1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

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irowiki
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by irowiki »

Where is it leaking oil at? And when you reply to a post it's under "attachments"
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Kamren
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Kamren »

Hi Irowiki, been there and done that at carparts.com and, unfortunately, it led nowhere. I contacted all those on the list and it might surprise you how many times I was told they had the part with the right number and when I asked them to send me a picture of the tag on the part, that I found out the part number did not match the number I need nor what I was told. One person actually told me that he would only send me a picture after I purchased the part. This made no sense. Come to find out, he did not have the right part. It’s like walking through a mine field when purchasing a part sight unseen. And not to mention a part that is nearly 40 years old and not knowing what I am paying for works or not even when told that it does.

I don’t see “attachments”. I just see “submit “. And “full editor and preview “, “post reply”.

Petros, that is exactly what I am looking for but cannot find.

Hi DIB, thank you for the offer of a walk-through for replacing the oh-ring but if two mechanics were afraid to open up the distributor for fear of making it worse who know what they are doing then there is no way that I of the female persuasion and with zero car repair experience would ever tackle a repair of a distributor. I’am glad that I learned how to pump gas to fill the tank. 😐
Last edited by irowiki on Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:19 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: merged double posts
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dlb
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by dlb »

I recommend not taking your car to Canadian Tire for any work. They are like the Wal-mart of auto repairs, the staff there are typically inexperienced and not knowledgeable. Your experience seems to confirm this.

I usually find the best way to find a good mechanic is to talk to friends and get recommendations from them. It's harder with an older car of course but any decent mechanic will not be afraid to remove a distributor. It's literally just three or four screws, one or two electrical plugs, and one bolt. If a mechanic can't handle that, they have no idea what they're doing.

If you're not up for doing it yourself, I say keep looking for a competent mechanic.

Re: pictures -- if you click on "full editor and preview," just below the save draft, preview, and submit buttons you will see a tab for attachments. Click that, then click 'add files,' and the rest should be obvious.
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Kamren »

Thanks!
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
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irowiki
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by irowiki »

That does not show us WHERE it is leaking though.

Try zooming out a little, and perhaps circle where you think the leak is?

Also, on Car-Part, I saw a few with the exact model number you were looking for, keep in mind there's multiple model numbers, due to changes from 79-82 which will still work in your car!
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Kamren »

Unfortunately, it is leaking underneath the distributor and there is no way to take s picture of it. The leak is on the engine and on the floor. That’s where you see it.

Hi rer233, do you know if the kit would work on a Tercel? A Canadian Tercel with a 3A engine?
Last edited by irowiki on Tue Jul 02, 2019 3:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: double post merged
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rer233
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by rer233 »

Kamren- Don't know if the kit will fit your car- website SAYS it'll fit '79-'88 non-Japan Tercels. Is oil actually getting INSIDE your distributor? Nice looking car BTW- I had an '82 4 door I bought with a blown engine some 30 plus years ago. Rebuilt a junkyard engine, installed it, and re-sold the car.
if it aint there, there's a good chance it won't break!
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by irowiki »

If it's leaking underneath it's probably just the distributor o-ring.

Much easier and cheaper to just replace that first. Make a witness mark on the distributor + engine, one bolt comes out, the whole thing pops out, replace o-ring, lubricate oring with fresh oil, then distributor goes back in, line it back up with your witness mark, tighten bolt back up.

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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by dlb »

Wow, I now see why you're so bothered by the oil leak -- that's a pristine car! I love the graphics on the sides too. How long have you owned it?
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Petros »

very nice looking first gen tercel.

I second Ironwiki's remarks, likely it is just the large o-ring on the outside of the distributor housing. though he left off one detail, you have to remove the distributor cap, and than mark carefully the location of the rotor, along with the alignment of the housing on to the engine. It is easy to pull out the distributor to expose the O-ring. but to get it to run you must get the rotor AND the housing back in exactly where it was before it came out. That is why you need to mark both the location of the rotor (the one under the cap), and the location of the housing against where it mounts in the side of the head. This determines the spark timing, and if it is off by more than a few degrees it will not start and run.

it is really an easy job, if a mechanic is afraid of it, he is no auto mechanic. likely they are too young to even know what a distributor is.

Do not be intimidated by doing this job, no reason you can not handle it. You have to start somewhere, this is as good a place to learn as any. We are here to help too.

BTW, you gender has nothing to do with your mechanical skills, that is mostly desire (I think that many young guys do not mind getting their hands dirty, so they will charge in). for some reason a lot of women do not like the "yucky" feeling of oily-greasy hands. You are better off than most I think, your car is a lot cleaner than most 40 year old cars, certainly a lot cleaner than mine. Fixing cars can actually be a creative challenge that is very satisfying, something unrecognized by those that want to disparage mechanics that use foul language (often with good reason), and always have dirty finger nails from working on cars all day.

