Hello all , Toyota enthusiast new owner of a 95

[Canyonero90]

Hello there
My name is Luke I’m from Northern Ireland
I have recently Purchased a 2000 Colorado
hope to work through it over the winter months to bring it back to its former glory.

it has the usual rust problems at the back
body mounts and rear chassis
It will be the first thing to sort out on my to do list , paint is a bit tired other than that a good driving jeep
with only 115,000 miles it hardly seems broken in , with the last owner being a gentleman in his eighties who owned for 12 years it doesn’t seem that the cruiser has had a hard life.

look forward to sorting it all out and using the cruiser as a casual tow vehicle for my track car next year

 

[Canyonero90]

 

[Bob]

Welcome aboard Luke. I'm based down in Carlow and there's a few on here from this side of the water. That looks like a clean example alright. Sort out the rust and it will serve you well. They are a fantastic tow vehicle.

 

[tonytoyota]

Hi and welcome goodlooking cruiser you have.

 

[Canyonero90]

Hi Bob thanks ! Looking forward to getting it all sorted ! North south 4x4 has been a handy website for parts for the 95

I read that the 1kz can suffer head / head gasket issues ! Mine is fine at the moment
But is there Anything you would recommend to prevent the issue happening! As i
Will be using it to tow next year
Other than the usual precautions.
coolant flush Toyota coolant thermostat etc

thanks

 

[Bob]

Mine has the KD engine, so haven't experienced any engine related difficulties, but my understanding with the kz is that it's mainly an issue on automatics. Corrosion leads to coolant and oil mixing at the trans cooler I think, leaving the head without proper cooling and they can crack. Have a search here, there's plenty of threads on it. Replacing the combined rad/cooler seems to be the done thing. Haven't seen the problem on the manual ones, and I know of a good few 99/00 models going around where I am with no issues.

I've been getting bits and pieces from Kevin there in North South for a few years. Very good to deal with. Handy that he is a combined breaker and new parts supplier now

 

[Canyonero90]

Thanks for the insight on to the possible problem that does make a lot of sense ! I will give the cooling system a good going over once the rust is sorted the list gets longer lol

north south have been great I have got new lights / fuel neck and body mount bushes from them all in stock and quick delivery too ,Great to see a 4x4 specialist over here with good stock of parts for the 90 series

 

[Bob]

I'd bet the price of a pint for both of us that there's more 90s on the road in Ireland than there is in mainland UK, so it makes sense really.

 

[Canyonero90]

I would agree there’s lol plenty on the road I know off and even some 80s on the road too.
Good job I will update photos soon when work starts on the chassis

 

[Bob]

I searched a post I made on another car site about this to check, and one day last summer I was filling my cruiser with diesel, and opposite the station is the local mart on sheep day. Now the queue of vehicles and trailers outside had 22 farmers (yes it takes that long to fill one of these!) Of the 22, 15 of them were landcruisers, 3 tractors, A Ford Ranger, 2 Mitsubishis and 2 trucks. I think 8 of the cruisers were 90 series...

I need to get out more

 

[Canyonero90]

Hahaha unreal !! Some sight for sure !!

 

[extraease]

Yes a lot of landcruisers up at a mart I go to at Carnaross. A lot of 80's to be seen in go working order. Mine is the only 70 I have seen in a while there. I think that there are a lot of old 4x4's there because sheep farming is a pretty tight business.

 

[knicko]

When I had an auto 95 series (and a previous auto 3.0TD Hilux Surf), I baselined the cooling system for peace of mind.
I replaced/refurbished the following:
1. New radiator (from Roughtrax) and genuine Toyota coolant
2. Water pump (Roughtrax)
3. Replace thermostat with hot climate variant... think it opens at 76 degrees rather than the 82 degrees for the cold climate ones
4. Split and refurbish the viscous coupling cooling fan parts... these have a light weight oil inside which works on temperature and centrifugal force to engage fan to full engine speed. The oil disappears over time and needs replacing. There are good guides on you tube and perhaps also this forum to show how to do this.
5. Obviously do the cam belt, tensioner and idler pulley while you're doing the work... mad not to, as you've got easy access with radiator, fan etc out the way.
6. My cooling hoses were all ok but worth checking these for cracking/weakness while you've got the coolant drained down.

Not too expensive work and well worth peace of mind, knowing your cooling system is tip top.

 

[knicko]

In fact, here is a previous thread on the viscous fan oil refill...

coupling fan refill oil silicone

the last month i stopped to here one spesific noise from the fan ,when start the engine also a lot of mud was concentrated to the radiator.i dismantled and wash it.also change the fluid and the thermostat.has 170.000km but what happened with the fan? the book said to check visually for leakage...

www.landcruiserclub.net

 

[Canyonero90]

Update on the big 95
Been busy taking care of the rust situation

I was well aware of the state of the chassis when buying it as the rear body mounts had broken. I gave it a good look over at the time and found the rear section of the chassis and cross member to be rotten also.
Thankfully the rest of the chassis and body are very good !

So after some time thinking about how I was going tackle it, I thought the best way was to cut the chassis legs out and box section the whole rear end . And close the chassis up ,

So this is the end end result ! Still to be properly painted etc that’s just galvanised paint for the mean time, until I sort out proper under body treatment.

I replaced the timing belt and tensioner and idler pulley as no history of it being done.

Next thing is to get the body under prepped
And replace the front ball joints as the many horror stories I have read about them failing.

 

[Tractionman]

Excellent work, Luke.

Stuzbot, yours is in good condition compared to the chassis rot here.

 

[AndycruiserguyLomas]

Thats what most of them need, Its a pity there isn't a ready made rear half chassis ready to bolt/weld on. That with reasonably priced axle cases would save a lot of Collies.

 

[Canyonero90]

Thats what most of them need, Its a pity there isn't a ready made rear half chassis ready to bolt/weld on. That with reasonably priced axle cases would save a lot of Collies.

It was worth doing ! , but yes most need the same ! Imagine the amount of cruisers saved if you could buy the chassis sections off the shelves

 

[Canyonero90]

Excellent work, Luke.

Stuzbot, yours is in good condition compared to the chassis rot here.

Thank you ! Least I won’t be worrying about the tow bar won’t falling off now lol

 

[Tractionman]

Haha, that's for sure, it's stronger than when it left the fsctory