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Hi i am a new member and just got an 80 series

Stephen Tunley

New Member
Joined
Jan 15, 2018
Messages
3
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australia
Hi

My name is Steve and I live in Bellingen NSW.

After 15 Range/Land Rovers, 1 Pajero, 2x Navarra's, my last 2 purchases have been Toyota's, an LX 470 fully set up for overland touring and just before Xmas 2017 an 80 Series GXL.

I sold the LX 470 as it was heavy on fuel, bought a Navarra which I hated in too many ways and got the 80 (4.5 petrol) for $2k on 24 December.

As an el cheapo it had no rego, but flew through the slip. It shows 407k's but I was told the engine was rebuilt / replaced in recent years (no way to know). It is manual and drives surprisingly well. I have taken it on the beach a few times and it handles well in all kinds of sand conditions so far I am very happy.

I put in expensive LED head lights as I'm scared of the dark and replaced bull-bar with an ally bar. It has a 3 inch lift which is a PIA but I will live with it.

I gave it a good scrub and clean and it came up very well but does have very minor bumps around headlights, a few scratches and rust spots and more rust (surface spots) on roof. I will rub these back with wet and dry and get local spray fold to apply undercoat and new paint.

It also had a badly closing tail gate which I figured was a rubber block inside the dust seal, I cut the dust seal and removed these and reglued dust seal and it closes better, but still no perfect and I can't see reason why or how to adjust - any ideas?

The other major issue is the A/C. It does'n't work and I took it to a shop in Coffs Harbour to understand issue(s) and cost to fix and was told the compressor was seized (there was no pulley belt) and quoted $1200 for a new compressor plus costs to fit, replace pipes and regas ($200). Yikes that will be close to $2000 and I am not up for that. So the choice is leave as is, or find lower cost solution. Online I can see 80 series compressors for around $275 and my local mechanic had a quick look and said it seemed straightforward to replace. However in my experience life is never this simple...

Has anyone had experience with eBay provided (I presume Chinese) compressors or are there other / better alternatives? Is the c/over straightforward (It has no gas in the system) or are there other issues I need to be aware of?

I would really love some insights / ideas.

Thanks in advance.

Steve
 
Hi Steve and welcome to this most friendly forum. You sound like you've taken a long time finding your ideal truck but i will be surprised if you don't keep your 80.

There is a thread on here about AC compressors. In fact several. Have you tried a search? I had my compressor seize and found a new one for a John Deere tractor which just needed a couple of brackets and a longer belt. Always on these trucks it's best to use genuine or OEM parts. It really is what makes them great trucks, the AC compressor is no exception so avoid the Chinese copies and go for a Denso one. You have to get the exact same number otherwise something will be different as I found out.

One member on here rebuilt his compressor from 2 bad ones and as far as I know it's still operating well, search for 'Frankenstein' (you'll see when you get there).
Once you've got yours, you'll need the services of a proper refrigeration engineer as you will need to check the system is empty and empty it if need be then change the compressor and drier, refill with dry nitrogen and check for leaks then vacuum out and charge with the correct weight of refrigerant. A 'tame' fridge engineer should be more cost effective if you get the right one.

Good luck with it, add to any of the threads on AC compressors if you like and post up some pics of your truck here. Interested in those headlights you mention though there's a few on here that have changed them.

Best wishes

Richard
 
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Welcome Steve. Can't add anything to what Rich said.
Good luck with the truck.
 
Welcome!

There are several weak points.

1. Horizontal pipe behind the engine corrodes next to the bulkhead. It needs taking off to check properly.

2. Evaporator joints. Water gets in to the mating surfaces of the joints and causes corrosion which creeps past the o rings causing leeks. Cleaning the pipe and evaporator o ring positions with wire wool should work but don't get wire wool in the components, Plug first with cloth later removed. Toyota don't list O rings but box number 43-AAG0357 (? O357) will have the right sizes.

3. Evaporator. If corroded replace with Toyota.

4. Fit new drier last thing so damp does not get in to it.

Check all joints and replace the o rings. There should be enough in that box but check first.

Check round with UV torch off ebay before stripping. The system oil could well have the requisite dye already in.

The pulley should spin freely even with a siezed compressor so if it does not, the pulley bearing or clutch is siezed.

The compressor freeness itself can only be tested by removing the pulley and clutch and turning the grooved main spindle with the outer clutch plate as a tool.

A new compressor should come fully charged with oil for the whole dry system. I would drain whilst upside down and turning the spindle and it should contain 240 cc or 240 ml of fluid. Some stays inside so only about 200 comes out. Replace it with complete cleanliness. Don't worry how much oil is left in the car system because:-

a. You cannot measure the volume left.
b. It does not matter.

If no oil buy a 8oz (237 cc/ml) bottle of "Supercool PAG 46 with UV dye". You will need all of it in a dry compressor. If you cannot get the oil with the dye you can buy the clear oil and dye separately.

Ebay and/or Amazon for the rings, oil and dye.

Once the system is charged check for leeks with a UV torch. Again ebay.

In my mind I replace suspect components to the A/C once it's failed especially if you've acquired one not working so you won't know where the failure is/history. Might be worth checking around with the UV torch before stripping. Nothing worse than gassing it and finding a fault.

The Toyota workshop manual is very good on describing how to inspect and set up the clutch. The Toyota clutch pulley comes with a pressed in bearing and is very expensive. I have seen bearings for sale on ebay which should be ok but must have the same etched on number.

