Toyota Nation Forum banner
21 - 40 of 268 Posts
Getting ready for a trip to Seattle in a week or so.

- Changed oil from conventional to Pennzoil Platinum full synthetic, bought larger capacity Napa gold filter (thanks hardtopte72)

- Greased every fitting I could find, including the slip yoke on the rear driveline (trying to get rid of the occasional driveline clunk, and seems to have done the job)

- Washed the crap out of it (color went from tan to white)

- Detailed the interior (vacuumed up three kids worth of graham crackers and other food bits)

- Colapsed in the driver's seat, with the seat heater on, in the middle of summer because my back was shot
 
Discussion starter · #23 · (Edited)
Getting ready for a trip to Seattle in a week or so.

- Changed oil from conventional to Pennzoil Platinum full synthetic, bought larger capacity Napa gold filter (thanks hardtopte72)

- Greased every fitting I could find, including the slip yoke on the rear driveline (trying to get rid of the occasional driveline clunk, and seems to have done the job)

- Washed the crap out of it (color went from tan to white)

- Detailed the interior (vacuumed up three kids worth of graham crackers and other food bits)

- Colapsed in the driver's seat, with the seat heater on, in the middle of summer because my back was shot
Glad to help. Sounds like you got some good work done.

Also I changed the oil today using the newly discovered Pennzoil Platinum High Mileage 5W30 and a Fram Ultra XG3600 filter.

I think I am going to do another brake system flush fairly soon. I hope to order the rear shocks and front struts sometime next month.

I also wanted to post that I replaced the blown headlights with the Osram Night Breakers and they made a massive difference. Even when my lights were clear, the Philips Extreme Vision bulbs were never this bright. Seeing as how they last right at one year, I hope to get the same amount of time in as this.
 
Toyota Sequoia 2001 DIESEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I converted my Toyota Sequoia 2001 to a diesel! Not finished! Should I change the transmission or keep it? It will be easier if I don't change it! But don't want to tune it! I am using a Cummins 6BT engine on it! Or I will use a duramax diesel on it!
 
New Shoes!

New SHOES!

Front looks so much better than the back. Image is mid change of wheels/tires.



 
Discussion starter · #26 ·
Much needed interior and exterior car wash.

Also I tinkered with my 3rd row seat to figure out why it would not come out of the truck. After fighting with getting it out, I found the problem. The mechanism on the 3rd row was mangled. I spent the better part of the day unsuccessfully trying to fix it. Additionally, the factory repair manual is useless for the 3rd row seat. It was wrong on in some areas and vague in others. Long story short, the track needs to be replaced. After discovering it's around $420.00 new, I found a guy parting a wrecked 2002 model on Craigslist. I hope to pick up the track tomorrow.
 
Discussion starter · #29 · (Edited)
Replaced the front struts and rear shocks on my 2005 Limited with air suspension to fix a nasty bang in the rear when I drove over any bumps. I assumed the rear shocks were original and blown out since the truck has 200K.

As it turns out, the previous owner had replaced the rear shocks with Monroe OESpectrum shocks for the coil spring rear suspension. Those shocks are not nearly as strong as they should be and are not recommended for air suspension models. The original right front strut was also blown and leaking. Nobody makes shocks/struts for the air suspension models and after reading tons of reviews showing the incompatibility, I bought OEM front struts and rear shocks from our site vendor, Roman at Toyota of Cool Springs and installed them yesterday.

Part numbers:

Front struts - 48510-A9580 w/air suspension or 48510-A9570 w/out air suspension
Rear Shocks - 48530-A9470 w/air suspension or 48530-A9460 w/out air suspension

Some key notes from the job:

1. When doing the rear shocks, I highly recommend a ratcheting wrench for removing the upper shock nut. There is limited access and using a standard wrench is time consuming.

2. When doing the rear shocks on a limited with air suspension, make sure the axle is fully extended as the shocks have significantly more pressure than standard shocks (per repair manual).

3. When doing the front struts, it is HIGHLY recommended to remove the nut on the stabilizer bar end link. Not doing so will make it pretty much impossible to reinstall the lower strut bolt. I struggled for around 45 minutes with the stabilizer tight, to no avail. After removing the nut, It was installed in less than a minute.

4. When doing the front struts, if you remove the stabilizer bar end link nut, I highly recommend replacing the bushings on the stabilizer bar end link as they are probably cracked severely. Part number is 48817-0C010.

5. When doing the front struts only (not quick struts), make sure you have a good quality spring compressor with a large enough opening for the spring. These springs are VERY thick and require more pressure to compress sufficiently than an average car.

6. The OEM struts and shocks came with all the necessary hardware for the job. The only additional item would be replacement of the actual top hat on the front struts, if damaged.

After install, the difference is astounding. In addition to eliminating the bang on bumps, body roll is significantly reduced. Before bumps would cause the entire body to flex badly, now even severe imperfections are well controlled. Overall, I am VERY happy with the result.
 
