Ladywolf's cleanup/buildup thread

[ladywolf]

Haven't given him a name yet......it will come with time.

Got him home yesterday. Cruised home on the freeway avoiding the idiots doing 75 with the AC on and the pitiful stock radio listening to music the whole way.

Picked up some cleaning stuff, and started into him earlier this morning.

First step: no free advertising for Apple, even though I'm an avid user!

IMG_1483 by Kristen Jensen, on Flickr

Gone!!

IMG_1486 by Kristen Jensen, on Flickr

Worked on cleaning most of the rest of the windows, and got sticky residue off them. Stopped before it got too hot, because my glass cleaner was just evaporating off before it could do any good, and my garage is being occupied by a GTI project I never should have taken on.

Started pulling the rear hatch apart, to see if my rear lock cylinder was actually missing, and I noticed that there was evidence of scratching on one portion of the rear glass. What I found:

IMG_1484 by Kristen Jensen, on Flickr

My rear lock cylinder is there, but the little plastic tabs that hold it to the outer surround are busted. Junkyarding/ebay we go.

Secondly, there was a bracket behind the window motor that was not attached on one side:

IMG_1485 by Kristen Jensen, on Flickr

Got out the long wobble extension and the step ladder (so i could actually see and find the appropriate hole) and reinstalled.

Put the inner stuff back together. Leaving the plastic off for now til I can find that surround piece.

 

[Killer Squirrel]

My rear lock cylinder is there, but the little plastic tabs that hold it to the outer surround are busted. Junkyarding/ebay we go.

Same thing happened on mine. If you are not concerned with using the key for rolling down/up the rear window, you can just pop a plug in there - I found some plastic ones at my local hardware store that fit perfectly (and were black). I also wet-sanded and painted my surround with krylon fusion paint instead of buying a salvage yard one. I plan to use the wires from the lock cylinder to power a switch I am going to mount on the inside of the rear hatch for rolling up/down the rear window from the inside (for camping). Just throwing that out there.

 

[ladywolf]

Trip to the Junkyard was a success.

Got my missing 4runner badge, picked up a good set of struts for the liftgate, and the surround for the lock cylinder. Plus I acquired a bunch of those 10mm bolts and some of those red upholstery pin things. Total cost including entry fee for myself and the cohort: 17 bucks and change.

I even have a reason to wear my Toyota hat again that I've had since 2009!!

 

[ladywolf]

Started in on replacing parts tonite. Did my tailgate struts first.

My tailgate support while I did each side. Figured out a 6' fiberglass ladder and some leftover pieces of decking were the perfect height. My assistant also did not whine, moan, or complain at the length of time, or the adult beverage break I decided to take midway through.

had to take the requisite halfway done photo.

End result: no squeaking out of the rear hatch struts. goes up nice now!

 

[Hepar]

Post some pics of the whole rig!

 

[ladywolf]

First item showed up today. It may be small, but its the little things that count sometimes. Got new headrests for the rear seats, as mine were non-existent when I picked it up.

 

[ladywolf]

Well......today was interesting, to say the least.

my super-cool, clean headrests for the back AREN'T the right color....oh well! adds character! at least they are clean!

Went and picked up the missing knob for the fan control lever.

I think I should have ordered two!!!!

Came home and started tearing apart that back garnish/trim piece that goes around the license plate that holds the key switch for the window.

My retarded blonde self forgot to install the latch on the inside and closed the hatch to test operation.......then proceeded to have to sit INSIDE the cargo area...pull the metal cover back off, and install the interior latch portion.

Toyota service manual says to pull the rear window and regulator....NAH! Not if you got small enough hands and arms and a decent amount of flexibility!

Finally managed to get it all back together again after an hour (or two) of work. Ended up having to make a run to the parts store for those little push-in body clip gizmos. One corner doesnt quite fit flush.....not sure if I did something wrong or if a clip isnt seated correctly into the back of the garnish.

Had to go help chase a cow/calf pair this afternoon. Had to take a pic of him pulled up to the shop.

 

[wtmtnrunner]

looks good

Nice to see older trucks still around... :thumb3:

 

[habanero]

Nice work so far and who needs matching seat parts (not me!)? Looking forward to more. :thumb3:

 

[ladywolf]

Nice work so far and who needs matching seat parts (not me!)? Looking forward to more. :thumb3:

I'll probably end up cleaning everything as good as I can and then at some point put a good set of tight fitting seat covers on everything, as I have furry kids.

