TWT -- The Wrenching Thread (13 Viewers)

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Looks like I have a lot of things to get sorted out between now and when all of these events start 😅
 
While I'm on the subject, does anyone have anyone experience with, and/or opinions on, Jet-Hot and Cerakote header coatings?

Little late to the game but I have recent experience.

Jet hot is in or near Greensboro but they don't do their high temp coatings in NC. They do them in Oklahoma or some such place. Their lead time is a month, and they're expensive.

I'm going the cerakote route with my turbo system.

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Little late to the game but I have recent experience.

Jet hot is in or near Greensboro but they don't do their high temp coatings in NC. They do them in Oklahoma or some such place. Their lead time is a month, and they're expensive.

I'm going the cerakote route with my turbo system.

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Good to know, that saved me a load of grief. I also didn't know I could Cerakote myself. More good news! How do you do it? All I can find on their website is "call us for pricing".
 
Found the color page! That's an insane number of options! I'm going with Prison Pink for Charlie's headers and Stormtrooper White for mine. :rofl:
 
...and it'll stick to plastic! Now I have a solution to all my flaking PVD chrome. And a coating for my LX570 wheels Toyota covered in worthless paint.

Thanks, Johnny!
 
Good to know, that saved me a load of grief. I also didn't know I could Cerakote myself. More good news! How do you do it? All I can find on their website is "call us for pricing".

There's a ton of info on their site including application guides. The process specifics depend on the coating, but in general:

1. Degrease
2. Sandblast with al-ox
3. Bake at 250* for a bit to get the trash out
4. Degrease again
5. Spray cerakote with hvlp gun
6. Air dry for some coatings, or bake on at 500* for a while.

DDone!
 
I pulled mine with both exhaust manifolds and the lower intake manifold attached. It wasn’t a problem.
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Dave, how did you get the rear bolts connecting the intakes halves out? I can't seem to reach the rear two.
 
It’s been a couple of years, but I recall using multiple extensions and wobble attachments to get to them. It’s easier to get to them from directly under the truck as opposed to standing alongside the fender reaching in from the side.
 
It’s been a couple of years, but I recall using multiple extensions and wobble attachments to get to them. It’s easier to get to them from directly under the truck as opposed to standing alongside the fender reaching in from the side.
That was my plan; it just wasn't working as well as I would have liked. I'll keep at it then.
 
It’s been a couple of years, but I recall using multiple extensions and wobble attachments to get to them. It’s easier to get to them from directly under the truck as opposed to standing alongside the fender reaching in from the side.
EDIT:
I should probably define "major": to me, a major oil leak is one that coats the underside of the truck, but doesn't leave a puddle, as opposed to a serious oil leak, which needs to be fixed immediately becuase you're pissing a quart a mile. I could live with his leak, and he has my LX570 in Boone.

Well, the hard part is done, now I can get to everything. My dilemma now is should I pull the whole engine, or just pull the head? I can't pull the engine later, once the head is gone, but I can get several other problems addressed if it's out.

I can easily reach everything now, and Charlie has major oil leaks, that I haven't identified. It's either the rear main, middle pan seal, or both, plus some unexpected wetness on the block under the intake (not sure what caused that yet).

I really have no reason to pull the transmission; there are no problems with it, other that a generous coating of rust preventative engine oil.

Thoughts?
 
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When I pulled the engine, the consensus was to pull everything at once. Engine, transmission, transfer case. Just the wiring harness alone causes interrupted dreams for me (not quite nightmares but concern). I rented a 4 ton engine lift, bought a cheap load leveler, and started out from under the beast. Much easier to work on out of the vehicle for me. My issues with oil were the typical ones of rear arch seal, oil pump, head gasket…..come to think of it, every place there was a gasket. “While you are in there” is real. Your situation may be different from mine.
 
