Hilux 4x4 Forum

I have a 1988 Hilux 4x4 DC (4y). I would like to have it "re-done" by somene who is passionate about these vehicles. I guess the work is quite extensive, from body work to suspension to engine and so on. I also want to make sure that I can go on trips to Nam, Botswana, Moz etc so would require some advice on any modifications/upgrades required.
Can anyone suggest a suitable person/organisation in Cape Town to do this work? I would appreciate any feedback. The vehicle is currently in JHB but as I live in CPT it would make sense to be in a position to oversee the work personally.
Look forward to some replies!
Many thanks

Alan Venter is your man in Cape town. Hoppy on this forum.

Thanks!

Welcome Alex, hope you come right with your truck rebuild.

Alex welcome to the forum. Don,t look any further Allan Venter is the man for you.He is from Brackenfell

Yip... Oom Venter is the man... originally from Pretoria(home of the Blou Bulletjies), now living in Brackenfell... home of the SFA Hilux!

Thanks all, I appreciate the feedback. I have emailed Allan so just waiting to hear from him.
Cheers

Alex, Allan is better with engines than email ....

If he has not answered by Monday drop him another email. Better still, get his number and phone him.

ChrisF wrote:Alex, Allan is better with engines than email ....

If he has not answered by Monday drop him another email. Better still, get his number and phone him.

2nd that one, he is like the "Stig", an email is foreign to him, I sure at one stage he though a cell phone was a fancy wheel chock

but he is better with a Hilux than the Stig behind a wheel ....


mis hom nogal op die forum

Hi all. So I took your advice and gave my 1988 Hilux 4x4 dc to Allan Venter in October 2016. I got it back in October 2017. Unfortunately, I am not happy with the result. My 4y has had quite a bit of work done (head skimmed, new hydraulic lifters, big ends, rings etc). It is running really bad. The oil has already turned pitch black after about 500km, it starts with difficulty, it hesitates under acceleration and the fuel consumption is....well, terrible. Compression tests show low compression across all cylinders, with number 2 being particularly bad. If you take the lead off number 2, there is no discernible difference in the way the motor runs. So, any advice would be really welcome. I suspect the carb needs careful attention as I notice that after a day or two there is NO fuel in the float, which is lopsided. Then of course, is there anyone else who can help with the motor? Lastly, the ride is very bumpy....any suggestions on how to make it a more comfortable ride? thanks guys. I really want my bakkie back the way it was!

That is so unlike Allan. I wonder what happened there. I would of course go back to him with the list of problems and I'm sure that he will be willing to get it sorted for you. Like I said, that is so unlike what we got to know of him over a good many years - admittedly much of it has been on line here on the forum, but by all accounts, the CT guys had good service from him with more than satisfactory results.

As far as the bumpy ride is concerned, that is typical of the old SFA Hilux. Most of the ride comfort comes from the front suspension and with a heavy solid front axle (unsprung weight), the level of ride comfort is poor. (It's one of the reasons why the IFS models were introduced). A big compensating factor is that the SFA's are tough as nails and there is very little that ever goes wrong with the front suspension.

To soften the ride you can fit an after market suspension kit, but they can be pricey, especially if you opt for import stuff. I'm still a die-hard OME fan with good experience of the brand, but local manufacturer Mikem Suspensions has also enjoyed very good reviews at a much more affordable cost. Give them a call. If you are not willing or cannot justify the cost, you might want to consider fitting softer shocks in front, like Monroe, which should help.

The 4Y is easy engine to fix.

Don't worry about the oil going black, it can happen. Always do a oil change with filter after 1000km. At the same time I strongly suggest a retorque of the head. I think the low compression can be because the head needs a retorque.

What is the compression at the moment per cylinder, ie the difference between the cylinders?

Then, carb carb always on these these days you do not get guys that can properly/ getOriginal carb kits to fix these anymore. Chinese carbs do not work, don't last. Think of doing a Efi conversion, if you drive moderate you should get 8km/liter.

