maachine

you gotta learn these lessons sometime. it's happened to all of us at some point. dont sweat it. at least you'll know how to take apart this engine with your eyes closed

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

First, I want to thank maachine, HighLux, J2F42C, and others that have commented here. I really appreciate the technical advice and words of encouragement. Thank you all for your comments along the way!

Update Time:

So, after coming to terms with the bolt fiasco, we pulled it back out, dropped the oil pan, and there was the bolt, sitting right on top of the baffle, sticking out. We got it all back together and without too much trouble, got the trans bolts and motor mount bolts back in. We had some trouble initially, I guess the torque converter slid out a little bit when we pulled the motor out. With that back in place, it went in fairly easily.

After lots of connecting and wrenching, the moment of truth was upon us. It took about a minute and a few tries, but she fired right up and ran okay!

I say okay, because it was idling at about 1700 rpms and the temperature gauge wouldn't read anything. When we upped the RPMs after it got warm, the oil pressure light wanted to fade on, very dimly. We checked all connections, found loose temperature sender connection, and that fixed the non-reading temp. gauge.

After about thirty minutes of messing with different things, turning on and off the engine, we figured the IAC valve must have been fouled when the hoses were swapped originally. We switched out the throttle body from the Case motor with mine, and voila, the high idle and oil pressure light are gone!

My buddy was thinking that with the continuous high idle, and temperature sender not functioning at first, the oil was getting too hot and thinned out, and when we upped the RPMs a little, the oil thinned enough to lower the pressure and the light faded on a little. Each time the light came on, we immediately killed the engine and waited for it to cool down.

Here's how she sat, when we got her all back together:




I took it out to my sister's birthday dinner last night, and all was well. Thus far (fingers crossed) there haven't been any major issues.

Here's how she sits today, restored to her former glory, after a trip to the car wash:




So, we'll see how things go from here, but I'm pretty excited at this point. She's got a heart with over 90,000 less miles than the last, and all new timing belt components, seals, gaskets, etc. My 4Runner has been with me through some pretty big ups and downs over the last 10 years, and hopefully, will continue to last now through many more. Many thanks to all you good folks of YT for your support and comments throughout!


All of that said, I do have a question for you gurus out there:

The fan pulleys look like they are a little out of alignment at idle speed. There's what seems like a slight, very slight misalignment. The bolts are tight, we re-checked them. At any higher RPM, the fan pulleys seem to line up perfectly and any perceived misalignment is gone. My obvious first thoughts were either unsecure/unbalanced/bent pulleys, but I'm not sure on this. Any thoughts about this?

Now, I can get back to the interior and the little details! And, of course, I've got a boatload of parts to get rid of now, so I'm off to the YT classifieds.

Random part numbers for reference:

Valve Cover Gaskets: 11213-62020
Plenum Gaskets: 17176-62040
Oil Pan FIPG: 00295-00103
Oil Cooler O-Ring (goes under cooler against block): 90301-67004
Oil Coooler Washer (goes under bolt on top of cooler): 90210-22001
Grille Clips that always break: 90467-12040

rworegon

Nice that your baby is back on the road again.

J2F42C

That is good news for sure. Drive it another ten years, or at least until the grad school work pays off in $$$.

Is that another 4runner I spy in the road?

Possibly the fan bracket is bent or the pulleys are a little warped? Take a video if you can and post it, or a pic or two.

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

Thanks man, I'm pumped, for sure! Yeah, I'm working on building a small business now, and job-hunting also. Hopefully the former won't interfere with the latter.

I'll get a video of the fan posted up here soon, probably tomorrow. I've got two more fan pulley brackets and another set of pulleys, so no big deal if any of them are broken/damaged.

And, yessir, that is indeed another 4Runner. That's my sister's black 1999 4Runner parked outside her house. She's got the garage, and she's been nice enough to give it up for the last month so that I could do this swap.

