GTSSportCoupe
2LTE abuser
Thought I should properly introduce myself here. I've been pretty active in the 70 series forum, but have not posted much here. I live in Victoria BC. Wanted a 70 series LWB. Couldn't afford a heavy duty HZJ77 rig, so decided to try the light duty LJ78 model. Got a great deal ($3500) on a local rig (with issues).
Since buying it Spring 2012, I've done the following work (Note, I do keep this post up-to-date - last update Aug 2023):
Engine (2LTE):
- Ongoing regular maintenance: Accessory belts, Engine oil/filter (Rotella 15W40 summer, 10W30 winter, Wix/Baldwin/UnionJapan filter), Air filter, Fuel filter
- New ECU engine temp sensor
- Timing belt, tensioner pulley, idler pulley, waterpump, front main seal, cam seal
- Original Turbo rebuilt by previous owner, ran that for about 5 years. Swapped in a Chinese CHRA now, which also works fine at 19psi. Old turbo is still fine.
- Brand new Denso A/C compressor, new dryer, new seals and re-charged with a Red-Tek 12a kit.
- New starter solenoid contacts, polished plunger contact, cleaned whole starter
- Interstate Battery
- Upgraded to Bosch Duraterm glow plugs - these are AWESOME; highly recommend
- Brand new 2nd gen improved Toyota OEM 2LTE head and full Toyota gasket/seal kit (had a very minor blown head gasket, and although the old head was in fine shape decided to go for the newer version head).
- 70A alternator upgrade - brand new with new vacuum pump (OEM alternator is only 55A)
- Brand new 22100-5B300 Injection pump. Scored it off gumtree Oz.
- Brand new late model injectors. Half price on Ebay. 23600-59235. I'm very happy with them.
- New fuel primer pump.
- Swapped in a good condition short block from a Prado being parted out locally. The original short block in my truck had been damaged by rust in the cylinder bores back in Japan and it was always on the list to replace it. Installed a full new engine gasket set, all new Taiho standard bearings (crank/rods), all new oil seals, new water pump, all new tensioner bearings, new timing belt, new engine mounts, etc.
- Installed a block heater.
- Installed a brand new OEM Crank Pulley. The original was separating at the rubber and making funny noises. Glad I caught it in time!
Performance (~50% power up):
- Remove emissions: Removed all emissions stuff and installed block off plates where the EGR used to be, vent PCV to atmosphere under truck, removed throttle plate and emissions butterfly plates, Cleaned intake manifold and head ports (had a good 3/8" layer of sludge)
- Installed high efficiency water/air intercooler system
- Devil's Own Methanol/Water Injection system. 250psi pump, progressive controller, and D04 (252ml/min) post intercooler. Run 50/50 meth/water in winter, and 20/80 meth water in summer. Comes on at 15psi.
- Broke down and bought a K&N filter for the factory air box.
- Tuning: Manual boost controller (19psi post intercooler), MAP sensor pressure bleed off (allows me to boost higher than the factory 14psi limit), Turned up the spill control valve (fuel) adjust screw about 7/8 turn on IP (1/8th from runaway!). Installed a 2.5kOhm 10 turn potentiometer connected to the fuel resistor wiring (resistor disconnected). Allows fine tuning of fuel.
- Added two 80W 8" electric fans to the intercooler to keep it cool while stuck in traffic on hot days.
- Installed a 3L camshaft for a better cam profile (more lift, better duration/timing). Seems to have a nice
power band so far.
- Truck makes 225 ft-lb @ 2400rpm and 125 hp @ 3400rpm (to the wheels with torque converter out of lock-up!). Use G-tech and 'PerfExpert' app to 'dyno' this.
- Estimated flywheel power 150hp @ 3400rpm. Not bad at all for a little 2.4l IDI turbo diesel!!
- 0-100km/h: 16.28s, 1/4 mile: 20.49s@110.0km/h
- Removed coolant hoses from throttle body (no need to heat it).
Cooling:
- New radiator hoses.
- Tweaked viscous clutch fan. Lowered turn on temp, and went to 15,000cst oil.
- Upgraded to a 1HDT cooling fan. Had to modify top of fan shroud to prevent interference. Works awesome though.
