SOLVED! Post 2853 Leaking Injectors, Dealer Techs Rock! Extended Cranking after Engine Swap 3.4L 5vz

No I didn't say that they sound different per say, I mentioned that they will sometimes take a bit longer to start, an extra revolution or two of the engine before she fires.

 

@noahpete and @Jayman405, a wise person suggested this to us a while back, to check if we have a restricted fuel line. Don't think this has been done by anyone yet, although not sure. Wanted to share it, FWIW:

"Could the Taco have a restricted fuel return line, possibly pinched or plugged during the engine swap, causing the high fuel pressure/contributing to hot starts?

This test would be like putting your thumb on the end of a garden hose - the pressure goes up. When the injectors go in you could disconnect the return line and route it into a suitable container, eliminating any restriction. Running the engine for just a few seconds like that (pressure gauge hooked up) would tell the tale."

I looked under the truck yesterday and saw 3 steel lines coming from the tank to under the hood. One line went through the fuel filter, so I assume that is the supply line, then the other two are return lines, right? Didn't see any obvious damage, but didn't look that hard either. Not an easy task in a gravel driveway, especially when you aren't sure what you are looking for I remember studying diagrams of our fuel system A LOT quite some time back, maybe I'll take another look today to understand it all better....

FWIW Thank you, will bring the Taco over very soon!

Thinking we'll get over that way ~7am (gotta get back over this way for doc appt by 9, traffic is pretty unpredictable at this hour). If we see you around this morning, we'd love to borrow our old injectors to let the last injector service person re-run them (for curiosity only) on their machine, then bring them back next time we come out (we know there's a core charge on them). If we don't see ya this morning, maybe we can "borrow" them for that same purpose next time we see you guys, then bring back later?

Also, there's no core on the FPRs, is there? We were hoping to get our old one back, for curiosity also, if possible. Didn't get the "1st" old one back, would have loved to see it up close, after talking about it's function/anatomy sooooooooooooo much!! Now I get a second chance. See, there's my silver lining to insisting on replacing the same part a second time! My very own extra FPR to treasure and admire

Thank you thank you thank you for all of your hard work!!

I see more cookies in your future!

 

Oops, leaving now, will probably get there closer to 7:30.

 

Dropped the Taco off this AM and are now very excited about our new fuel system components going in by an expert hand soon! So happy our Taco is in good hands and soon to be in even better shape than she was. Hurray!

We are now looking into the rack & pinion situation too. I remember DP had a great thread about DIY'ing this job, going to take a look at that again. Also getting a quote on having it done for us, since we have now found such an awesome mechanic that does great work. Eric thought it looked like that teeny tiny little cut in the boot that used to be just a wet appearance has now become a teeny drip, so it's moved up in our priorities now. We have yet to hear any noise from the wheel bearing, so I think that can wait til later this summer when he does the shocks/struts. We are so anxious to get the Taco all fixed up so we can just focus on enjoying her again!!

And I'm going to start researching DIY'ing painting the topper! Got a quote for $550, no way!! Spray paint of some sort will be good enough, we are not going for perfection on this one. Anyone know if there is a particular type of paint that can be used at home for this? Do we HAVE to remove the old spray paint? If so, how?

 

Ah ha, found it!! Thanks DP!

 

One of those steel lines you looked at under the truck should be a brake line...

 

Really? Hmmmm, weird that they are routed together so closely like that.

 

Yep, brakeline.

As for the topper, paint it yourself.

You must have an ocilating sander. Those work great to sand the cap smooth.

The $ 49.99 paint sprayer at HF is an awesome deal. That sprayer is very close in quality to the professional sprayer. You may have to borrow a compressor to run it, but those can found cheap if you want your own.

 

A compressor is even more useful than a borescope. I clean dust out of computers with mine, much cheaper than those little cans of whatever.

 

We have the sander and the compressor! And neighbor or HF has the sprayer. Totally doing this. Talking to my buddy Matt about the process. Thanks for the input you guys!

 

SWEET! Sounds like our R & P received a passing grade by a trusted source, love this news!! Gotta admit, after reviewing DP's thread briefly this morning on DIY'ing your R & P, I was a little nervous at how that would all turn out. Sounds like lots of work!! This is great news!

It's topper time!!! And sorting out those personalized plates!

But first, gotta share some exciting news. The Taco cookie cutter made a friend



PS: Just noticed the new friend's shape. Apparently Eric made this one to look like it's sporting some serious mud tires?

 

276,000 here with my 3.4, I get weird starts once and awhile, usually after sitting for a short time after a long haul...if you had an Ultra gauge you could pay attention to the heat build up...when I stop for gas when on road trips, the engine water temps rises to 206+ sometimes while shut off, it may contribute a bit to the slightly longer crank times on occasion.

 

I sprayed a topper once, it was white and i changed it to black.
I just sanded on it with some red scotch brite pads until the finish was dull.blew all the dust off with an air hose then Washed it with soapy water..
I had some rustoleum in a gallon bucket that we thinned out to run through a sprayer. It held up good for about 5 years then started to fade pretty bad.

 

Well, I thought a decent paintjob is well worth the money...

Howard

 

If you want to use rustoleum, I'd recommend a roller. you'd be surprised at how well it turns out. put it on nice and thick and it will flow smooth and take forever to dry

 

Knuckleduster! You're back! Where the heck have you been? Did you hear the news? It's fixed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Crazy huh? Didn't know if it ever would be. Can't believe it. Still in a semi state of bliss/shock constantly. The Taco is truckin again! Sounds like your paint job worked out and was low cost, I like it! Will keep it in mind, thanks for the input buddy.

Hetkind, I can see where a nice paint job would be worthwhile. For us though, the truck itself is scratched to hell along the bed especially, from driving through stuff that shouldn't be driven through if you care about your paint job at all, and from Eric lugging the topper off and on by himself. So we'd need to paint it (the truck) first if we were going for perfect. Not happening, too much $. And I really don't care much, I don't want to have to worry about scratches in the future, so for us, the topper fix up needs to be cheap and easy and look better than it does. Less than perfect is OK, pretty much anything we do at this point is an improvement. I washed it on Friday, and realized how much of the black paint has actually come off. It's pretty bad I am confident that even I can make it look better no matter how I go about it Speaking of how those scratches got there.....hmm....we keep talking about building some sort of stand for the topper, to make it easier to take off/on. Thinking now would be a great time to do it!!

Hypox, this is pretty much exactly what my buddy Matt advised. That's two votes for this method. Thanks for the input!

 

http://www.rickwrench.com/index79master.htm?http://www.rickwrench.com/50dollarpaint.html

depending on how much elbow grease you want to put into it....

 

Nice, thanks for the link! This is what Matt was talking about!

 

Been there done that,,waaay back in the day. Helped a buddy paint a old chevy truck with 2 gallons of heavy boat paint and rollers. The "35 yard gloss" look to it.

Only used a case of beer and a pound of deer jerky. We came out ahead,,,and the truck looked redneck awesome.

 

http://www.yotatech.com/f2/tacoma-sleeping-platform-carpet-kit-camping-setup-220913/

Reading about DIY custom built inserts for the bed. Our neighbor makes these really cool ones that have a bunch of those long drawers, to reach tools/supplies way back in there. I know I've seen a link for building a pretty simple one with plywood laying flat across to cover the wheel wells to make sleeping back there more comfortable. Can't find the link though! But found this link, where the guy said he & his wife lived in the back of their Taco for a 5K trip to Alaska. It sounds like he built something really cool for his Taco's bed, but his pics are gone.