QuestionMy fiance has a 1993 Toyota 4x4 6cyl Truck with well over 100k on it. It is on it's second engine, installed at a qualified repair facility. He has had transmission reparis done as well - I believe a complete replacement, again at a qualified repair facility. He owns a pool maintenence company, stopping at 10+ houses a day, not to mention various errands. So lots of starts and stops. I am writing with 4 issues that I need assistance on:
1.) He had power steering leaks for over a year. He had repairs done, and finally, they figured it out and there was no more evidence of a fluid leak. If memory serves me right, they replaced the Power Steering Pump and hoses. So now there are no more visible leaks, but the fluid is always low. It has gradually grown worse and my Fiance now has to add PS fluid 3 times a day.
Having worked admin to service writers at a LandRover dealership for a year, I am all too familiar with leaks. I also learned that just because a leak isn't visible, that doesn't mean it doesn't exist.
The people working on his truck perform maintenence on fleet vehicles at a company owned by his friend. It took many repeat visits before they fixed the PS problem - which isn't fixed. They even had a hard time getting the timing right on the vehicle after a tune-up. So to me, regardless of friendship, these b*stards don't know their a** from a hole in the ground, and are about as qualified to work on a Toyota as I am. But at least I know to look for a leak somewhere besides the ground.
Q: What can I do to locate an internal leak? I figure that if I can find the damn thing, I will have more ground to demand that we no longer donate to the "learn as we go" fund at his friends shop. (He likely won't let me crawl under the truck, but if I had a schematic, he would do it himself.) Also, since their diagnosis and repair took close to a year, what is the possibility that their ineptness contributed to an internal leak? If something is over-torqued, could that contribute to an internal leak as well?
2.) The truck at times has a fuel smell about it. It is intermittent, and usually smelt at stops, and when parked. Rarely there at start-up. Because it is intermittent, and fuel isn't on the ground, the "service men" do not know where to look.
Q: Is it possible that it is coming from a fuel injector(s)? What are some other possibilities?
3.) The vehicle has the power of a Yugo. I do not believe that it is because it is "old". The accelerator pedal is very stiff, but I am unsure if this is just a characteristic of this vehicle.
Q: Is the power issue related to #2? Please let me know other options as well.
4.) I believe the transmission is slipping. When driving the truck, one can not "step on it", even though it is a 6 cylinder. When accelerating from a stop, one has to do it slowly. Ever have a blue haired old lady no higher than her steering wheel pass you and flip you off? yes, that slow... The RPM's rev high before switching to 3rd and sometimes 4th gear. As the gears are about to change, there is a loud but low rattle/knock under the shifter, usually when going into 4th if acceleration is too fast. I am not sure if the rattle is within the transmission itself. It is not a grinding sound.
Q: What are your thoughts?
I am sure what mostly comes to mind is that the vehicle needs to be taken to a qualified mechanic/facility. However, I need a substancial amount of supporting information (besides what I believe is obvious) before I can suggest doing so. I need to make a list of "Did you check 'this'?" questions.
I am treading on 2 off limit areas - his buddies, and his vehicle. So any and all assistance/suggestions is greatly appreciated!!
Thank you very much for your time!
Sincerely,
Victoria
AnswerOK, I'll try make some sense of this and hopefully can be of some help.
Regarding the power steering problem; Since fluid has to be added at this rate there has to be an external leak, there cannot be an "internal leak" because if that was the case no fluid would be lost, an internal hydraulic leak will bypass seals and just recirculate but there will be no external fluid loss and no fluid loss from the reservoir, in order for that to happen the fluid has to go someplace external to the components,the power steering system consists of the pump, the hoses and the seering box, somewhere there has to be a leak.
The fuel smell:
Check the fuel pressure dampener, they are known to leak, it's located behind the intake plenum chamber on the on the right side fuel rail, check with a flashlight while the engine is running, you may need a small mirror to see it, it's about an inch round, I had the same problem on my 4 Runner, in order to replace it the intake plenum chamber has to be removed, I have never seen injectors leak so chances are this is the problem.
The transmission problem sound serious and there is possibly a major malfunction internally, this is an automatic, correct?
The first step of diagnosing any transmission problem is to check the fluid, check the level with the engine running, check to see if the fluid smells burned and looks black, this is certain death of the transmission if it is slipping and making strange noises.
I won't be back from vacation until late monday,so if you need more input maybe I can help so you can flip off the blue haired old ladies because they're going to slow.
I hope this clarified these issues a little bit.
