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1999 4dr 4x4 major mods

38K views 65 replies 14 participants last post by  Mick Hatzo 
#1 · (Edited)
Okay lets be real, the stock 4.1 RAV4 is not a very masculine looking vehicle so I installed a few upgrades and still have a lot to do.>:D

My RAV4 is my office and I needed a vehicle that could get through mud, sand, brush and comfortably drive coast to coast and then do it all again. My job is 4 wheeling and blowing stuff up!!!

See my garage: http://www.rav4world.com/forums/garage.php?do=viewvehicle&vehicle_id=8241
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Installed:
- 1 ea - 1996-2000 Toyota RAV4 Black Grille Bumper Guards Brush Bull Push Crash Bar (ChromekingUSA an eBay store)
- 1 ea - K&N 57-0315 57i High Performance International Intake Kit (amazon.com)
- 1 ea - Curt Manufacturing 13524 Class III Receiver (amazon.com)
- 1 ea - Old man Emu Lift Kit (doesn't include front struts)(Toyota Rav4 lift kits, suspension, fender flares, part & accessories at the lowest prices)
- 1 ea - Daystar KT09105BK Comfort Ride 1" Front Strut Spacer Kit (note not for RAV4 but it works with a little effort) (amazon.com)
- 2 ea - Monroe 903995 Strut-Mate Strut Mounting Kit (amazon.com) You should add these to any strut replacement.
- 1 ea - Gabriel G56631 Ultra Gas Strut, Front Left (amazon.com)
- 1 ea - Gabriel G56632 Ultra Gas Strut, Front Right (amazon.com)
- 5 ea - Rims 16x7.5 Anthracite w/Mach Lip American Racing Razor (tirerack.com)
- 5 ea - *Tires - 235/75R16 Firestone Destination A/T (tirerack.com)(these tires are 30" tall and caused some rubbing issues that I had to repair with the judicious use of an implement of destruction (4lb hammer) to the rear of the front fender wells and removing those weird things that bulge at the rear of the wheel well and by using the following wheel spacers.)
- 2 sets - 25mm (1") 5x114.3 Hubcentric Wheel Spacers (amazon.com)
- 2 sets - Gorilla Automotive 21133HT Small Diameter Acorn Chrome 5 Lug Kit (12mm x 1.50 Thread Size) Pack Of 20 (needed some for the spare)(local purchase)
- 1 ea - BAFX Products (TM) - PIC18F2480 Bluetooth OBD2 scan tool - For check engine light and other diagnostics - Android compatible (amazon.com) Can be used in other vehicles.
- 1 ea - 24F sized battery and tray; fits nicely, probably could have gone up a size.

*A word of advice; the largest tires that you can get under it with this lift kit are 29 inches and maybe they won't rub in the front, 30" tires rub harshly on almost any turn and require some vehicle modification (wish someone had mentioned that). :wall The tire/rim fits fine on the rear tire rack, no spacer or mod needed.

Things to come:
- Mossy Oak "Obsession" pattern vinyl vehicle wrap. I have this just need a little time to apply. Will paint the side kick panels, bumper covers, and fender flares.
- 1 set - Hood Vents - Size Large Powder-Coated Semi-Gloss Black Hi-Flow™ 2 each 11" x 17" Angle Cut Vents (http://www.hoodlouvers.com/product-c...ershood-vents/),
- A 3SGTE engine (if that noise from the engine is something bad or maybe just do it because it sounds like something awesome to do).
- Upgraded front seats or perhaps the right super comfortable seat covers for long distance comfort - any suggestions?
- Upgrade the radio and speakers.
- Custom skid plates to protect gas tank, engine, and tranny. Too bad no one makes them, but I'm sure I can fabricate them.

Gator

“People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.”
 
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#2 ·
Looks pretty good to me! Nobody will mistake that for Mom's grocery getter! But where are the roof rails???
 
#5 ·
Thanks, with the oversized tires she's slow off the line so I'm seriously considering the upgrade. A rattle from the engine has me a little spooked too.
 
#6 ·
I think my engine noise is from the timing belt, tensioner pulley, and/or water pump. Ordered a kit that includes all those nasty little things, and a thermostat, all belts, radiator and heater hoses. Hopefully that fixes the issue. Also doing a complete brake job new master cylinder (old one leaking), rotors, calipers, pads, flex hoses, drums, shoes, and drum kit. I was looking at going with rear disc brakes, but for now finances dictate staying with drums. I at least put drilled and slotted rotors on her.
 
