The 3rd Gen All Questions Allowed Thread

[antlerbanger]

2001 4runner fuel tank

A port on my fuel tank is broken off flush with the tank. Does anyone know what this port is used for and if I can just plug it and reinstall the tank. See photo with arrow showing the port that is broken off on my tank. Note: The photo is not mine but shows the port I'm concerned with.

 

[gh25_]

Well if you're young and on a limited budget you probably shouldn't be replacing parts for the hell of it and opening yourself up to a can of worms, especially without any prior research. Just a bit of advice... Take it from someone who had a knock sensor gremlin and spent maybe $1000 trying to chase it. It is far from a cheap job to do over and over again
Boxes don't matter. Anybody can pay a few bucks to have counterfeit packaging produced or find shady dealership employees selling excess stock online. That's why you never buy "genuine" parts off ebay
Toyota used two different sensors. Matsushiita and Denso brand. Best case scenario you've bought Matsus and if your car had Densos from the factory, you're VERY likely to start throwing codes now. Toyota originally used Matsus then later switched due to poor quality
The long and skinny of it is knock sensor circuit is very sensitive to the waveform they put out, and Matsus put out a wave that is ALLLL over the place and extremely messy, even when brand new. Denso has a much, MUCH more consistent wave that is almost identical every time and exactly what the ECU wants to see - if the ECU isn't receiving a near perfect signal it assumes the sensors are faulty. An example of this waveform is somewhere in the FSM and you can check it by hooking up the sensors to a cheap oscilloscope
If your car came with Matsus you can use either or, but not the other way around. If you had Densos, you will almost certainly need Denso sensors. If I remember right they have varying part numbers, I'd have to go back and check my KS thread to see. Like you said, Densos are stubbier, have branding on them and are different colored
Be careful not to pinch your knock sensor harness between the manifolds, or else you'll be doing it all over again, which is VERY easy to do since Toyota didn't allocate a lick of room for it. Again, ask me how I know... I did it twice :frusty:

It is hard to tell which knock sensors my truck had on them but they don't say Denso anywhere so I'm almost positive they aren't. Since I had to take my whole intake off down to the heads to get the coolant leak I just thought might as well replace the knock sensors and harness while I'm there, they are right there.
I am only replacing a few parts and the ones I am replacing I used Timmy the toolman's videos as a guide.
Since ebay is has good return policy I ended up just returning the fake ones today. I dropped them off at USPS earlier today and I already have my refund! I just bit the bullet and put a order in yesterday for two OEM Denso ones at my local Toyota dealership. Can't go wrong with OEM. What do you mean by can of worms though, I mean if I am replacing both sensors and putting a brand new harness I don't really understand what would happen, I mean if anything it should be happier right? :biggrin1:. I know knock sensors can be finicky. I guess we'll just see what happens. I suspect everything will be okay haha. Thanks for all the info though, didn't know the Mats sensors were bad. I was planning on getting Denso ones from the start anyways. Ill remember to be careful to not pinch the knock sensor harness.

 

[ea0127]

Hey there.
There are only a few ball joints on the front of a 3rd gen. Your Lower ball joint, upper ball joint, and tie rod. Lower Ball joints are the real important one that fails and have failed on too many peoples rigs to count. I don't think the upper ball joint is at necessary since the upper control arm sees much less load than the lower. Doing your upper ball joint isn't a bad idea but the lower ball joint is one you have to do, unless your cruising for a bruising.

I just did both of my lower ball joints L/R recently as it was one of the first things I have done since I bought my truck. There is only a few parts you will be replacing if you so choose along with your LBJ's. The castle nut that is underneath the LBJ you will be replacing and you should also replace your tie rod castle nut if you choose. Another part I would recommend you replace too are the four 14mm bolts that screw the LBJ into the hub itself. As for the control arms, which one do you mean? There is a lower and upper. Usually you do your upper control arm for better performance and not really for maintenance sake. You can replace your full lower control arm but that is a lot more involved than just replacing the lower ball joints. When I did mine I accidently mushroomed the threads on my tie rod so I ended up getting L/R tie rods too which I could recommend if they have never bee replaced. I believe OEM tie rods are only about 65 bucks? Honestly it's up to how through you want to be. Just replacing your lower ball joints and tie rods is a good place to start, and you'll be good for a long while. In the future you can also replace your upper ball joint but replacing it requires a press to get the old one out and the new one in, the LBJ and tie rods are much easier and use regular tools to replace them. I am not sure how you plan to build your truck or if you go off-roading but if your going to get bigger tires and a lift you can think about knocking out two birds with one stone if you get aftermarket upper control arms (for off roading and stuff). That is what I plan on doing since I haven't replaced mine yet. I'll have the upgraded UCA's with a fresh upper ball joint in it.

