Off The Beaten Path Restoration

[ranma21]

This beautiful 2000 LX just pulled in for some restoration work. It has 109k miles on the clock, in great condition. It was own by a doctor in its previous ownership. The truck is in very good condition, but it is still a 20 years old truck. Due to age, we are going through the vehicle and replace any parts that are worn or for the purpose of preventive maintenance. The goal is to bring the truck back to sound and reliable condition to eliminate the possibility of breaking down as owner will be taking the truck anywhere off the beaten paths. Owner want the peace of mind that he can enjoy the vehicle for the next 100k miles with no worry or 2nd thought taking it to places. And to do it right, only Toyota parts or OE Toyota supplier parts will be used. As for fluid, we are using Eneos Japan synthetic fluid, Mobil, and Toyota coolant.

I replaced transfer case fluid, front & rear diff fluid, flushed transmission, replace AHC fluid and power steering flush about 3 weeks ago. Eneos full sythentic fluid were used. For power steering flush I use Mobil DTE-24 and add At-205 to replenish lost plasticizer in the seals to prevent leak. Steering rack is in great condition with no leak or torn boot or play.

There are few areas of the 100 series that fails dues to age such as ignition rod, heater T, brake booster and main fuse box which will leave driver and passenger stranded. Since the mileage is fairly low, we will look into the possibility of replacing the brake booster and main fuse box once the 1st phase of restoration is done. For now, we are replacing the following parts as preventive maintenance as any parts that fail as I dig into the truck.

1. 130 amp Starter and connector
2. Alternator and connectors
3. Radiator
4. Radiator Hoses and all heater hoses with the infamous heater Ts
5. Thermostat with gasket
5. All vacumn hoses, pcv hoses and valve
6. Spark plugs
7. Fuel filter
8. Air filter & cabin filter
9. Ignition bracket rod

Repair needed:
1. Replace both CV axles along with all gaskets & seals ( torn boot and hairline cracks observed )
2. Replace valve cover gaskets and spark plug tubes seals ( valve cover leaks )

Water pump & timing belt were replaced 10000 miles ago, so we are not replacing those.

 

[ranma21]

Starter replacement. I would expect this truck has not been molested due to its low miles and condition. Boy, was I wrong. Vacumm and clean up any debris around the manifold to prevent debris from falling into the intake chamber before removing the intake manifold.

New reman Toyota starter

Intake manifold removed, good time to replace heater hoses and heater T, more room to work. To prevent debris from falling into the intake port, I carefully vacuum around the portS before lifting the gasket and vacumn again before stuffing them with shop towel.

Then found an aftermarket starter, that was a surprise! So someone has been in here before and that is totally fine. Trouble is the previous workshop did not do it right. First error, found 2 connectors were broken but weren’t replaced. The worst thing is the aftermarket reman starter was damaged and the shop installed it anyway. 70% of the female connector on the starter were gone before it was installed, leaving the factory connector barely tugged in! It can very well disconnected due to vibration or off road driving. This is totally unacceptable!! But I have found lots of bad work I have to correct from previous shop in most of the LC I work on.

 

[ranma21]

New connectors were replaced, broken connector in the valley is so common as the 100 age, they are so brittle due to heat. But most workshop does not replace them as the truck will occupy their service bay longer waiting for replacement connector to come in which mean less turnaround and less money. Almost all the 100 I work on needs replacement so always have a few on hand to reduce downtime and do the job right.

 

[ranma21]

2000 LC/LX comes with 80/100amp alternator, so we take this opportunity to upgrade to 2003+ alternator which produces 130amp. No mod on mounting are required, direct bolt on. However new connector are required as the 2003 alternator uses different connector.

Since we are replacing the radiator as well, the radiator and fan shroud were removed first, it makes replacing the alternator a breeze.

New Toyota reman 130amp alternator and connector

Old vs new connector

Installed, nothing better than using factory parts, no surprise or fitment issue, always fit like a glove

 

[ranma21]

Replacing ignition rod as preventive maintenance as well, as the 100 ages, the ignition rod became a weak link which can leave driver stranded. So we are eliminating that possibility before it happens. We are replacing the rod itself, not the assembly housing. It takes more labor to replace the assembly and it is not necessary as the weak link is only the rod.

Can you guess which is the new replacement rod?!

The left side is the old rod and the one on the right is the new rod, as you can tell the new replacement rod is thicker. Apparently Toyota is aware of the issue and redesign the rod.

 

[medtro]

Owner want the peace of mind that he can enjoy the vehicle for the next 100k miles with no worry or 2nd thought taking it to places.

