What have you done to your 1st gen Tundra today?

Technically under quarantine for the next 7 days, but it finally got above freezing for the first time in a month, so I took advantage of it and unstuck my topper and mounted up the high rise. Man does it look good!


Edit: yes, those are all real windows!

 

Saw on Tundra facebook group:

 

Them wheels tho. I like!

 

Boom.

Isn't she a beauty? I finished rebuilding/reassembling 90% of my engine over the past couple long days! Here's a recap since I last updated.

Camshaft oil seal replaced (not sure why new one is a different color):


It slid right on:


New water pump torqued down:


There is some kind of oil seal right above the rear main seal, I thought about skipping this but I'm glad I made the special trip to the dealer to get it:


Old one disintegrated and was past its useful life:


Here's the bottom of the engine, too bad it will rarely be seen because it looks so clean:


Worked off carbon buildup from the piston heads, this is satisfying:



Got the head gasket surface ready for the gasket:


I don't want to go into a lot of detail about this, but my block deck isn't perfectly straight according to the straight edge and feeler. It's a microscopic amount, yet, an amount. Considering my time crunch, tens of hours spent on my already half-assembled engine, and the fact that I couldn't find anyone to machine a block, there's literally nothing I can do but clean the surface, put on the heads, and hope for the best. If it even runs, I'll run a compression test after the engine is in and see how good or bad my work here has been. The shop that did my heads said the truck must have overheated at some point because they had to shave a few millimeters off to get the parts straight. They also said they've never seen a 2UZ-FE block crack or really warp much. Still, guys, keep an eye on your temperature gauge for overheating. All it takes is one hose to pop off while you're not looking, and your engine could be permanently damaged within minutes.

Here's a head gasket installed; triple-checked the surface for any oil and made sure my hands were clean:


Before and after on the heads:



They really came out looking 100% perfect after the shop finished.





I promise these aren't new and are still the old ones... if this runs and I didn't mess anything up, I wouldn't be surprised at any performance gains.

RH cylinder head attached:


Assembly lube on friction surfaces:


Head bolts closeup:


Buying all new bolts turned out to be overkill as the new ones' measure exactly the same width as the old meaning the old are within spec. Peace of mind, I guess. The installation is fairly intensive, but Toyota's FSM gives lots of details, and after one side you get the hang of it. Lots of tightening bolts in a certain order to prevent warping. First you put a little lube on the bolts and between the washers and surfaces. Then tighten to 26 ft-lbs. Then turn each head bolt by 90° until they've been turned 180° from the initial torquing (white paint marker helped with this, or some people use a torque angle gauge). Even with a big ole' breaker, that last step requires some muscle. Then I wrestled in the cams.

Camshaft timing marks lined up, meaning no lobes depressing any valves:


The timing stuff I quadruple-checked as it scares me the most, and on an interference engine can mean destruction if inaccurate. I struggled a little with the camshafts because at first it seemed something was always hitting a valve when the timing marks were aligned. Finally I realized I just needed to turn them ever so slightly inwards with a wrench and pop on the front cap with some RTV, which locks in the cams' thrust angle. Then I put in the camshaft bearings, bolts, and oil feed pipe back in their specific order, made easy by a cardboard template I drilled matching holes in. The correct order is also etched into the bearings; thanks, Toyota. Lastly after torquing the 23 or so bolts to varying measures, I could remove the special service bolt out of the cam gear so they could rotate freely. Obviously new cam seals were put in, too. There were many steps and aspects in which I was too focused to snap photos. Also, I have a feeling probably no one else will do this job.

Bam, one side done.


Got that sweet-looking exhaust header, heat shield, body mount bracket with new mounts all torqued down. Used antiseize in case I ever want to work on engines again in the future and upgrade exhaust.


Like I said, the second time around was a lot faster:


Soapy water on the new coolant bypass gaskets, I got an extra one in case any fail. Please check these when you do your timing belt as one of mine was toast:


Before installation I'd had the coolant bypass pipes soaking in a product called CLR, it did a remarkable job disintegrating grime, and otherwise difficult-to-remove rust deep inside. Aluminum is highly pleasing to restore. I further removed gunkies with the wire wheel after this, and these each received new Gates hoses with Aerospace 303 applied for longevity.



One of the last big steps was the whole timing belt job. Idk how fast you guys are on this sitting in the truck, but with me sitting on a bucket with everything perfectly accessible, it took about 4 hours, and I could have done it in 3 if I didn't take my time. By my third time in 90K miles, I'll be able to do this lightning fast. I want to say it was easy, but I'll wait to make sure nothing implodes as pride comes before a fall.


The weird thing to me about the timing was that it was physically impossible for the cams' timing marks to be aligned and the cam pulley markings, which were on different sides. I know it doesn't matter because the crank was set to TDC and the timing belt, as long as it's precisely aligned with all front engine timing marks, takes care of timing, independent on the cam gears' timing marks. A couple of rotations of the crank confirmed everything is in time, and I'm actually not too worried. Toyota made it hard to, say, put on the cam pulley gears wrong.

You can see that swell remaned Denso alternator in the picture as well as new Aisin fan bracket. I noticed my idler pulley is a little crunchy when spinning, my serpentine belt tensioner barely turns, and crankshaft pulley dampener bolt is all pitted, so ordered new bois of each. Splurged and as well got those new valve cover bolts coming in. Lastly, not shown in this photo, but the starter is also in. I was forced, after two Densos arrived damaged, to get a local Ultima remaned starter with lifetime parts warranty due to time constraints. Yeah it's not OEM or my first choice, but it looks identical.


