7MGE Engine rebuild
 

So it finally happened, after almost 20 years my 1990 Supra blew its head – just as forecasted. My wife has been driving the car lately and tells me it has been using water at a gallon a week for the past few months. Past few months?? I reply, it should never need water I inform her. So I go out to look under the hood and old coolant is everywhere. Start the engine and water explodes out the radiator like a volcano. Turn the car off and sounds of steam from within the block.

Yup – just like most Supra owners, signs of a blown head gasket. Pull the spark plug on the No. 6 cylinder and it’s the same color as the coolant confirming my suspicion.

Now, I’ve been reading the Toyota forums because I’ve just replaced the timing components on my 94 4Runner and they were a great help. I even started a rebuild on another 4Runner when this happens. After discovering the Supra forum I figure I could lend my experiences here and perhaps get some guidance.

I have rebuilt several engines, mostly Chevy blocks. Since this car is 20 years old, I’ve decided to do a full rebuild from the ground (oil pan) up. I am going to pull the engine and try to document my adventure here with as many pics as possible as I have found them very useful an all the other forums. I have garage to work in and some fiends with lifters and tools so I can take my time.

Of course always willing to take advise as well as give some. Stay tuned.

go turbo :)

7MGE Head removal - timing belt
 

Fast forward on progress to where I am at now.

From my experiences with the 4Runners, I started by removing the radiator and fans. This gives me better access from the start.
Attachment 2207
Then removed the air ducts and water hoses to the timing cover.
Attachment 2208
Next the throttle body and top part of the air intake. My wife is helping by labeling plastic bags as we go for all the bolts and small parts. She started with a PINK marker because she thought it would look nice but had to switch to dark green when we could not see it on the bag.

The top part of the timing cover comes off and the belt looks a little worn but not bad for 20 years. It will get replaced along with the idler
Attachment 2209
When I did the first 4Runner, I had a heck of a time getting the cam sprockets off. I actually broke one trying to wedge a socket in the sprocket. Had to get a replacement pair from the junk yard for $70 (lesson learned). Why did Toyota not put some holes behind the sprockets to insert some stopping bolts I will never know. Finally had a friend weld up this special tool to hold the sprockets still so I could turn the bolt. Took me 4 days on the 4Runner to get them off with out the tool. Also work great for holding the crank while I go the damper off.
Attachment 2212
Anyway on to the Supra. The same tool worked great again on the sprockets but could not be used on the damper like the 4Runner. Just no spines to grab on. Luckily I had read through the forums a used the pry bar in the flywheel technique. Only problem was removing the starter which is a real pain. So I had to finish removing the air intake manifolds to get to the top of the starter. Problem here is that Toyota runs the fuel lines through the intake runners making it impossible to remove without having dismantle everything on the drivers side.

So in summary – to take off the damper you need to stick a pry bar in the flywheel

To get to the flywheel you need to pull the starter.

To pull the starter you need to pull the intake manifolds.

To pull the intake manifolds you need to remove everything else.

A day latter I can stick a pry bar in the teeth and pray not to break one. Damper finally comes off and I can finish with timing belt removal.
Attachment 2211
As a side note. I have since learned that there is a way to actually use the starter to turn the engine to get the damper bolt loose. Will have to try this next time. But remember to remove the fuel pump fuse first. I had to reconnect the battery to raise the windows and forgot to remove the fuse only to see a mini spout of fuel as the windows went up.

7MGE Rebuild - Head Removal
 

Now I can finally get to the valve covers and head bolts. Sent wife down to parts store to get the special HEX socket to remove head bolts. Yes – it does need to be 3/8” to fit into the recess and past the CAM shafts. I decided to leave the cams in place and not remove them from the head so the machine shop can have the whole assembly to look it. No bearings on the CAMS so wanted them to check tolerances when doing the valves.

