86 4Runner build "El Chapo"

[jsmith7]

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.

 

[Cali 4runner]

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

 

[jkCOtoy]

View attachment 256730


cleaned up the front end too.


View attachment 256733



finally, the before and after shot...


View attachment 256735



View attachment 256732



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 awesome!

 

[jsmith7]

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

Looks awesome!

Thanks, guys!

 

[Dubk_trd]

Updates

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

 

[jsmith7]

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

Thanks man! I haven't done too much. I've put about 5,000 miles on since the rebuild. It's developed an idling issue when the engine is warm. If the engine is cold, or hot, it idles fine, but sometimes has really low idle when it's warm.

Just applied some fluid film to protect the undercarriage from these Ohio winters.

 

[jsmith7]

Wow, I haven't been on here for quite some time.

I moved from Ohio to Michigan and bought a house. All of my free time was spent renovating that... So the 4runner got put behind the garage and hibernated...

 

[jsmith7]

Finally pulled the 4Runner out from behind the garage after a little over a year.

Sold the wheels and tires that were on it with a '91 4Runner I had bought for cheap, planned to rebuild the engine and sell... Ended up taking the engine completely apart, realized I didn't have time to rebuild the engine, and sold it.

With no tires and wheels, I needed to get some...

I've always wanted 33's, so I got some. 33x10.5r15 mounted on cheapy 15x8 steel d windows.

It was a dog with the 31's, so a regear was a necessity with the 33's. Went with 4.88s and threw a Yukon Grizzly locker in the rear while I was at it.

Replaced wheel, diff, and pinion bearings, all seals, and brakes while I was in there.
Oh and a fresh paint job too.

 

[jsmith7]

Sitting nice and purty.

Rides great! I can actually accelerate up hill going 75mph. With some mixed driving, a tiny bit of trail riding, but mostly highway I averaged 20.3 on my last fill. Not too shabby!

First time setting diff bearings/backlash and pinion bearing preload. Ive put about 1200 miles on since the rebuild and all as been good.

 

[jsmith7]

This fall/winter I plan on fixing the rust, dents, and other body imperfections and giving it a fresh paint job.

I plan on doing all the work myself in my garage. I will makeshift a paint booth when it comes time to spray.

I have started on the driver front fender. A few dents/creases as well as about 15 holes on the inner lip from the PO using self tapping screws to screw in rubber molding as fender flares (the cause of rust on my rear fenders)

 

[jsmith7]

Onto the driver door...

There was a cluster of small dents near the handle. First pic below highlights these dents. Pounding these out from inside was quite the pain. Going to try to use as little body filler as possible.

The PO also used self tapping screws to screw in some carpet on the interior of the door... welded in those holes. Still need to grind them smooth

 

[jsmith7]

Restored the B pillar badges. They were in pretty rough shape...

Scraped off all the old paint. What a pain...

Used some gel type, t shirt paint for the letters.

black spray paint on the backs.

Not perfect, but much better than before.

 

[Melrose 4r]

Looks great!

 

[Cali 4runner]

Cool to see you still have it and are making it even better!

 

[thmclaugh]

El Chapo is a fantastic name, and you have done some amazing work. Enjoy the fruits of your labor!

 

[Chuckles89]

Nice work!