#8 ·
Gas mileage

Leon, I really haven't checked; when I get it back on the road I'll check and post it. I would expect it to be lower around town but better on the highway.

It's down awaiting parts for a brake rebuild, 5th gear fix, and timing belt/water pump replacement. Should be complete early next week.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Well I decided to repair the engine rattle, after checking it out it sounds like a timing belt issue, so I ordered a kit which included the water pump, timing belt, pulleys and gaskets. I also ordered all new radiator and heater hoses, thermostat, new belts, and valve cover gasket. And as long as I was here, decided I may as well take care of putting in a new oil pump just in case that was a problem. To do all of this you must remove the valve cover (to hold the cam shafts stationary while you remove the cam pulley).


Not going through a step by step procedure here for everything but to break the crankshaft bolt loose, perform the following steps...
1) Make sure your timing belt is still installed, if not, reinstall, making sure you put it on properly.
2) Recommend using a pneumatic 1/2" drive 14mm socket and a 1/2" breaker bar, wedge the breaker bar into the control arm, put the socket on the crankshaft bolt turn the harmonic balancer until you can attach the breaker bar into the socket.
3) Ensure the breaker bar is securely wedged.
4) If you disconnected the battery, reconnect.
5) Disable the ignition (you don't want to start the engine) in other words disconnect the spark plugs or disconnect the crankshaft position sensor.
6) Turn the engine over briefly twice.
7) Check to see if it broke the crank bolt loose, if not try again (I've never had to try again)
8) Now before you remove the camshaft pulley or the harmonic balancer, make sure the engine is at top dead center (TDC).
This will save you lots of frustration and your girlfriend won't learn your full curse word vocabulary. LOL

Be carefull with the crankshaft pulley if you bend or break those pins the crankshaft sensor won't work properly. Already did that once.
 
#16 ·
The intake made the engine sound better, RPMs increased a bit. Not going to get a lot of performance from the 2 liter engine that comes with the US 4.1 RAV4s. Plan on later installing the 3SGTE engine, going from 127 hp to 300hp ought to be a kick in the pants.
 
#20 · (Edited)
Repairs to the engine complete, new oil pump, water pump, timing belt, pulleys, all belts and coolant hoses. No more bad noises from the engine, no leaks, no left over parts.

Now time to do a complete brake job so, all flex hoses, master cylinder, rotors, calipers, pads, drums, shoes, wheel cylinders, misc hardware.

Rain slowed me down, at least I got the front passenger side brakes complete and the calipers for the front driver side assembled. Should go quickly in the morning.
 
#21 ·
After installing all the brakes I found a corrosion issue on my rigid brake lines and started a new thread concerning those issues and repairs at this link...

http://www.rav4world.com/forums/85-4-1-faults-fixes/210626-brake-line-corrosion.html

And, to add insult to injury, after replacing all the hoses and belts I took her on a little shake down run and one of the transmission cooler lines blew out and destroyed the transmission, those repairs are at this link...

http://www.rav4world.com/forums/85-...38-replacing-manual-transmission-project.html
 
#24 ·
Thanks for the complements, yeah, debating on the lights, want to add some fog lights as low as possible to the front and then off-road lights.

This week working on a transmission replacement and several upgrades at the same time.

Replace blown 5sp transmission with low mileage 5sp tranny
Corrosion control in the engine compartment
Insulate firewall to deaden noise and reflect heat away from cabin
Install snorkel, not so I can do deep water crossings, but as a cool air intake and to prevent so much trash from getting pulled into the filter when off-roading across grassy areas
Install new air box and 4" conical filter
Install thermal liner under hood
Cut out rear of wheel wells and install patch area with aluminum for clearance of my 30" tires
Replace expansion (freeze) plugs
Replace front and rear engine seals
Replace clutch, pressure plate, and fly wheel
Replace all vacuum hoses (all other hoses have been replaced)
Install transmission temperature sensor and filter kit
Install thermostatically controlled oil cooler, oil temperature and oil pressure gauges. The gauges will sit where the factory radio was installed,
Install double din radio where the cigarette lighter, ashtray, and cup holders were.
Installation of mossy oak vinyl wrap over entire RAV4

A lot to do, will be taking pictures as I go along
 
#26 ·
They helped a some but they still rub, I'll take photos when I cut the wheel wells and patch them to gain about 1.5" to 2" of clearance.
 
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