Head came off easy after following the correct loosing sequence. Put all the bolts in postal flat rate box with holes punched so I would not mix them up. But have since realized that was unnecessary since I was going to need new bolts anyway.
Attachment 2213
On that topic, as I was removing the bolts most were tight but number 5 came undone almost without any torque. Mighty suspicious ! The number 2 bolt came out hard and when I looked at it - was not clean and dry like all the rest but showed signs of corrosion.
Attachment 2216
After removing head noticed coolant in the number 2 head bolt hole – not good. After cleaning the hole further looks like a crack in the threads of the hole to the water jacket. Going to have to remove engine and take block to machine shop to have it checked. I am thinking of going to studs and sealant in the bolt hole may work.
Attachment 2215
The Number 6 cylinder defiantly had a leak between the water ports and cylinder. The valves were reddish brown while all the other cylinders were whitish tan. The other cylinders were clean an shiny while number 6 has been burning water for a while. The head gasket has a significant oval shape extending to the water jacket – YUP BLOWN GASKET.
Attachment 2217
I was surprised to see how clean the other cylinders looked after 20 years. I will have the shop check out the block but looks like all it need is some cleaning an a hone to be good as new.
Attachment 2214

7MGE Rebuild - Block Removal
 

Well, since the block has to come out – in comes the hoist. I put a jack under the oil pan and transmission and unbolted the bell housing and engine mounts. I bolted the chains to the engine mount holes since I did not want to use the head bolt holes if one of them was already cracked. Balanced just fine and lifted right out by my self. This engine lift is a rally great tool you only get to use a few time in your life but it really works.

Attachment 2218

Now I get to look at the clutch and flywheel. Going to need some resurfacing and the clutch disk was worn to the bone – time to replace along with the throw out bearing and pilot bearing

Attachment 2219

Got the engine on the stand and upside down to remove the oil pump. After unbolting one bolt it would not budge so I removed the pump drive shaft still not budge. Figured was a pressure fit so used a screw driver on the block to pry it off.

Attachment 2220

Next it was time to pop the pistons. The cylinders had no ridges so they came out really easy. Bagged each one in numbered bags. The rod bearings looked a little worn but were very even with no hat spots. The crank looked very good too so hopefully it can be reused. I am going to take it to the shop in the block to have them check tolerances and we will see what the verdict is on the head bolt hole crack and crank. Cross my fingers.

Attachment 2221

A week of nights and two cases later

Attachment 2222

7MGE Rebuild - Head Port
 

I’ve taken the head and block to the shop to have them cleaned up and inspected. The head and valves looked good for 20 years of use.

The good news on the block is no cracks after the magnetic test – so its just a hone on the cylinders and good to go. The bad news is the shop wants $500 to do a valve job on the head – even without replacing any valves. Claim the 24 valves takes a lot of labor and that OHC need to be ground to adjust!

Attachment 2254

So – I took the head back to do a little porting and polish. The head had some casting marks and ridges from 20 years ago. Since I bought the car I have learned a thing or two about engines. One of which is that they are massed produced from casting molds. These molds are not all created equal and there can many flaws that are left as is in production. Some flaws include sharp ridges from casting seams and defects in the individual molds. Other are sharp angles from the machining process after the castings are poured. In production - they are all ignored.

Attachment 2255

The cylinder chambers in the head have some sharp edges that can collect heat and cause preignition so I ground them off to smooth the transitions out the valve ports. Careful to not touch the valve seats.

Attachment 2256

I focused on the exhaust ports and smoothed out the walls and take out any burrs and casting ridges. Just a little touch up on the intake side to remove any large defects as I understand its better to leave the “sandpaper” effect on the walls.

Attachment 2257

7MGE Rebuild
 

After a week in the machine shop – finally got my block back.

Attachment 2258

Tests showed no cracks so that’s good. The head gasket had been leaking water for some time so there was a lot of pitting around the water ports. The shop had to plane the block surface to remove most of the defects and prepare for the new gasket.

Attachment 2259

Cylinders only needed a hone to bring them back into shape.

Attachment 2260

While it was in the shop – I cleaned up the pistons and timing cover parts. The Crank Shaft just needed a little polish to restore as new so now I’m ready to start the rebuild on the block.

Attachment 2261

Ran into a problem with the oil pump drive shaft. There are two bearings in the block for the shaft that were left in when the block was tanked which of course destroyed the bearings. The problem is that they are really almost impossible to replace with the crank and pistons in place so now I have to wait till Monday to get new bearings before I can proceed. In the meantime I will check the oil clearance on the crank and rods with plastigauge.

O well, lesson learned – remove everything from the block and be sure you have all the bearings before reassembly.

7Mge Rebuild - Installing pistons
 

Assembled the crank and pistons into block. Laid the crank in on the new dry bearings and placed a piece of plasticgauge on the bearing face.

Attachment 2293

Torque the main caps to crush the gauge and then removed the caps. Check tolerance was OK (0.022) then cleaned and reassembled again.

