Meet, Lindsay. Jill's new (to us) 1997 4runner... We've got a few fun projects planned to bring her back to her former glory so I thought I would introduce her to the channel in this quick update.
I had that gremlin of a oil leak. Replace valve covers gaskets and if you are serious about it do timing belt / water pump and replace crank seal and from cam seals. That should fix pretty much all oil leaks. My engine would smoke insane but VCG fixed that, then I had a leak coming from front of engine and crank seal / cam seals fixed that.
Wow! Very clean rig you have! I bought a ‘99 same model and color scheme as yours back in June 2021. I had to replace valve cover gaskets, timing belt and fuel pump. Also ordered a magnaflow overland exhaust. Have fun with the project.
Exact same thing happens with the Automatic Prado 90 series. The manual cars don’t have a gearbox cooler so don’t suffer the milkshakes. I’ve heard some people convert the gearbox cooler to a separate unit but I believe a whole new radiator isn’t that expensive.
That's pretty clean. I have the exact same one with 208k kms I picked up just before lockdown. I got it from an old guy original owner and it was showroom inside. Everything works and I only had to replace the shocks and she was perfect. Runs like a top and not a squeak or rattle at all. Remarkable build quality. Hope you get yours going soon and enjoy for a long time. These are the best Runners ever made. If it's not a 3rd Gen it's a Turd Gen. Happy travels and safe motoring.
@@WastingTimeInTheWoods Haha yeah buddy. One other thing I did was Tundra brake upgrade. Way better than stock for sure. Had to grind a little off the caliper to fit smaller wheel but no one will ever notice. Highly recommend it.
Been done for 6 months but no time to make the videos : ( I have the suspension video shot, just need to edit it. Those will be my next videos likely in a few weeks. I also did valve covers/half moons, plugs /wires and flushed everything. I sho it all and will post it as I have time.
With 200k + miles and the broken valve cover I would highly recommend pulling the heads and replacing the head gaskets. This is a common failure on the 3.4 wit that kind of mileage. My 96 had a cracked valve cover replaced at 275k and the head gasket failed at 287k. If I replaced the hg when the vc was replaced it would have saved me a lot of time and work
@@WastingTimeInTheWoods No, it’s just that if you are going to repair/replace the valve cover yourself, you’ve already done about half the work to get to the heads.
Replace lower ball joints with Toyotas, 125 a piece give or take. Steering rack bushings should need replacement. Good luck man I have a 98 sr5 with 195k miles. Btw my starter just went out, easy swap though
I'd like to think my groans give me an air of wisdom and gravitas... But I think it's just people staring at me thinking "WTF is wrong with that old man?" 😅
My advice for suspension is don't do the commonly used Bilstein setup too stiff. I have Icon stage 1 on my 99 and Elka coilovers on my 02. Love them both especially on the trails
Very nice! I will say that given the color of the radiator plastic, it's a safe bet to replace it. Glad to hear you're doing it. Solid rig!
That’s a Toyota Hilux Surf Rest of World. Basically a Hilux pickup with a suv body. Same as the one Topgear tried to destroy.
Love that episode! The best was when they drowned it in the sea for 24hrs and then started the next day.
@@WastingTimeInTheWoods you’re 4Runner looks in amazing condition besides the oil leak. Can’t wait to see how it develops.
I had that gremlin of a oil leak. Replace valve covers gaskets and if you are serious about it do timing belt / water pump and replace crank seal and from cam seals. That should fix pretty much all oil leaks. My engine would smoke insane but VCG fixed that, then I had a leak coming from front of engine and crank seal / cam seals fixed that.
I feel like you did some research, love my third Gen. Definitely a money pit though.
Wow! Very clean rig you have! I bought a ‘99 same model and color scheme as yours back in June 2021. I had to replace valve cover gaskets, timing belt and fuel pump. Also ordered a magnaflow overland exhaust. Have fun with the project.
SMOD is what killed my xterra. Strawberry milkshake of death.
Looks like a beaut though, good luck with it!
Exact same thing happens with the Automatic Prado 90 series. The manual cars don’t have a gearbox cooler so don’t suffer the milkshakes. I’ve heard some people convert the gearbox cooler to a separate unit but I believe a whole new radiator isn’t that expensive.
That's pretty clean. I have the exact same one with 208k kms I picked up just before lockdown. I got it from an old guy original owner and it was showroom inside. Everything works and I only had to replace the shocks and she was perfect. Runs like a top and not a squeak or rattle at all. Remarkable build quality. Hope you get yours going soon and enjoy for a long time. These are the best Runners ever made. If it's not a 3rd Gen it's a Turd Gen. Happy travels and safe motoring.
Turd gen!!!! Love it.
@@WastingTimeInTheWoods Haha yeah buddy. One other thing I did was Tundra brake upgrade. Way better than stock for sure. Had to grind a little off the caliper to fit smaller wheel but no one will ever notice. Highly recommend it.
Good thinking about the camry. We did the same and made a small profit.
I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes, It's a beauty for the price these days.
What’s the color on it ?
Desert Sand Metalic. Not my favorite aspect of the rig but Jill likes it.
Replace radiator.
Looks like that radiator needs replacing
Nooo don’t take away our gx videos!! Lol I really like the gx videos you make.
Sorry, just behind on editing. New videos about gx ironman fcp lift coming soon…
It is a nice truck
What’s the latest on your Gen 3 4 Runner project?
Been done for 6 months but no time to make the videos : ( I have the suspension video shot, just need to edit it. Those will be my next videos likely in a few weeks. I also did valve covers/half moons, plugs /wires and flushed everything. I sho it all and will post it as I have time.
Keep both of the cars
With 200k + miles and the broken valve cover I would highly recommend pulling the heads and replacing the head gaskets. This is a common failure on the 3.4 wit that kind of mileage. My 96 had a cracked valve cover replaced at 275k and the head gasket failed at 287k. If I replaced the hg when the vc was replaced it would have saved me a lot of time and work
Did the leaking oil foul the head gasket somehow?
@@WastingTimeInTheWoods
No, it’s just that if you are going to repair/replace the valve cover yourself, you’ve already done about half the work to get to the heads.
@@WastingTimeInTheWoods
Here is a link to a very good series on replacing the head gaskets
th-cam.com/video/voLBRDZL9fE/w-d-xo.html
Replace lower ball joints with Toyotas, 125 a piece give or take. Steering rack bushings should need replacement. Good luck man I have a 98 sr5 with 195k miles. Btw my starter just went out, easy swap though
Got all toyota ball joints and uca/lca bushings ready to rock. Just waiting for my 5100’s to come : )
Can I buy your bumper?
The groans when getting in/out of the truck are very relatable.
I'd like to think my groans give me an air of wisdom and gravitas... But I think it's just people staring at me thinking "WTF is wrong with that old man?" 😅
My advice for suspension is don't do the commonly used Bilstein setup too stiff. I have Icon stage 1 on my 99 and Elka coilovers on my 02. Love them both especially on the trails
Did the Bilstein’s. Yep, a lot stiffer now. I don’t love it but Jill likes it that way…