PLEASE HELP - 1997 LX450 208k Miles - MAGNETIC METAL IN OIL

[mcbs]

the red silicone valve as detailed below is what i was referring to
View attachment 4097703

Oh that makes more sense now. Thanks for the photo. You are right, it sure does look a lot like that. Maybe the extended oil use/ momentary oil starvation hardened the silicone?

 

[Kernal]

"Are you saying to wash out the cam shafts and top of the valves or just the valve cover?"

Already answered but for future searches, doubly no, never introduce water INTO your engine ie: where it would mix with the engine oil,
just wash/clean out the baffled area located on the inside of the valve cover while the valve cover is removed from the engine and let it dry
before reinstaling the valve cover.

But then in your situation it sounds like the valve cover baffle box was clean??

 

[mcbs]

"Are you saying to wash out the cam shafts and top of the valves or just the valve cover?"

Already answered but for future searches, doubly no, never introduce water INTO your engine ie: where it would mix with the engine oil,
just wash/clean out the baffled area located on the inside of the valve cover while the valve cover is removed from the engine and let it dry
before reinstaling the valve cover.

But then in your situation it sounds like the valve cover baffle box was clean??

i'm aware, my question to him of disbelief and skepticism. Maybe I over-exaggerated how clean it is. It looks like a valve cover - not like an oil pan.

 

[Kernal]

Ok, to be clear, the baffled area where sludge can accumulate is on the top (inside) of the valve cover ie: located under the metal plate you see riveted to the inside of the valve cover.

Below are three examples of the baffled area ("baffle box") designed to prevent sucking up (too much) oil splash/mist by the PCV system. Note the slight design differences in the openings of the baffle. All are 1FZFE valve covers from different model years.

You can wash it out by blasting cleaning solutions and water in via the port for the PCV valve (top outer aspect, not shown) while it's off the engine of course.

 

[mcbs]

Ok, to be clear, the baffled area where sludge can accumulate is on the top (inside) of the valve cover ie: located under the metal plate you see riveted to the inside of the valve cover.

Below are three examples of the baffled area ("baffle box") designed to prevent sucking up (too much) oil splash/mist by the PCV system. Note the slight design differences in the openings of the baffle. All are 1FZFE valve covers from different model years.

You can wash it out by blasting cleaning solutions and water in via the port for the PCV valve (top outer aspect, not shown) while it's off the engine of course.

View attachment 4098280

View attachment 4098281

Just gave mine a good ole scrubbing. The baffled area is definitely a bit of a pain to clean but think I did a pretty decent job.

Mine resembled the one in the top image. How open should those tabs be for reinstall?

 

[Kernal]

"How open should those tabs be for reinstall?"

The Toyota answer would be leave them where they are. I actually bent them inward a little bit further than where I found them
and I did that because if you look at the other two valve covers there were changes made to those openings ie: they now have a
shield over them.

Best guess is that was changed to decrease the amount of splash oil getting up into the baffle?? On one of the valve covers
(2nd photo above, top) it now has a rectangular hole were a small vent used to be. So it appears Toyota wants air to get into the baffle, decrease splash oil getting into the baffle, and trapped/condensed oil to be able to flow out (easier)??



Either way, main point IME is that oil can pool and sludge/varnish can form in the baffle box area.

 

[mcbs]

Checked the valve clearance, everything was in spec

Sealed up the valve cover and throttle body after cleaning.

Filled it up with 5w-30 and some tranny oil. Figured I would do a round or two and then switch to a heavier weight. Assuming it is a bearing issue, so maybe the tranny oil isn't the best idea, but eager to see what 800 miles or so will yield.

Ran the rig on some short trips, getting up to 65 mph. Running like a champ and no sounds coming from the engine.

Of course, I have my first engine code in the 35k miles of owning the rig - EGR - P0401. Checked all the hoses, everything is routed right. FIgured that all that cleaning i did on the throttle and intake probably clogged the egr vacuum modulator. all of the hoses are clean but the bit coming off the bottom of the Modulator seemed clogged. Sprayed some brake clean up it and had some black soot come out. Blew through the front nozzles and air seemed to come through the bottom.

Any tips on EGR issues with this code?

Edit - just thinking - wonder if any of the brake clean found its way to sensors from the intake. Prob should have used MAF cleaner. whoops.

 

[Old Nick]

Checked the valve clearance, everything was in spec

Sealed up the valve cover and throttle body after cleaning.

Filled it up with 5w-30 and some tranny oil. Figured I would do a round or two and then switch to a heavier weight. Assuming it is a bearing issue, so maybe the tranny oil isn't the best idea, but eager to see what 800 miles or so will yield.

Ran the rig on some short trips, getting up to 65 mph. Running like a champ and no sounds coming from the engine.