Attachment 2294

Takes awhile to do it twice but felt better to know everything was in spec after 20 years. After the crank was bolted in the second time, it spun with very little effort – smooth as silk with all that assembly lube.

Next it was the pistons. Cleaned till new and disassembled and cleaned the writ pins. Reassembled the rods to pistons being sure all the little oil holes in the pistons were clean. Placed the rings on the pistons after checking ring end gap in cylinder bores. Amazed how much easier the rings go on then come off. After they are in the engine for awhile they get very brittle and just break. Performed same plasticgauge check on rod bearings as crank. Assembled pistons into ring compressor and pushed into cylinder from below (block was inverted on engine stand). Used some old fuel line tubing over the rod bolts which works really well because if you cut them about 3” long, they actually guide the rod onto the crank. All the pistons tapped in very easy.

Attachment 2295

After pistons were installed with no problems, tried to give crank a spin and found it wasn’t easy. Using a torque wrench, I had to set it to 15 pounds to break the inertia and get the crank to move. Not nearly the same as when the engine was broken in. I know its going to take some time for the pistons to seat and for things to loosen up but wonder if 15 pounds is spec. I just think about all those new engines rolling off the production lines everyday with just a few hours of break in time. A lot of extra gas being wasted in the first 500 miles.

I cleaned the oil pump till it looked like new and gave it a test in a bucket of oil. Inserted the oil pump drive shaft and pressed in the pump.

Attachment 2296

Still waiting for head and clutch to arrive so all I can do now is clean parts. The biggest cleaning job is the intake manifolds as they are clogged with residue from the smog stuff. PVC and EGT just destroy all the air passages. The throttle body took 2 days to soak off the layer of tar. Sure will be nice to get this engine to breathe again.

7MGE Rebuild - back in the again
 

Picked up clutch. $200 for pressure plate, disk, throw out bearing, pilot bearing, and alignment tool. Had the old flywheel resurfaced by the shop.

Attachment 2329

Forgot to pull out old pilot bearing on the crank before the shop work was done so I had to pull it myself but did not have a tool. Remembered an old technique for years past – packed the pilot hole with grease and used a 3/8” socket extension and hammered into hole. The hydraulic pressure of the grease from behind pushed out the bearing. Took 4 hits with grease repack but it came out pretty smooth. Put new bearing in with a ?” socket just tapping on the edge of the bearing.

Attachment 2330

Mounted the new clutch and aligned the disk with the tool. The book says to torque the clutch pressure plate to 15 pounds but that seemed kind of low. I thread sealed the flywheel and clutch bolts anyway.

Now it was time to chain up the block and lift it back into the car. I am dong the block with out the head because it’s easier to move around and get in a do the bell housing bolts without the head on. I was concerned about alignment with the transmission shaft as it seemed real easy to snap it off if things were not aligned right when lifting the block back in.

Attachment 2331

Now – a few things I learned. First, put the two top bell housing bolts in before doing anything. I found it impossible to get them in after the transmission was jacked up to the firewall which you need to do to get the right angle to join with the block. Second, jack up the transmission all the way to the firewall to get a better angle. When you lift the block in, the front of the engine is about 30 degrees up from the rear so the oil pan can clear the lower support beams. Here is the important part – unbolt the clutch slave cylinder from the bell housing so the clutch fork is able to completely retract. It took me almost 2 hours in trying to match the block and transmission and not getting them together until I realized the clutch fork/throwout bearing was trying to engage the pressure plate that no mere human can push against. Disconnecting the slave cylinder allowed the clutch to slide in over the shaft with no pressure – SIMPLE.

Attachment 2332

When I removed the engine, I unbolted the two support mounts from the block and not the frame – it was just easier due the angle of the frame bolts. On reassembly I bolted the transmission on before attaching the engine mounts – bad idea. It is impossible to put the mounts back on after the engine is set in unless you undo the frame bolts from below which I was trying to avoid in order to not mess with the alignment. In hind sight I should have placed the engine mounts on the frame before lifting in the engine. Oh well – it only took another half hour under the vehicle to fix this.