I knew nothing re A/C until I asked the questions on this forum and am very grateful to Richard Starcruiser and Dave Dave 2000 for helping me.
 
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Welcome!

There are several weak points.

1. Horizontal pipe behind the engine corrodes next to the bulkhead. It needs taking off to check properly.

2. Evaporator joints. Water gets in to the mating surfaces of the joints and causes corrosion which creeps past the o rings causing leeks. Cleaning the pipe and evaporator o ring positions with wire wool should work but don't get wire wool in the components, Plug first with cloth later removed. Toyota don't list O rings but box number 43-AAG0357 (? O357) will have the right sizes.

3. Evaporator. If corroded replace with Toyota.

4. Fit new drier last thing so damp does not get in to it.

Check all joints and replace the o rings. There should be enough in that box but check first.

Check round with UV torch off ebay before stripping. The system oil could well have the requisite dye already in.

The pulley should spin freely even with a siezed compressor so if it does not, the pulley bearing or clutch is siezed.

The compressor freeness itself can only be tested by removing the pulley and clutch and turning the grooved main spindle with the outer clutch plate as a tool.

A new compressor should come fully charged with oil for the whole dry system. I would drain whilst upside down and turning the spindle and it should contain 240 cc or 240 ml of fluid. Some stays inside so only about 200 comes out. Replace it with complete cleanliness. Don't worry how much oil is left in the car system because:-

a. You cannot measure the volume left.
b. It does not matter.

If no oil buy a 8oz (237 cc/ml) bottle of "Supercool PAG 46 with UV dye". You will need all of it in a dry compressor. If you cannot get the oil with the dye you can buy the clear oil and dye separately.

Ebay and/or Amazon for the rings, oil and dye.

Once the system is charged check for leeks with a UV torch. Again ebay.

In my mind I replace suspect components to the A/C once it's failed especially if you've acquired one not working so you won't know where the failure is/history. Might be worth checking around with the UV torch before stripping. Nothing worse than gassing it and finding a fault.

The Toyota workshop manual is very good on describing how to inspect and set up the clutch. The Toyota clutch pulley comes with a pressed in bearing and is very expensive. I have seen bearings for sale on ebay which should be ok but must have the same etched on number.

I knew nothing re A/C until I asked the questions on this forum and am very grateful to Richard Starcruiser and Dave Dave 2000 for helping me.

Hi Frank and thanks for such a comprehensive response. Very much appreciated.

Given the age of the vehicle I think it would be fair to resume that all the things you noted will be issues. If so, then it sounds like it may be too expensive to fix. I have researched OEM Compressors and these can ge found from $150 s/h to $600 new. Given the fact that the compressor changed in 94/95 I now feel I am best to go OEM.

Any guesses as to what a reasonable budget might be? And, at the same time any recommendations for repair firm in / around Coffs Harbour whose default is to to quote $1200 for an OEM compressor when they can be found for $600?

As for the lights, I purchased high end LED's from Autobarn in their post Xmas sale. The hi/lo beam combo was circa $325 and I got 25% off. They did not fit perfectly so I had my local mechanic fit for $50. They are way better than stock and when I mount the lightbar I got from TJM that cost a fortune but is brilliantly made and water proof, I will be set-up for all conditions and my fear of darkness can be hidden away again...

Cheers
 
Well the mechanical part of the job is very simple so you could do this yourself or with a friend who is used to repairing things. Taking it to a garage may well be very expensive. I don't know what to quote in UK let alone OS. make sure your system was not filled with R12 gas. That was the "old" type gas and changing from R12 to the later gas is a whole load more trouble. I have relatives in Coffs Harbour but they are not spanner people lol.
 
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R12 was a good refrigerant. R134A is supposed to be a drop in replacement. I would expect your truck to already be on 134A but if not then a tame fridge engineer will know what to do to change it.

As Frank says, you can do most of it yourself. Don't be put off but do inspect your system thoroughly. If there is gas in the system it needs removal, so at this point with the aid of your tame fridge engineer you can pressure test the system with dry nitrogen to see if there are any leaks.

You can spot most leaks visually even if there's no dye in the system. They show as slightly oily patches that have attracted dust. Check your condenser (black bit in front of the radiator) for mechanical damage, stones front end shunts etc. Also as Frank says, check around the joints on the condenser for any leak indicating patches.

Don't open any joints until you have had the system depressurised as escaping refrigerant is very cold and if you get it in your eye it will freeze it…not good so wear eye protection when you first open it up even after it's gas has been reclaimed. After you open any joint, cover it with something to effectively keep out moisture and debris.
 
Welcome aboard Steve, seems like you’ve hit the info jackpot with our two resident A/C gurus on the job :thumbup:
 
Welcome to the forum Steve and +1 on your choice of Cruiser. I'm guessing you don't get the rust problems we have over here in the UK!
On the AC question I would rather go with a refurb OEM item than a cheap after market unit irrespective of where it was made. The AC system is a very simple one mechanically speaking and changing out parts is easy. I've even topped up my system with a disposable recharge canister and it worked fine until the condenser developed a leak but refilling the system from empty calls for a specialist. If you are unsure of what gas was last used it will need flushing and scavenging when ready for refilling to remove all traces of the old oil as the type used in R12 gas is not compatible with R134. O rings are cheap parts and your AC specialist may well give you some for free if you ask him as mine did.
 
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