Carmen

[Carmen]

Wild!

I suppose it's tough to match 30 year old paint well, especially when the clearcoat is in it's own stage of disrepair/nonexistence.

I get new paint sometime next week! Drivers' friend of a friend who does paint has nothing going on, so it went from an idea that was tossing around for the future to a reality. It was a tough decision initially whether to go with the original Toyota color or try and loosely match it for a savings of ~$250. In the end realized my paint couldn't even be close to matched by any of the non-orig paints that were possibilities...so a fresh coat of OEM (4C8) Orange Metallic I get!

The drivers side won't notice all that much of a difference really, get a few minor dings to disappear aswell as the pillars getting a proper coat of black. I think my trim will be alot more appealing when it's not somewhere between surface rust/metal/black. Passenger side should make a big difference, no more splotches.

So that's exciting. Gotta stay humble though, after-all I am an offroad ready car!

Finally got started on the CV's today. Is there a trick to pulling it out of the tranny? That little locker just does not want to let the axle pop out. Had a friend tugging on the axle while driver was below trying to assuage it out w/ a flathead. Just need a bigger lever down there? Any tips?

Fortunately the axle nuts came off no problem. I guess the 6' breaker bar scared them into submission, only took about 3' of the bar in force hehe.

PS thanks for the tip in another thread on not having to remove the calipers and whatnot Petros! Awesome just pulling those 2 14mm @ the balljoint and that's it. CV change is a dream on us Tecels!!


Another question:

The wheel has play left to right when it's jacked up (tie rod bad) except the play makes it's way to the top boot portion of the tie rod...not the end like i'd have expected. Yknow, closer to the steering rack. Is that common?

So is that it's own little part? There's a good bit of play, so I figure that otter get addressed.



Thanks for reading!

[dlb]

if the play is in the boot, the inner tie rod aka rack end is the culprit. they're pretty easy to replace. do a search on here for pics/tips.

to pop cv axles out, i don't pry on them.i use a hammer to drive the biggest flat blade screwdriver i have between the trans housing and the inboard joint housing. as the fat part of screwdriver gets gets in there, it pops the joint out. usually only takes 2 or 3 good whacks.

to put axles back in, i first make sure they are as far in as they will go by hand, then i hold the axle straight and whack the outboard end with a heavy rubber mallet. again, several good whacks usually does it. but i always climb underneath afterward and confirm that the inboard joint housing is right up to the trans.

i would also suggest replacing the CV axle seals while you're at it. i did a few axles recently and didn't bother with the seals since they didn't leak before, but i guess disturbing them messed them up because they sure leaked afterwards. sucked having to do the job again just to do that seal.

[Carmen]

Yep, got new seals. Thanks for the heads up on that.

Really appreciate all the advice, I'll report back when it goes together or doesn't!

Will research the rack, maybe I'll get lucky and beable to source one before it all goes back together. Wouldn't that be gloriously convenient?

[drege]

See if I remember correctly mine had worrisome play too when the wheels were up, something I noticed after the tranny swap too, took it to pep boys and they said all was ok (except "undersides streamed with oil; must be leaking" waste of my time, they act like they never seen a 28 year old car with near 250thousand miles on it)
And my CV's came out with moderate pressure behind a 12" flathead screwdriver. and to get em back in I just lined it up and gave a mighty shove from out by the fender on each side and it went back in no problem, I remember JannEgun having trouble with his CV's, but they were new/reman, like the ring clip was oversized or something.

[Carmen]

The one I'm having trouble with looks to be original.

Interesting, it has some weird issues on the road that would point to tie rod issues so probably I'll just get replaced.

[Petros]

inner tie rod end replacement not too bad a job if you have the right tools, mostly because there are small flats on the tie-rod end that is the only way to grip it to unscrew it from the end of the rack. you might also consider putting a new boot if the old one is torn, you will be pulling it back to get to the tie-rod end anyway.

I use a large pry bar to get the inner spine shaft to pop out, be careful where you lever on the side of the trans. You can damage the diff housing with too much force, sometimes a block of wood or metal bar to spread the lever loads out to the corners can be used, depending on access.

Be aware that sometimes on old axles, some kind of sludge or metal particle built-up can accumulate under the spring clip, making it impossible to free up (it has to flex inward to the groove it rides in, if it is sluged up in the groove the spring clip can not compress into it). If that is the case you can just keep working it, and working it, and working it, until it comes free. Or you can try a n ATF flush on it (drive it for a few days with 50/50 gear oil and ATF), it should clean it out. The last thing to try and just apply a lot of force to bet it out, at the risk of breaking off part of the clip inside the diff housing. Usually not, but there is always that risk if a lot of force has to be used.

[Carmen]

I did the atf flush just before this, so it should be clean. Headed out now to get into it.

[Mad_Marx]

Wow, 37mpg! That beats my personal best! Lookin' Good!

[Carmen]

Hopefully it'll be even more with the new 25% royal purple synthetic gear oil blend and this fresh axle!

Looking forward to putting more miles to get a more definitive average. 400 miles is a good sample set, but 4000 would be a better indicator Having said that, I was blown away when 37 was the number. I went so far as to check GPS to ensure that the odometer wasn't just reading wrong.

What have you been getting?

Also this is cali premium gasoline

[dlb]

i have been logging my mileage on fuelly.com for some time but i only recently started detailed tracking the mileage of a 4wd tercel. here it is.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/toyota/tercel ... tan/338291

i have supposedly achieved 37 mpg twice but you are right that more miles is a better indicator. for instance, if i get one really lousy tank, then one incredible tank, then another lousy tank, followed by an average tank -- and the big variables like hwy/city driving percentages, temps, driving habits, vehicle condition, etc have all been relatively consistent -- then it is pretty likely i never actually achieved 37 mpg. in that case it's more likely the average is more accurate. there are hairsplitting ways to confirm precise mileage per tank but it's too much effort for me so i try to take each tank with a grain of salt and stay focused on the overall average.

