just picked up a 1984 tercel 4wd sr5

[andrewrenow]

The fuel pump is not too costly, if it leaks fuel it is definitely time to replace it. they last a long time. It comes out with two 12mm bolts.

Make sure you put gasket sealer (Permatex forma-a-gasket) on both sides of the plastic heat shield that goes under the pump. It leaks oil at this joint because the head gets hot and the plastic insulates the fuel pump to keep it from heating up the fuel. The thermal expansion between the two cause the gasket to give up and leaks oil. Also be careful not to over tighten the mounting bolts or you might crack the plastic heat shield/insulator.

Good luck.

just picked one up from autozone i will install it tomorrow. thanks for all the info guys. you all are saving me so much money.

[andrewrenow]

i replaced the fuel pump and the fuel filter today and let me tell you it runs 10x better! no hesitation at all. im going to replace the timing, crank and camshaft seals, distributor o-ring, and the oil pan gasket. thanks for all your help guys im learning alot and hope to return the favor to some people in need soon.

[dlb]

i don't think you can do the oil pan gasket without at least removing the cross member. fairly big job. i did it on my wife's IFS truck recently and had to undo a whole bunch of steering linkage and the engine mounts, jack the engine up as high as it would go in the truck, undo the oil pan bolts, drop the oil pan the few inches that all of this created, remove the oil pickup tube, and only then could i finally work the pan out, and it was like playing tetris doing so--it still had to come out the top. it's obviously a totally different job from a T4 but it's a lousy job nonetheless with little reward in the end. are you sure it's leaking? i thought mine was last year until i just used a copper washer as a gasket for the oil pan plug. turned out that and my distributor o-ring were the only sources of oil leaks.

[andrewrenow]

i don't think you can do the oil pan gasket without at least removing the cross member. fairly big job. i did it on my wife's IFS truck recently and had to undo a whole bunch of steering linkage and the engine mounts, jack the engine up as high as it would go in the truck, undo the oil pan bolts, drop the oil pan the few inches that all of this created, remove the oil pickup tube, and only then could i finally work the pan out, and it was like playing tetris doing so--it still had to come out the top. it's obviously a totally different job from a T4 but it's a lousy job nonetheless with little reward in the end. are you sure it's leaking? i thought mine was last year until i just used a copper washer as a gasket for the oil pan plug. turned out that and my distributor o-ring were the only sources of oil leaks.

Gosh I didn't even think of that. I hope it's not that hard. But that's some good info to know. I'm going to do everything except for that then get my engine steam cleaned I hope that I don't have to change it anyway though.

[john]

I pulled the oil pan on my '85 while still in the car. It was not much fun, but I did not have to remove any cross members or stuff. It was 5 or 6 years ago, but I remember having to use a 10mm wrench in some spots. Hard to get a socket on all the bolts. I might have used a socket adapter that swivels ( it goes between the socket and the wrench). Be sure to support your car safely before you play under it.
john

[Petros]

It is very doubtful the oil pan gasket is leaking, unless someone had the engine out, the pan off and messed up the sealing during installation. Replace all the other seals and gaskets, clean off the engine and see if there is any more leaks first. typically if you have a leak anywhere on the engine is runs down to the oil pan and runs around the lip of the pan, making it look like it is leaking.

To replace the distributor o-ring you have to have a timing light to reset the timing. You could try carefully marking the housing location and than re-align it when you get it back in, but you do not even know if it is set properly in the first place. There are threads on how to install the distributor, not hard but you have to get the rotor in the right place or it will not start.

Also, check your oil pressure sender, it is behind the alternator/ air cond, they too can leak.

BTW, it is possible to remove the pan without removing the engine (I have done it twice), but it is not easy. You either have to jack up the engine, or lower the cross member. You need a 10mm socket on a 1/4 in drive, long extension and a u-joint attachment, plus a 10mm open end wrench for the two bolts right over the differential. It is a bit of a PIA, but easier than pulling the engine.

Good luck.

[andrewrenow]

i will fix everything else first and hope the oil pan isnt leaking. i hope everything works out im going to attempt to do everything myself.

[Lil Beast]

You'll be fine, a bit of elbow grease and some patience, you'll get thru it! Got any problem post them up someone should answer! Most likely you'll get more than one, but all throwing you in the right track!

Good luck

[andrewrenow]

before i do all these major repairs i went to autozone to barrow a cyl pressure kit here are the numbers cyl#1=170psi cyl#2= 167psi cyl#3= 170psi cyl#4= 166psi

my question is are these number normal?

[Lil Beast]

Sonds like almost a new engine! They came out the factory at 177/179 psi!

[Petros]

Those are excellent numbers, all close together and fairly high. They can be as low as 120 and still drive fine (though down on power a bit). So you have a good engine, no reason to rebuild it at all. The bad news is, the amount of power you have now is about all a stock engine will ever produce.

For more power without a major rebuild you can advance the timing to 10 or 12 deg BTDC, replace the cam shaft with the Delta performance regrind, and than go on to more costly upgrades: weber carb (not recommended if you are in California), two inch dia exhaust system, pull the head and resurface it, port and polish, and that is about it.

When it comes time to replace the clutch you can have that massive flywheel lightend and balanced, it will not add power but it will help the throttle responce. Or better yet, get an extra flywheel from a wrecking yard or another list member and have it lightened and balanced, than you will have ready to swap out when you replace the clutch.

[xirdneh]

O'reillys sells an oil leak finder
its a dye you add to the oil to color it green or whatever
I bought some a while back but have not tried it
has anyone out there tried it or something like it?

[Lil Beast]

Rather cleaning the engine like that it look good too and you'll spot that leak right away! The less weird product that goes in my engine, the better I feel about it! It's just a personal thought!

[arbskynxnex]

O'reillys sells an oil leak finder
its a dye you add to the oil to color it green or whatever
I bought some a while back but have not tried it
has anyone out there tried it or something like it?

Yeah you use it with a UV light and any leaks show right up. I wish I'd found it years ago, it made tracking leaks 1000 times easier.

[Petros]

the problem with a product like that is if your engine leaks all over, like the valve cover gasket, it will still be hard to pinpoint the sourse. So first fix the known or likely leaks, clean off the engine, and than perhaps try the dye.

Not likely the dye will harm anything in the engine. Motor oil, as most petroleum products, are required to have dye to identify what they are. The different colors you see for fuels and hydraulic fluids are from dyes.