I did not have to cut up anything except the wiring all I did was cut The Wire an inch and a half or so before the plug. I then extended the wires long enough to put them up in the empty holes above the radio. To do this I solder the wires and use heat shrink tape to make the best connection possible.

The only one I didn't do anything with was the window lock. I don't think any of us use the window lock anyway. All I did was take it and tuck it underneath of the center console and taped it to the wiring harness there.

looking real good man! Love the look of those duratracs on it!

I'll keep this mod in mind fir the future, but for right now I don't mind where the buttons are, and i like the stock look. I appreciate the info though!



Thanks! I love the duratracs! They really give the 4runner a more aggressive look

I believe I have developed a head gasket leak. After driving I noticed coolant steaming out between the head and the block. So, I know I will be doing a head gasket repair. Also, I have low compression on cylinder 2 (I forget the numbers) I believe it is leaky valve seal because the pressure stayed the about same after a wet compression test. Next, I found that I had low compression in cylinder 2 during diagnosis of a misfire. I found out that the misfire was because the exhaust valve on cylinder 2 was completely closed when it should have been open. adjusted the valve and misfire fixed. 5,000 miles after the misfire was fixed, it happened again, and it was the same thing, exhaust valve on cylinder 2 was closed.
What could be the cause of the valve closing? Along with the head gasket and valve seals, what should I replace? The timing chain looks fine, it looks as if it did wear against the block slightly at one point, but there are plastic guides on there now that are completely intact, so my assumption is that the timing chain is fine.

Someone recommended that I put a new head on with all new valves, springs,cam, rocker, etc...But, if I put a fresh, rebuilt head on there, should I pull the motor and inspect/rebuild the lower half?

extra info: 1986 22re. 195,000 miles.
engine related maintenance I have performed in the last 9 months or so:
cleaned upper and lower intakes and throttle body, new gaskets installed, new PCV valve
new plugs, wires, distributor, cap, and rotor
cleaned IACV, new thermostat
new exhaust manifold and gasket
fresh coolant
regular oil changes
valves adjusted, new valve cover gasket
new fuel injectors
I'm sure I'm missing more.

I hope this helps inform you what my plan of attack should be on this repair. Thanks in advance.

Side note, I will be graduating soon, so the 4runner might become my main project for an offroad rig. My dream would be SAS on 37s, front and rear lockers, 5.29 gears, bumpers, winch, sliders, etc... money, money, money...

Well if you want to keep the rig for a while I'd say pull the engine. You are so far into the engine at that point I think it would be totally worth it.

Pull the engine. Thats a nice ride


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That's what I was thinking. Do it right the first time.

Thanks! Looks like that's gonna be the approach I'm going to take.

So, I decided to pull the motor the Friday before spring break. With a week off for spring break, I thought this would be the perfect time for the rebuild.
My plan is to clean up the engine and engine bay really well, paint and refresh everything I can, without going too crazy. I'll be putting a new head on and cam in from Engnbldr. Think I'm leaning towards the 261 cam, anyone have any opinions?? I'm also going to be having the block inspected.


Using our harbor freight hoist to pull out the engine. Did it by myself, worked great.




got every disassembled and organized by the end of the first day.




The block is at the machine shop now, waiting to hear back on whether I need to bore out the cylinders or just hone it. In the meantime, I'll be doing a lot of cleaning.

I'll leave a little shot of the valve cover here..

Dude right on! I want to do this as soon as I have a decent work space. Haha

Well, the block finally came back from the machine shop! I found out the cylinders were bored at some point in the past and i could get away with honing them. After the crankshaft was polished and the block was decked, i had new bearings, rods, pistons, and rings installed. Once I got it home, I gave her a paint job and then started assembly.





I ended up putting Engnbldr's StreetRV head on it with the 268C/Torkr Cam. Put a new water pump, oil pump, timing cover, and timing chain kit with steel backed guides on. Also put on a new clutch and flywheel.











Painted the engine bay as well. The more time the block spent at the shop the more things I found that should be done.

cleaned up the front end too.






finally, the before and after shot...










Other than losing about 3 qts of oil in about 30 seconds on initial start up because the machine shop forgot to replace one of the oil galley plugs, the whole rebuild went pretty smooth, and she is running great! Unfortunately I have one small leak from the rear main seal housing, but ill address that a little later.

Looks great!!!
Sorry about the oil loss especially after it was so shiny

Looks awesome!

Thanks, guys!

any updates i really like your build . just picked up a 89 in the same color