That about wraps it up. I've still got a few bits hanging around, although nothing that will take long. I'm waiting on a good weather day to put this mamba jamba into the bay. I can't wait to be on a straight road with the throttle wide open, this beast of a project has been a physically and mentally exhausting undertaking, I hope it's worthwhile. Thanks for reading and feel free to chime in with any thoughts.

 

Nice work @theblurry1

May your engine crank over on its first time. Stoked for you on this.

 

The poor corvette. Looks like the tundra just parked on top of it rather than causing the damage. The corvette roof has zero support. Must be a rag top.

 

@theblurry1 How much time and money invested to do the rebuild? Excellent work, BTW!

 

Rebuild looks fantastic! Great work

 

@theblurry1, amazing job man, looks incredible! If I remember correctly you mentioned earlier you had very little experience with something like this? Am I correct? Either way, youre killing it and definitely an inspiration to us all if our engines need to be rebuilt

 

Rebuild looks great!!! Man reminds me when I was building my 240, damn that was over 10 years ago. Bought a JDM sr20 and did a complete rebuild.

 

How do you go about getting custom shocks built? Do you I have to have a buddy like you have to hook me up or is this something they do regularly?
Would probably cost quite a bit more though right?

 

@theblurry1 nice rebuild! Good luck cranking it for the first time! I've been there, the nerves and stress before the first turnover is something else. At least for me. Haha

 

@theblurry1 on the cam/crank seals did you add some oil or grease to the sealing side so they weren't a dry install? Not always necessary but can prevent seal damage when starting a dry motor.

 

Um im not sure, they do custom
but im not sure the pricing on it

 

Do you happen to know wire location for reverse trigger wire? I saw you went to the green wire in the connector on passenger side as auxillary, but I need to connect to the reverse wire and the one that Crutchfield mentions in their diagram doesn't seem to be the right one.

 

The wire that I pointed out behind the glove box is the reverse trigger. At least in DC and Sequoia.

 

since the old bolt for the abs holder didn't fit, I got a button top for it.

 

Decided I liked flush mount bumper lights better than the cubes hanging from the bumper. Was going to try a slim single row light in place of the cubes but decided to try the flush mounts for $22.

$17 Nilight - NI23C-18W 2PCS 18W Flood LED Work Light Driving Lights Led Light Bar Off Road Led Lights Flush Mount for Jeep Truck Tacoma Bumper ATV UTV,2 Years Warranty

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00J5AAX5S/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1










View from the bed.



View from the drivers side mirror.

 

@Lil Steve That looks very clean, nice job!

 

I finally was able to make @lsaami's trans cooler fit!

I had to slowly work the AC condenser line towards the front of the truck. I moved the pipe clip to where the JB weld is. The hole there was just a hair too big for the clip. I shoved an M6 washer on the clip and broke the prongs. D'oh.

I grabbed my JB weld, and stuck her good.

I discovered that there's a knick in the wall of the condenser pipe. I hope that will fly. It has so far, but it hadn't been been bent either.

I started the truck and ran the AC for about 10 minutes. Still blows cold. Still visible in the sight glass when AC system kicks on.

I've got on order some ½" to ⅜" hose barb reducers. My lines coming out of the transmission are ½". The nipples on the OEM cooler are ⅜". I can pick up some ⅜ hose from work. All I need is about 4 inches per side.

 

A little JB Weld over it for protection/prevention?

 

That's a great idea! I'll get some quick set from work tonight. I can get clean brushes too to clean that area for proper adhesion.

I thought I had the 5 minute mix, but I have the 5 hour mix.

 

I think about doing this to prius every time I see one. That wedge shape is asking for it.

Pretty good articulation on that suspension too.

 

New to me shell from a fellow forum member!

 

Nice shell. What size are those tires?

 

285/70/17

 

Do you know if it changes between years? I have an 03 and don't have a 2006 electrical diagram to compare.

 

Got HOSED today(in a Scottish accent)
Ordered both hoses that come off the IAC on the power steering pump but one was on national back order but will still be here next week, cool! Fiddled around and checked all my other vac lines and all seemed ok, poked around behind the intake.
I ran the truck in drive and ebrake on and a wheel chalked, watching my volt needle do the Dougie on my dash. I did a reading at the battery but nothing crazy for results. I then let the vibrations and needle mellow out for as much as it could, has fogs engaged and threw on the lights; the vibe and needle dance increased accordingly.(sitting here, I should have had brights engaged too) I’m pretty sure I’m gonna throw a new alternator at it, and maybe a fan clutch depending how much they are.
I want a nice smooth baseline before I dive into the headers so I’m not chasing a exhaust note when I’m looking for a engine issue. I have confidence after today that I need to replace the ALT. If not I’ll be a alternator hater.....



and apparently I’ve been toting around a valuable Pokémon card for a few weeks in my skid!

 

I was able to find the right wire. Thanks for the help @MrDirtjumper . For anyone else that needs the reverse wire for an 03, I will hold onto that knowledge and lock it away so its a huge pain in the ass for the next person... Just kidding, I'll post it later.