We are a Toyota family, through and through. I was able to get a shot of the family of 4Runners a couple of years ago at Christmas. To date, they're all still running smoothly!

maachine

nice! glad to hear its done. i was thinking warped pulley too. does it wobble?

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for your comments along the way man! She drives pretty smoothly too!

Here's a video of the pulleys, you can probably see it best around the 40-second mark. Sorry for the crappy video, this is the first video I've ever taken and uploaded to YouTube.

maachine

what is that pulley connected to? is that the belt i hear squeaking? cause if it isnt squeaking, i wouldnt worry about it. although it might squeak later down the road.

maachine

and no problem with the comments. i dont have a life so i try to help people out on forums. what i'm here for. i am a well of knowledge, drink deep. hahaha

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

Haha, well thanks for stopping by here. I'm a bourbon collector myself, so I can relate, haha.

Those pulleys are attached to the fan clutch/fan pulley bracket. There's two pulleys that sit on top of that bracket, and then the fan bolts on to hold them on. Here's a shot of the couple of the same brackets that I have left over after the swap.



I'm not really sure what that is squeaking. It may be the same pulleys causing the squeak. I was hoping that the new, tight belts would maybe relax and squeaking would go away. I guess there's a possibility that it could be the timing belt squeaking, I'm not too sure how I'd tell what it is.

rworegon

I've never had a new TB squeak.....but, it could be possible.

I'm more inclined to think it's the the fan pulley bracket bearing or maybe the AC tensioner pulley bearing.

J2F42C

Is the wobble more pronounced from the left side than the right? I was going to suggest possibly looking at the AC idler bracket for the squeal.

If I were in your shoes, I remove one drive belt at a time (start with the AC) and see if that makes a difference in both the squeak and wobble.

If you need parts, LKQ on Rivers has two 4unners (97 and 98) that have some decent donor parts (my brother's good friend scarfed a brake booster for his kid's 4runner today). FYI.

maachine

if you eliminate one belt at a time like mentioned, you can also find out if it's the belt squeaking or the bearing. if you remove a belt and the squeaking stops, then you have a misalignment going on that is causing the belt to make noise.

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

@J2F42C: Thanks for the heads up! I went out to LKQ this afternoon. I'm up in Goose Creek, so it's only about 7 or 8 miles from me. I picked some interior knobs, but nothing too good looking that I had to have it from the motors there.

The squeaking went away for a while today, and then came back later on. Also, the wobbling seems to have been slightly worse when I checked it this afternoon. I didn't take off the belts and try after each one, but I just went ahead and swapped the fan pulleys with those from the crappy Case motor that I kept. They were kinda rusty, but in good shape structurally. After that, all seems well. There's no more squeak, and the pulleys appear to be moving smoothly, with very little misalignment, if any.

Here's an updated video, after the swap of the pulleys:


So, I guess (fingers crossed) this completes the motor swap issues. The pulleys that came from my motor must have gotten warped somehow. Maybe they got stepped on or something fell on them during the swap. I'm not sure how else they'd warp, but whatever. I'll keep an eye on her, but so far, all is well!

I got some new headlight bulbs, license plate bulbs, and wiper blades today. Also did a Seafoam treatment, and ordered a new antenna mast (broken on last trip down the trail) and dash bezel (mine's got some broken clips on the back). I'll likely add some Seafoam to the oil here soon and do a change, since I'm now approaching 500 miles on swapped motor. I'm going to paint the rims soon, and look into some new tires. And the saga continues...!

Here's to hoping she lives forever! Thanks for the comments all you fine folks of YT!

J2F42C

It is the first time I have seen pulleys bend or warp like that, but there is a first for everything. Now it looks to be smooth as silk, or close to it.

My brother's friend picked me up some of the liftgate shocks while at LKQ there. Here in VA at the pick and pulls most 4runners are picked apart like a buzzard tears through a carcass before they ever end up in the yard. I think Blue and Gold has some 4runners there on Howe Hall Rd. in GC, but Dan and Adam are expensive, and they pull your parts for ya.

