Just bought an 87 4wd DLX Wagon, Any tips?

[Skipperz]

A friend of mine had his mother's 87 wagon in his garage just sitting. After 3 years I have talked him out of it. It is at the shop now getting the timing belt, water pump, clutch and assorted parts replaced. Then I should get it back to do the radiator and everything brake (related except the hard lines). This one has some small rust under the front doors, a few dings, but has otherwise been in the garage for the past 9 years.

I am excited to get it back on the road. Any quirks or tips I should know?

[dlb]

check the sway bar end bushings and metal sleeves when you do the front brakes,they are an achilles heel for these cars. new sway bar end bushings and sleeves can only be bought directly from toyota and they are expensive but very important.

advance the timing to 10* BTDC to improve responsiveness and fuel economy

swap to 14" wheels with 185/60/R14 tires to improve handling

i know i'm missing some tips but someone else will help me out here.

pics?

[ARCHINSTL]

A hearty DITTO to dlb's reccy on the sway bar bushings-to-control arms. Go to the OE and AM Parts Forum here for OE part numbers.
Welcome to the Club!
Where are you located?
Tom M.

[Petros]

Welcome to the list!

While replacing the clutch be sure a new rear main seal it installed, it is easy to do when the trans in out, but a big job to do it just to replace the seal later.

I would also change the trans and rear diff gear oil. Use the factory spec gear oil and make sure all 4.1 quarts get in it (some some reason the FSM tell you to back off the rear drain plug 8 turns before you fill it. When I backed mine off eight turns it fell out, so I put it in one turn. Tighten when it is full.

You can also go to synthetic gear oil but I have found you get gear clashes like the syncros are worn, and it leak past the seals. I think this trans was not designed for gear oil that slippery, so I put in a 50/50 mixture and it seems to go back to normal.

These trans are getting hard to find so take good care of it and it will last a long time.

I would also suggest doing a radiator flush and refill, including the heater core (they can get plugged up).

Good luck.

[Skipperz]

Thanks Guys! I will definitely look at the Tie Rod Ends. The wagon was sitting in an enclosed garage for the past 9 years. I am having a mechanic change out the timing belt, water pump, associated seals, belts and hoses (while he is in there), clean the carb, and fuel tank. He is also doing the clutch. According to my friend, his mother had the 4wd (transfer case?) replaced just before she stopped driving it. The clutch was toast when he parked it.

Now those are the things that are beyond my backyard skills, but once I get it back I have a few items for me. I am doing a full brake job (Master cylinder, rotors, calipers, pads, flex hoses, drums, shoes, wheel cylinders, spring kit and finally the radiator. The mechanic wanted $850 for the brake work including parts and I'll be damned if I am paying that much - All the parts alone are $300 and my labor is free! LOL) Last I need a set of tires. I don't know if I'll be able to find 4 rims in time with all the other stuff, and my truck needs the rear brakes rebuilt. So increasing to the 14's may be put on hold.

My first car was the Starlet, so I am fairly familiar with these small anemic engines. Nothing teaches you how to drive a stick like 57 hp! In my Starlet you had to turn the A/C off AND downshift to 3rd just to pass anyone. So you learned quick. I am expecting the wagon to be only slightly better than that.

My truck has an open rear diff, so having the 4wd is something I am very anxious to get running. I am almost looking forward to the first real snow!

[Petros]

While you are doing the brakes, you might as well up grade to something much better and costs about the same in terms of cost. Install '92 or later Tercel front brakes, 25mm vented front rotors (vs. the 11mm soild ones in the Terecl4wd-way too light) and calipers. You can also up grade the master cylinder as well to the MR2 master and booster, but that is not required to get better front brakes. See the thread over in the "repair guilds" section here: https://tercel4wd.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=4998

Your mechanic will likely be putting in new gear oil in the trans if he has it out for the clutch, just make sure he gets all 4.1 quarts in it.

Set your spark timing at 10 deg BTDC rather than the factory 5 deg, it will give you a bit more power and better economy and make the exhaust valves last longer.

I wonder how the transfer case got messed up, I do not think I have heard of the transfer case failing.

Where are you located?

[Skipperz]

I'm in Maryland. I will look at the brakes - do i just buy the newer parts and they just install? Any modifications? I have no idea about the 4wd unit, other than my friend told me his mother paid the dealership about $3000 to get it fixed.

I will have to get a timing light and change the timing, and Looks like I may have to check out the transmission fluid myself - I don't know if the mechanic will be on top of that. Is there any way to tell if it is full? Or do i just drain and refill on my own?