[Mad_Marx]

I've been keeping a detailed mileage log since my first Tercel, i've had the same experience as DLB, that could be due to quality of fuel here in Idaho, and our altitude. We are stuck with ethanol mostly, and down here in the valley is 3,000 feed above sea level. I average 25 around town 32-ish on the highway, that's also with a mild performance ground cam and a crappy Empi carb (made in china). My previous DLX did better with the factory carb, I wouldn't mind going back to a factory set up, but I'd like to go to a TBI like Hornbeam.

[Carmen]

dlb - very cool. Never came across that site before, looks like an interesting addition to the "captains log". I'll be logging all fuel-ups aswell as maintenance costs etc. Always interesting to compare/contrast notes and it looks like that's the way to do it net-ward. Will definitely start one myself once some more miles get under my belt. So far it was just the drive to Santa Rosa from San Diego which accounted for 400 miles and about 230 tooling around town before and after various repairs/maintenences. 32 and change seems like a pretty good number, especially in a mixed city/hwy setting. Eager to swap more mpg info as time goes on. Are you running 87? Premium? I'm curious to know which is the more economical decision.

mad_marx - is the ethanol E85? I reckon 3k above sea level will notch the economy down a bit. I wonder how perceptible the difference is? Don't know much about altitude and it's effects on economy etc. Certainly curious. I'm right at sea level myself. As for carbs I'm all for economy. Driver's been running an 81 vw caddy diesel pickup...I think it has like 50hp. Insanely lacking but he doesn't mind at all..diesel bill is cheap and rare. I've got more than enough power to spare as far as he's concerned, couldn't imagine needing more. I'm like a Ferrari compared to the Caddy

I'm really interested in fuel economy...what everyone is getting, increasing it and avoiding unnecessarily not getting huge numbers. Definitely eager to run some experiments as far as Regular vs Premium and which is the more economical decision. Going to put a few more tanks of Premium in to get something like a 1,000 mile average or so. Then going to try regular for 1k.

CV all went fine and dandy, works a treat. Not much to report there other than a huge thanks to all the folks who've written up in the past.

I also got new upper and lower rad hoses (mine were crunchy and disgusting)

Shifting so much better. Amazingly better, driver is really happy. Originally figured it was going to be time for a rebuild (still might be the case, but not so urgent)

Driver is leaving town tomorrow until Monday or Tuesday and I get left at his buddies...and that's where I'll be getting my fresh coat

During following weeks it's the tie rod end's/uppers, wheel bearings, struts/rear shocks, rear diff fluid swap, thermostat. Also going to backflush and clean the radiator which needs it BAD, so much rust...overflow bottle took maybe 5 gallons of water to "clean" the rust out. Top of the radiator is in the same shape. Possibly time for a new one. We'll see how vinegar does. Drained the fluid and ran a good bit of h20 through it, finally came out somewhat clean. Filled with distilled for the time being, definitely going to pull it and vinegar soak. Is there a good method for cleaning any of this out of the block/rest of the cooling system? Is it possible to run/flush it with a vinegar water mix or something else? The way the "coolant" (gross water... not antifreeze) came out originally plus the state of the upper and lower rad hoses coupled with the disgusting rustwater filled overflow tank lead me to believe the cooling jackets can't be in the most pristine state. Would really love to give the whole cooling system a proper clean instead of just the radiator.

Anyways, sorry for the long winded post. Hope you're all running like a top! Thanks for dropping by and thanks for all the info!
-Carmen

[dlb]

i run regular gas. some say that mid grade and premium increase performance, mileage, etc but this is another topic like synthetic vs traditional gear oil -- lots of different opinions. you can find lots of articles online on how higher grade gas has no benefit for engines with normal compression. even if premium did get better mileage, it would need to get about 10% better mileage just to get the same mileage per dollar as regular. but to each their own, i'm just giving my thoughts on it here.

on the topic of cleaning rads, blocks, and heater cores, there is a specific tool for this that several of us here on the forum recently got. i used mine once with good results. here's the thread.

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=9589

*edit* just thought of another detail i want to point out. all my logged mileage in my current tercel has been over this winter, with temps between freezing and 15* C. i have found that ambient temps make a huge difference to fuel economy, as much as 15-20%, so i am confident that in the summer i would consistently get over 35 mpg, easily.

[Petros]

David, it has nothing to do with opinion, test premium and find out. with my high comression engine I tested both, my cost per mile was about the same. If I did not run premium in the summer I would be replacing the head gasket. With my lower compression 4ac, I have not had that problem, so I run mid grade because on regular I can hear too much pinging on regular, particularly in the summer.

[dlb]

ha, i knew you were going to bite at that, pete.

your lone personal experience with premium gas does not a fact make. your lone experience does not negate the results of all the countless tests that have been done on this topic. your experience certainly counts, and definitely more to you than to anyone else -- that's the nature of experience -- but you must learn that your personal experience does not create the one hard, final, absolute fact that everyone else must accept.

this is similar to how you believe tercel transmissions can't handle 100% synthetic gear oil and 3a engines are prone to head gasket failures. those may be your experiences but as documented here, lots of other people run 100% synthetic gear oil in t4's with no problems and can't kill a 3a head gasket if they try. so it's ignorant to overlook those people and their experiences and to keep believing that your experiences are the only real or worthwhile 'facts.'

the same thing applies here: maybe your experience with premium gas has been different from others but that doesn't mean your experience is 'right' and anyone else's is 'wrong,' or vice versa.