When I pulled the engine, the consensus was to pull everything at once. Engine, transmission, transfer case. Just the wiring harness alone causes interrupted dreams for me (not quite nightmares but concern). I rented a 4 ton engine lift, bought a cheap load leveler, and started out from under the beast. Much easier to work on out of the vehicle for me. My issues with oil were the typical ones of rear arch seal, oil pump, head gasket…..come to think of it, every place there was a gasket. “While you are in there” is real. Your situation may be different from mine.
I know the FSM says to do that, but I'd rather only pull the engine, if I don't just pull the head. My only real hesitation is that, if I pull the engine, all the cables have to be readjusted and you have to balance the engine and transmission cable operation when they're readjusted. Other than that, I don't have any druthers.

I'm still waiting for the weather to warm up enough for humans to be outside, so I have a few hours to make the decision.
 
I know the FSM says to do that, but I'd rather only pull the engine, if I don't just pull the head. My only real hesitation is that, if I pull the engine, all the cables have to be readjusted and you have to balance the engine and transmission cable operation when they're readjusted. Other than that, I don't have any druthers.

I'm still waiting for the weather to warm up enough for humans to be outside, so I have a few hours to make the decision.
From my experience, the majority of 1FZ leaks come from oil pump cover, power steering pump, distributor o-ring and valve cover. These leaks travel around and make the whole underside look like a disaster. But, they can all be easily remedied with the engine in situ. Same for the pan. If it were me, I would not pull the engine unless I absolutely had to, and if I did, the trans would come out with it.
 
Adjusting cables. Blue painters tape one side of the nuts, other gets loose enough to take off the brackets.
 
We've had great luck buying used Toyota/Lexus SUV's the past decade but this one might be the exception... 2011 GX460 w/ 160k
- Bought new tires and tried to get an alignment, 2 shops both said the LCA's won't adjust and need to be replaced... repair still pending
- Keep getting an intermittent AC error message but when I put it in the HVAC diagnostic mode, it displays "00" for no error. Still need to sort that out
- Got a CEL the other day and found a P2714 Pressure Solenoid stuck. All the forum posts I found ended in transmission replacement. I found the "sealed" transmission service on the web and thought "$50, it's worth a try".

I drained the pan (about 2 quarts) and put 2 quarts back in. Drove around for 20-30 minutes, cycling through all the gears manually. I drained the pan again (about 2.5 quarts) and put 3 back in. I put it in transmission temperature mode and drained the excess after the fluid reached 115*F. I reset the code and drove around for another 20-30 minutes. It's shifts well and the code didn't come back (too early??)

Anyway, need to decide what to do. My wife really wanted an LX but we could find one that's reasonable so we settledfor this. Maybe we start looking again...

Here the fluid on a paper towel:
Top: first drain
Middle: last drain after the 2nd change
Bottom: new fluid for comparison

I was freezing today and got in a hurry; found the crush washer in my drain pan (was just going to reuse them) so I'll have to change it one more time to get that back on.
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I don't know how this happens *all* the time, but it does...
My wife gets home last night and tells me the check engine light is back on. I sigh, think all the work I did on the fluid change was a waste and ponder the expense of a transmission replacement. We swap her stuff out for her to drive the Sequoia and on a whim, I decided to drive her car to work this morning.

My ride in:
No CEL.jpg


No CEL 🙄
She will come unglued at why everything works for me and nothing works for her. Apparently, I'm the only one in the house that can push the washing machine button just the right way for it to start.
 
Well, the easy part's done. Only broke 3 sensors on the way out. Head's in the shop and is promised by Friday.

I decided to pull the engine wiring harness down through the lower intake, instead of pulling it up. I just do things like that.

It would have worked well, if the intake side of the engine harness hadn't been rotten as a November oak leaf. Now I'm short three sensors (yes, one of them is the rear knock sensor) and the Engine Coolant Temperature sensor connector housing, from the harness side. That thing shattered and crumbled when I touched it.

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Here's what the block looks like; I'm hoping the crap in # 4 & 5 came out of the bottom of the head.

Note the massive coolant crud caked onto the transmission connector. And Charlie wondered why his gear indicator lights didn't work.

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Here's a little surprise I found waiting for me, under the intake (that appeared to have dripped down between the injectors). A look at an unknown oil leak, ABOVE the oil filter (that's a new one on me). If you look close at the photo above the oil filter, you can see the ECT sensor connector housing, or what was left of it, prior to lifting the head (it's the frontmost sensor on the head).

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