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Thread: Corax's '88 Runner

  1. #31

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    Got my E-Locker in today

    I prepped for awhile before the actual install.
    made a tap and drill jig so everything is done on a 90* angle


    made an actuator guard


    Made a "cut-out" template


    and finally got my 4.88 gears set up by a semi-local Toyota tech Mark / 86 Toy (on TTORA) - price was right and I like the pattern, professional all the way. Here's the drive side (coast and pinion also dead on, only .001" variance on ring gear backlash measures at 4 spots)


    I'm not going into detail as this has been done many times before - except I did mine without removing the axle (because I'm a masochist like that)




    forgot to get the MIG from my roomie before he left, so flux core to the rescue


    here's the tap jig in action - I used a cutting wheel for the piece that needs to be cut out, less sparks that way


    the hardest part of the install was drilling the holes, but got everything together in a reasonable amount of time. I'll wire it at some point in the near future


    I just pushed all my mess into the garage for tonight, I'll clean it up tomorrow.


    I took the 'runner for a gentle 15 minute drive around town to start the gear break-in process, plenty of gentle accel and long downhill coasting. I'll repeat a few more times this weekend and probably change the diff fluid in 100 miles (cheap gear oil) and again at 500 (synthetic) just to be on the safe side

    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  2. #32

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    For the wiring part, I decided to keep it relativel simple, I used this wiring from http://carterswebsite.com/4runner/mods/locker/ - easy to wire, 2 relays, uses a momentary switch that gets pushed in one direction to lock & the other to unlock. Instead of a momentary on-off-on toggle, I picked up a regular single pole double throw toggle - it doesn't have a middle "off" position, will let me use a toggle guard, and unless I'm missing something in the diagram, should work just as well as the momentary (once the limit switch goes open, the relay turns off and everything stops anyway)

    soldered, assembled and bench tested with a test light instead of the locker actuator as load - just enough wire to pull both relay boards out of the box


    ready to go - just have to JBWeld the connector to the box once I'm sure there are no glitches - I used my trusty dremel to scribe the connector pin-out onto the lid for future reference


    the rear harness mounted up nicely using pre-existing holes in the tank bracket


    I used the step drill to make a huge hole for the e-locker connector to go through and used a spare grommet I had to seal it all up


    wiring run and the controller just about ready to be mounted


    The only problem I ran into is that the rear diff locked but now it won't unlock electrically - the voltage is switching the way it's supposed to, so I'm thinking the actuator is either jammed or stuck on a "dead spot"

    *edit* took the actuator off and found out the 3 "fingers" for the lock and unlock limit switches weren't making contact well enough, bent them out a bit and everything works perfect
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  3. #33

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I hate rust. About 4 years ago, before moving to AZ and So Cal, I fixed both wheel wells - grind, primer, bondo, primer, paint. This is just from this recent winter:



    So I fixed some of that again, all rust spots were wire wheeled and primered before having some bondo thrown in. There are more big holes than I remember under that paint - I really just need to bite the bullet and get Toyota Fiberglass fenders, but shipping from the far side of Canada costs as much as the fenders themselves .



    also got started on another project - time for better filtration. During a recent junkyard safari, I figured out a Subaru Forester airbox would work with a bit of tweaking.
    here's the adapter I used so I can mount the VAFM to it (cut up a bit and redrilled)

    all adapted, JBWelded and ready to go


    ditched the cheese cone filter and installed and plumbed up the Subie box - I used 2 nutserts going into the stock battery tray to hold the bottom of the filter box in place


    now, what to do with the 3" diameter hole facing the inner fender . . . .
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  4. #34

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    Time to work on the Comms a bit. I finally got around to installing the NMO mount on my roof for my 2M Ham 1/4 wave whip antenna. Here it is with the NMO cover on it


    and the 1/4 wave 2M antenna, just small enough that I don't think it'll be bothered by low branches. Now I just need to find a center console to stuff the 2M Yaesu into.


    Last winter during one of the snow storms I figured out that my CB squelch was messed up - it'd only open up if I pressed on the dial. I tried taking it apart, but everything is solid state and resistant to component replacement. So I got rid of the 10M/import CB and picked up a slightly used Cobra 18ST WX. There are no power mods for these radios, but they do have WeatherBand and are one of the only ones with a forward facing speaker. I started by modding the radio bracket with a fender washer to mount the CB (I hate welding sheet)


    simple enough install
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  5. #35

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    Last year I got a front diff with 4.88 gears courtesy of cash-for-clunkers. I finally got around to swapping the the LSD over to the new (to me) 4.88 gears so now I have matching gears and can use 4wd again (just in time for EC4RJ, if I could actually go)

    When I got the 4.88 front diff, I took the front lower crossmember that was attached and modded it up a bit with 1/4" plate so it won't get dented anymore (overkill - I should've used 1/8" but I literally have over 1/4 ton of 1/4" plate laying around)


    (before I put the front skid back on)
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  6. #36

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    finished up one minor project today that started with a new airbox

    gettting ready for the first cut


    Subaru Forester airbox bottom back in again. the airbox has a 3" opening with a rubber lip seal from factory and that is what makes the seal


    I used 3" thin wall PVC septic pipe & learned that it doesn't heat bend very well without kinking so I ended up using premade bends - here's the front


    the rear, note the inlet is angled up a bit


    I did heat bend the inlet to help deflect any water from the cowl a bit better


    almost done


    add fender and call it a day - everything fit perfect with my fiberglass fenders, not sure if 3" would work with stock fenders but it might
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  7. #37

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I found my windshield is leaking from the passenger side lower corner. I knew it was leaking because there was a puddle on the pass. floor for the last few months whenever it rained, but I didn't know from where until the truck didn't start. Quick diag found it didn't have spark and I followed it back to the ECM, took the ECM apart and found a couple drops of water in it (windshield dripped right on it, water got in one of the empty mounting holes). That was an easy fix as earlier electronics are pretty robust - I took both sides off the ECM case, doused the internals with rubbing alcohol, swished it around a bit and after using a hair drier on it the engine started right up.



