elripster
10-25-2007, 08:35 AM
Sunday was a productive day.
I got up early and headed to my folk's place to do some work on the truck. I had ambitions let me tell ya'. First I was going to install my new 4crawler sway bar disconnects. Then I was going to fix those leaky valve cover gaskets. After all, those endearing terms like 'Exon Valdez' are only endearing for so long. Then when I knocked all that out, it was time to tackle the 1" 4crawler body lift I got. I'm like, you know, super auto mechanic or something. :shake: :shake:
I decided to start with the sway bar discos while the engine cooled off. This was actually easy and made me happy. My truck is rather slimy underneath and disconnecting the sway bars while laying in the dirt giving my hands/arms an exfoliating grease bath on a hot summer day is not real fun.
The front
http://sdori.com/INAPPROPRIATE%20FILES/frontdisco.jpg
The rear
http://sdori.com/INAPPROPRIATE%20FILES/reardisco.jpg
I moved on to the valve covers next. Now here I took my time. I didn't want to forget how to put it back together. I took pictures with my PDA and labeled a hose here and there. I figured while I had the truck this far apart, I'd put these new spark plugs in it I had laying around...
I started this whole adventure at around 9:45AM.
I get the intake plenum off to find some serious wire chaffing.
http://sdori.com/INAPPROPRIATE%20FILES/chaffing.jpg
I taped up the wires and put zip ties on there to keep the elec tape in place.
After doing the same for the passenger side and checking to make sure other wires under there were in good shape, I start on the spark plugs.
I remove the hard-to-get-to one on the passenger rear side and go to install the new one. I naturally drop it which normally is no big deal unless it breaks or something. This time though, that would not happen, it never hit the ground.
I spend, no joke, at least 1.5 hours trying to find the plug! I look from every angle with flashlights and I'm going crazy. It just has to be somewhere. I finally I find it between the starter and block viewing up from under the passenger underside of the truck. I'd have taken a pic but I was on a mission. I spend at least another hour to get it out by poking/prodding with non-conductive things to get it into a position where I could get at it from another angle. I actually ended up retrieving it through the wheel well. What a pain. I finished up the rest of the plugs, some where almost loose, others were way too tight. Hmmmmm, not feeling good about that HG job that was done.
The previous owner told me the head gaskets were done and all the rubber replaced. I have the receipt but I think the mechanic cut a few corners. The gaskets like the intake plenum and throttle body looked brand new and the intake was rather clean. The valve cover gaskets felt like plastic they were so brittle. Clearly they were reused with some black RTV. Also, I found many vacuum hoses that were splitting. I had to make extensions and cut out large sections of many.
So I forge on and started the reassembly. It takes a while because I'm being careful. I was going to reuse the throttle body gasket (replaced the plenum gasket) when I accidentally booger it up. Well on a Sunday night it's decision time. I decide to use the RTV and ditch the gasket. After all, if it leaks it's easy to test and get to later. I did a little trick I have used before where I finger tighten the hardware then let the RTV firm up. Later I crank it down. Whether that little step is necessary I don't know but it sure works well.
I proceed to realize that the cables I thought were the throttle cables (and had tightened months ago) were actually not and my throttle cable is way loose. Chris, if you read this, the one to tighten if you haven't done so comes from the firewall and makes a loop over the manifold. It's the hardest of the three to get to. Anyway, I use up all the adjustment and still have a little slack.
I get this wild notion to reset the ECU and see if my code 71 goes away. Who knows? I could get lucky.
I vacuum like a cup of Pismo sand from the air box and clean the air filter.
Now for the moment of truth, I start her up.
She fires right up and idles great. That's good. I let her warm up a bit and test the throttle, it seems unusually crisp like celery where before it was more like a pear. It's also very responsive. I clean up tools and finally head back down to San Diego and OMG, this truck is running great!
It didn't downshift one time from Vista to San Diego on I15. It was a bit of a handfull with those nasty Santa Ana cross winds but that's it. Also, the check engine light stayed off, no more code 71. :clap: The gas gauge did something I have yet to see it do on my many trips back and forth, or in this case not do, move much. :clap: :clap: It barely budged on the way down.
Well 9:45AM to 7:45PM with a few breaks for food and stuff and I am happy with the results. I would say to all who are lacking in throttle response or getting a code 71 to check those vacuum lines for cracks, all of the cracks here were facing downwards so I didn't see them until I pulled the hoses off. Also adjust that throttle cable because it sure can stretch. Had this not turned out so well I'd surely have been bummed, I was pretty tired after all that work.
I didn't do the knock sensor but I can do this job in much less time now that I have done it once.
Next it's on to the body lift but I think I'll see if I can rope in a few friends to help. That looks like a fair amount of work and help would make things go much faster.