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, I held up the pulleys I took off and spun them around in the light to try to see the warp. At times it seemed like I could see it, others, they'd appear to be in line. Maybe the belts were off or one of the tensioner pulleys was off, and in doing the reinstall of the fan pulleys those were corrected. Whatever the error, as you said, it appears to be runnin' slicker than snot on a doorknob, so I'm happy.

Ooh, I didn't even think to snag some new liftgate shocks. Mine aren't terrible, but they do the classic half-raise until I push the back door up. I'll have to keep an eye out here next time I'm over that way.

That's interesting. I've only seen 4Runners at LKQ a couple of times. I'm rarely looking for major components, and most of what I'd get (interior panels, seats, knobs, trim, lights) are taken or badly damaged. It really irks me when someone destroys something useful to get at one little part. That said, usually the engine compartment and suspension components are in fairly good shape. Hopefully I won't need any major stuff for a long time!

I've never been to Blue and Gold (only lived in GC for a few months now), but I'm not sure I love the idea of having someone else pull the stuff and get a big upcharge for it. I'd rather go at it myself. It's too much fun walking around the yard, imagining what I could do with some horns from that car, a smart rearview mirror from that car, etc.

Did you used to live around this way? Seems like you're pretty familiar with the area for just having some family down here.

Thanks for the info!

J2F42C

It is a long list of folks I know down there, but I did go to the College of Charleston, picked up three degrees, and then went to USC for Business School. My good friend's father is friends with the people who co-own Blue and Gold. Both of those families have lake houses on Lake Moultrie in and around Bonneau. B&G has good parts (they pull the good stuff before it sits in the rain, etc.), but as you mentioned, it isn't a pick-and-pull. I would not hesitate though to call them if you need a part. I cannot remember even if they do offer a cash price.

Enjoy the newer engine for the new year. No more putting coolant in places it does not belong.

HighLux

I would imagine if the motor came from a wreck...which Im sure of..no one junks a running car...a shot in the front end
would easily bend or wapr a pulley.

maachine

if you didnt obviously see something weird with the pulley it was probably the bearing. nice work sir

98SR54RUNNER

iTrader: (1)

Ahh, I see. I went Carolina myself for undergrad. Small world, as it always seems to be. If you're ever down this way and want to stop in and talk Toyota/drink some awesome bourbon, let me know!

I'll keep that in mind about B&G. First time I had heard of them was from car-part.com. I'm glad to know they're so close by and reliable.

And thanks! Yeah, I've learned some tough lessons along the way. I'd gotten a little too comfortable with taking things apart and figuring them out as I went. From now on, I'm going with strictly FSM/labels/mechanic buddy.

I really think I might try to learn on and rebuild my old motor sitting in the garage. I hate to just get scrap value for it, and I'd love to learn more and have another project.

After we rebuilt the 4L60E and did the 5VZFE motor swap, my buddy and I are itching for another project. He has a Honda Accord and his '94 LT1. After this swap, he's been talking about selling his Honda, and how he "needs something with more room", but "the only SUV he trusts is a 4Runner". He's totally got the bug now and has been on Craigslist looking for some mechanic's specials 4Runners. I caught him on YT the other day, reading about supercharging the 4Runner, haha. So, we'll see, but we may just have another 4Runner project in the works!


Yeah, it's funny you should say that. I didn't replace the fan clutch. Although, after another look at it today, I just might need to do so. There's a slight wobble again, so I'm thinking it's the fan clutch, and not the pulleys. I didn't feel any play in the bearings when I swapped the pulleys the other night, but after a second set of pulleys, it's got to be the fan bracket bearings.

I'm going to compare it to my sister's and see if hers looks the same. I'm not sure at this point if I'm just being too critical, or if there really is something amiss. I'll compare against hers tonight and if needed, will swap the one on the motor with one of my two leftover fan brackets.

I'm just delighted to be dealing with such details. No major issues = I'm happy. And, it's Friday!

Thanks for your comment, happy weekend to ya!