Working on my Prado 90 Series (1 Viewer)

[BarnacleBOY007]

Another update
Today was a good and yet...ok day. I seem to have a lot of those

I fitted the rear discs, replaced the the pads, and did a minor service on the rear calipers (replaced the bolts and some of the rubbers, didn't do anything on the pistons though). I unfortunately seem to have messed the handbrake up, but it needs new shoes in any case. So will sort that out soon. Anyways, bled the system the old way (bottle, tube, and the missus pumping the brakes) - funny story, the system wasn't bleeding, and I thought I had done something wrong, but the missus was pumping the clutch

.

Anyways, after doing all of that, everything felt great! Brake peddle felt good, there was pressure in the system. I fitted the tyres and went for a test drive.

Initial test drive was going well, heating up the pads and discs, doing emergency stops, having fun. The vehicle was stopping in a straight line. I then slowed it down, went for a "normal" drive. When approaching a stop, or maybe a corner, it pulls right again............no words actually. So in an emergency stop, slamming clutch and brake in, straight line stop no problem, perfect actually. Start slowing down using the brakes (80km-60km (I'm South African, sorry)), it pulls right.

I have 2 things I want to check, and then I'm out of ideas:
1. Maybe there are hoses that are bulging, but when I apply a lot of pressure quickly, it stops normally (correct me if I'm wrong). So, I need to check the hoses on the left of the vehicle, since it drifts right.
2. There's something in the suspension that I've missed, and that's the reason the vehicle pulls right when braking (this doesn't seem to make sense though, since under emergency stopping, there's no movement at all).

It does feel a lot safer to drive than before, since the drift is nowhere near as sudden as before. So tomorrow it's going to get a good clean inside and out, and then into service during the new week

 

[Eurasiaoverland]

I hate to say it, but once the bores of the pistons are at all imperfect, especially if one caliper is worse than the other, you may get a different response from them under gentle braking pressure and hence the tendency to pull to one side.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

I hate to say it, but once the bores of the pistons are at all imperfect, especially if one caliper is worse than the other, you may get a different response from them under gentle braking pressure and hence the tendency to pull to one side.

That doesn't sound like good news. The bore looked ok, and the pistons weren't bad either.
but if what you're saying is the case, basically the caliper would need to be replaced? Because doesn't seem worth/possible to rebore and replace the pistons.

 

[Eurasiaoverland]

Sorry, to be clear I meant the finish on the pistons - the calipers looked fine and you can get away with a little corrosion on the caliper bores as they don't contact the pistons. But the piston finish has to be perfect. I can't really think what else would cause those symptoms where the disequilibrium is only under light load. You've checked tyre pressure and condition, wheel alignment etc right?

Often you can get good aftermarket pistons for a pretty reasonable price.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Sorry, to be clear I meant the finish on the pistons - the calipers looked fine and you can get away with a little corrosion on the caliper bores as they don't contact the pistons. But the piston finish has to be perfect. I can't really think what else would cause those symptoms where the disequilibrium is only under light load. You've checked tyre pressure and condition, wheel alignment etc right?

Often you can get good aftermarket pistons for a pretty reasonable price.

Ah that makes sense!
I rotated and aligned after the new steering rack and tie rods went in.

I used some 2000grit washy sandpaper with brake fluid to clean the pistons, and it is almost impossible that I managed to put all 4 pistons in the same caliper, since when they were removed for me, I just got given a big box of stripped calipers and pistons.

What are the chances the ABS is causing some issues? Should I be looking at the modules.

I checked the left side hoses, and they seemed ok, they weren't bulging when the brake pedal was pushed in.

The other thing I was thinking about is the camber or caster? Shocks side??

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Thought I'd give today's updated. Not sure how one person can be so unlucky, but here I am!

I went for a drive today. I feel like I really need to build confidence in the vehicle. So I was on the highway, doing about 110km/h. The vibration was there, but not as bad as before since we did some front suspension work. Anyways, I thought I'd up the speed a little, just to see how it feels. I got to 120km/h and there was a clunk and MASSIVE vibration coming through what felt like the entire vehicle.

