Saturday morning and yesterday we replaced the fuel pump, spacer, gaskets, clips and hoses the result was that the engine fired up first try with no fuel leaks. Now we can assess the automatic choke bearing in mind that the bus was previously manual choke and the wiring was totally different, like one wire then and now four. Chris reversed the bus off the small front pad and took it for a run up the road to return it frontwards so that later I will be able to drive straight out and it ran very well so we have sorted out a couple of problems. So far I have spent $700 before getting a roadworthy certificate test but more expense is to come because whilst running the engine my new smoke alarm was activated and we have tracked down that problem to a cracked manifold and on Tuesday after getting my permit to drive the bus renewed we have arranged to take it to an exhaust place that Chris has used before. There appears to be no manifold available for a 21R U engine but have been advised that extractors similar to the ones fitted to the Celica with that motor can be fitted for $500.
Some would be dismayed after finding these problems but every problem has been or will be fixed and later when on the road will not arise in some out of the way location and cost much more to fix.
You are right Brian everything that we discover will be fixed before setting off.
A work in progress John..........but will be so worth it, Good Luck with it all and hopefully not too much more will be found before you can resume your adventures.
Just a bit curious John, the bloke you bought it off, did he have it registered at any time and how did he end up with it? Did it have other state registration before it expired?
Did he have or know any of it's previous history? All seems a bit strange...
-- Edited by Duh on Monday 18th of March 2013 07:36:13 PM
Thanks John, I am sure it will work out in the end and you will be on your way again, I have every confidence it will eventually!
In the meantime you have a nice big bed to sleep in!
I am also having a few drama's with a Ford Transit I may be buying, it seems the owner has been less than honest about finance owing on it, hopefully being sorted out but not sure what the end result will be! I'm just grateful I haven't paid for it yet. Not sure if that will happen though, have to wait and see.
-- Edited by Duh on Monday 18th of March 2013 11:02:24 PM
Just a bit curious John, the bloke you bought it off, did he have it registered at any time and how did he end up with it? Did it have other state registration before it expired?
Did he have or know any of it's previous history? All seems a bit strange...
-- Edited by Duh on Monday 18th of March 2013 07:36:13 PM
The previous owner did not register the Coaster his plan changed and he sold it to me. The previous owner before did not register the Coaster either for a similar reason, He thinks it was previously registered in Queensland.
Now you understand how anxious I am to get the registration sorted, and it is getting closer.
Tuesday and I was offered a Mirage to drive now that the Hi Ace is out of action and I went over to Vic Roads to get another permit to drive the Coaster, this time I went for the maximum time so I can drive it up to the 18th April. Hopefully it will not take that long to get the rego.
Wednesday night and now the Coaster is in the exhaust dealer's yard waiting for the extractors to be delivered and installed. We had plenty of excitement getting the bus to Dandenong, suddenly there was no acceleration and I got into the back and manually operated the throttle to take us to the carby specialist who we first spoke to before ordering the new one. He was reluctant to touch the new carby so it was up to Chris to fiddle and get us to the exhaust dealer. Over the past couple of days I have installed the UHF antenna across the side of the roof rack and brought the cable down into the van and under the carpet. After checking the lights I found that there was no reversing light but now I have bought and installed one and the other side has a wire ready for me to install the rear vision camera later from the Hi Ace. Cleaned up the fuse holders and that made the cigarette lighter work so that was a plus. John
Thursday night and the Coaster is back home again complete with it's new extractors and a new muffler. Just worked out how much I have spent on the Coaster since I came to Frankston $1500 but necessary. A couple of minor things to do before getting the roadworthy but it will have to wait now till next Tuesday before I can afford to get the roadworthy done. John
Saturday and the stabilizer bar bushes have been replaced and been working on the water tanks, very slow to fill and the water rusty so flushing will be needed, the tanks are stainless steel so there must be fittings rusted. The vacuum pump works so that is a plus.
Took the Coaster to a weigh bridge and found that it weighed in at 2850kgs tare so there will be no problems in driving with a C class license. The G V M is 4520kgs but that is the maximum loaded weight and is 20kgs higher than my license but there is no way that I could add that much extra weight. Will phone Monday morning about getting the roadworthy.
Sunday night and the bus is ready for the roadworthy inspection, today I bought a crank handle and was able to wind down the spare wheel, worked on the water tanks and now can refill them easily but slowly. Some previous owner had connected the water tubing and took an over the top method of sealing them and clipping the tubes high to prevent leakage, the problem was that water does not run uphill and in a sealed system using a suction pump tap the water could not easily be filled. Now I have cut from the tube and resealed it in a straight line direct into the tank. No more problems. Done an engine degrease and used a high pressure spray to clean the engine bay and all round the bus, sparkling clean and looking great. John
Tuesday and yesterday we decided to have another pair of eyes look over the Coaster so we invited Larry, Chris's friend to check out the bus looking for any possible roadworthy problems. He was concerned about the shock absorber rubbers and pulled off a rear shocky to check them out. Good job that he did because the rear shock absorber was useless and had a Monroe Wylie number dated 1984 so we checked out the front and found original Toyota shockies must have been 1980 vintage and as useless as the rear. We ordered front and rear heavy duty 4WD Monroe Wylie Shock Absorbers from Burson's and it was a good thing that Chris and Larry were known there and attracted trade discounts because the retail price was $408.45 each but we got both of them for $417.05. Set up the awning for the first time will need to get practise putting it up solo.
Chris and Paula are having a holiday in Kiama attending a Gemini car meet so I am house sitting again looking after 2 dogs a cat and an aquarium, getting used to looking after animals after my recent farm stay. John
Geez John what next, oh well it should be good for quite a few kls when you are finished, enjoy the housesitting and look after the furry friends.............keep us posted.
Gee John, there cannot be much more running gear left on the bus to replace,I hope you have many years now of trouble free travelling.But that said, you got the bus for a good price ,so with all the other unexpected costs it sounds like it still works out to be still good value for what you have. And look at it this way , you could have spent a whole lot more on another set up and still may have found bigger problems with it .