    Since I can't fix the windshield right away, I sealed up the ECM a bit better. Every mounting hole and the side seams got taped. This might also help with quick dunks since the it's the top and sides that got sealed and the connectors point downwards - push an empty glass upside down into water, if the air can't go anywhere the water won't rise . . .





    ------------------------------------------

    yeah, yeah, no worries, I already went through the "ricer" phase and realize that there is absolutely no reason to put a spoiler on the back of a 1st gen. Not like it's gonna improve my handling at 100mph. What it does do is keep the exhaust from coming in the partially open rear window at highway speeds - I was hoping for better than that, but I'll settle for a bit of bling and minor improvements (it'll help in a few months when I swap coasts again ). There's not much improvement with the window all the way open, but there is under 50mph with it cracked 3"-4". I couldn't smell any exhaust coming from the back over 50mph.

    Here's what I started with - $40 ebay 2nd gen JDM rear spoiler with peeling clear coat


    I sanded a bit, but not too much - we don't need it looking too good - primered and painted it what I hoped would match the shell. Measured, marked, re-measured and drilled 4 mounting holes. Since the shell is double wall I continued the drill straight through to the interior and enlarged the inside holes so I could get the nuts onto the spoiler studs (the nuts are about 1" long and work well).


    the rear mounts don't match the angle of a 1st gen exactly, so I'll probably use some fuel tank epoxy to fill in the gap (the type of epoxy that gets "kneaded" into a putty not mixed with a toothpick)


    finished job, though I may yet take the heat gun to it and make it fit the shell shape a bit better in the future


    here you can see the scoops that grab some of the overhead air and directs it into the back window (the orange thing in the left scoop is the connector for the 3rd brake light which I haven't wired yet)


    (gratuitous poser pic after conquering the back yard grass)
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  8. #38

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    since the front lower crossmember has been beefed up it's time for a front belly skid. It's a bit thicker than I would have liked, but the 1/4" metal plate was free. Because it only bridges a small span I'm not too worried about it doing any damage to the truck if I take a hard hit to it (a skid should bend before it affects the parts it's bolted to). The rectangle section was cut out to give the front diff drain a bit of space otherwise it would be completely flat.



    The rear of my skid bolted to the lower brace I made awhile back - note the angled piece which should help me from getting hung up in reverse (this was the cut out piece from between the front legs)

    Another plus is that now all 4 control arm horns are solidly tied together so force to one is spread out to the others.


    BTW, if you see this in your engine, a head gasket retorque probably won't help much (I found that out today)

    I'm hoping it was just something that was brewing since the last time I towed with the small radiator . . . project for next weekend
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  9. #39

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    update on some minor projects. I'm considering the rear storage box finished for now - if I decide to later, I might add a hinged sleeping platform to the front of it.


    I made a junkyard run this weekend and picked up 2 additional crossbars for the roof rack. I pilfered these from an Isuzu Rodeo, though Jeep Cherokee cross bars mount on the same style rail (the Jeep rails are much longer but could be cut to length, the cross bars are easy to cut to width). I like this design since the weight is spread out over a greater distance on the fiberglass cap - I wouldn't want to hard mount a basket with legs since it would localize the weight to a few small areas. The eventual plan is to run several 1" wide x 1/8" thick aluminum strips front to back and bolted to each cross bar to make, essentially, a roof basket without the sides or resultant mpg drop.


    I also picked up a new coolant reservoir from an 80's something BMW 3 series. It's about the same size as the cheapy universal reservoir I had but mounts much nicer. In the BMW this reservoir was under pressure when in use and had a 3/4" i.d. nipple on the bottom for a hose as well as a smaller hose running to the top of the radiator for an air purge, the cap on the reservoir works the same as a radiator cap and only vents at a certain pressure. I JBWelded some brass in the lower nipple for the small hose to the radiator filler neck and used the original radiator hose nipple for the overflow (so it doesn't build any pressure). I also had to make a new coil mount, which worked out well since this coil is supposed to be mounted vertically anyway (was on a 45 degree before).
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  10. #40

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I've always wanted cup holders in the 'runner, it's the one thing that's bugged me about the 1st gens. It bugs my wife too, and since she'll be the one driving it 2300 miles I thought I'd remedy that before we left. Materials needed for the cup holder: 4" length of 3" diameter drain pipe, a 3" drain pipe coupler, a 3" drain pipe end cap and 2 carriage bolts to attach it. For the mount I just bent up some 1.25" wide flat stock that I had laying around and bolted it to the seat track

    the cup holder itself it pretty simple - slide the end cap and coupler over the piece of drain pipe. I ended up adding a rib to the metal arm to stiffen it up and reduce vibration while driving


    in 4th gear - it only gets in the way going into reverse and I can still get to the rear window switch underneath it


    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

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