'85 Surf

[OzSurf]

The seat belts from a 2G will fit, however will they work? Most likely not because seat-belt retraction is one area Toyota absolutely SUCKS at! I've got '01 and '03 Tacomas, and an '05 Tundra. Not one retracts well. I heard somewhere that Subaru belts make a big improvement with a bit of fitting. GL :cheers:

2G's are alot easier to find for me, so that might be worth a shot. The lack of retraction is not too bad, however I cannot even pull it out far enough to click in now. I have already released the 'ball' in the seatbelt once and that lasted a day.

[MENTION=57873]OzSurf[/MENTION]

Did you get your steering sorted?

If not can you post a picture of the steering setup? I'm curious if it's similar to the Y link on my XJ which I went through top to bottom to get it working correctly again.

With that being said, my issues related to a couple worn out parts (it's an 88 I bought for 1500$ from some sketchy folk).

1.) Steering box was toasted, it has the same adjustment process as you indicated in the picture you posted but that's just tightening friction on the worm gear and is not a resolution for a worn out steering gearbox. Mine had an 1/8th turn of play in it and at high speeds/hitting bumps it's pretty horrifying.
2.) My Hubs were bad, like fell apart in my hands bad. So they wobbled causing it to resonate through the steering linkage causing death wobble.
3.) Finally all the bushings were toast especially the TREs. I went to a larger Diameter tie-rod and OEM ends and it did the trick. I have looked into spherical ends (jonny joints) and would have gone that route if I had a reamer handy

I have read a couple times on here about people recommending steering stabilizers to help but from my experience, while nice, they are just a bandaid instead of a fix.

Love your truck man!

COMTB

Still waiting on parts so I can finish the brake job before I can adjust the drag link. The steering box is leaking a fair bit so it may be stuffed. I have been looking into replacing the tie rod with a 'rock rod' (link) however I'm not sure if it's worth the money. I did get a new (aftermarket) steering stabilizer with my lift though haven't installed that yet.

Once the brakes are done, I'll fiddle around with it and see what I can come up with.

 

[OzSurf]

Got lucky and found a seatbelt, in working condition and same color as my interior (Grey), picked it up 2min drive from work. Finished the brakes (so I thought) with a new handbrake cable to suit the IFS rear axle. Took the car away on a weekender and the brakes are still dragging! :ybrick:

Haven't had much chance to look at it as the starter in my 3rd gen decided to die. Tracked the parts down for that and got it back on the road so now can turn my attention back to the 1st gen.

So far I have done the following;
-Replace shoes, drums & wheel cylinders both sides (did not do the spring kit which I am regretting now. It looked almost brand new..)
-Bleed & replace all brake fluid
-Cleaned up and repainted bellcranks
-New handbrake cable (rear)
-Adjusted all items to spec

I pulled the M/C last night and checked the measurement of the servo-m/c pushrod. It came in at -0.7mm (it should be around 0.2mm I believe). Adjusting that to spec will make my problem worse, so I have put it back together and am going to check a few other things first. Will check pedal-booster pushrod adjustments, pedal height & free play. I quickly measured the pedal height and it is around 30-40mm too short (i.e. close to the floor). I'm hoping it is something as simple as that.

Looking around at steering box prices, I can get a refurbed. exchange unit for around $350. Haven't priced the parts to do it myself, however it looks like a bit of work so might be better off with the professionally done box.

Have also been working on the 1/4 window doors I picked up to change over, managed to get one assembled, though I can't get the rubber pushed into the front corner of the window frame as much as I would like. Not sure if this is going to let water/wind in so might pull it and do it again.

Anyway, here is a pic of a few old convertibles..

 

[OzSurf]

Finally got the brakes sorted! Turned out it was just the pedal adjustment between pedal & booster. I can't believe it was something so simple...but i'm glad that's sorted.

So test drove the truck a few times last week, brakes were great, figured I'd take the truck away for the weekend to do a bit of camping and fishing. Took the Friday off work, got up early to pack the car, got everything ready and was checking fluids just before leaving and noticed a bit of coolant between the two heater hoses. I felt around the hoses and they had a few large gouges out of them in the middle where they rub on the rocker cover.

