but I need it to hold a little longer. engaging in gears from standstill is a little rough especially reverse. Otherwise it shifts not bad at all. Oil Galley plug is a for sure. It looks like I'm going to have some help from another forum member, which is really really great.

Does anybody know what the sensor on the T-case (see picture in first post) that tells if front wheel drive is engaged is called? or part number? I couldn't find it on sor.com

Thanks!

 

[FJ Silver]

Hey Guys,
I have a few Questions,

1. I want to do my fluids but I don't have any flat at my property. I'll be creative with my jack stands but where on the cruiser is the best place to measure if it is level?
2. My rear dif. fill plug is completely stuck. I have been soaking it with wd-40 and such. I red about heating it up. Would a little plumping propane burner get it hot enough?
3. I am still getting code 22 and 71. I cleaned the temp. sensor on the EGR.was not enough.
I want to clean the whole EGR and the pipe that runs form the exhaust to the EGR.
Do I need to get a new gasket? Or if it looks ok enough can I reuse the old one.
And what would be the best way to clean the inside of the EGR?
4. So rats chewed trough my transfer case wires. There seems to run 3 sets of wires to the T-case. that are also attached to the temp. sensor for the transmission.
I want to make sure that my transmission can let me know if it is to hot. Any thoughts on how to check if it is working ok?


Thanks for your time! Love this place.

 

[Rainier]

. Also I feel like the wheels are directing my steering wheel. Any thoughts on that?..

The PO on my truck put 33 X 12.5 on and I had the same complaint, truck was all over the road. Tried adjusting steering with little to no change. A few weeks after I got it, took it in and put 33 X 10.5 on and a world of change, steers and tracks great now.

Tires you have look like they might be 12.5's?

 

[Firephil]

Hey Guys,
I have a few Questions,

1. I want to do my fluids but I don't have any flat at my property. I'll be creative with my jack stands but where on the cruiser is the best place to measure if it is level?
2. My rear dif. fill plug is completely stuck. I have been soaking it with wd-40 and such. I red about heating it up. Would a little plumping propane burner get it hot enough?
3. I am still getting code 22 and 71. I cleaned the temp. sensor on the EGR.was not enough.
I want to clean the whole EGR and the pipe that runs form the exhaust to the EGR.
Do I need to get a new gasket? Or if it looks ok enough can I reuse the old one.
And what would be the best way to clean the inside of the EGR?
4. So rats chewed trough my transfer case wires. There seems to run 3 sets of wires to the T-case. that are also attached to the temp. sensor for the transmission.
I want to make sure that my transmission can let me know if it is to hot. Any thoughts on how to check if it is working ok?


Thanks for your time! Love this place.

Bring it on up! I have a flat driveway and we can do it all in one day pretty easy.

1) truly level will be frame rails. Tires and axles move around (whats called unsprung weight) but the frame, body, and engine are connected to each other and essentially move as a unit. right underneath the doors is a frame rail that is pretty easy to get to.

2) Yes a small plumbing torch will work. don't get to crazy with it though. only do as much as you need. Also, WD 40 isn't so much of a penetrating oil. Try something like PB blast.

3) If you have something apart on a 25+ year old rig its always best to change the gaskets when you have the chance. one last thing to worry about you know.

4) Is the tranny giving you any temperature reading at the gauge or is it completely cut through? If all the way cut through you just need to reattach the wires. Can do it cheaply with electrical tape or the right way with all new wires. Your choice.

Let me know if you need any other help. Give me a tour of the farm for some labor!

Phil

 

[Firephil]

The PO on my truck put 33 X 12.5 on and I had the same complaint, truck was all over the road. Tried adjusting steering with little to no change. A few weeks after I got it, took it in and put 33 X 10.5 on and a world of change, steers and tracks great now.

Tires you have look like they might be 12.5's?

This could be anything from alignment to poor wear patterns on the old tires to bad bearing and steering components.

Sounds like yours Rainier is from poor wear patterns on your previous tires. They will toss you all over the place if they wear uneven. Might want to keep an eye on the wear pattern of your new ones as it can indicate something else going wrong.

 

[FJ Silver]

Thanks Phil! That sounds great. I'll take you up on it. I'll be at the Los Gatos Farmers Market on Sundays from 8am to 1pm from now on if you are driving past. Can't wait to see your 60.
My tires are pretty worn..Had a flat with one of them the other day.
I'm looking at some BFG at ko's 31/10.50/15. But I first need to sell some more tomatoes to be able to afford that.

The a.t. temp light comes on when I cycle the key before I start the car.
Other then that I have never seen it come on while driving. Oil&water gauges are working fine.
I also got a gasket and filter kit from SOR for the tranny. The fluid is all brown and It's smelling burned so I would like to give it a good passive flush.
Give me a call when you are on this side of the hill,
and thanks,
Gerben

 

[FJ Silver]

Another thing I can't figure out is yesterday I locked my hubs in 2H to give the front diff a bit of a spin and drove it on the highway. But it was wandering like crazy and I had to steer to the left almost half a turn of the wheel to go straight.

The knuckles look pretty black from gear oil and I have my steering issues described in my first post.
But at least it drives straight unlocked.
Any thoughts on why such a drastic difference with locked hubs?