LexFather

Great job with the ES cleanup.

I really need to finish mine. Good work people

tjaden

Been out of town for a few days -

mmatheny, thanks for the tips! Fortunately, it was just the mats that were on their last thread.. the carpet underneath was still good, and I'll grab some new mats - at least the driver's side front since the rest of them actually cleaned up pretty well. Meguiar's PlastX to bring the shine back to the headlights - didn't use a buffer, just lots of elbow grease. I sold parts for a few years while in college and got ASE certified, so it helps with sourcing and locating reputable parts suppliers as you suggest. Thanks!

BadViper22, many thanks! :-)

92ES5sp, yours looks excellent! You've set the benchmark, so I'll know what to aim for! This one I just picked up has 222K+, so it's gonna take some work to get it as nice as yours.

Lexucan, thanks! After disassembling the console and removing the shift boot to get the grime out of all the crevaces, some polishing with Meguiar's PlastX did wonders for the woodgrain - it even took out most of the micro sized swirl marks and scratches. I'll try it on the cluster when that comes out for repair.

Gerson, I'll hope not to jinx myself by telling you what I paid... $850. It was local on Craigslist, and the previous owners were selling it 'for parts' - I asked if it was drivable, and they said it was... so 3hrs later I was driving it home :-) It needs a laundry-list of stuff, and I haven't driven it since the maiden voyage because of the valve cover leak dripping onto the exhaust - it's pretty bad and billows smoke at every stop.

Tonight I tackled the front valve cover - the plug seals were a b&%# - and pulled out the Champion plugs *gasp*that were worn to .060 with some NGKs, but ran out of daylight so the rear valve cover and plugs will have to wait until the weekend. I hear (and see) that it's gonna be an all day job.

I hope you can post some pics of yours soon so we can see your progress!

Gerson

iTrader: (1)

Daaamn! $850. What a steal. I paid $1,700 but its worth it since it's a really rare gem w/ a manual tranny. I'll post pics pretty soon but I can do cell pics but it doesn't come out so well. I need to detail the whole car and buy the necessary parts, some clips retainers on loose parts. I have a huge laundry list of things as well but some parts are getting replaced w/high quality, name brand performance items and accesories like TRD for example.

I'm progressing slowly cause I'm selling my 94 corolla. That will help me cover most of the fixes that my car needs. I already spent $350 in brand new toyota parts and replaced a rear valve cover since it was cracked. No more smoking since I fixed most of the leaks.

llcoolpass

I h8 you. [paid over 3 for mine and mine had a things wrong too]
BTW, the car is worth more than that, especially the 5spd.

It's so practical and reliable [and dare I use another and] and full of guts.... and looks good. I'm getting the urge to post a pic of my white 5spd [not seen any other white ones with black leather].

tjaden

i snapped one of two VSV things on the front bank while leaning my elbow across it to reach the rear valve cover - one is pinkish/orange and has a different part #, while the one i broke is green and a 90910-12080 - any idea what the difference is or if it will still run with it disconnected or broken? toyota wants $90+ and it has to be ordered. i glued it back together for now, although since i broke a bunch of other stuff in the process i'll be back at it in the morning (ran out of daylight tonight). the intake tube crumbled apart when i loosened the clamps, so i'll need to rig up a tube assembly until i can locate a new/used one. the rear plugs were nasty AC Delcos that were worn to nearly .080, and i'm surprised it was still running with them like that! i suspect (and hope) that the new NGKs along with a more respectable intake tube might cure the surge/choke/surge/stall thing that is happening when pulling out in first gear.

... more to come tomorrow :-)

92ES5sp

tjaden thanks. Your interior looks great; especially the wood trim in the console. Here is a little something for you that has to do with the surging, sputtering, rough running etc. Enjoy!

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es3...ml#post1844613

tjaden

hey 92ES5sp, thanks! I checked out that link you provided - it has some helpful info! In the last couple days, as it turns out, I've done nearly everything on the list that is posted there- and as it turns out that the badly worn plugs along with an intake tube that was cracked and split in numerous places was the source of the strange activity under load in 1st gear. Fresh plugs and temporary sealing of the tube - it purrrs at idle and pulls strongly up to redline in first gear, now :-)

The new problem, however, is that replacing the valve cover gaskets didn't resolve the oil puddles - under the passenger side just behind the tire sortof directly under the steering rack. It looks and smells like oil, and at first I was hoping it was just leftover gunk dripping off from the valve cover leak - there was a section of the gasket almost an inch long that was completely gone!!