Attachment 2333

A side note – After the block was in and the engine mounts tightened (total of 4 hours) I put a socket on the crank shaft and turned the engine to see if there was no binding and that the transmission and clutch were all still working After a few cranks I heard a loud POP! OH NO! sounded like I had just snapped something off. Im thinking something in the transmission?, Crank?, Piston? Anyway, just like anyone else, since I can’t figure out what it was – I just do it again! A few more cranks and again the loud POP. This time I notice the protective covering I had on the block deck to keep it clean was pushing out like a big balloon. Seems I had it strapped in tight enough that it created a seal so when the piston pushed up – it blew it out with a nice pop. Good news is that the engine works!

Now I get to go under and finish bolting in the bell housing and stiffeners

wow nice report, I vote for a sticky!! lots of good tips in here. Its almost like reading a step by step haha Thanks man!! hope it all works out for you!


STICKY!!!!!!!!

support
 

Thanks for the kind words - just trying to support the form so all can benefit.

Got all my parts finally on order. ARP Head studs from www.horsepowerfreaks.com their number part number 8021 $134.26. HG, Timing Kit and Water Pump from CarQuest.

Will be here by end of week so I can start on the top end.

In the meantime – still cleaning parts and bead blasting.

Bead Blasting
 

While I was waiting for my head to come back from the shop, I worked on cleaning parts and doing some detail work. A friend let me come over and use his bead blaster to clean up the valve covers and intakes. Boy – what a fun gadget to have! Make everything look like new. Uses air pressure to shoot tiny glass beads and reach into all the places you can get sandpaper in. After about three hours, I had some nice looking parts. So nice in fact, I decided not to paint them like the original but just to clear coat them and keep the natural aluminum finish.

For the valve covers, I masked them painters tape and used several new razors and traced the relieved outlines make a cutout. Pressed the making tape hard along the edges to expose the outlines and cut away the material. Be sure to clean everything with Lacquer thinner before you mask.

Attachment 2342


Then spay with high temp paint in several very light passes. The trick is to get the paint carrier to evaporate between each pass which takes just a few minutes. It took about 10 very light passes to get it built up enough. The reason for this is that if you spray too heavy, the paint just builds up in the depressions and flows overt he top of the masking which is not what you want because when you try to remove the mask it will just tear the paint off with it. What you are trying to do is keep the paint just in the relief’s and not on the surface of the mask. Another thing I found is that the initial passes doesn’t stick to well and paint tends to run down hill. By lighter coats and waiting in between, it gets tacky and then next coats stick better.

Now here is the important part, do not let the paint dry. Wait only about 20 minutes after the last coat to peel off the masking. Again, if you wait too long, the making will be too embedded with the paint and just peel the paint off or tear the masking so you can’t get it off. Doing this while still wet (tacky) makes it real easy and gets a clean surface.

Once the mask is removed just a little cleanup is needed with some lacquer thinner and a CLEAN rag. Because the paint is just in the relief, any other paint can be removed by warping the rag around your finger and just wiping the surface – comes off real easy and leaves a nice clean edge.

When done with the clean up I sprayed several coats of clear high temp paint to give the surface a nice look and protect the aluminum from corrosion. The clear coat also helped clean up the lettering and make them stand out.

Attachment 2343

All the other aluminum parts a coat of clear coat too.

Close up
 

Heare isa closeup of the cover

Attachment 2344

Head Check
 

Finally got the head back from the shop. Don’t want to say how much it cost!

Anyway – valve seats were done and adjusted.

Attachment 2345

I wanted to check the oil clearance on the cams so I pulled them off and used plasticgauge to find out. Put strips on the cleaned journals and torque back down. Came out to .0015 which is well within spec.

Attachment 2346

Cleaned off plasticgauge and reassembled again.

Attachment 2347

Boy – are these cams hard to turn or not? I had no idea it would be so tight but with each cam trying to open 12 valves in one revolution no wonder? Anyone know how much torque it takes to turn a normal cam? Really makes you wonder is everything is true and straight and if the bearings are binding or not? Sure hope the shop did it right!

Head Install
 

Ready for the head. So I read through the directions for the STUDS and put them finger tight into the block. I had read it would be difficult to get he head on with the rear studs so I leave them out.

Now, what is wrong with this picture?

Attachment 2348

The answer is it is impossible to put the head on with the studs in the block. I don’t difficult – I mean impossible even with a single stud.

Oh – you can place the head on over the studs – you just can’t put the washers on afterwards. Once the studs stick up through the head it is impossible to place the washes on - just not enough clearance.

The trick is to not install the studs first. You should test fit them to be sure the treads are clear and they all seat at the same (correct) height but remove them.

