82 pickup general question

[Merrill]

Hi all, I've got an '82 SR5 with about 100k on it, which I'm planning on taking on a road trip pretty soon. It runs just fine, but I was wondering if there are any parts I should replace that normally crap out around 100k, before I get on the road. In the last year I've replaced the starter, alternaterator, battery, hoses, belt, water pump, and thermostat. In the last four years or so, I've replaced the master and slave cylinders, and the front calibers. Should I think about replacing the fuel pump, too (no problems with it, to date), or will that last me for awhile longer? Also, I'm sure the truck has the original brake and fuel hoses; should I replace those too, or do they normally last more than 20 years?

I've heard people say that the timing chain should be replaced at 100k, but I've also heard not to worry about it if the oil was changed regularily. I'm pretty religious about changing the oil, and the previous owner (my grandpa) was too.

Thanks in advance. Basically, my goal is to keep the truck on the road as long as possible. Any advice in that regard would be much appreciated. Also, I thought I might have a mechanic look it over before I take off. Does anyone have any recommendations for a guy in the Seattle area?

Thanks,
Adam

[BobBitchin]

I think that model may have a double row timing chain, if so there is no need to worry. The single row chain is the one w/ longevity problems.

[CU@DCrest]

Don't worry much about the timing chain on your truck, its totally different compared to belt drive. I had my 93 Toyota pick-up for years now with over 300,000 miles and still have the original timing chain on it. Just keep the service and maintainance it needs. Only major things been change are fuel filter(4X), fuel pump(1x) brake pads(5X) and rotors(2x), clutch(1X), battery(1X), starter(2X), alternator(1X) and water pump(2X).

[justin22]

I say do the chain and have it done with if you can do it yourself, cheeper that way. I say do it because that is a major part of your motor and if it breaks it could end up costibg you $$$, Reg oil changes help with its life but ask any mech they will say replace it

[osum]

Check all your coolant and heater hoses, not just the obvious upper and lower radiator hoses. Check the coolant hoses - under the intake manifold - hard to see and get at. There is a little heater bypass hose under the intake manifold that actually crapped-out on me and caused some major traveling headaches. Replace them if they look swollen and feels softer than new ones. I'll say that they are more likely to go out then anything - like in 1-2 years they should be checked.

[Damon123]

what I did w my 84 was I replaced the belts, cap rotor and wires, and I kept the old ones in the truck for backups for emergency road repair.
I will do the same with the radiator hoses; even if you don't replace some of these things, or they don't look like they need replacing, buy all of these parts and keep them in the truck with the tools that you would need to put them on while parked on the side of the road if need be.
And make sure and pack at least one flashlight because Murphy's law dictates breakdown will occur on a moonless night.
I would also highly reccomend that you make sure of the condition of your battery as this is one of the most common causes of breakdown; have it load tested at a Kraven or Peep Boys for free, and make sure the terminals are clean and tight fitting.

As for the chain, the only cars I have ever heard of snapping chains are the Mercedes 380 and 450; I would bet that Toyota 22r chains virtually never break, I have driven thousands of miles in three different Toyota 22r trucks and never had a problem w chain. I guess I would start to think about it if I had a truck w over 200K and I believed the chain had never been replaced.
What does Toyota recommend?

[maxpower_hd]

Add an umbrella or rain poncho to that list. The moonless night will probably be moonless because of the pouring rain storm which will inevitably stop as soon as your back in your truck and heading down the road. My name ain't Murphey but that's the way it would happen to me. I always though it was just because my name was Dave.

[Yotalover]

Hey Guys, I broke a timing chain on my 85 22R a couple of years ago. (It was a single row chain.) Actually, I was extemely lucky in the way it happened. I drove to work that day as always, and shut the engine off. When I started to leave, I turned the key but it wouldn't start. The starter was spinning the engine over unusually fast. I couldn't figure that out for a while, but I decided to remove the distributor cap, and then crank the engine to see if the rotor would turn. My rotor sat still while my engine was spinning fast with little or no compression (obviosly the valves were in the open position). The chain must have broken at the precise moment I shut the engine off. If I had been doing 65 down the highway when it broke, I could have easily ruined the whole engine. I was amazed to find no damage to the timing cover or anything else inside the cover. My chain tensioner and guides were completely worn out though. Bottom line, timing chains can and will break when they're worn out.

[Damon123]

Do you remember what the odometer read when your chain broke Yotalover?
I would be interested to know.
I assume by your post that the 22R is an interference engine?; for those that don't know thats an eng that will likely contact pistons to valves if the chain/belt breaks.
I always kind of figured the 22R was not an interference engine because an 85 Nissan truck 2.4 that I owned wasn't and it seems I have always heard that its the smaller engines that tend to be interference types, in particular those made by Honda.

[Yotalover]

Damon, when my timing chain broke, the mileage must have been somewhere arond 345K, so it's no real surprise it broke - I bought the truck with lot of miles on it already, and as far as I know, it was the original timing chain. I had never heard the term "interference engine" before, but I understand what you mean by it. Evidently, the 22R is not an interference engine because I was spinning my crankshaft with the starter without the camshaft turning at the same time, and no open valves were being struck by pistons. I'm lucky that the broken chain didn't get tangled in the crankshaft gear which would have surely been catastrophic. Now that you mention it, I'm glad my 22R's aren't interference engines.

[Yotalover]

Damon, speaking of timing chains, I've been seeing some on ebay for 22R's complete with upper and lower sprockets, tensioner and metal guides. The guides I replaced on mine were black plastic. I think those metal guides would have to be better, as long as the lubrication is good. I may take that route the next time I get into it.

[Damon123]

yeah I've seen those metal guides.
And you mention that the timing chain that broke was single row, and I have seen other people refer to double row chains, were double chains stock on some Toyotas?
I thought that they were perhaps just an aftermarket item.

[Yotalover]

I think the double row timing chains were used on the 20R engines '83 and older - I'm not sure - maybe somebody else could tell us. Somebody was asking if a 22R engine will bolt up in place of a 20R lately, but I never saw the answer. I'm curious to know if that would work.

[goforlow]

As for the timing chains, I have heard from many toyota folks to change the timing chain tensioner and guides. As most of us can figure, toyota over built the chain. I have replaced 5 timing chain sets in 22r's and all the chains have been within toyota's spec for chain stretch. The problems have all been the tensioners have failed. This caused the chain to slap into the guides and then after the guides were gone, then chain slapped into the timing chain cover. This caused aluminium chunks to get sucked up into the oil pump and thus causing the oil pump seal to leak. Also, the loose chain caused premature wear on the chain gears. What a snowball effect!! The first one that happen to me cost me $950 to get repaired at a non toyota shop. After that, I learned to do them myself to get them done right and alot cheeper!

If you get one of the good metal backed timing chain sets, install it properly and use new gaskets/sealant, your timing chain will be good for 75K to 100K miles.

As for the 22R in place of a 20R, I can't say for sure, but I installed a 20R out of a '80 2wd with a 4spd in my '81 4wd with a 5spd. We had to use the entire 20R including, complete intake and exhaust manifold as the heads on a 20R and 22R are different.