So off shopping I went, got some 5/8 heater hose, 4 joiners and some hose clamps. Cut the hoses, spliced in some of the new hose with the joiners, got it all back together and tried to bleed the system. After around 30-40mins of idling one of the hoses was still cold and no heat from the heater! I was pissed and it was now 3.30pm and I still had a 3 1/2hr trip ahead of me. I gave up and unloaded the truck and loaded it all into the 3rd Gen. Finally got on the road an hour later, got to camp in the dark, set up camp, made dinner and went to bed. Spent the weekend fishing, however there was major sidewash so didn't catch a thing. Got some nice photos though.

Got the cooling system bled when I got back by idling for around 45mins again so onto the next issue. I have been having issues shifting into 1st (super stiff sometimes) and reverse (grinding), so decided to address that today, starting with clutch pedal adjustment, hoping it would be an easy fix like the brakes. Pedal height was fine, free play was around 15-20mm. Set it to around 7-8mm as per spec. Bled slave cylinder, the master looks reasonably new. Still same issue. Bought a new slave, swapped it in & re-bled. Slight change however still the same. Drained & filled gearbox with Universal 80/90, shifts better but still the occasional hard 1st shift and still grinding into reverse. Came up with an easy way to fill the box while checking shifter seat & bush.

So I figure the issues are just G52 related, so will ride them out and see what happens. Will most likely upgrade to a R151F in future anyway. Having a look at a 2L-TE manifold & CT20 turbo tomorrow so will hopefully have that on the motor in the near future.

Anyway, here's a bonus pic of a friends new truck. It's an '88 Land Rover 110 Perentie - ex. Australian Army. Powered by an Isuzu 3.9L Diesel.

 

[CrawlerJamie]

Clean. Love these old rigs

 

[OzSurf]

So not much has been happening with the 1st gen, I picked up the 2LT-E turbo & manifold and accessories, got it home and realised the stud pattern on the manifolds are different, so the truck stays how it is for now, unfortunately.

Ended up changing the clutch, which solved the shifting problems. There was a bit of wear on the input shaft and the problems look like they are starting to return (not as severe yet). So that may have been a waste of time, though will see how it goes.

Picked up a set of doors the same color with 1/4 vent windows, put some sound deadener sheets on the inside of the skin and removed some pinstripes. The 1/4 vent frames were rusted out so pulled apart another set of white doors I bought earlier and cleaned & repainted the frames and swapped them in. Soaked the rubber seals in silicone and then started re-assembling. New window regs both sides, new bailey channel & weatherstrips and tidied up the windows & chrome handle & pivot.

It took about 3 attempts to get the rubber in the 1/4 frames (if anyone has tips for the other side please share them!), got it all assembled, swapped around some parts on the door cards to make my original ones fit and put it all together. Unfortunately the rubber seal sits too high (not sure if it's not in the frame properly?) at the bottom of the vent window and stops it from opening and closing. I also can't get the top of the door trim to sit under the rubber properly. Frustrating, but at least I can still drive it.

I really like the look of no doors...

I also bought some chrome mirrors (eBay cheapies) and the bottom cover part did not fit at all and actually broke as I was trying to clip it on, so I used the black base with the chrome housing, pretty happy with how it looks.

Next few things to address are getting the winch wired up, setting up the dual battery system & storage system in the back and having a look at the steering (eventually!).

 

[TLar25]

that windshield shade visor deal is awesome. Do you know the name of the company that makes it? you mentioned it was somebody is SW Australia? is that right?

 

[OzSurf]

that windshield shade visor deal is awesome. Do you know the name of the company that makes it? you mentioned it was somebody is SW Australia? is that right?

The visor is from Roof Rack World in South Australia. You can find it at the following link; here. Not sure if they ship internationally but you can always send them an email.

 

[ev13wt]

that sucks that you can't convert to cross-over (high steer) it is a huge improvement over the stock push pull steering.

Things to check that could improve your steering would be to check the usual stuff -(which you probably did) would be tie rod ends, bearings, drag link,

There is a nut and screw on top of the steering box that you might be able to tighten the steering up a little

"Stock" free play is 1" at the wheel.