Place the down on the block as normal. I coated both sides of the gasket with copper spray adhesive. And don’t forget to put the bead of RTV on the front of the block between the timing cover assembly and the head as documented in the manual.

Next, starting from the Middle and sequencing out as described in the manual for head boat tighten sequence, place the washer on the end of the stud and then lube the other end with the ARP assembly lube before adding the nut. I threaded the nut down all the way and back out to be sure the lube got all over the threads. And yes, there is enough lube in the packet to do all the studs so no need to skimp. Check to be sure the hex socket is on the nut end of the stud. Now with the washer on the block end of the stud, place them on the head. The washer will not go down at first but you can slide the stud left or right to clear the head bosses and get the washer to fall into place then get the stud into the hole. Now use the hex driver to secure the stud finger tight. Next you just use a deep 12 point 14 mm socket (3/8” drive and ?” is too big) to tighten down the already installed nut. I tried to place the nut on the stud after inserting the stud but its just too hard to get it in there with dropping into the head and having to fish it back out. Much easier to just put the nut on first.

I then sequence tighten the stud nuts to 90 pounds as the ARP instruction said. Took 5 passes but they all torque very smoothly.

Took me 4 hours to put the head on but that was because I had to figure this all out. Now that I know what to do – it can be done in under an hour.

Attachment 2349

Now it on to the timing stuff.

Head costs
 

Well now I don't feel as bad for the $400 it cost me. And yes there were some score marks on the CAM journals which the shop said not to worry about. But one questions is - how diffucult should the CAMs be to turn when all torqued down? I supose it would have been good to have assembled everthing with out the valves so we could feel how smooth the cams turned without resistance. Just have to trust the shop?

With the CAMs and head on the block - they can be turned by hand but sure feels strange when all th lobes engage the tappets.

Funny thing is - my very first car I every worked on was a 69 English Rover Sedan with overhead CAM and timing chain - twin carbs too!

Dipstick
 

I am having a problem with the dipstick. Just can't get it reinstalled correctly.

When it came out was just pressed fit in but took some doing to twist it out. Even tough I did nothing to it - now when I reinstall it just slips in with out any resistance and spins around. Did not bore or scrub anything.

Checked that it bottoms out - jsut too loose in there now.

Is there some sort of adheasive to trick to reinstall?

The dipstick tube that’s protrudes into the sump was a very tight fit, the external tube that I think your referring to was very loose, I think there’s an O ring on the bottom of it, I just smeared some silicon sealant over the O ring a pushed it in, that was 2 years ago. No sign of a leak so far. If you are referring to the dipstick, then the only thing it could be is the rubber part at the top has shrunk slightly, there are products that will rejuvenate rubber seals to make them soft such as windscreen wipes etc, cant say I've ever used them though.

Dipstick
 

Thanks Bill UK. I am going to pull it out and have another look - it dosn't seem right. The problm is it in between the Engine mount bracket so it not easy to get too.

Timing Belt
 

Installing the timing belt on a Supra is much easier then a 4-Runner. The manual says to install the crank sprocket, lower timing cover and crank damper in order to see where TDC for number one cylinder is but I preferred to get the belt on and set up the timing with them off so I can see what is going on.

Attachment 2350

Turns out that on the 90 Supra, all the marks are at 12 O’clock. Set both cam sprockets to 12 o’clock and the tab on the crank to 12 o’clock and you have it right.

Wrap the belt around the crank sprocket and up to the left around the oil pump sprocket, pull tight, then around both cams and the idler pulley. Double check the marks again because they will move as the belt goes on. I had to do this three times till they were correct. Now put the spring on the idler and give the crank a few spins to see if the marks still line up. Tighten the idler bolt to 35 ft-pounds and spin the crank again. Loosen the idler bolt, wedge a large screw driver in to tighten up the belt tension and retourque the idler bolt and your done.

Attachment 2351

Before I put the top timing cover on, I installed the distributor to get it set to Number 1 spark since I had the engine at TDC on the compression stroke.

Attachment 2352

Water pump went on next and I’m making progress.

dipstick
 

After reading your post again - I see waht you were saying. I was referring tot he external support tube - not he actual dipsick with level marks. Sounds like yours was very loose too? I tried some RTV but still seems to move around quite easily. It just that if I do have a problem once the engine is back together - it going to real had to get to it.

Is there some support clamp or somthing that keeps it from moving??

