86 pickup sitting outside for 30+ years. Where to start?

they only drove it for 3 years ……….

 

Cranked it to make sure there wasn’t any leaks. Started without any issue. It started and felt completely different than with the stock carb. Also added a picture of one of the carb plungers. It had zero elastic properties from sitting so long.

I’m looking into going back to stock suspension for the time being. Keeping the lift is going to be the same headache as trying to put it back to stock except with unnecessary strain on the drivetrain. I reached out to someone local that has just about everything that I need to put it back to stock. Still trying to figure out the piece that was cut to accommodate the diff drop.

I pulled the cover off around the shifter boot and the transmission seemed to be sitting straight. It looks like the cab was cut to accommodate the shifter being so far over in 5/6th gear. Or is this how it comes from factory?

Quick video of it starting. Don’t mind me trying to figure out which side was up.
https://youtu.be/xsn1SswOqGQ

 

Looks like it was cut to account for the body lift. They usually come with shifter extensions but if the installer can’t or doesn’t want to cut/weld, they have to enlarge the opening.

The part that you have to recreate is the tab that holds the front crossmember that carries the diff.

Here is what a stock one looks like and here is the lift kit one. It is the mount on the left that gets chopped off.

 

Havent had much time to work on the truck. Prepping for a move these past couple of months. I don’t think I’ll have any more time to work on it for a while. I cleaned the undercarriage and sprayed it with fluid film.
I might just order parts while I’m away and install them when I get a chance. Can you take a picture of the front side of the spindles/knuckle? I’m trying to figure out where the tie rods connect to on both sides. I’ll upload a picture when I get some better service of when I’m confused about.

 

Good to see you are still working on the project, slow but sure.

 

Starting a list of part numbers of what I plan on replacing for reference and so other can double check my work too. I might order soon, but won’t be installing anytime soon. Just trying to pile up parts and slowly chip away at it while I’m away from the truck. I’m going to try to stick with OEM for the most part.

Balls joints upper L/R
43350-39045
43360-39075
Ball joints lower L/R
43330-39195
43340-39175
Steering arms L/R
45611-35130
45612-35150
U bolts for leafs
90117-14042
Spring seat for leafs
48046-35120 discontinued

Any recommendations on body/bed mount bushings? I’m going to remove the body lift it has and will probably replace the rubber while I’m at it.

 

Sweet project.

You can use Sankei 555 from rockauto for the balljoints and tie rods. made by the same manufacturer as OEM.
u bolts and springs... i'd go custom deavers. or OME if you want a mild lift.

Just guessing that this was driven more than 3 years. Most of the mods are 90's mods. FYI the fender flares are Bushwacker "extend a fender" flares that have been bondo'd into the main body. Hanneman and Toyotafiberglass.com makereplacements if you want to go OEM. Toyotafiberglass is in BC, you could drive there, get them installed and drive back... good quality parts.

For the shifter, i switched to a short shifter for both shifters. marlincrawler makes a kit for the tranny, and 4crawler a kit for the tcase. make sure you change the shifter bushings while you are in there (marlincrawler makes/sells them). Your tranny looks offset - may want to look at replacing the engine and t-case bushing/mounts.

For body mount bushings - Energy suspension makes the proper kit. i upgraded mine to larger bolts tho.

For used OEM parts, I've purchased from these guys with good luck http://calminirecycling.com/wp/

For new OEM parts, I use Megazip.net (they usually have 10-15% off sales as well for major holidays) and the parts come straight from Japan/UAE.

Lots of classic tech info on 4x4wire.com forums (search thru the tech articles and the forums). Lots of tech on how to rebuild carbs / suspension / etc. Yotatech.com has good tech as well.

Lots of great tech on the 4crawler.com website.

Feel free to PM me with any q's, i know a good amount about these trucks and what interchanges.

 

Sure.

I will post some when I get a chance. If I can remember where they are, I can get pics of the spindle assemblies (I have a set not on a truck around here somewhere).

 

Here are some pics of the spindles and steering arms.
Keep in mind this truck has aftermarket upper/lower arms on it and is missing "a few" parts (like a drivetrain).

ETA: I just noticed that your truck is missing the bumpstop extensions. If you were to bottom the suspension out on with that kit on it, it would be using the shocks as bumpstops (with predictable brokenness). The extensions on mine (chunks of square tubing) were bent so I replaced them with some aftermarket bumpstops (I think they are for an XJ or something, I can look).

 

Any updates?

 

I’m interested in any updates as well

 

Ditto

 

Alright, been busy for quite some time. Moved back to the area and am back in school full time. Long term goal is med school and these pre reqs have been getting the best of me. I'll be getting some tires for it that i plan on running long term on it soon.