Suspension like Andy says go Mikem or Ome. Latter just expensive but gives a very softer ride that you have. Mine has Ome but in the past with a few Hilux SFa's I work on had the Mikem setup on too, my opinion its damn close to Ome.

Give Alan another chance to fix up the Sfa, he is good for the work done.

Alex, did you come right this is very unlike Allen, I come out of the southern suburbs to take my bakkie to him so I trust his work

Thanks for all this guys. Unfortunately, I have already had to have some of the work that Allan did, redone. Had to take the head off again and discovered very badly honed cylinder sleeves and rings of unknown quality. Had new rings, valve lifters, big end bearings fitted - all of which was done & paid for less than a 1000km ago!! This cost me another 10k, which I want back.
My biggest gripe is that I put no pressure on Allan, he had the vehicle for nearly a year. To get a badly running engine back is just not acceptable. Now that the work has been redone, its running way better. Just need to sort the carb out - which Allan claimed he had done 3 times - fact is, its not right. Sorry, but I'm seriously weewee'd off. I brought the vehicle down from Limpopo JUST so that I could give it to the expert. What a disappointment and a waste of time & money. I will now just have to slowly fix things myself as I have already spent 65k on this.

I used to get close to 10km/l. It seems that since the carb is now playing up in the sense that its not perfect, I'm being advised to look at EFI. I"m not very clever with these things........what would be the advantage of EFI? (I really am trying to keep my vehicle as original as possible). What does it cost?
Has anyone heard of "something called "super springs" and whether they work?

I used to get similarly good fuel economy with my normally aspirated 4Y (carb) and when the conditions were right I could occasionally get close to 11 km/lit. I have yet to hear of an EFI system that has achieved that.

The carb can be reconditioned and this would probably be your best bet from a financial point of view, especially if the vehicle is not a daily runner. An EFI setup from start to finish is not exactly cheap (about R16 / 17K) and you would have to save a lot of fuel to justify it financially - just not going to happen IMO.

If you do an EFI conversion, the benefits would be a little more power, a slightly better power delivery and depending on which ECU is used and who sets it all up, driveabiliity can also improve, especially at low revs. Fuel starvation on excessively steep inclines / declines becomes a thing of the past. IMO all these factors have more benefit in off-road conditions vs the open road.

Something else to consider is that if ever you battery runs down really badly, a push-start with EFI is nowhere near as easy as with a carb. Ecu's don't work well with poor voltage supply and they need a few pulses to adjust fuelling and timing parameters, whereas with a carb you can often get it started with one or two compression strokes (with a carb I could start the vehicle in as little as a 2metre run). In a situation where the battery is not fully drained and still has enough guts to manage a sluggish compression stroke, you can get started with a carb - no way with EFI.

Some food for thought.

Supersprings works very well, they help so the back does not hang that quickly.

EFi is smoother and a bit better fuel economy. But looking at the amount of money you have to spend and how scares the components are to do it, I would rather spend my money on a proper carb rebuild or new carb. There is an uncle close to n1 city who does carbs very well, that is all he did since he has been an appy and he is now retired. Oom Vossie 082-566-4541, 021-591-0245

Something which does make a huge difference is electronic ignition. Not sure if yours still have points and condensor, if it does, electronic ignition is a must.

Remember to check all the other things which can cause poor fuel ceonomy first before you look at the carb:
Spark plugs
Plugs leads
Dirty air filter
Bigger tyres, lifted suspension, canopy added, roofrack added
Heavier than normal right foot
in CPT - which way the wind is blowing - on my 2.7 it makes a 2km/l difference when I go to CPT whether I drive down - or up wind.

All of above can increase your fuel consumption, not only the carb.

Make sure you get the OEM DIAPHRAGM(FOR DIDPHRAGM CHAMBER) part #21173-71030. Look at the diagram, Red arrow.

If it not a Toyota part it will not work. 2 months after you install any other part it will fail. Problem you have ask Toyota to import it for you, 9 years ago it was impossible. You can ask but likely if you want the carb you have to import from Japan yourself.