The 7M-GTE dipstick tube has a bracket which bolts onto the Turbo, not sure about the non turbo engine, I would have though it would be secured at some point, otherwise it would pull out when removing the dipstick.

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b5.../DIPSTICK2.jpg

Looks like the non-turbo engine has a dipstick tube that screw into the bock with no support bracket.

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b5...STICK7M-GE.jpg

Dipstick Problems
 

Thanks for the hekp Bill UK

I agree, the turbo dipstick is different then the NA. The turbo appears to come in 2 parts and is press fit into Block? With a bracket to keep it from moving in or out so all you need is a O ring?

However, from this close-up of my NA dipstick –

Attachment 2353

it does not have any threads and does not have any way to be secured. It inserts to the second level but still fits pretty loose and moves around even with a good amount of RTV. So I am wondering is there is some other type of adhesive I should be using here as RTV alone can not keep it secured.

Attachment 2354

When I pulled it out - it was in there very tight.

I am not pulling the head
 

Ran into my first major mistake on the reassembly so far. I thought I could fit this U shape water pipe around the block and firewall with the head ON – NOPE! CAN”T BE DONE.

Attachment 2355

I am not going to take the head off after the 4+ hours in getting it on.

SO I cut the pipe in part that fits behind the head and put a piece of hose and clamps. Still pretty hard to secure the clamps behind the head but was only 30 minutes and not a head removal.

Attachment 2356

I point this out so anyone can know – install the water pipe before the head - it will be a lot easier.

oh wow thats a valuble tip right there haha well it all looks great so far. Hope it turns out good. Still can't get over how clean your block and head look!!



STICKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:crazy2:

Water Manifold
 

Putting together the Water manifold was straight forward. The various temp senders could only go in one location. Be careful to start both connection hoses before you slide the housing on the studs or you will not get them on afterwards and have to take it off and start over.

Attachment 2357

Used RTV on all the hose connections after cleaning with Brake Cleaner

Attachment 2358

Drivers Side Electrical and Hoses 1
 

Spent a week working on the drivers side wires and hoses. It was mess to figure out so I have documented my findings so they be of assistance in the future.

Attachment 2359

The key problem is that several lines have to be run though the intake runners before the manifold is installed. Also, there are several things to connect before the manifold is placed.

Attachment 2360

First off is the Block ground from the battery. It is singly attached to the block next to the lower Air Compressor bracket mount.

Next is the bracket for the Fuel Return hose which is attached to the block in the hole for the old fuel pump. Then mount the Vacuum canister with VAC Switch.

Attachment 2361

Before installing the Intake runner, you will need to route several lines through the runners BEFORE placing the intake on the head. Run the supply and return fuel lines, IAC Hose from the manifold, and water bypass hose through the runner.

Attachment 2362 Attachment 2363

Drivers Side Electrical and Hoses 2
 

Before installing the Intake runner, you will need to route several lines through the runners BEFORE placing the intake on the head. Run the supply and return fuel lines, IAC Hose from the manifold, and water bypass hose through the runner.

Attachment 2364 Attachment 2365 Attachment 2366

The IAC Hose was tricky – it is an L shaped hose that connects to a nipple on the bottom of the Intake Manifold and runs up to the IAC. You can’t see the nipple once the manifold is installed so its much easier to locate and install it first.

Attachment 2367 Attachment 2368

Drivers Side Connections 3
 

Once the Intake is in place you can place the main wire harness on top and run the connections for the Starter, VAC switches, Transmission Switch, Knock Sensor, and EGR temp down through the runners.

Attachment 2369 Attachment 2370

The connectors are color coded so it’s not too hard to match them up. You can reach under and attach the Knock sensor and VAC Can connection under the runners.

Attachment 2371 Attachment 2372 Attachment 2373

Drivers side Connections 4
 

A few more connectors

Attachment 2374 Attachment 2375 Attachment 2376

The knock sensor is under the intake manifold. The IAC hose connects to a nipple on the underside of the intake

Fuel Rail
 

Next I installed the fuel rail and injectors. Soaked the injectors for several days in CARB Cleaner and cleaned off all of the connectors with Brake Cleaner.

Attachment 2377 Attachment 2378

Used all new O rings and grommets from the rebuild kit. The 90 Supra does not have a pulse damper on the fuel supply line. I spent an hour looking for one in the parts bag.