For the lower ball joints I think everyone who will talk to you will tell you to buy OEM. Aftermarket brands have been known to fail again pre maturely. OEM is not really that expensive so I think it's worth the piece of mind, unless you want to replace them every oil change lol. For the lower ball joints I got the "recall" kit from Toyota which is supposedly supposed to be beefier / remedy the issue of them failing catastrophically.
Here are all the Toyota part numbers you'll need for the stuff:

Lower ball joint Left & Right kit #04005-02235

LBJ Castle nut (need 2) #90171-A0005

14MM flanged bolt (need 8) #90080-10066

Driver side (Left) Outer tie rod #45047-39215

Passenger side (right) Outer tie rod #45046-39335

Tie rod castle nuts (need 2) (tie rods might come with them but I wouldn't trust they would) #90171-14042

The only thing I am missing are replacement cotter pins for the castle nuts but you could probably go to any hardware store by you and find some 1/8th" cotter pins.

Hope this helped.

Thank you so much! That’s what I needed to know, I really appreciate it.

 

[prybar]

I could use some help diagnosing a very high idle. It idles around 1800-1900 in park, and 1000 in gear.

For background, I just replaced lots of components all at once - new TPS, new fuel injectors, all new air/fuel hoses. I also cleaned the IAC (gently), disassembled all the throttle linkages and cables, etc. So lots of opportunities for potential screwups.

The truck seems to run well, although it's showing about 12 mpg around town, compared to 16 mpg before the work.

I took some screenshots of my Torque app, but not sure if it points me to anything. Is there anything here of concern, or should I check some other readings?

Also, any chance that it's just a matter of the ECU "learning" how to operate with all the new components?

Here are the readings in Park:

Here is what I'm seeing in gear:

Thanks in advance!

I would give your throttle cable tension a look. If you over tighten it, your throttle will remain open at idle and produce higher RPMs. You likely already checked this out, but just a thought.

 

[head_always_up]

Everybody always looking for the cheaper solution. I learned from experience, just buy the one that is available in a reasonable amount of time and reasonably cheap, and get the job done. Don't fret over 30-50 bucks.

But when it matters, pay more. Don't fight to find a cheaper price. Like ball joints, pay more.

Most of the time you will be okay spending a little more to just get the job done reliably. You are wasting time searching the internet for cheaper prices, or waiting forever for shipping.

 

[toy0da]

My power steering fluid is disappearing but I'm not seeing any leaks?

Also, not sure if related or not but once I was told that my steering shaft bushings(?) were cracked. At another inspection, I was told that there was no problem there.

 

[gh25_]

Water outlet nut Torque spec (5VZ-FE)

Hi guys,

I need to know a torque spec if anyone can help out. As I was going to put the intake manifold back onto my engine I decided to get a new gasket for the water outlet pipe since the old one looked rough from the outside. So I got a new one and put it on and started tightening it down to the spec and.... all the sudden my tightening became frightening... the nut on the stud I was tightening on sheared in half. Not sure if it was mechanical error on my part but I saw somewhere on a forum that the torque for those three nuts was 14 ft lb, in hindsight I think that is far too much torque for a 10 mm nut on a 6mm stud, and that torque spec is incorrect. It is the 5vz-fe water outlet pipe the one your upper water hose connects from the intake manifold to the radiator. It has three studs and you use three flanged nuts to tighten down the outlet piece to the manifold. I ordered three new studs and I am going to put them in but I'd like to know what the spec is so I don't blow another stud lol when I am tightening it down again. I've tried to search around for it but haven't had any luck. Thanks.

Here's a link to the pictures:

Album — Postimages

- GH

 

[3ToyGuy]

According to the FSM I have, 14 Ft/Lbs is the correct torque on the thermostat cover's bolts.

 

[toverturf]

Hi guys,

I need to know a torque spec if anyone can help out. As I was going to put the intake manifold back onto my engine I decided to get a new gasket for the water outlet pipe since the old one looked rough from the outside. So I got a new one and put it on and started tightening it down to the spec and.... all the sudden my tightening became frightening... the nut on the stud I was tightening on sheared in half. Not sure if it was mechanical error on my part but I saw somewhere on a forum that the torque for those three nuts was 14 ft lb, in hindsight I think that is far too much torque for a 10 mm nut on a 6mm stud, and that torque spec is incorrect. It is the 5vz-fe water outlet pipe the one your upper water hose connects from the intake manifold to the radiator. It has three studs and you use three flanged nuts to tighten down the outlet piece to the manifold. I ordered three new studs and I am going to put them in but I'd like to know what the spec is so I don't blow another stud lol when I am tightening it down again. I've tried to search around for it but haven't had any luck. Thanks.

Here's a link to the pictures:

Album — Postimages

- GH

I'm not finding a torque spec for those in the service manual. I'd just tighten them until comfortable.

 

[Spiker Engineering]

I would give your throttle cable tension a look. If you over tighten it, your throttle will remain open at idle and produce higher RPMs. You likely already checked this out, but just a thought.

Thanks - it ended up being a bad IAC - SOLVED: High idle, increases with coolant temp - IAC?