Backup camera install - step 1

2008 Sequoia Limited: Installed a backup camera attached to the piece above the license plate, probably where an OEM camera would go. Next step is to hook to backup light for power. Then run camera lead to front to connect to video screen. Looking for how to remove the driver's side backup light assembly to make it easier to tie into the light's power wires.
 
Discussion starter · #31 ·
Fixed the horrible aftermarket DVD support that the truck came with. It was literally a piece of particle board and would constantly strip out the screws.

I ended up using an the radiator bracket from a Tundra radiator swap I did. I cut and drilled hokes to mount M6 x 1.0 bolts for a nice clean look.

I also modified the rear hatch handle pull. Basically, as some of you know, the 1st Gen Sequoia door handles commonly break. I replaced mine and another on a 2002 Sequoia I service exclusively. The other day, the 2002 came to me with a sticking rear door that wouldn't open unless you shook it whole pulling the handle. Diagnosis - stretched cable from the handle to the latch mechanism combined with a crusty latch.

Here's my modification which I stole from a guy on YouTube:



Basically after I removed the back panel to access the handle, I found the cable had stretched or something had bent. Basically pulling the handle all the way was not enough movement to release the latch. Upon pulling the latch cover, applying slightly more movement to the latch arm would cause the latch to release. Prior to finding the above video, the cable broke at the portion where it fits in the holder/slot portion of the handle (to keep it in place). After buying and replacing the cable with a brand new Toyota cable, part number 64680-0C010, the problem remained. Some part was bent and I couldn't tell where. I will note that I pulled apart the entire latch to replace the cable. Through research, I found that some people bent the latch portion out to give the extra room needed. Even after trying that with a new cable, it still didn't work.

So following the advice of the above video, I bought a set of fishing line weights from Amazon (see link below). Since the weights are meant for a fishing line, they would not tightly close over the cable without risking cutting the cable or the weight coming off as the center "channel" of the weight was too small to allow the cable to fit inside and close. Rather than give up, I grabbed the largest weight from the set and drilled a 5/64" hole right through the center. This hole allows plenty of room for the cable and allows to weight to move freely on the cable once closed without risk of wearing or fraying the cable. I then opened the weight and slipped it on the cable near the ball end (door handle end). After closing the weight and verifying it moved freely, I reinstalled the cable with the fishing line weight over the ball end slot in the door handle, meaning when the handle was pulled, it would first push the weight into the ball, freeing up the slack and allowing the latch to open. I then reinstalled the cable cover.

After installing the operation is amazing. I worked at Toyota when these were new and the handle has never worked so well. It takes barely any movement to open the door and when fully released, there is still no tension, which means the door latches correctly.

The fix was so good on the 2002, I applied the same fix to my 2005. I will take a video soon to show just how much better the result is.

If you have a 1st Gen Sequoia, don't wait to get stuck or for your handle to break from overpulling. Some owners are on their 3rd or more handle and some even get completely locked out from the stuck latch. Periodically cleaning and lubing the latch and adding the weight will make a world of difference.

Fishing line weights are here (as stated I used the largest weight in the set):

Water Gremlin Removable Split Shot Pro Pack, 48ea/BB, 36ea/3/0, 16ea/7, 12ea/5, 12ea/4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001AMGGBO/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_v25oybW81J21Z

Hope that helps someone. In theory, this fix could be applied to end stretched cable on the ball end where there is room to add the weight.
 
Soooo I replaced my rear hatch handle for the second time. First time 3 hours. Second time 35 minutes.

Also just got it back from timing belt kit and o2 sensors being done. At 221k miles I think it needed it. Truck runs better than my wife's 16 Acadia.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G925A using Tapatalk
 
2004 Sequoia Limited. Today i replaced the idler pulley. Last week i replaced the tensioner pulley. Tomorrow the ps pump and seal kit arrive. Be doing that tomorrow night. Next week the timing belt kit arrives so thats on the agenda for next week along with a ps return line, oil pressure sensor, valve covers and spark plugs. Also switching to synthetic oil at same time.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk
 
Discussion starter · #35 ·
Finally got around the converting the Homelink controls to only work with key on. Now I have the added sense of security and with leaving the truck outside and since Homelink memory is stored in the unit, it works the same anyway.

DIY will be up soon.
 
Discussion starter · #37 ·
Replaced the wiper inserts on my Denso designer blades with a set of Toyota inserts.

The original set lasted around 2 years. Not bad considering a set of "standard" blades lasts me 3-6 months out in this Florida heat.
 
Discussion starter · #38 ·
Changed the oil, fixed the DVD player (which fell down again), and will rotate the tires today. Made the switch from Pennzoil Platinum 5W30 HM to 0W40 to see how it likes the change.
 
21 - 40 of 268 Posts
Top