- Installed Evans coolant, used prep fluid etc. - HIGHLY RECOMMEND for all 2LTEs!!
- OEM 82C t-stat for summer and 88C t-stat for winter. Honed out thermostat housing for better flow
- Radiator re-cored to 4 core 2.5" thick
Exhaust:
- Ported factory dump pipe
- new 2.5" mandrel exhaust with Aeroturbine 2525xl muffler
Transmission/Transfer Case (A343F/HD Split case w/ vacuum 4wd):
- Regular change of transfer case oil; synthetic
- Annual flush of the auto trans (dropped the pan and cleaned first time round)
- Installed auxiliary Transmission cooler (in series with factory one in rad)
- Installed an in-line transmission filter
- Replaced front and rear oil seals in the transfer case
- New trans drain plug
- Transgo shift kit - Love it! Huge improvement.
Axles (Front 8" HP, Rear 8" e-locker):
- Regular change of diff oils. Running dino oil in the front, and synthetic oil in the rear.
- Swivel hubs completely rebuilt (twice now) including sandblasting/painting, machine work, all new seals/bearings/gaskets/grease/wheel studs. Rebuilt the e-hubs carefully the first time and they worked well for 8 years. Second time rebuilt used spindles/hubs from 76 FJ40. Went with new bolt on brake rotors to suit those hubs. Used brand new Aisin FHT002 freewheel hubs with all new hardware.
- Replaced both rear u-joints...turns out the originals were fine...oh well.
- Replaced rear diff pinion seal.
Suspension (Coils front/back):
- Front Spring (100mm lift) - JDM mystery springs: uncompressed length 455mm, thickness 15mm, coils 11
- Front Shock (long travel) - Dobinsons GS59-634
- Rear Spring (100mm lift) - JDM mystery springs: uncompressed length 490mm, thickness 17mm, coils 10
- Rear Shock (long travel) - Dobinsons GS59-633
- Steering Damper - Dobinsons SD59-824
- Flexible Rubber 2 degree Castor Correction bushings
- Extended and replaced diff breathers
- Removed sway bars for 4x4ing (have optional Dobinsons sway extension kit)
Tires:
- 15x8 -27mm offset alloy rims
- 35x12.5R15 Nexen Roadian MTX
- Flipped rear tire mount and added 1.25" spacer - 35" clears perfectly on rear door now
- Factory 16"x6" 0mm offset rims
- 235/85/16 E rated Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac
- Removed front mudflaps and massaged fender liner to prevent rubbing with the 35s
Brakes (Disks front/back):
- Brake calipers sandblasted, painted and completely rebuilt
- PBR 4x4 brake pads
- Centric CTEK premium brake rotors at all corners
- New flexible brake lines at all corners
- New and extended brake lines to front and rear axle
- New wheel studs front and back
Accessories/Exterior:
- Westach Boost and pyro gauges (two probes, pre and post turbo).
- Custom tow hitch
- Electronic trailer brake controller
- 1hp 12V Titan Air Compressor
- Garmin Nuvi 2595LMT GPS with Backroad Mapbook map for BC
- VHF/FRS/GMRS Radio w/ high gain magnet antenna
- Two FRS extra radios
- 40W Solar Panel
- Tools and recovery gear
- Warn 9.5XP Winch and Warn roller fairlead
- Custom winch bumper
- Philips LED H4 head lights
- Rigid LED spot lamps
Interior/Exterior:
- Replaced all back-light lamps
- New heater fan blower
- Kenwood head unit
- 6" speakers in door
- 6" x 9" speakers in the back
- 10" powered subwoofer
- Extra handle added on passenger front side
- Repaired interior temp sensor
- LED overhead lamps with new OEM covers
- New hood prop latch
- New windshield washer nozzles
- Brand new OEM rear door hinges
- Seat covers
To do list includes:
- Fix some rust before it gets out of hand
- Install custom mudflaps to protect wider tires (sitting in shop)
- Install shift kit (sitting in shop)
- Install HDJ81 front seats (sitting in shop)
- Get a new windshield to replace cracked one.
- Source and install sliders and custom rear bumper (more armor for off road).