Don't overtighten that to fix other stuff that has play.

 

[OzSurf]

Took the '85 on a trip over the holidays through some remote Australian High Country. It got a bit hot (115*C water temp) sitting on the highway on a 44*C day chugging up hills, but apart from that it drove great. The front tyres have been scrubbing on the guards and I managed to push the drivers side guard back trying to navigate a small hill.

I got a great deal on a Lokka so decided to pull the front axle and address the scrubbing issue, a leaky oil seal & install the Lokka all at the same time. Everything was going great until I tried to remove the carrier/diff center. It is well and truly stuck on there. I definitely should have tried to pull it before I removed the whole lot from the truck. Ah well, learning experience!

I did try strapping it down with ratchet straps and trying to pull the center down to break the seal/FIPG but to no avail. If anyone has any tips before I bolt it all back up and try again I'd be happy to hear them.

I got the winch wired up before the trip and installed a removable dual battery system in the rear and a new larger battery in the front for winching. Also did some reorganising of the wiring in the engine bay to tidy things up a bit. Still need to make a faceplate and add some accessories to the dual battery box though it functions as I need it for now.

While it's apart I'm going to pull the radiator and get it flushed and try to figure out why it keeps pushing coolant out of the cap on the overflow. Also will dig into the P/S box and try and put a set of seals through it to stop a massive leak. Will also try to tighten up the steering. It's going to be a busy few weeks ahead I think.

 

[Cali 4runner]

Such a sweet rig.

 

[Blaines85]

Where did you get this soft top for you 4runner from? I've been looking to get one and this looks like a nice fit.
You've got a really clean runner as well and have been putting some awesome work into it

 

[OzSurf]

Where did you get this soft top for you 4runner from? I've been looking to get one and this looks like a nice fit.
You've got a really clean runner as well and have been putting some awesome work into it

Thanks, it's a Softopper, brought it from their website. Great service, they over quoted me on shipping and refunded the difference and had it shipped to my door in under 2 weeks. So simple to install and use.

 

[OzSurf]

So it's been a while! I still have the Surf, though it's been off the road for a while. I replaced the front crank seal and it started leaking almost straight away. The last trip I was on, I noticed the motor getting hot going up almost any hill, and the gearbox was making some noise that didn't sound too good, so I decided to start looking at engine swaps.

My plan when I first bought this thing was to throw a 3RZ/W series in it. Then I thought about a 3L or a 5L, as they're a bolt in swap, though prices for motors with 300,000+km's were pretty ridiculous, add on the cost of rebuilding one and I'd be left with an expensive (though reliable) slow old diesel.

I decided I needed an R series box, so started searching and found one in need of a rebuild for a decent price. Went and picked it up and got lucky as it came with a G series transfer with an adapter plate and the correct crossmember to bolt up.

So without rebuilding a gearbox before, I started researching and found many good YouTube vids & some decent articles with lots of great info. I pulled it down and decided it definitely needed a full rebuild, the input bearing was toast and the synchro's were in very bad shape.

Unfortunately the rebuild kit I ordered was not 100% correct for this box, so I'm currently waiting on a few parts before I can put it all back together, and while working out which snap rings I needed to order for thrust clearances, I realised the rear countershaft snap ring was not installed at all, the nut had just been cranked down until it bottomed out.

The guy that was selling the R series box also had 2 1KZ-TE's. One which he'd put in his LN106, but was removed due to the timing gears coming loose and causing some damage. The other one is a supposedly good motor, pulled out of a Hiace Supercustom. So I convinced myself I also needed these, and went down the following week to pick them up.

There's boxes of parts and shit everywhere, though the plan is to build one decent motor out of the two, chuck a new head on it, a mechanical pump (off a 4m40), try and crank some power out of it and chuck it in the Surf.

I have a 3rd gen with a 1KZ and, apart from a cracked head when I first got it, it's been a super reliable motor. Terrible on fuel, but makes decent power and is super smooth. So with a mech pump and an upgraded turbo I'm hoping to make a bit more power and get better economy, especially in a lighter truck like the 1st gen.

Here's a photo of the truck from the last time I drove it. I can't wait to be back in this thing.