Attachment 2379

Air Chamber
 

Took a while to figure out where the two VAC line brackets went till I discovered they attached to the outside of the AIR Chamber bolts. One on the left and one on the right. The Blue VAC switch also attached to the AIR chamber. There were some grounding straps with 16 gauge striped wires that I was not sure where they went so I finally attached to the AIR Chamber as well. Not sure this is right since aluminum is not the best electrical conductor.

Attachment 2381

Mounted the AIR Chamber after installing the Vacuum controlled AIR VALVE. Before I installed the AIR Chamber, I installed the EGR Valve to the back of the head to get it lined up with the port on the AIR Chamber so they could be all bolted together at one time. Would have been very difficult to install the EGR after the AIR Chamber and get the gaskets on.

Attachment 2380

With the Air Chamber on, I could get the Cold Start Injector and IAC valve on next.

Attachment 2382

The IAC connects to the pre-installed hose from the underside of the Intake runner. One thing I found is that if you use RTV on the hose fittings, they slide on real easy with the spring clamps already in place so you don’t have get in there with pliers to finish connections. The RTV seems to set up pretty secure the next day. Hope it holds.

Spark Plugs
 

I then secured the Valve Covers and put 4 OIL PLUG washers on the No 3 valve covers with lots of RTV as they were leaking before the project. Installed the new plugs with Anti-Seize as the old plugs were real difficult to remove. I then took all the old plug wires apart and rebuilt them with new wire and ends. Was able to custom fit each wire so the length were perfect. It takes 16 feet exactly of bulk wire to make up all the plugs. At $30 for wire and ends – saved $50 from buying a pre made set and got YELLOW as well

Attachment 2383

Alternator Bracket
 

Went to install the Alternator and discovered another problem – the lower alternator bracket must go on the block first – before the Air Compressor bracket and fan belt adjuster bracket.

Attachment 2384 Attachment 2385

This required taking apart the brackets on the timing cover. The Air compressor bracket wraps around the block and is very difficult to get too with every thing else installed. WORD OF ADVISE _ INSTALL LOWER ALTERNATOR BRACKET FIRST.

Engine Break In Oil
 

I've been researching what type of oil to use for engine break in. Found this web site with some great explanation of what is going on and how to do it correctly

http://www.ntnoa.org/enginebreakin.htm

The bottom line is 30W NON DETERGENT

“The primary deterrent of break in is this heat. Allowing to much heat to build up at the ring to cylinder wall interface will cause the lubricating oil that is present to break down and glaze the cylinder wall surface. This glaze will prevent any further seating of the piston rings.”

"If the wrong type of oil is used initially, or the break-in is too easy, rings and cylinders could (read will) glaze and never seal properly. A fresh cylinder wall needs some medium to high engine loading to get the piston rings to seat properly for good compression but make sure you don't lug or overheat the engine. Use high quality, low viscosity oil (Valvoline 30 weight), no synthetics, too slippery. If synthetics are used during initial break in the rings are sure to glaze over.”

No Oil Pressure
 

Before I installed the throttle body, I pulled the spark plugs and connected the battery to give the engine a spin to see if I got any oil pressure.

Engine spun but pressure on the gauge. This drew concern since I wanted to be sure I had oil flowing in all the bearings before I started it up.

Checked the panel meter by grounding the lead and it pegged high so I know that was OK.

Then put a OHM meter on the Oil Sender and it read 5.7K which is not what I am used too from oil senders (usually read 30 to 240 Ohms). Kept the Ohm meter on the sender and spun the engine, it read 5.4K, still not right.

Then I read through the TFSM and it did not have any resistance specs for the Oil sender but said it would pulse at different rates to give pressure? HUM?

It did say idle was about 4 PSI and under load about 70 PSI so I would suspect starting would be a lot less then 4 PSI and not move the gauge at all?

Wish I had a mechanical gauge to check against – There is no real way to see if oil is moving around before fire-up?

It's Back
 

Well – spinning the engine for the oil test got me excited so I went on a marathon session and moved along in getting the throttle body, exhaust, belts, and radiator back on. The vacuum hose diagram made things pretty simple to connect up. Key thing I found was cleaning the inside of all the hoses with break cleaner made them “tacky” so they stuck better on the fittings. Used RTV on the water hoses expect for the big radiator hoses

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Put the fuel pump fuse back in and connected the spark coil. Set the distributor to half way and shut the door.

Key in – turn, it starts.

OIL pressure gauge climbs up to normal pressure. Enough for the night.