I pulled over to look, couldn't see anything obvious. So tried to drive to get off the highway. Lots of vibration, and a clunking when pulling off. Anyways, long story short, the front propshaft u-joint gave it up. Fortunately a friend was available to come with some tools. We removed the front propshaft, and I drove home. Will have to take it in tomorrow for new u-joints and balancing. But I guess that will solve the last vibration issue I have. Driving home without it was amazing! No vibrations, except what comes from the road.

The start of the drive was weird. I had the transfercase in H (was like that when I bought it), I tried to pull off and nothing happened. I think moved to HL, and the car slowly moved forward. I shifted back to H, and then there were no issues at all, drove home normally.

Need to tackle a few things here and there, but almost ready for the roadworthy!

 

[javelinadave]

Keep the updates coming! Hopefully the U joint was your issue and things are better once replaced.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Here's an update

The front propshaft has been fitted.

There was something weird happening with the transfer case when we were trying to fit the propshaft. The car was in neutral, and I put the transfer case into N position as well, but it wouldn't allows us to turn the transfer case so we could line it up with the front diff. After multiple tries and getting the vehicle back into H, we could line the front diff and transfer case up. It was so weird. I'm still learning about this vehicle and the fact that it's a 4wd car, with a HL, LL with a rear difflock. So not sure what was going on.

Took it for a test drive. Slight, ever so slight vibration still - this I can probably put down to the BF K02 tyres fitted, which are also oversized. The traction feels MUCH better having the front wheels engaged, but does make the turning feel slightly heavier.

Today I'm going to test the ABS. I'm going to remove the fuses, and go for a drive. See if that rectifies the braking issue. If that doesn't work, I will need to look for a second hand ABS pump.

On Monday it goes in for the handbrake shoes to be rebonded (turns out it's not as expensive as I thought, so going to get that done), then almost ready for roadworthy!

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Today's update:
I took the Prado in for the handbrake shoes. The company said they don't need to be rebonded, they adjusted it and that was that. However, they looked at the brakes since it's still pulling right. They found out the lower control arm bushes are finished on the left hand side. I'm not sure if the leak from the power steering pump, the ATF, caused the bush to wear out quicker than it should have, but I'm going to replace both the lower control arms and the lower ball joints.

I'm really hoping that sorts out the pulling issue. It should improve the handling considerably though.

Next I'll have to look at the Differential Supports, because the one was soaked in ATF and doesn't look great either.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Great update coming today!
It turned out the bushes on the lower control arms were the culprit. They have now been replaced, and the vehicle feels SO MUCH better on the road. It doesn't pull right when braking anymore, and it feels solid.
That is one big issue off the table. Unfortunately, it meant the entire front suspension was replaced. It's great, because it will last a long time, unfortunate in that it cost an absolute bucket load.

I'm hoping that this weekend we can tackle the power steering pump leak, and after that it can go for roadworthy.

There is, unfortunately, a rear main oil leak, it's so little, so I might be able to clean it and get it through roadworthy, and when I have the time, handle the repair. It's a massive job and I don't have all the tools and space to do it properly. Will need to see though.

The missus drove the Prado home and is happy, so that is the most important thing right now. Next is roadworthy!

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

New update coming!

So when I took the Prado in to get the lower control arms done, the company said they'd do the lower ball joints too. I was very happy because their pricing was SO good. Anyways, long story short, almost 2 weeks later, I look under the vehicle, and the old lower ball joints were still on! I'm not great at complaining, I usually just go with the flow. Anyways, I messaged the company to query why they didn't put the new ball joints like I asked. They said I didn't need to, the current ones were in good condition, so they didn't do it. I almost just left it at that, but it wasn't sitting right with me. Anyways, I made more contact with them, and after a discussion, they asked if I still had the ones I bought - fortunately I didn't take them back. They didn't charge me labor, they fitted the ball joints, and they had the alignment re-done. After all that work, you won't believe it, the steering wheel centers itself! There was something wrong with the ball joints!
After the back and forth, I'm still happy with the service and workmanship of the company, and if needed, I'll definitely go back to them.

Lessons learned - always double check the work being done.

I still have a tiny leak on the power steering pump, but I think I'll make a plan to fix it on the cheap without taking it off.