- Source and Install a front e-locker from an 80 series
The truck runs AWESOME after all this work! I am actually really attached to this vehicle now. I have to say, other than the engine head problems, these trucks are great vehicles. In the event the 2LTE craps beyond recovery, I'll probably go to a direct injection B engine. 15BFT ideally. Or find an HDJ100 if I can.
Since buying it Spring 2012, I've done the following work (Note, I do keep this post up-to-date - last update Aug 2023):
Engine (2LTE):
- Ongoing regular maintenance: Accessory belts, Engine oil/filter (Rotella 15W40 summer, 10W30 winter, Wix/Baldwin/UnionJapan filter), Air filter, Fuel filter
- New ECU engine temp sensor
- Timing belt, tensioner pulley, idler pulley, waterpump, front main seal, cam seal
- Original Turbo rebuilt by previous owner, ran that for about 5 years. Swapped in a Chinese CHRA now, which also works fine at 19psi. Old turbo is still fine.
- Brand new Denso A/C compressor, new dryer, new seals and re-charged with a Red-Tek 12a kit.
- New starter solenoid contacts, polished plunger contact, cleaned whole starter
- Interstate Battery
- Upgraded to Bosch Duraterm glow plugs - these are AWESOME; highly recommend
- Brand new 2nd gen improved Toyota OEM 2LTE head and full Toyota gasket/seal kit (had a very minor blown head gasket, and although the old head was in fine shape decided to go for the newer version head).
- 70A alternator upgrade - brand new with new vacuum pump (OEM alternator is only 55A)
- Brand new 22100-5B300 Injection pump. Scored it off gumtree Oz.
- Brand new late model injectors. Half price on Ebay. 23600-59235. I'm very happy with them.
- New fuel primer pump.
- Swapped in a good condition short block from a Prado being parted out locally. The original short block in my truck had been damaged by rust in the cylinder bores back in Japan and it was always on the list to replace it. Installed a full new engine gasket set, all new Taiho standard bearings (crank/rods), all new oil seals, new water pump, all new tensioner bearings, new timing belt, new engine mounts, etc.
- Installed a block heater.
- Installed a brand new OEM Crank Pulley. The original was separating at the rubber and making funny noises. Glad I caught it in time!
Performance (~50% power up):
- Remove emissions: Removed all emissions stuff and installed block off plates where the EGR used to be, vent PCV to atmosphere under truck, removed throttle plate and emissions butterfly plates, Cleaned intake manifold and head ports (had a good 3/8" layer of sludge)
- Installed high efficiency water/air intercooler system
- Devil's Own Methanol/Water Injection system. 250psi pump, progressive controller, and D04 (252ml/min) post intercooler. Run 50/50 meth/water in winter, and 20/80 meth water in summer. Comes on at 15psi.
- Broke down and bought a K&N filter for the factory air box.
- Tuning: Manual boost controller (19psi post intercooler), MAP sensor pressure bleed off (allows me to boost higher than the factory 14psi limit), Turned up the spill control valve (fuel) adjust screw about 7/8 turn on IP (1/8th from runaway!). Installed a 2.5kOhm 10 turn potentiometer connected to the fuel resistor wiring (resistor disconnected). Allows fine tuning of fuel.
- Added two 80W 8" electric fans to the intercooler to keep it cool while stuck in traffic on hot days.
- Installed a 3L camshaft for a better cam profile (more lift, better duration/timing). Seems to have a nice
power band so far.
- Truck makes 225 ft-lb @ 2400rpm and 125 hp @ 3400rpm (to the wheels with torque converter out of lock-up!). Use G-tech and 'PerfExpert' app to 'dyno' this.
- Estimated flywheel power 150hp @ 3400rpm. Not bad at all for a little 2.4l IDI turbo diesel!!
- 0-100km/h: 16.28s, 1/4 mile: 20.49s@110.0km/h
- Removed coolant hoses from throttle body (no need to heat it).
Cooling:
- New radiator hoses.
- Tweaked viscous clutch fan. Lowered turn on temp, and went to 15,000cst oil.
- Upgraded to a 1HDT cooling fan. Had to modify top of fan shroud to prevent interference. Works awesome though.
- Installed Evans coolant, used prep fluid etc. - HIGHLY RECOMMEND for all 2LTEs!!