Without it the 2 nd stage on the carb will not open. You will not get power, your engine will be sluggish and definitely no fuel economy.

Secret of the carb lies with above. The second stage open with the engine at a certain rpm creating a certain vacuum to open the 2nd stage butterfly that gives the power and economy.

The Nikki carb was excellent carb for this engine, but this was the flaw in it. Ignorance from Toyota makes to get the part not easy to get and the Hilux a donkey

The 22R has a similar Diaphragm, also not easily obtainable.

Good morning all,

Alex, pitty about all the headaches you have had so far, great that you are doing your best to keep a legend on the road.

If you want to go as far as 16-17k for EFI, you might as well go for a Lexus conversion ....

Anyway, what I know about carbs is scary, before my time. I can however give me commentry on supersprings.
I had a st in my IFS (bought it fitted with) and , unless you are planning to kit your bakkie out for camping and /or heavy towing..... don't do it. Without much load in, it makes for an extremely hard and uncomfortable ride. (previous owner towed a massive sea going vessel).

It did help raise the suspension a bit, but i had to re index the left torsion bar when i removed the springs and had to reset the ride height.

Coinsedently, I have a set of super springs that are up for sale, should you be interested.

Thanks so much guys! Your comments are very useful. I think what I need to do is have the carb sorted - I would prefer that over EFI. Thanks LouisZ for the info on the carb - I guess you got the diagram off the ToyoDIY site!

So bottom line, I will look at electronic ignition as well (in fact, Allan mentioned this AFTER he returned my vehicle). I think if I can get the carb sorted, electronic ignition and maybe new plug leads, then things should be back to normal.

What amazes me is that Allan said he stripped the carb 3 times (I was charged for a carb kit) but it hasn't helped. I think I will have to try Oom Vossie! Someone also mentioned a carb place in Paarden Eiland - anyone know who it is and if they are any good?

HI all. So after spending more thousands, I have an electronic distributor which seems to have sorted out most of my issues. Now though, the choke is running at around 2000rpm!!! Surely this is crazy......when I first bought this vehicle, from a cold start it would fire first time and run at about 1200rpm and then settle at around 650rpm. Now its 2000rpm and then the idling varies between 850rpm and 1000rpm. Its just not stable. The guy who did the electronic distributor was actually an ex-appy of Allans......
Does anyone have any advice on this please? What should I check for? Can I set the choke myself?
Thanks all. Will post pics soon of my completely original 1988 Hilux dc 4x4 - no mods except now for the distributor!!

The reason Im looking to do this myself is that I have to travel very far to get to anyone that can work on these engines.....and I have still to be 100% satisfied. Very frustrating since I LOVE my Lux but its just eating money now!

Hi Guys. I have a front diff leak into the knuckle and through the wiper seals. The right front bearing also needs replacing. I want to replace all front bearings and seals with new Molybdenum-Disulphide Lithium Base Grease as the manual specifies. Who is the best guy in Gauteng that can do the job?

Ricky wrote: ↑Thu Jun 20, 2019 3:02 pm Hi Guys. I have a front diff leak into the knuckle and through the wiper seals. The right front bearing also needs replacing. I want to replace all front bearings and seals with new Molybdenum-Disulphide Lithium Base Grease as the manual specifies. Who is the best guy in Gauteng that can do the job?

Ricky, use marine grease it is much better than the grease you want to use.

The Legend wrote: ↑Thu Jun 20, 2019 6:16 pm

Ricky wrote: ↑Thu Jun 20, 2019 3:02 pm Hi Guys. I have a front diff leak into the knuckle and through the wiper seals. The right front bearing also needs replacing. I want to replace all front bearings and seals with new Molybdenum-Disulphide Lithium Base Grease as the manual specifies. Who is the best guy in Gauteng that can do the job?

Ricky, use marine grease it is much better than the grease you want to use.

Ricky if there is wear on the spindle bushes replace them otherwise the new seals will leak again because the shaft moves up and down in the spindle bush and open the seals