 

[TheDurk]

Hi guys,

I need to know a torque spec if anyone can help out. As I was going to put the intake manifold back onto my engine I decided to get a new gasket for the water outlet pipe since the old one looked rough from the outside. So I got a new one and put it on and started tightening it down to the spec and.... all the sudden my tightening became frightening... the nut on the stud I was tightening on sheared in half. Not sure if it was mechanical error on my part but I saw somewhere on a forum that the torque for those three nuts was 14 ft lb, in hindsight I think that is far too much torque for a 10 mm nut on a 6mm stud, and that torque spec is incorrect. It is the 5vz-fe water outlet pipe the one your upper water hose connects from the intake manifold to the radiator. It has three studs and you use three flanged nuts to tighten down the outlet piece to the manifold. I ordered three new studs and I am going to put them in but I'd like to know what the spec is so I don't blow another stud lol when I am tightening it down again. I've tried to search around for it but haven't had any luck. Thanks.

Here's a link to the pictures:

Album — Postimages

- GH

Go by feel. I sheared off the stud on one of those going for 14ft-lbs. It is clearly too much. For the record, I have gone almost 100k just leaving it as is. No leaks, and the stud and nut are in the parts drawer waiting for the next time I go in there, which will be soon, as it is time for timing belt #3. Thanks for confirming my belief that spec is wrong.

If you look at the standard torque for BOLTS, the highest grade M6 is only 9 ft-lbs. I doubt these are the highest grade, and nuts have less thread engagement so the torque is probably even less. I bet the right number is between 5 and 7, but it's just a guess.

https://www.teamtoyota4x4.org/archivio/1996%20to%202002%20Toyota%204Runner%20Repair%20and%20Wiring%20Manuals/techinfo.toyota.com/ileaf/02toyrm/02toypdf/02rmsour/2002/024runne/ss/stabol/stfsb.pdf

 

[TheDurk]

So do you know if there is anyways I can still get my halo lights to work if I can’t tap both unit to my corner lgihts without them causing a blown 10 every time


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah. Install a relay. use the corner light tap as a trigger and supply main power from some more robust source. Don't uprate that fuse. Relays are cheap.

 

[Toyota4r1999]

Help!!

So I have a 99 4Runner 2wd just put in 4x4 struts 2 inch leveling spacer and spc uppers. I took it to get aligned and they didn’t move my cam bolts much and my tires are still pointing outwards. What do I need to tell the shop to do to fix this. They didn’t give me a print out of my alignment so I can’t tell what they actually did. Could I move all 4 cam bolts to get my camber straight?

 

[Toyota4r1999]

Help!

So I have a 99 4Runner 2wd

I just recently put 4x4 struts a 2 inch leveling spacer and spc uca.

I took it to get aligned and the shop barely moved my camber bolts.

My tires are still pointing outwards and wearing on the outside.

What should I tell them to do or can I move all 4 camber bolts to get my camber back?

 

[JoeT4R]

Went to program my key fob today since I had to install a new battery. The door locks cycled themselves just fine, but the fob isn't programming/responding. Is it possible/likely that my fob gave up the ghost finally?

I'm hoping that it hasn't but I can live without it. It's just nice to have. Any thoughts you'd like to share?

Sent from my SM-T220 using Tapatalk

 

[Devbot]

Are there seriously no alternator replacements for under $250? OEM is upwards of $300, and it's damn near impossible to find anything besides OEM that isn't some high output alt I have no need for, except for remanufactured no-names from Autozone. :wtf:

 

[JoeT4R]

Are there seriously no alternator replacements for under $250? OEM is upwards of $300, and it's damn near impossible to find anything besides OEM that isn't some high output alt I have no need for, except for remanufactured no-names from Autozone. :wtf:

Mira aqui, amigo: More Information for DENSO 2100434

 

[prybar]

So I have a 99 4Runner 2wd

I just recently put 4x4 struts a 2 inch leveling spacer and spc uca.

I took it to get aligned and the shop barely moved my camber bolts.

My tires are still pointing outwards and wearing on the outside.

What should I tell them to do or can I move all 4 camber bolts to get my camber back?

Did the shop give you a printout of your alignment? If it's not within spec on the sheet (or even if it is), go back to the shop and have them redo it. This happened to me on an alignment a few years ago, I guess they didn't tighten the bolts after they were finished. One thing to consider is that (at least in my area) shops don't want to align lifted trucks and can have a hard time doing so and getting it to be in spec. It might be worth it to look for a shop that does lifted trucks, as they'd likely have more experience with your situation.

 

[Toyota4r1999]

I took it back with my stock tires and they got it closer they don’t do print outs. I have a set of 33s I’m putting back on it and there like $2500 and think it will take some time for me to notice.

 

[Endlessblockades]

I took it back with my stock tires and they got it closer they don’t do print outs. I have a set of 33s I’m putting back on it and there like $2500 and think it will take some time for me to notice.

If they don't do printouts they aren't using a real alignment machine or the tech doesn't know how to use it. I've never NOT had a before/after data sheet and wouldn't pay for someone's eyeball job.

Edit - that sounds a bit harsh but c'mon shop