So hrmm... then also on the 120mi round trip test run this morning, the battery light came on and it seems that the alternator is only putting out 12.45V or so - it's nearly the same at the battery - the previous owner said the alternator was recently replaced, and I can see the 'remanufactured' sticker on it. I checked it on the alternator output wire, thinking that maybe I tickled some of the wires during the valve cover job. But I'm guessing if it's only 12.45V at the alternator, then it's not in the wiring?

So, it's back to square one with the oil leak...

Thanks again, 92ES5sp - and Gerson, I hope you're having better luck with yours :-)

GEORGE_JET

Do you have a schematic for the alternator wiring? There are 4 other wires bringing signals to the voltage regulator (located inside the alternator). First inspect the connector, and then backprobe the connector to verify that the regulator is getting the right signals. Of course you should always inspect the cables before pulling out your meter

tjaden

hi GEORGE JET, thanks for the suggestion :-) i'm not so skilled with electrical stuff, other than taking readings at the battery and at the alt. output - so backprobing for the right signals sounds mysterious to me. I checked the harness at the back of the alternator, and umm.. it's there and it's connected :-) I'm guessing, then, that if I just remove the alt and have it bench tested it should narrow down the problem?

Since the cables run from the alt into a harness/loom that meanders around the back of the engine inside a plastic cover with lots of other wires in it I'll have no idea if the problem is elsewhere unless the alt tests good on the bench.

Thanks again for your help - I'll dig around some more :-)

Gerson

iTrader: (1)

If oil is still leaking, I would also check the oil filter block adapter(mounted on the engine block). The 2 orings also tend to wear out on high mileage 3VZ-FE engines, I ended up replacing it but the last nut is a ***** because I had to unbolt the front exhaust pipe and pry to get the last nut. I still got fixes to do and really need to fix the front pipe and rear suspension.

llcoolpass

your battery is getting low, don't wait to get teh alt replaced under warranty

tjaden

swapping the alt fixed the problem - was worried i cracked a wire somewhere during the valve cover gasket job. the new one is putting out a healthy 14.40v... except now, it's spewing coolant from the top end of the radiator somewhere and with non-stop rain since saturday it has been challenging to locate the source. the cap looks original, and the level in the rad hasn't dropped much, so i'm hoping the new cap installed tonight will do the trick *crosses fingers*

gerson, how is it coming along? what's the latest?

Gerson

iTrader: (1)

Well, my check engine light came back on cause of a defective knock sensor (again!). I replace both sensors and harness section. Repaired the exhaust, new flex pipe section and re weld the crack where the Y meets, sounds a lil better but will get a new replacement front pipe assembly soon.

ABS light is on too for both rear speed sensors. Still got some supension and brake work to cover before i put a new set of falkens or yokohama tires, may buy tokico HP and a good lowering spring combo along with a TRD rear sway bar from the 99-02 solara. Brakes are squeakin on front so I have to decide for oem or rotora slotted rotors and hawk pads.

Some oil is found on the intake hoses (the 2 small ones, one leading to the valve cover and the other on behind the TB??? Will post more details later on.

big basset

i purchased a red/grey 5 speed with grey cloth interior in may 2008. the needles all work. I read here to turn on the parking lights and dim the cluster all the way to help preserve them since they go out pretty quick. the clutch needs to be replaced and the shocks should be replaced soon as well. I changed the steering wheel to the 2001 wood trim one and it looks nice. Other than that there is nothing wrong with the car. I had a hard time figuring out how to play the CDs int he changer. I didnt know they go in faced upside down. The shifter feels loose sompared to my corolla/ I read iti uses a cable link system. My MR2 uses cables as well. I have new cables and bushings on my MR2 and it still is slightly loose. I guess thats how cable shifters feel.

nice car.

Gerson

iTrader: (1)

Thats cool, do u have any pics of the ES by any chance?