Since this is a 2000 LX, are you going to replace the transmission for peace of mind so that the owner can enjoy the vehicle for the next 100k miles with no worry or 2nd thought taking it to places?

 

[Greenbean]

Since this is a 2000 LX, are you going to replace the transmission for peace of mind so that the owner can enjoy the vehicle for the next 100k miles with no worry or 2nd thought taking it to places?

Hugh???

I have 460K on my transmission (2000 LC) and it's been fine! Just regular servicing with fluid changes per the FSM!

 

[2001LC]

 

[ranma21]

Since this is a 2000 LX, are you going to replace the transmission for peace of mind so that the owner can enjoy the vehicle for the next 100k miles with no worry or 2nd thought taking it to places?

We are replacing parts that fails due to age and mileage, transmission is not one of the item at this time as it is such a low failure rate in the 100 compare to common wear and tear item such as starter, alternator, hoses, ignition rod, heater T to name a few. And in addition this is a 8/99 built date truck, not the few 2000 batch built with defective parts in the transmission. It is in excellent condition. So the transmission is not in the list of items being replaced as PM at this time.

 

[medtro]

Hugh???

I have 460K on my transmission (2000 LC) and it's been fine! Just regular servicing with fluid changes per the FSM!

Many has not been as lucky as you.

2000 Trans Status 2011 Update

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[medtro]

We are replacing parts that fails due to age and mileage, transmission is not one of the item at this time as it is such a low failure rate in the 100 compare to common wear and tear item such as starter, alternator, hoses, ignition rod, heater T to name a few. And in addition this is a 8/99 built date truck, not the few 2000 batch built with defective parts in the transmission. It is in excellent condition. So the transmission is not in the list of items being replaced as PM at this time.

Totally agree as long as the transmission is not from the defective batch.

 

[ranma21]

Replaced all heater hoses and vacumm hoses.

 

[ranma21]

Replaced valve cover gaskets, tube seals, spark plugs and pcv valve.

Torque spark plug down. Using U joint and different extension will work at the spark plugs by the firewall.

 

[ranma21]

Getting ready to button up the intake manifold, vacumm again and again to eliminate any debris from falling into the intake chambers before shop towels are removed.

New gaskets installed, make sure white tabs facing up.

Torque down with my lower value newton meter Tonichi torque wrench.

 

[ranma21]

New Toyota Radiator.

Thermostat housing cleaned and ready to install with new thermostat and gasket.

Radiator and new fuel filter installed. Top end pretty much buttoned up.

 

[alwaysbored786]

Fantastic work!

 

[ranma21]

Fantastic work!

Thank you =)

 

[ranma21]

One more piece of heater Hose waiting to be installed. Any of you replaced this knows it is a pain. This is the heater hose from oil cooler to the side of the motor, it runs between the ac compressor and engine. I attempted to replace it while I was replacing the rest of the heater hoses. But decided to wait until CV axles replacement. With the CV Axles remove, you have a lot more clearance to work it, funny thing is even with the cv axles removed, it is still a bitch to get it release from the pipe, as if it is fused to the pipe, I use hose plier no go, I slice it and try "peeling" it off still no go then use one of my pick to slowly "pry" it out!! Anyone one who is doing the CV axle replacement or AC compressor should replace this heater hose the same time. With the CV axles in place, it will be very difficult to replace.

Pipe end shown with hose removed.

New heater hose installed.

With pick, hose pliers and off angle plier makes heater hoses replacement much easier, I purchased a 12 pieces Mac tool pliers set few months back and it is one of the best tools I use all the time. And now finding my self ordering higher end Knipex pliers =) With good and right tool, I curse less lol

 

[ranma21]

Most of the 80 and 100 I work on I find the same mistake previous person or tech laid that hands on!! Chisel marks found on spindle lock nut, both sides has chisel mark, so whoever work on this cruiser were using chisel to tighten and set pre-load. Driver side is very tight, and passenger side fairly loose, turn out locking tab wasn't bent on the outer lock nut rendering loose lock nut.

Front knuckle rebuilt with all new oil seals, gaskets, cone washers, and flanges to match new Toyota OE CV axles.

My baby shows interest, so I hurry let her do some work, gotta start them young lol

CV axle removed and new oil seal going in.

 

[ranma21]

Excited to try out my newly acquired Toyota SST master replacer set with different sizes replacer. So much easier with this set with all the sizes I need to work on different series LC. Loving it.

Don't think I will use my OTC set anymore. Bought new and only used once, it is frustrated when you can't find the size you need to get the job done efficiently.

New bearing and seals going in after cleaning up and wipe clean the hub.

Perfect fit with the 89mm replacer for bearing race installation.