I reached out to a guy on marketplace that has a bunch of old toyotas so I can try to get most parts at once. I want to get rid of the block lift to make it a little more practical for truck activities since I sold my Tacoma.

On my list is (in no order and I am sure I'm missing stuff):

tires
remove block lift
match the gears (currently mismatched and driveshaft disconnected
fluids
vinyl floor (soundproof at the same time)
bench seat instead of single seats
new door kit to be able to open doors with remote

Pretty much just looking to make this truck be able to be used for truck stuff at the moment. I don't want to dump a ton of money into it so no off-roading planned for this thing and at some point give it to my son as his first car.

 

I got ahold of both steering arms as well as bed and cab bolts. I'll probably end up ordering a bushing set from LCE and tierod ends and ball joints from somewhere else. I'm planning to take it apart once I get it parked in a better spot. Hopefully within the next few days or so.

 

I await with bated breath for old school yota content!

 

Alright, made some progress these past couple of days. Moved the truck over to a better spot, picked up a Haynes manual and ended up just completely taking the bed off to have better access to everything since I was already removing the body lift. there was some alarm system wiring spliced into the license plate frame light that I had to take off and tape up but otherwise no issues. The bed isn't in terrible shape and most of the rust is on the left side around the taillight. I don't have any experience with body work but the tailgate seemed to be a lost cause in terms of rust repair. I need to do a bit of research into how much it would run me to get the bed patched up. I have a feeling that it might be easier to find a flat bed for it and worry about bed rust at a later time. I'm planning on getting rid of the leaf spring blocks next but I might have to hunt down new ubolts if they don't work without the blocks. It looks pretty straightforward and the only other thing Ill have to get rid of in the rear is the brake bracket extension that goes on the diff. Haven't done anything to the front end yet.

A few other things I'll have to address at some point: need to find a few bolts for the rear bumper (right side is bungy corded), exhaust has...disintegrated, I need to troubleshoot why engine wants to keep running when ignition is off.

Also might just throw the bed back on and call it good for the time being. It still works and I could take a wire wheel to it and throw some rust converter/primer over it for now. There are plenty of other things that I am going to prioritize for now.

 

Very cool, thanks for the update!

 

I removed the leaf spring blocks and in the process started replacing the Ubolts. I made the mistake of picking some up from auto zone and when I was torquing them down the lock washers opened up around the nut. Apparently 100 ft lbs of torque is more than the grade 5 hardware could handle. Ended up leaving them half installed and called it a day. I ordered some OEM ones instead that I’ll throw on for peace of mind.

I did manage to install the rear shocks. I ended up going with Bilsteins. I torqued the top bolt to 18 ft lbs and the bottom bolt to 47ft lbs. Hard to tell from the picture but the rubber looked pretty compressed in there. Maybe it’ll look better after I get some miles on it and retorque?

Waiting on fluids to come in then I’ll probably tackle that after front steering components.
I bought a few steering items from LCE to include: upper/lower ball joints, inner/outer tie rod ends, idler arm and cab bushings. Won’t be able to get any progress done for a few weeks though.

I also picked up an Autoloc kit for the shaved doors that will go on at some point when I get annoyed enough of having to reach my arm through the back window to open the doors.

I’m trying to get some ideas for the interior even though that’s probably the last thing I’ll tackle. I’ll probably throw the seats back in there and throw seat covers over them. I’ve seen some vinyl flooring that doesn’t look awful as well. I still need to remove the headliner. I have the original door panels that I’ll throw back on. I have the original stereo as well but the harness is cut. Might just upgrade to a basic head unit if that’s feasible.

I ordered a 3D printer that is going to take a few weeks to even ship (plus a few weeks to build it). I originally bought to make some stuff with the kids but I think it would also be fun to try and make misc parts for the truck. A few ideas so far: some sort of purposeful cover where the door handles used to be and a center console possibly?.

 

I've got an '86 4runner with those same exact rims mounted with 35x13.5 and I've been wondering what they are and who made them. They're like a super deep dish 15x10 or even 15x12 or something. I imagine you probably don't know what they are either. I think they're a cool looking old school wheel.

 

Wow, nice project. Engine sounded good, but a couple questions.

What was that harsh rattling near end of the video, sounded like it could have been the hood prop. Did you change all fluids in the engine, oil, coolant before that start? I figured you did but just didn't update this thread with too many details as you sound as busy as a one-armed painter.

Was there any excessive smoke or unusual smell to your exhaust? Did you shift through the gears yet?

Also, have you changed the rear diff fluid yet? I'm curious to know its condition/consistency/color that you find on the first change.