Of course, I have my first engine code in the 35k miles of owning the rig - EGR - P0401. Checked all the hoses, everything is routed right. FIgured that all that cleaning i did on the throttle and intake probably clogged the egr vacuum modulator. all of the hoses are clean but the bit coming off the bottom of the Modulator seemed clogged. Sprayed some brake clean up it and had some black soot come out. Blew through the front nozzles and air seemed to come through the bottom.

Any tips on EGR issues with this code?

Edit - just thinking - wonder if any of the brake clean found its way to sensors from the intake. Prob should have used MAF cleaner. whoops.

Man, I don’t mean to sound harsh, but many long time 80 owners, after seeing the metallic debris in your oil pan, suggested that your engine needed to be pulled. Now, you’ve done a lot of work and buttoned it back up.

If you do decide to pull the engine to get to the bottom of your problem… delete the PAIR and EGR systems.

 

[mcbs]

Man, I don’t mean to sound harsh, but many long time 80 owners, after seeing the metallic debris in your oil pan, suggested that you engine needed to be pulled. Now, you’ve done a lot of work and buttoned it back up.

If you do decide to pull the engine to get to the bottom of your problem… delete the PAIR and EGR systems.

Not harsh, just taking it day by day. Taking everything as advice, but also reacting to what’s in front of me. Haven’t had a knock slap, loss of oil pressure, grind, loss of power or anything.

Hard to total an engine that is seemingly working alright. Yeah there was a bearings worth of metal in the bottom of the pan. I’ve heard people running 15w-40 as it could theoretically make up for the extra space.

I didn’t do that much work, just pulled lower oil and valve cover. Don’t have the means to pull the engine here and will keep an ear to her and if things start getting squirrely I’ll commit to it

 

[thabruiser]

Checked the valve clearance, everything was in spec

Sealed up the valve cover and throttle body after cleaning.

Filled it up with 5w-30 and some tranny oil. Figured I would do a round or two and then switch to a heavier weight. Assuming it is a bearing issue, so maybe the tranny oil isn't the best idea, but eager to see what 800 miles or so will yield.

Ran the rig on some short trips, getting up to 65 mph. Running like a champ and no sounds coming from the engine.

Of course, I have my first engine code in the 35k miles of owning the rig - EGR - P0401. Checked all the hoses, everything is routed right. FIgured that all that cleaning i did on the throttle and intake probably clogged the egr vacuum modulator. all of the hoses are clean but the bit coming off the bottom of the Modulator seemed clogged. Sprayed some brake clean up it and had some black soot come out. Blew through the front nozzles and air seemed to come through the bottom.

Any tips on EGR issues with this code?

Edit - just thinking - wonder if any of the brake clean found its way to sensors from the intake. Prob should have used MAF cleaner. whoops.

When I had cleaned my throttle body, I accidentally clogged the ports that go right above the throttle body, that feed vacuum to the EGR modulator at partially open throttle. You might check and make sure the gunk you cleaned out of the TB didn't gum them shut.

 

[mcbs]

When I had cleaned my throttle body, I accidentally clogged the ports that go right above the throttle body, that feed vacuum to the EGR modulator at partially open throttle. You might check and make sure the gunk you cleaned out of the TB didn't gum them shut.

Yeah I checked those and gave em a nice brushing too. Might have to pull the EGR and see if got gummed up !

 

[thabruiser]

Let's hope not. Hoping it is an easy (relatively...lol) fix.

 

[Old Nick]

Not harsh, just taking it day by day. Taking everything as advice, but also reacting to what’s in front of me. Haven’t had a knock slap, loss of oil pressure, grind, loss of power or anything.

Hard to total an engine that is seemingly working alright. Yeah there was a bearings worth of metal in the bottom of the pan. I’ve heard people running 15w-40 as it could theoretically make up for the extra space.

I didn’t do that much work, just pulled lower oil and valve cover. Don’t have the means to pull the engine here and will keep an ear to her and if things start getting squirrely I’ll commit to it

Not suggesting that you junk your engine. They can be fixed. I understand space issues, etc. It's just that if I had that much metal/debris in my oil pan, I'd be wanting to track down where it came from before something truly bad happened. Thank you for taking my post above in the spirit that I intended. Not trying to be a douche.

 

[mcbs]

Not suggesting that you junk your engine. They can be fixed. I understand space issues, etc. It's just that if I had that much metal/debris in my oil pan, I'd be wanting to track down where it came from before something truly bad happened. Thank you for taking my post above in the spirit that I intended. Not trying to be a douche.

All good. What would you recommend I do? I scoped the cylinders, scoped the bottom of the cylinders as much as i could with just the lower pan off, verified the timing chain and gears look good, i plan to do compression test. I am all ears

 

[Old Nick]

All good. What would you recommend I do? I scoped the cylinders, scoped the bottom of the cylinders as much as i could with just the lower pan off, verified the timing chain and gears look good, i plan to do compression test. I am all ears

I would find another 80 owner in your neck of the woods (there are tons), try to track down some sheltered space and pull the engine. Open it up, fix anything that needs fixing and then reseal the entire engine. The amount of metal and debris that you're describing came from somewhere.

