97 Limited Puppy Hauler Build Thread

awesome maintenance thread... love that you kept your 96 for parts..



more pic's are always fun. adding OD miles also helps you keep track of when stuff was when and what mile. would be cool thing to note.


Ok good point and idea. Make a note. 129900 is mileage. Still need steering rack changed.

And wife likes the red calipers visible through the rims. Must touch up the red paint.
 
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This afternoon I swapped out rear springs and shocks. It looks like someone used a torch to remove the drivers rear shock and cut a hole in the upper mount. That shock recently replaced. The top nut was only finger tight and I removed it with my fingers.
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Were you trying to comment on something? If so try again.
 
I really dislike the way the PO had a exhaust shop scab a replacement muffler into the Puppy Hauler. The 96 has a fairly new Napa CAT back system. But I can't use it conveniently because the shop cut off the flange on the outlet of the CAT on the 97. I'd just swap CAT and all from the 96 to the 97 but the 96 is federal and the 97 is Cali emissions. Though I've thought about doing it anyway just to see if it's possible to do without it coding.

Are replacement flanges available that I can weld into the CAT outlet pipe of the 97?

Edit. Searched Google for a replacement exhaust flange for a 4Runner. Opened up the images tab and seen what looked like would work.
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It's exactly what I need. Ordered it. Then visited their website. Their site price is cheaper than their eBay price with free shipping. If it costs 20 to ship from Canada to my place it will be about same price anyway.

Also they sell a direct fit CAT. And it's 1 CAT for both standards. Betting my federal from the 96 will work fine.
 
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This afternoon I swapped out rear springs and shocks. It looks like someone used a torch to remove the drivers rear shock and cut a hole in the upper mount. That shock recently replaced. The top nut was only finger tight and I removed it with my fingers.
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My exhaust flange repair kit hasn't come in yet. But this is the exhaust on the wrecked 96. It's been sitting since September of last year, plus it's was on for 6 months of driving before the accident. Can't wait to put it on the 97.
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The Trip Odometer broke while trying to reset it. I've gotten spoiled in the past by going to OdometerGears.com and getting replacement gears. Not so with the 4Runner unless their common to something else on the website.

Any insight will help as I search this forum for odometer repair threads. I've got two broken speedo trip meters now and one working. The working one is still in the wrecked 96. Must pull it and reset the miles to what the 97 has. But it would be nice to find gears to fix the broken ones.
 
So I removed the speedo from the 1996 wreck and set the mileage to match the 97's. Then I started taking apart the 97 to see what broke, thinking it was a gear like everything else I owned.

Nope. It's actually part of the reset arm that broke
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The trip part is able to be separated from the main speedo housing.
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And......it's apart. Going to take it to work and plastic weld it back together.

I tried the acetone softening the plastic thing. The black plastic is not effected by acetone at all. I thought about Gorilla Glue but don't think I can do it without the foaming getting on the white gear.

To be continued.......
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Super glue or plastic cement? Yes welding it might work better than any sort of glue. Pretty cool to jump into.


I've done three speedo replacements due to broken trip meters. It figures only now did I discover the trip portion separates from the main unit simply with two squeeze clips.
 
And replastic welded the retaining tabs onto the trip meter frame.
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Cause I broke all four off trying to get the broken reset mechanism apart.

I rolled through the miles slow to 40.0 and appears fine. Resets every time.


Below is what I used to do the welding.
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So, drove into Hershey to meet coworkers for Christmas dinner. Heard a whistling sound. Same on way home and my wife heard it too.

I looked and seen the PCV hose sucked flat. Move it around and reproduced noise. Replaced hose. The line was rubbery and soft like a sponge. Used stiff fuel line.

And yes the PCV flows when you suck on it. It's not clogged.
 
Got SiriusXM Onyx Plus for Toy. It's the one that's portable so I can move it between Jeep and Toy. Also got better speakers 6 1/2 for front and 5 1/4 for rear.
 
Started installing the replacement speakers for the Toy. Still waiting on the adapter plates for the 5 1/4 speakers for the rear doors.

Here is front.
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On shelf on if I'm going to replace theType 3 radio. Was looking at a Scion.
 
Started installing the replacement speakers for the Toy. Still waiting on the adapter plates for the 5 1/4 speakers for the rear doors.



You have a lot more patience then I do. I just screwed my speakers in the rear. 2 hold line up. The other I made my own hole.
 
Well in the end of 2014 I got a alignment. And caster (top ballpoint was behind lower) was negative. He couldn't get the rear adjuster to move on the lower control arm. So toe was set and walked away.

Then fast forward to this summer when I installed the Tundra Brake Upgrade I got from the Kenworth guy near Blue Ball and Intercourse Pa. While everything was apart I got the camber and caster adjusters moving and adjusted the the rear adjuster to move the top balljoint forward. It made it more stable but wanted to follow road groves and climb tire ruts. AKA it became Toe Out moving the rear adjuster of the A Arm. I was trying to wait till spring when I can crawl under the wrecked 96 (my sig) and pull the steering rack out to put in the 97. Well I and my wife noticed tire ware the same week and she kept hammering me about fixing it. (I'm worthless, cheep, non-caring, bla, bla, bla.......

Anyway I went to my fiends garage for the alignment. I got caster and camber perfect on passenger side. Drivers side I got the caster good but camber needed tweaked and toe was out like I expected.

Got all that set today. It was fun. I helped.
 
This past week my wife said she went to start it and nothing happened. Then tried again and it started. So I'm think ok the starter solenoid contacts are old and it's time........I bought a new Nippondenso starter from Napa to install through the wheel well. Figuring I'd rebuild the original as a spare.

She drove it the first day with the new starter and second time she tried to start it no start. Where she was at the guy told her to keep the key in start and he hit the starter with a pipe and it started as soon as he hit it. I asked her if she heard a klick from the solenoid and she said no. But her hearing sucks anyway.......it was a dumb question. So I removed it to return for a new one. It was much easier removing the replacement starter since I didn't have to fight with way overtightened bolts that didn't move in 19 years. I'll post a picture of the exact position the starter needs to be in to get it through the inner fender when I get the replacement and install it.

One thing I don't like is how the small starter solenoid wire clips in to the starter rather than a eyelet on a stud with a nut securing it to the starter. I question the connection, but can't prove it good or bad since I wasn't there when it wouldn't start to hear if the solenoid was clicking or not.......I did spray all the junk off it and inside got a good spray too incase the oil got inside.

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So here is a picture of the position the starter needs to be in to remove or install while going through the inner fender. I also moved the two cables out of the way by pulling the cable anchor off the metal stand off and pulling them down below the diff.
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