Is thermostat hard to replace?

[Atreyus]

I think mine is bad, it has been overheating only when the weather is hot. I just replaced the water pump and rad cap. Is it easy to replace? How much is does it cost and what other parts do I need? I have no leaks and hoses are good head gasket good also.

 

[athlon450]

Not hard at all. Drain radiator, remove bottom rad hose, remove the 3-12mm nuts, pop off the neck and install new Tstat and rubber gromet with the bypass port of the tstat @ 12 o'clock postion and install parts in reverse order!

 

[UARandy3]

I think mine is bad, it has been overheating only when the weather is hot. I just replaced the water pump and rad cap. Is it easy to replace? How much is does it cost and what other parts do I need? I have no leaks and hoses are good head gasket good also.

Agreed. Not hard at all. I had to replace mine on the return trip across the country from Pasadena to Alabama from the BCS National Championship game. I did it in an Autozone parking lot in Amarillo Texas, at night, in sub-freezing temperatures, with borrowed tools haha. Only a few bucks, a few bolts, and a few minutes later, we were back on the road. :driving:
Good luck!

 

[TheDurk]

The FSM (page CO-12) says the jiggle valve should be down, not up. Correct torque is 14 foot-lbs. I would torque these carefully. These are three of the bolts that hold your new water pump on and you want that seal to hold for the next 90k+ miles. Over-torquing these (or under-torquing) is not a good idea.

 

[cj80cruiser]

Agreed. Not hard at all. I had to replace mine on the return trip across the country from Pasadena to Alabama from the BCS National Championship game. I did it in an Autozone parking lot in Amarillo Texas, at night, in sub-freezing temperatures, with borrowed tools haha. Only a few bucks, a few bolts, and a few minutes later, we were back on the road. :driving:
Good luck!

So you went to the BCS national championship game with the initials UA in the beginning of your username? What are you some kinda Auburn/Alabama fan hybrid? lol...just kidding. I bet you were a Duck fan

 

[UARandy3]

So you went to the BCS national championship game with the initials UA in the beginning of your username? What are you some kinda Auburn/Alabama fan hybrid? lol...just kidding. I bet you were a Duck fan

No, no, no. You've got it all wrong. I went to LAST YEAR'S BCS championship in Pasadena haha. You know, the one where Alabama beat Texas. :boxer:
RTR

 

[cj80cruiser]

No, no, no. You've got it all wrong. I went to LAST YEAR'S BCS championship in Pasadena haha. You know, the one where Alabama beat Texas. :boxer:
RTR

Oh, :biggrin2: I missed that part. I'm an SEC fan no matter who they play.

Hijack over, um back to the thermostat.

 

[rjaudi]

The FSM (page CO-12) says the jiggle valve should be down, not up. Correct torque is 14 foot-lbs. I would torque these carefully. These are three of the bolts that hold your new water pump on and you want that seal to hold for the next 90k+ miles. Over-torquing these (or under-torquing) is not a good idea.

The valve goes at 12 o'clock. I used the FSM to do the timing belt/ water pump.

 

[Atreyus]

Thanks a lot guys will be tackling this tomorrow morning. One more thing, once installed do I run the truck for awhile after I pour in the coolant? And also could i reuse the coolant I drain or is that not a good idea.

 

[cj80cruiser]

I read what The Durk posted


http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL/techinfo.toyota.com/ileaf/02toyrm/02toypdf/02rmsour/2002/024runne/co5vzfe/ther/remo.pdf

and install

http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL/techinfo.toyota.com/ileaf/02toyrm/02toypdf/02rmsour/2002/024runne/co5vzfe/ther/inst.pdf

 

[MAD 69]

I picked up a Thermostat from the Yota dealership for $21 and the gasket was $7.

 

[TheDurk]

I read what The Durk posted


http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL/techinfo.toyota.com/ileaf/02toyrm/02toypdf/02rmsour/2002/024runne/co5vzfe/ther/remo.pdf

and install

http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL/techinfo.toyota.com/ileaf/02toyrm/02toypdf/02rmsour/2002/024runne/co5vzfe/ther/inst.pdf

Thanks for the support. Now how do you cut and paste the individual pages out of a chapter? I can't seem to figure out how to do that out of a larger .pdf. Thanks.

MAD 69--Yes, you can reuse the coolant if you catch it in a clean container. I usually run the front wheels up a curb (that I have close to my garage) and let the engine warm until the thermostat opens. Then I keep adding as necessary while the system burps, until it doesn't seem to want to burp anymore. Check the reservoir after the first drive.

 

[rjaudi]

TheDURK is right it goes at 6 o'clock. When I first started working on my 4runner I had a Haynes manual which states 12 o'clock. My current FSM says 6.

When you empty the coolant only open the valve at the radiator a few turns, do not remove the plug and it will flow easily into a bucket.

 

[Atreyus]

So I installed the Thermostat today, everything is up and running again, thanks everyone for the help and insight!

 

[TN22Corps]

Sorry to jack... where can I download the FSM? The links under the reference and tutorial sticky don't work.

 

[Mr. Leary]

So I installed the Thermostat today, everything is up and running again, thanks everyone for the help and insight!

Thats good to hear. I was about to peg it as an airflow problem and tell you to look into electric fans. The other thing is that Toyotas just run hot. My truck routinely gets up to 209 since I put in the new thermostat.

 

[MAD 69]

Thats good to hear. I was about to peg it as an airflow problem and tell you to look into electric fans. The other thing is that Toyotas just run hot. My truck routinely gets up to 209 since I put in the new thermostat.

Which thermostat did you put in the 170 or 180 degree? My gauge reads that I am getting up to 208 degrees and I think it's too hot(this is with the lever turned all the way to the hot position) I sometimes blast the heater to get it back to 203 degrees. I can only imagine what it will read when I have to use the air conditioning. I thought anything over 212 degrees is dangerous since that is the temp water boils. I picked up a new thermostat from Toyota - I guess that it's a 180 degree stat?

 

[MAD 69]

Sorry to jack... where can I download the FSM? The links under the reference and tutorial sticky don't work.

www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL/fsm/repair.HTML

 

[Atreyus]

Which thermostat did you put in the 170 or 180 degree? My gauge reads that I am getting up to 208 degrees and I think it's too hot(this is with the lever turned all the way to the hot position) I sometimes blast the heater to get it back to 203 degrees. I can only imagine what it will read when I have to use the air conditioning. I thought anything over 212 degrees is dangerous since that is the temp water boils. I picked up a new thermostat from Toyota - I guess that it's a 180 degree stat?

I got the 180 t stat, choose to get one from O'Riley Auto Parts for $11 for the time being, going to doing all OEM parts when I do the Timing belt at 180k, I'm at 163k now so hopefully it holds up lol.

 

[TheDurk]

Which thermostat did you put in the 170 or 180 degree? My gauge reads that I am getting up to 208 degrees and I think it's too hot(this is with the lever turned all the way to the hot position) I sometimes blast the heater to get it back to 203 degrees. I can only imagine what it will read when I have to use the air conditioning. I thought anything over 212 degrees is dangerous since that is the temp water boils. I picked up a new thermostat from Toyota - I guess that it's a 180 degree stat?

Relax. 50/50 Coolant/Water mix boils at 225°F. But put a pressure cap on the system and that goes up to about 260°F. That said, I don't believe 4Runners usually run hot. My temp gauge stays slightly under half in normal driving. The only time it got above two-thirds was a 90°F day in traffic with a bum fan clutch. Swapping the clutch fixed that. If your problem is in traffic and not at speed, check your fan clutch.