 

[Mark_BC]

Impressive you did the license plate bezel in an hour, it took me a month

 

[ladywolf]

Impressive you did the license plate bezel in an hour, it took me a month

This is going to be my new DD and all around truck, so I'm wanting to keep on top of things. Luckily enough my first trip to the junkyard yielded what I needed to fix it.

I was stoked that the key for the up/down for the window worked once I got everything put back together!

 

[ladywolf]

did a couple very minor things today:

I hate free advertising unless I decide it needs to be there:

Goodbye!!! Took most of it off with a hair dryer and my finger, then finished the job with some goo gone, then finished cleaning any residue with windex.

I also added free advertising.

 

[ladywolf]

Couple of minor updates. Got in some OEM keys and had them cut. Neither the key I had nor the new keys will work to lock the doors, but it will work to lock the hatch, the glovebox, and obviously turn the truck on and off.

Got in my remotes today from keyless king, and I cannot get the truck to go into programming mode. I tried and re-tried. I am wondering if this is because of the lock cylinders?

I did some searching and it from what I've found i've got got the securikey+ system (little red blinking light next to the steering wheel. Does this affect programming the remote? Or is it a totally different remote?

 

[ladywolf]

My maintenance parts list has exploded.

Have a valve cover leak. Parts kit for that included lower intake manifold gaskets.....200ish bucks (camelback toyota)

Its almost time for the water pump and timing belt....kit for that from aircabnman on ebay....280 bucks.

in my attempt to diagnose my leak yesterday found a broken steering stabilizer link. those flipping things are 80 bucks a piece. If one is busted, I'm gonna replace them both as a precautionary measure.

I've got lower ball joints sitting at the dealership already. As soon as I get cash, picking up the LBJ's and the valve cover kit. I'll buy the water pump and timing belt kit on the first of the month.

 

[habanero]

That's a lot of stuff to do. Add the small i.d. coolant hoses- at the least the ones along the left side of the block for the oil cooler (if it has one) unless they are good to go. Those will be a lot easier to get to with some of that stuff out of the way.

 

[tarsun]

you are pretty much doing what i did when i got my 4runner a little over a year ago.
valve cover gaskets are not bad at all to do.

just make sure you put a drop of rtv on the corners so you dont have to do it twice like me lol.

t-belt took some time but nothing was really hard about it. Just took time.

look into the t-stat an the jiggle valve position. i put mine in upside down...

good luck with the new rig.

 

[ladywolf]

you are pretty much doing what i did when i got my 4runner a little over a year ago.
valve cover gaskets are not bad at all to do.

just make sure you put a drop of rtv on the corners so you dont have to do it twice like me lol.

t-belt took some time but nothing was really hard about it. Just took time.

look into the t-stat an the jiggle valve position. i put mine in upside down...

good luck with the new rig.

My neighbor around the corner runs his own auto repair business, so he will help me and cut me a deal on labor vs taking it to a shop (plus he's got all the tools)

I'm going to buy a set of MOOG sway bar link ends from rockauto. A couple of months in savings and I plan on buying the BOSS Toytec suspension lift kit. 48 bucks vs....160 bucks to hold me over for a couple months.

I also need to buy weatherstripping for the drivers side door and more than likely a new body ECU. the joys of a 18 year old vehicle!!!!

 

[ladywolf]

Ordered MOOG swaybar links today. Should be here tuesday. IF.....they arrive in time, thanks to the mess created by the eclipse.

stuff is getting stupid already between here and Hopkinsville KY. If I didn't have to work out at the APSU Education Environmental Center that day, I'd be a hermit and stay home that day.

 

[ladywolf]

The MOOG sway bar links got here Friday. I installed them today. I ended up having to leave the shop at the farm halfway through the install on the first side.

Drove it home. The sway bar link is trapped under the CV axle, and it ripped the boot and pulled the bottom clamp off.

Had to call my neighbor to help me get it out from under the axle shaft. Finished the install with relatively no issues.

What a pain day. Felt like absolutely nothing went right.

Now I've gotta add a CV boot repair to my list of things to do.