Good luck.
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Kamren »

Hi Petros, thank you very much for both your encouraging words and confidence in my ability to be a quasi mechanic and change the distributor, however, I can not share your confidence. I have never even changed a tire, and thank goodness for AAA, much less even know what is underneath the hood. I am happy that I know how to pump gas. So, to go from having no knowledge of car mechanics to dong something so complicated such as you have described, well, it might be easier for me to build a spaceship and go to the moon. And yes there is the yuck factor but that is secondary to the there-is-no-way-I-can-do-this factor. I wish you were here so that you could do it and I could watch. And I also agree with you that all the mechanics are young guys and they really do not recognize the parts on my car or what to do with them. They are used to cars with computers. This is another reason why I am afraid to just let anyone work on her and why when someone tells that they are afraid to dismantle the distributor that I take them at there word. I do not want to make a bad situation worse. I am not sure what I am going to do. It leaks; I don’t have another distributor; and I don’t have a mechanic.

Hi DIB, to answer your question she has been owned by my mother since birth. My mom gave her to me. So, I guess its been owned by the same single owner family since 1981. She only has 91,000 km, which is about 45,000 miles on her. She is in excellent condition, minus the distributor. And she came with those racing strips, I think that’s what they are. She is well loved and taken are of and that is why it really bothers me that I can not fix her. :cry:


Hi Irowiki, much easier said than done, at least not by me. Wish I could do it but I can not and it seems neither can any mechanic as they are afraid to dismantle the distributor for fear of the problem being more than the O ring and then not being able to put it back together. I believe them and would not want them to do something that they fear doing. I value my car too much to put her in the hands of people who fear fixing her. Someone actually told me that they would not replace the O ring with a new ring and instead would seal it with silicone. Hearing this really scared me and I got out of there real fast.
Last edited by irowiki on Thu Jul 04, 2019 4:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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irowiki
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by irowiki »

You don't have to dismantle the distributor though, it literally comes out!
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by marlinh »

Hi Kamren, Where are you located? Are there no members who live close by to give you a hand? Do you not know anyone who can recommend a mechanic in your area, preferably someone who was born before your car was built. They should have some experience with old cars. I would try the o-ring first. It really is a straight forward job. A shop shouldn't charge more than half an hour to do. If the distributor still leaks at least you tried the most obvious. Also, at the same time, the mechanic can pop off the distributor cap and look inside. That will not damage anything. Don't be afraid, just steer clear of the mechanics who feed you a lot of BS. Who maintained the car while your mom owned it? Maybe that mechanic is retired but could still look at it for you or recommend someone else who can fix it.

Beauty car by the way! At those car shows you go to, chat with some of the other owners for tips on mechanics.
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Petros »

well Karman,

if you were nearby I would replace the o-ring for you, and show you how. but Niagara falls is all the way across the continent. I do not know if there are any forum members nearby. we used to have one in Winnipeg I think, and several in Minnesota. I do not think we have anyone in up state New York any longer.

Anyone nearby who is willing to give this Tercel owner a hand?

You might go look for an independent repair shop in your area with an older owner, one who has been working on cars for 30 years or longer. I am sure someone like that would know how to replace the o-ring without fear or hesitation. Heck, even a back yard mechanic, if he was trustworthy, could take care of that. no Toyota experience necessary.

Anyone what to give this Tercel owner a hand?
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'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
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Re: 1981 Tercel Part Desperately Needed

Post by Kamren »

Hi Marlinh, she is in Niagara Falls, Ontario. However, she is originally from Vancouver Island, B.C. Any previous mechanical work was done there. Maintenance currently is being done by Canadian Tire in Ontario. I don’t know of anyone else. I have asked at car shows but no one at those shows owns or knows of a Toyota to recommend anyone to me. They all have and work on Chevys, Fords, etc. I am the only Toyota at those shows. And I do agree with you about having some one older work on her. I had a young mechanic simply change the oil pan and he didn’t put it back correctly as it seems its not like pans of new cars and it leaked all over the garage and permanently stained it. So, I definitely agree that I would want someone with more experience, and especially experience with Toyotas. I did meet a man in a parking lot the other day who came up to me to ask about my Tercel and told me that he was and is a mechanic and told me that he could fix my distributor but what he told me scared me. He said that he would not replace the O ring and instead would seal it with silicone. Something about that did not sit well with me. It seemed like a shortcut to a future disaster. And on another note, just by simply making a left turn my windshield wiper went “boink” and broke. I don’t know how or why but it did. I went to Canadian Tire and he tried all the wipers they had on stock and none of them fit. So, now on top of a distributor problem where I cannot find a part or get a repair, I now have another problem where I cannot get a part and get a repair. SMH! Now, I have to try and find a Tercel wiper blade which probably will not happen.
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