I wish you the best of luck.

 

[Kernal]

Until you decide which way to go with the engine (drive it or pull it) you could use a higher oil viscosity (dependent on your local outside air temps)
ie: 10W-30 or 5/10W-40 synthetic if it's still getting near freezing in Colorado or bump up to 15W-40 synthetic (and good filter as discussed). IME this engine does better (less wear based on serial Engine Oil Analyses) with a higher viscosity oil compared to the originally recommended 5W-30 (for US models).


note/disclaimer: I had help from Grok creating these graphs/tables to save time but the main point is, higher viscosity is commonly used around the World (dependant on air temps). A similar list is somewhere in the FAQ's, been discussed a lot in the past.


Engine Oil recommendations:

US/Canadian Models:

Temperature Range Anticipated Before Next Oil Change

°F: -20° 0° 60° 100°+
|--------|--------|--------|--------
5W-30 ██████████████████████████████ (preferred)
10W-30 ██████████████████████ (alternative for warmer)

°C: -29° -18° 16° 38°+
|--------|--------|--------|--------
5W-30 ██████████████████████████████
10W-30 ██████████████████████

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Non- USA/Australia models (1FZFE engine):

Temperature Range Anticipated Before Next Oil Change

°F: -20° -10° 0° 19° 50° 100°+
|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------
5W-30 ████████████████ (cold climates only)
10W-30 ██████████████████████████ (moderate)
15W-40 ████████████████████████████ (preferred for most AU)
20W-50 ██████████████████████ (hot/heavy duty)

°C: -29° -18° -12° -7° 10° 38°+
|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------
5W-30 ████████████████
10W-30 ██████████████████████████
15W-40 ████████████████████████████
20W-50 ██████████████████████





------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Compilation of original Toyota Recommendations (for the 1FZFE: 80, 70, 105 Series) (AFAIK should be correct):
(ROW= Rest of the World)

Region	Primary Recommended Viscosity (SAE)	API/Other Specs (original era)	Notes / Temperature Guidance
US	5W-30 (10W-30 acceptable in extreme heat)	API SG/SH or ILSAC GF-1	Fuel-economy driven (CAFE standards); thinner than export markets. Temp chart allows flexibility.
Canada	5W-30 (identical to US)	API SG/SH or ILSAC GF-1	Same North-American spec; multi-grade covers cold Canadian winters without issue.
Gulf States (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Middle East)	20W-50 (or 15W-40 in milder conditions)	API SG/SH	Hot desert climate; explicit thicker oil for extreme heat.
Europe (UK, Germany, etc.)	15W-40 (ROW standard; some list 5W-30/10W-40 options)	API SG/SH	Temperate climate; “everywhere except US” per Toyota.
South/Central America (incl. Venezuela)	15W-40 (20W-50 acceptable in tropics)	API SG/SH	Hot/tropical; 70 Series mechanics often accept 20W-50 locally.
Asia (Japan, Indonesia, etc.)	10W-30 or 15W-40	API SG/SH (or ILSAC)	Japan leans lighter; hotter markets align with ROW 15W-40.
Australia	20W-50	API SG/SH	Explicit in Australian manuals; 15W-40 also accepted.

One thing to do is send out Serial samples of used engine oil starting from now to see what the wear metals look like, going up, going down,etc

 

[Broski]

It’s a hot climate where I wheel but I like and run 20-50 Castro high mileage oil.
Been doing this for decades with all my high mileage vehicles.

 

[mcbs]

well got another q for you all -not gonna throw parts at the rig right now but curious what you think about the state of these (fuel?) lines? I was sticking the cheap boroscope I got behind the engine by the firewall looking for a socket I dropped and noticed the rough shape. I lost them around the fuel rail and traced em to hard lines on the passenger side so I’m assuming they are fuel lines. Looks like the plastic has burned right off and they’ve started rusting out!

 

[Kernal]

They appear to be the hard lines (pipes) that run from the firewall down and over to the right hand side of the vehicle tucked up very close to the floor (outside the vehicle) then rearward where they connect to soft lines that then run up to the rear heater. There are two sets of pipes with hoses inbetween (see diagram). They're known to corrode (ie: from the outside -> in generally) and a source of a coolant leak.

 

[mcbs]

They appear to be the hard lines (pipes) that run from the firewall down and over to the right hand side of the vehicle then rearward where they connect to soft lines that run up through the floor to the rear heater (actually there are two sets of pipes with hoses inbetween (see diagram):

View attachment 4105373

Ok so these are heater hoses?

Here is a shot of where they come out, right near the cat behind the tire (just under the electrical connector in the photo.