After looking for a while, I found a nice looking, low mileage HDJ81 at an auto importer back in June and arranged a trade for a unique rat rod pick up that I owned (plus some cash). I spoke with the importer and this was one of the cleanest rigs he’d ever seen. Maintenance was all done…it was “perfect” and “ready for years of maintenance free ownership!”
Some details:
1991 HDJ81 VX
4.2 Liter 1HD-T
A442F Automatic transmission
Factory F & R electronic lockers and Center Diff lock
Full floating rear axle with rear disc brakes (non-ABS)
Center console refrigerator
No factory roof rack
Bone stock except for radio
127K KM
Below is an image from the importer’s website.
The exciting day finally arrived along with the LC. The transporter driver hops out of the LC after unloading it and says (in broken English) “This no safe”…. He shakes the steering wheel and it is wobbling and totally loose. In fact it comes off in my hand as I pull it into the driveway! Ok - Interesting....
As I finally get to inspect the vehicle further – I’m having mixed feelings. There is no rust on this thing anywhere and the overall condition is quite nice. But I also got to see all areas the creative camera work missed when taking 30+ photos for the ad. These weren’t deal breakers, but they would certainly eat into the accessory budget – and most would need to be addressed before we were at the point of “years of maintenance free ownership!”
Inner axles seals clearly blown on both sides:
Cracked radiator “repaired” and leaking. Power steering reservoir and lines also leaking:
No sticker on the TB cover…so you have to assume the worst.
I contacted the seller and he apologized and offered to pay to have the front axle seals repaired at a shop using Toyota parts. He sent a check the next day. He also said he was sure the timing belt was done and upon closer inspection you could see the residue of where the sticker was…maybe it came off during the engine bay cleaning?
I was feeling pretty good….My first job was to tackle to tackle the inner axle seals. I changed it all: seals, races, bearings, etc…. It took me two days – but now I could do it in less than a single day with ease. Check out the diff oil pouring out of a place where it shouldn't be!
Surprisingly, the nuts and bolts of this 25 year old rig were easy to remove –– not one rusted/broken fastener…hey, maybe this is the real thing!
Excited to start modifying the rig, I start ordering parts: a big box from @beno, custom sliders, OME lift kit, tires, radiator, etc… These numbers start adding up quickly!
For my hard work, I was rewarded with nice, clean axles and……a leaking injection pump! I hadn’t noticed it before, but the pump was leaking at the point where the distributive head meets the body. It had been leaking for some time. This is likely due to the seals aging and shrinking due to the non-sulfur fuel being introduced. This was not something I wanted to tackle myself so I trailered the whole thing to an injection pump specialist to have the work done:
Some details:
1991 HDJ81 VX
4.2 Liter 1HD-T
A442F Automatic transmission
Factory F & R electronic lockers and Center Diff lock
Full floating rear axle with rear disc brakes (non-ABS)
Center console refrigerator
No factory roof rack
Bone stock except for radio
127K KM
Below is an image from the importer’s website.
The exciting day finally arrived along with the LC. The transporter driver hops out of the LC after unloading it and says (in broken English) “This no safe”…. He shakes the steering wheel and it is wobbling and totally loose. In fact it comes off in my hand as I pull it into the driveway! Ok - Interesting....
As I finally get to inspect the vehicle further – I’m having mixed feelings. There is no rust on this thing anywhere and the overall condition is quite nice. But I also got to see all areas the creative camera work missed when taking 30+ photos for the ad. These weren’t deal breakers, but they would certainly eat into the accessory budget – and most would need to be addressed before we were at the point of “years of maintenance free ownership!”
Inner axles seals clearly blown on both sides:
Cracked radiator “repaired” and leaking. Power steering reservoir and lines also leaking:
No sticker on the TB cover…so you have to assume the worst.
I contacted the seller and he apologized and offered to pay to have the front axle seals repaired at a shop using Toyota parts. He sent a check the next day. He also said he was sure the timing belt was done and upon closer inspection you could see the residue of where the sticker was…maybe it came off during the engine bay cleaning?
I was feeling pretty good….My first job was to tackle to tackle the inner axle seals. I changed it all: seals, races, bearings, etc…. It took me two days – but now I could do it in less than a single day with ease. Check out the diff oil pouring out of a place where it shouldn't be!
Surprisingly, the nuts and bolts of this 25 year old rig were easy to remove –– not one rusted/broken fastener…hey, maybe this is the real thing!
Excited to start modifying the rig, I start ordering parts: a big box from @beno, custom sliders, OME lift kit, tires, radiator, etc… These numbers start adding up quickly!
For my hard work, I was rewarded with nice, clean axles and……a leaking injection pump! I hadn’t noticed it before, but the pump was leaking at the point where the distributive head meets the body. It had been leaking for some time. This is likely due to the seals aging and shrinking due to the non-sulfur fuel being introduced. This was not something I wanted to tackle myself so I trailered the whole thing to an injection pump specialist to have the work done:
