OT Car Problems OT

jim"

Hey, Mr. Toyota Service Manager, got any quick fixes for increasing flow to the floor ducts in an '07 Tundra? It never has warmed my tooties like I'd like during the winter. I run it split between the face ducts and the floor ducts, but when it's really cold, even fully set to the floor ducts, it just doesn't pump the air there. It doesn't seem to be blowing out/leaking anywhere else. Even on HIGH, it barely blows. Any ideas?

I'd say the ducting is restricted, but I got out of it before the Tundra (and well before '07). I know years back we had some models that defrosted the right better than the left because they had not modified the defrost ducting from the FDM rt hand drive setup and I modified the defroster ducts by removing internal baffling and making new baffles to redirect the air where we needed it. Not a simple job or a job for the daint of heart when you see what those little pieces of plastic are worth!!!

Another point - running full heat to the floor in cold snowy conditions leads to rusting out around the windsheild. The heat evaporates the water from the floor and it rises and condenses on the cold metal of the roof, running down inside the "A" pillars, rusting them out.

I thought you might have kept in touch, though. Thanks for this info.

That's why they make -= Duct Tape =- !

Yeah, they're going for $76 apiece, as I found during my googlin yesterday. I'm not nearly as apt to tear apart a dash as I was in me yout, either. When I worked for the body shop, I did one or two of them weekly, poking the retaining screws thru pieces of cardboard to keep them from getting lost, and show that I had X amount to reinstall. Mercenary's Benz had the most UNintuitive places for hiding retainers, too. @#$%^&* Chermans... I learned how to R&R windshields to keep the glass man at bay whenever possible, while I worked on the dashes. I'd lend him a hand when he needed it and he'd put off installing while I had a dash apart.

Interesting. Luckily, I live in a very snowy/cold area. We get about

You think the Chermans were good at hiding screws, you want to try to get into the dash of a Jaguar (XJC6 if I remember correctly). The instructions start with "remove rear parcel shelf" - I kid you not. When the parcel shelf is removed you can access the screws that hold the rear quarter window garnish on. When you remove the rear quarter-windoe garnish you can find the screw tha holds the front garnish molding on, and when that is removed you can find the screw for the "A" pillar garnish - which in turn hides the top corner mounting screws for the instrument panel pad - which in turn hides - -

- - Well, you get the picture???

OP, is that 4runner a 4 or a V6? Maybe you mentioned it, but I missed it. Anyway, if the water pump wasn't replaced with the timing belt, it's possi ble that cavitation has 'done et' (eaten) the vanes partially off the impel ler. That'd reduce the circulation, maybe significantly depending on how b ad.

That, or you're not getting all the air out of the system.

Jim H.

An eroded pump USUALLY causes overheating of the engine under normal driving conditions before it shows up as a low heat problem. The bad pump on my Mystique caused overheating within less than 5 miles of driving. The loose impeller on my 225 Dart would cause the engine to overheat on initial startup within 5 or 10 miles, causing me to shut the engine down to cool -after which the temperature would drop back to normal for a while after the impeller and shaft managed to shrink-fit themselves back together temporarily. THAT one had me chasing my tail for a while before I figured it out, I can tell you!!!!

It's a V6 , and I know the mechanic that did the belts , I'll ask him .

Jaysuss. Do you have to reupholster the roof, too, when you're done playing under the dash?

The one I changed was changed only because of a shaft seal leak. (hole under the pump dripping steadily) Once I had it off the car, I saw the eroded impeller, with 35% or so left. It hadn't over heated until the seal leak, the owner said. This was an older Chevy, probably '70s, back in the early '80s. That was back when you had room, and could use a SnapOff powered gasket scraper to clean the surface of the timing cover. Heavensend!

Just another reason not to own "exotic" cars like Jags, Bimmers, Mercedes, "Oddies" etc.

Book time to replace the A/C evaporatior in that "cat" was over 12 hours, if I remember correctly.

Some of the first water pumps I "replaced" I rebuilt on the bench - you could still buy rebuild kits for them back in '68 - new impeller, bearings, and seals that you pressed in on an arbor press.

Greetings Terry, You have probably checked this but maybe not. I had a Capri years ago that started to have heating problems. I removed the thermostat and found it did not close completely. The engine warmed up like normal but when I turned on the heat the engine temp would gradually drop and the warm air from the heater would get cooler. Does the 'stat in your car close all the way? Eric

Yeah some of those across the pond imports will make you cry when you start a "simple" job, then discover what you need to do first...

Just replacing the heater fan in a Nissan Rogue took me hours and hours.

Remove the steering wheel and gas pedal for starters... and even after you follow the service manual to the letter it takes a contortionist to reach inside the center of the dash from one side and put enough force on the part to get it to budge.

--sp

In '68, why bother rebuilding? The water pump in my old Ford Bell Tel truck went out in State College, PA, at 4:30 on a Saturday afternoon in 1970 (it sprayed hot water all over the driver/passenger compartment; the engine was between the seats). Sears had a rebuilt unit that cost me, IIRC, $5.40, and I installed it in their parking lot.