- OEM 82C t-stat for summer and 88C t-stat for winter. Honed out thermostat housing for better flow
- Radiator re-cored to 4 core 2.5" thick
Exhaust:
- Ported factory dump pipe
- new 2.5" mandrel exhaust with Aeroturbine 2525xl muffler
Transmission/Transfer Case (A343F/HD Split case w/ vacuum 4wd):
- Regular change of transfer case oil; synthetic
- Annual flush of the auto trans (dropped the pan and cleaned first time round)
- Installed auxiliary Transmission cooler (in series with factory one in rad)
- Installed an in-line transmission filter
- Replaced front and rear oil seals in the transfer case
- New trans drain plug
- Transgo shift kit - Love it! Huge improvement.
Axles (Front 8" HP, Rear 8" e-locker):
- Regular change of diff oils. Running dino oil in the front, and synthetic oil in the rear.
- Swivel hubs completely rebuilt (twice now) including sandblasting/painting, machine work, all new seals/bearings/gaskets/grease/wheel studs. Rebuilt the e-hubs carefully the first time and they worked well for 8 years. Second time rebuilt used spindles/hubs from 76 FJ40. Went with new bolt on brake rotors to suit those hubs. Used brand new Aisin FHT002 freewheel hubs with all new hardware.
- Replaced both rear u-joints...turns out the originals were fine...oh well.
- Replaced rear diff pinion seal.
Suspension (Coils front/back):
- Front Spring (100mm lift) - JDM mystery springs: uncompressed length 455mm, thickness 15mm, coils 11
- Front Shock (long travel) - Dobinsons GS59-634
- Rear Spring (100mm lift) - JDM mystery springs: uncompressed length 490mm, thickness 17mm, coils 10
- Rear Shock (long travel) - Dobinsons GS59-633
- Steering Damper - Dobinsons SD59-824
- Flexible Rubber 2 degree Castor Correction bushings
- Extended and replaced diff breathers
- Removed sway bars for 4x4ing (have optional Dobinsons sway extension kit)
Tires:
- 15x8 -27mm offset alloy rims
- 35x12.5R15 Nexen Roadian MTX
- Flipped rear tire mount and added 1.25" spacer - 35" clears perfectly on rear door now
- Factory 16"x6" 0mm offset rims
- 235/85/16 E rated Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac
- Removed front mudflaps and massaged fender liner to prevent rubbing with the 35s
Brakes (Disks front/back):
- Brake calipers sandblasted, painted and completely rebuilt
- PBR 4x4 brake pads
- Centric CTEK premium brake rotors at all corners
- New flexible brake lines at all corners
- New and extended brake lines to front and rear axle
- New wheel studs front and back
Accessories/Exterior:
- Westach Boost and pyro gauges (two probes, pre and post turbo).
- Custom tow hitch
- Electronic trailer brake controller
- 1hp 12V Titan Air Compressor
- Garmin Nuvi 2595LMT GPS with Backroad Mapbook map for BC
- VHF/FRS/GMRS Radio w/ high gain magnet antenna
- Two FRS extra radios
- 40W Solar Panel
- Tools and recovery gear
- Warn 9.5XP Winch and Warn roller fairlead
- Custom winch bumper
- Philips LED H4 head lights
- Rigid LED spot lamps
Interior/Exterior:
- Replaced all back-light lamps
- New heater fan blower
- Kenwood head unit
- 6" speakers in door
- 6" x 9" speakers in the back
- 10" powered subwoofer
- Extra handle added on passenger front side
- Repaired interior temp sensor
- LED overhead lamps with new OEM covers
- New hood prop latch
- New windshield washer nozzles
- Brand new OEM rear door hinges
- Seat covers
To do list includes:
- Fix some rust before it gets out of hand
- Install custom mudflaps to protect wider tires (sitting in shop)
- Install shift kit (sitting in shop)
- Install HDJ81 front seats (sitting in shop)
- Get a new windshield to replace cracked one.
- Source and install sliders and custom rear bumper (more armor for off road).
- Source and Install a front e-locker from an 80 series
The truck runs AWESOME after all this work! I am actually really attached to this vehicle now. I have to say, other than the engine head problems, these trucks are great vehicles. In the event the 2LTE craps beyond recovery, I'll probably go to a direct injection B engine. 15BFT ideally. Or find an HDJ100 if I can.
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