Frank
I got up early and headed to my folk's place to do some work on the truck. I had ambitions let me tell ya'. First I was going to install my new 4crawler sway bar disconnects. Then I was going to fix those leaky valve cover gaskets. After all, those endearing terms like 'Exon Valdez' are only endearing for so long. Then when I knocked all that out, it was time to tackle the 1" 4crawler body lift I got. I'm like, you know, super auto mechanic or something. :shake: :shake:
I decided to start with the sway bar discos while the engine cooled off. This was actually easy and made me happy. My truck is rather slimy underneath and disconnecting the sway bars while laying in the dirt giving my hands/arms an exfoliating grease bath on a hot summer day is not real fun.
The front
http://sdori.com/INAPPROPRIATE%20FILES/frontdisco.jpg
The rear
http://sdori.com/INAPPROPRIATE%20FILES/reardisco.jpg
I moved on to the valve covers next. Now here I took my time. I didn't want to forget how to put it back together. I took pictures with my PDA and labeled a hose here and there. I figured while I had the truck this far apart, I'd put these new spark plugs in it I had laying around...
I started this whole adventure at around 9:45AM.
I get the intake plenum off to find some serious wire chaffing.
http://sdori.com/INAPPROPRIATE%20FILES/chaffing.jpg
I taped up the wires and put zip ties on there to keep the elec tape in place.
After doing the same for the passenger side and checking to make sure other wires under there were in good shape, I start on the spark plugs.
I remove the hard-to-get-to one on the passenger rear side and go to install the new one. I naturally drop it which normally is no big deal unless it breaks or something. This time though, that would not happen, it never hit the ground.
I spend, no joke, at least 1.5 hours trying to find the plug! I look from every angle with flashlights and I'm going crazy. It just has to be somewhere. I finally I find it between the starter and block viewing up from under the passenger underside of the truck. I'd have taken a pic but I was on a mission. I spend at least another hour to get it out by poking/prodding with non-conductive things to get it into a position where I could get at it from another angle. I actually ended up retrieving it through the wheel well. What a pain. I finished up the rest of the plugs, some where almost loose, others were way too tight. Hmmmmm, not feeling good about that HG job that was done.
The previous owner told me the head gaskets were done and all the rubber replaced. I have the receipt but I think the mechanic cut a few corners. The gaskets like the intake plenum and throttle body looked brand new and the intake was rather clean. The valve cover gaskets felt like plastic they were so brittle. Clearly they were reused with some black RTV. Also, I found many vacuum hoses that were splitting. I had to make extensions and cut out large sections of many.
So I forge on and started the reassembly. It takes a while because I'm being careful. I was going to reuse the throttle body gasket (replaced the plenum gasket) when I accidentally booger it up. Well on a Sunday night it's decision time. I decide to use the RTV and ditch the gasket. After all, if it leaks it's easy to test and get to later. I did a little trick I have used before where I finger tighten the hardware then let the RTV firm up. Later I crank it down. Whether that little step is necessary I don't know but it sure works well.
I proceed to realize that the cables I thought were the throttle cables (and had tightened months ago) were actually not and my throttle cable is way loose. Chris, if you read this, the one to tighten if you haven't done so comes from the firewall and makes a loop over the manifold. It's the hardest of the three to get to. Anyway, I use up all the adjustment and still have a little slack.
I get this wild notion to reset the ECU and see if my code 71 goes away. Who knows? I could get lucky.
I vacuum like a cup of Pismo sand from the air box and clean the air filter.
Now for the moment of truth, I start her up.
She fires right up and idles great. That's good. I let her warm up a bit and test the throttle, it seems unusually crisp like celery where before it was more like a pear. It's also very responsive. I clean up tools and finally head back down to San Diego and OMG, this truck is running great!
It didn't downshift one time from Vista to San Diego on I15. It was a bit of a handfull with those nasty Santa Ana cross winds but that's it. Also, the check engine light stayed off, no more code 71. :clap: The gas gauge did something I have yet to see it do on my many trips back and forth, or in this case not do, move much. :clap: :clap: It barely budged on the way down.
Well 9:45AM to 7:45PM with a few breaks for food and stuff and I am happy with the results. I would say to all who are lacking in throttle response or getting a code 71 to check those vacuum lines for cracks, all of the cracks here were facing downwards so I didn't see them until I pulled the hoses off. Also adjust that throttle cable because it sure can stretch. Had this not turned out so well I'd surely have been bummed, I was pretty tired after all that work.
I didn't do the knock sensor but I can do this job in much less time now that I have done it once.
Next it's on to the body lift but I think I'll see if I can rope in a few friends to help. That looks like a fair amount of work and help would make things go much faster.
Frank