On another note, I found a complete second hand aircon and an idler pulley. That should arrive tomorrow, and I hope that it will be fitted by next week. With all that being done, we should have a complete vehicle ready for the open road

Last on the list is roadworthy, assuming I can get the power steering leak to...disappear.

 

[Eurasiaoverland]

Good to hear that you're getting through the various problems, I'm glad I was wrong about the calipers still being your issue.

On these frames (90 Series Prado / 180 Series Hilux Surf), the lower ball joints are the achilles heel. Because of the design of the lower control arms, when the ball joint lets go you have a catastrophic loss of the wheel which can lead to serious accidents. For that reason I would only use genuine ball joints. If you have used aftermarket parts I would take care to monitor them fairly regularly. As soon as they show any movement, replace them.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Good to hear that you're getting through the various problems, I'm glad I was wrong about the calipers still being your issue.

On these frames (90 Series Prado / 180 Series Hilux Surf), the lower ball joints are the achilles heel. Because of the design of the lower control arms, when the ball joint lets go you have a catastrophic loss of the wheel which can lead to serious accidents. For that reason I would only use genuine ball joints. If you have used aftermarket parts I would take care to monitor them fairly regularly. As soon as they show any movement, replace them.

Thank you!
I've read a lot about the aftermarket lower ball joints being an issue. If I can get a year out of them I'll be happy. This whole endeavor has really financially hurt more than I was hoping. But when they start giving hassles I'll change to original ones.

Is it the same for the upper ball joints?

 

[Eurasiaoverland]

Thank you!
I've read a lot about the aftermarket lower ball joints being an issue. If I can get a year out of them I'll be happy. This whole endeavor has really financially hurt more than I was hoping. But when they start giving hassles I'll change to original ones.

Is it the same for the upper ball joints?

I've had upper ball joint wear out and it was very apparent with the vehicle tracking. Also, they are under compression (while the lower ball joints are under tension), so even if they fail, they will tend to stay put (until you hit a huge bump). You can also easily check them just by trying to pull up with your hand on the upper control arms.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Got a new update today

The aircon was fitted and re-gassed today. It was also a headache for the company doing the work. They said the wiring was in shambles and took them a while to get it working. It wasn't cheap to get done either. That being said, we have a working aircon, which feels sooooooo good. It's not super ice-cold, but it does make a difference from before of course.

Unfortunately, the company found some areas where the the wiring is badly corroded, and that might be something I'll need to tackle in the future.

Trying a stop-leak product in the power steering pump to see if that will help with the leak I have. I really hope it does, because I've been tapped out financially. Big chance I may have to say goodbye to the girl after all the work that has been put in such a short period of time.

Tomorrow we take a trip on the open road, 900km return, will see how she does .

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Just a quick update

We have just got back from a 850km round trip for the weekend. The vehicle was amazing. Few annoyances, but it got us to our destination and back safely.
Annoyance 1: There's a shudder that you feel when you reach 120km/h. I suspect it's the front diff supports. I think the bushes are going. Annoyance 2: There was a rattle that was just super annoying. I have found where it is coming from at least, and I should be able to fix it.

Other notable things. For a mix of town and highway driving going to our destination the Prado averaged 8km/l. Bare in mind I have oversized tires and a roof rack. On the trip down back home it averaged 9km/l (highway only).

Very happy and got built some confidence in the vehicle. Just need to sort out the 2 leaks and roadworthy/license, and it's gonna be amazing.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

Another update, and a very happy one!
I managed to license the old girl and register her into my name. It was a surprise, but happy it's done.

Now I will just ignore the rear main oil leak until I have no choice but to fix.

I do have to attend to the power steering pump and now the diesel primer pump (it's not holding anymore, and I have to manually prime it before the first start of the day).

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

New Update

To treat the Prado for getting registered, I had a valet done and the prado was polished. It came out really nice She sparkles!

By the end of the weekend the priming pump should be done, and I hope to fix the passenger door actuator.

 

[BarnacleBOY007]

By way of a question, has anyone had these mounts for the front diff re-bushed? There's a left and right for the front diff, and there is a central mount that will need to be replaced soon.

 

[little_joe]

Haven't had to do the diff support bushings on my 90, but have on other Toyota 4x4's. Rather common, rubber deteriorates! I'd stick with rubber for this application to mute chatter.