For a long time my check engine light has been on. I knew that it wasn't a big deal and that the worst thing that would probably happen if I didn't do anything about it was that I'd get poor gas mileage. Actually, I would have addressed it much sooner if I had known how it easy it was to read the diagnostic code. For cars that are 1996 and newer, AutoZone will hook it up to a device for free that tells you the code. That doesn't work for older models like my truck. Using the internet and a tip from the guy at AutoZone, I used a paperclip. That's right, a paperclip. By placing each end of the paperclip into the correct holes in the diagnostics, I completed the circuit and my check engine light started to flash in a pattern, spelling out the code.
My check engine light flashed seven times and then once, over and over again. That's check engine light code for the number 71. I was so impressed by the simplicity of the paperclip technique that I took a little video for you to see. I did a little research on the internet and all signs pointed to the EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) system. Without going into too much detail, some of the exhaust gas is pumped back into the engine to help lower emissions. This system is controlled by various valves, small hoses and tubes, and would explain why I was losing a little bit of power. I checked everything out and noticed that one of the hoses wasn't fully seated on one of the tubes. It was still connected, but not pushed in all the way. I pushed it back down and also removed the EGR valve from it's clips with my hands, and pulled off the rubber hoses. One guy said he cleaned this out and it fixed his problem. A few minutes later I had cleaned it all out and washed off the top filter with water (see first picture). I disconnected the battery to reset the light and it hasn't come back. I'm 20 miles into it and the light is staying off.
Cost to fix check engine light and learn how to read the diagnostic codes on my old truck: one paperclip.
The second problem I tackled just started happening this week. The first few times in happened it sounded pretty bad. When driving things would get pretty loud and my truck would vibrate significantly. I felt it most in the steering wheel. I feared the worst considering the age of my truck. After a few times it seemed to only happen when I had my foot on the gas. I started thinking through ways to eliminate possibilities - could it be my engine, or my shocks, or my tires that need replacing? The best test I came up with was to find a big hill, pop it in neutral, and coast down it. As I suspected, there were no vibrations when I coasted. That meant the wheels, tires, and suspension were not the problem. I looked at and revved the engine multiple times in neutral and everything sounded fine. I was fairly sure it had something to do with the drive train, since it only was happening when I was accelerating.
A few Google searches later I ran across a Toyota forum and a guy that had a T-100 that was doing the same thing. He had also made some similar modifications to his truck, so I was lucky to find the article. His problem was that one of the universal joints (u-joints) had broken and become loose. I hopped under my truck and was surprised to find the u-joint at the rear of the drive shaft, where it connects to the rear differential, was loose. All of the other u-joints were tight, but this one I could move with my hand. As I would accelerate, the power transfer from the engine to a loose spinning joint was probably causing my problem.
Even it this wasn't the problem, based on what I read and watched on YouTube, this needed to be fixed. Thankfully, the drive shaft and assembly can be removed by simply undoing four bolts. I pulled the thing out and then spent probably the next two hours trying to pry open the old u-joint. Over time, all of the dirt and grease and rust had kept the outside pretty tight while the inside of one end had disintegrated. Using a hammer, driver, and a lot of WD-40, I was eventually able to pry it off.
You can see what it looks like in the second picture right before I put the new piece together. The u-joint is the cross-shaped piece. It fits inside the holes and connects both pieces of the drive train. Each side is held in place by the caps (the old ones are off, the new ones are yellow and still connected to the new u-joint). These caps easily slide off the u-joint when not connected. They are the same size as the holes on the drive shaft though, so you have to lightly hammer them in from the outside to connect them back to the u-joint. On my model, the caps are held in place with c-clamps (in the second picture) from the inside. The c-clamps are wider then the hole opening, so when they are slid on the caps can't fall out and everything stays tightly together.
The third and fourth picture show what my truck looks like after taking off the drive shaft. The fifth picture is a closeup of the new u-joint installed and clamped, and the last picture shows it bolted back on to the truck. The last picture is a good visual of how when the engine and transmission spin the drive shaft, it transfers that power to the wheels to make them spin. After taking this last picture and verifying that everything was rock solid, I took it for a test drive. Lo and behold, the vibrations were gone. Not only that, by my truck seemed a little bit more responsive now that some power isn't being lost.
Cost to fix a seemingly very bad problem with my truck: $14.99 before tax.
After thinking about the old Toyota advertisement above, I've created my own version. It's a slightly different take on their slogan and definitely not a good marketing option, but it still makes a lot of sense. The way I see it, the slogan should be, "I love what you don't do to me, Toyota!"