[dlb]

take a look at petros' guide for the brake upgrade. i believe you need a shim to properly space the upgrade rotors but i'm not sure. i would grab new rotors and pads but look for used calipers at a wrecker, personally. new calipers would be steep.

when you fill the trans with fresh gear oil you should be able to feel the fluid with your finger just inside the filler hole--not the best method. instead, just measure 4.1 quarts before you put it in and make sure you get all of it in, or at least minimize your spills. open the fill plug first so you avoid the potential and lousy situation of draining the gear oil only to find that the fill plugs frozen in place! do a search, there are lots of good threads on this topic.

[Petros]

All of the brake parts just bolt up, just the same amount of work as replacing the same parts. the only issue is you will need to make an 1/8" spacer for the rotor, which can be done with simple hand tools, or you can take the drawing in the thread to a machine shop to make some up for you. You will need one per wheel, two total.

Your mechanic will like put fresh gear oil in the trans since you have to drain the trans to remove it anyway. I would just verify that he knows it takes 4.1 quarts, filling it all the way can be tricky if he is not familiar with this trans, it is NOT like filling a typical transmission. So you do not have to do it yourself, just verify that it was filled all the way.

I would not buy a timing light just to set the timing once, you only need to set it after you remove the distributor for some reason. You can do it "by ear" if you are careful, it is time consuming but you will not need a timing light. Loosen the distributor bolt and advance the distributor a bit and snug the bolt back down. Than with the engine fully warm find a large hill and accelerate hard, even lug the engine. If you get no ping or crackling sound (from deep within the engine) you are good. Advance it a bit more and try it again, repeat. When you get ping, also known as pre-ignition, back off the timing a bit until you get no ping. The more advance the timing you run without ping, is the best place to run the timing.

If I remember correctly. rotating the distributor clock wise advances the timing. Just do it in small steps.

Good luck.

[ARCHINSTL]

Skipperz - see the new thread I just made in the Tool Talk! Forum for info on modified socket and open end for the filler and drain plugs.
I'd fill it yourself, to be on the safe side - after all, how many techs are familiar with the kinda weird procedure on filling 25-year old plus trannies?
And as mentioned - read the threads on the subject.

As to the brakes - no biggie to do yourself - really! Bleeding is a PITA, of course, but that's just the way it is. And run at least a quart through the lines. And - spend just a couple of bucks and get the little flare wrenches specific for brake bleeder screws - more peace of mind.
Tom M.

[Skipperz]

Thanks for all the advice. My mechanic is a recent immigrant from Thailand, and he is fairly well versed in older toyotas, so I trust his abilities there. Now, doing it right versus doing it good enough? That's another question! The only part about the brake swap that has me wondering, is changing the hard lines for the brake master cylinder. I don't know if I have the skills to bend lines to get them to fit. The rest of the brake swap seems fairly straight forward. Finding parts at a local junkyard may prove more difficult. i went to three yards last weekend and there was nothing really all that close to an MR2. Anyone here in Maryland know of yards with MR2's?

Also, anyone have any ideas for reading OBD1 ports? My check engine light on my truck has been on for the past 30k miles and the last mechanic I talked to was saying how since it had a "Carburetor" (oooo scary) he didn't think it could be "ever fully adjusted properly." Needless to say I won't be going back to these new whippersnapper mechanics any more.

[dlb]

no idea on the mazda pickup, sorry.

bending brake lines is super easy. if you're working on really tight little curves, use a bending tool ($5-$10 at any auto store) or go budget and use a small can of tomato paste or something similar. and if the length of tubing is too long, bend it into a pigtail until it is the right length. it can be a little frustrating trying to get the ends just right so they thread in correctly but it it's not difficult, just takes a little patience.

[Petros]

There was only a few changes to the existing bends in the brake lines that I did with my bare hands, that is not really a problem. Just the keep the bends fairly large to avoid crimping it.

[Skipperz]

Finally got it back from the mechanic! Now my work beings... brakes, alternator, radiator, and (for some unknown reason) the gas tank. The mechanic says fuel is not getting from the tank to the carb. Here are some pics! There is a bunch of spot rust, but nothing through the body. I am ordering the brakes from Rock Auto, but my only question is, can I run the larger MRS Rotors and Calipers while I maintain the original rims? I just don't have the time and money to track down the larger 14' rims right now. Thoughts? http://imgur.com/a/6qtQ2

[dlb]

i'm not sure about the rim sizes with larger rotors/calipers. check petros' brake upgrade guide:

https://tercel4wd.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=4998

your whip has the stock roof racks that i like so much, nice. since most of the rust is along the lowest couple inches of the body, i would tape it off following the body lines and paint the lower portion with bedliner or even just flat black paint. fighting rust is a losing battle but you can at least slow it down, mask it, and make the car look tough despite it. you can see the painting idea i am describing here, just scroll down to where you start to see lots of green:

https://tercel4wd.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=5814