1981_hiace_reviver

Hey Heather, Now this seems as though we are writing letters that are travelling by ship across the Pacific. No luck finding the steering linkage. Am thinking maybe the rubber/plastic linkage bushes could be manufactured and fitted meaning the entire part could be restored as opposed to replaced. Have done some rust work/exploration and have made it my mission to learn how to fabricate + weld. The way I see it, the van has 100000 k's in it without a doubt. It's a reconditioned diesel engine and has plenty of life left in it provided it is maintained. Any luck on your side?

Hi Heather, Sorry for the delay in reply. We's in need of the a new wiper linkage too. I am guessing there's perhaps a model Toyota make that is similar in dimensions or a second hand one may be lurking out there somewhere. How bad is the rust on yours? I am abut to embark on the journey of doing the rust. It is rather serious. 1981HR

Greetings to one and all, We have taken on the mission of bringing a 1981 Hiace campervan "El Burrito" back into action. He was neglected, in the hands of evil people who sought to rip off some naive dreamers (that be us), from Brisbane to Coffs harbour he consumed more oil than a group of school kids at some fast food outlet (3+ litres). We paniced. Subsequently, we replaced the engine (2.2L diesel 'L' series) at Coffs Harbour. Carried out by a crew that I cannot rate highly enough for being so straight down the line and passionate about what they do (S&H Motors). We drove him down to Sydney and on the way, discovered a really bizzare thing he does when it's dark and wet. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the headlights go off and the hi beam indicator light illuminates on the dashboard. The remedy for this problem is to flick the high beams on momentarily and everything goes back to normal! Another thing he has been doing lately is with the column shift 4 speed L41 transmission when the van is stationary, say, at the lights. Upon wanting to take off he wont go into first or second gear? However, I have found that if I roll the vehicle a little, he will then cooperate. Am thinking this could be a transmission oil issue hopefully. When we had the engine replaced, we also did the clutch plate. Finally, the biggest and most nail biting of issues... RUST! heaps and heaps of rust where the pop top meets the cabin, gees I would have loved to have been there when they did the pop-top modification! I would have certainly mentioned the words ensuing corrosion several times that's for sure. The first bit of work I have done, that I can brag about is I changed the Oil + Oil Filter at the 1000km mark on the reco'd engine. No metal particles evident to the naked eye, but I'm sure there was something caught in the oil filter. For the purposes of documentation, the Oil Filter for the LH30 2.2 Diesel L-series engine is the Z9 (very common) and it takes 6.5 Litres of Oil when filling dry. Well folks, I'll see to updating my log once in a while to have a sort of journal happening. Perhaps, one day, my findings may assist someone out there? Should you be reading this and know of some good sources of documentation for the 1981 LH30 Hiace, we shall be very greatful and happy to share our findings also (as long as it doesn't contravene the rules of this forum). Cheers, '81HR ******************************************************* 08/03/11 The plot thickens! We have found a 5th gear! so, the gearbox I thought it was, isn't. Much to my amazement, it was actually my mother in law that found it and at first, I didn't believe her. Until I went down and tried it myself. The nutty thing is, I didn't even think to check as the car was listed as a 4 speed. Hilarious! Must research what exactly this gearbox is, any assistance would be grand. Also, over the weekend, I saw to reducing the wiring that had accumulated over the years. Including an external temperature gauge. I removed this external gauge and now the dashboard temperature gauge doesn't work? I'm hoping I may have overtightened the tempo sender switches connector tab when fiddling and subsequently damaged it. When earthing the temperature sending wire (from the gauge) to the body of the car the temperature gauge goes towards the hot position, so that's OK. For reference, a suitable temp sender that I have tracked down is the Tridon - TTS006 haven't bought it yet to confirm but all the documentation (or lack thereof) suggests this. To be continued '81HR ******************************************************************************* Qg0fU

Greetings and thanks heaps for the welcomings. Will see to getting a journal of sorts happening throughout the project. EXY10 - Will do my best to represent! :) Thanks again! '81HR

Greetings all, We have recently purchased a 1981 Hiace campervan. We are located in Sydney and are looking at heading around OZ. I make websites for a living and play music where possible. Am looking to do some serious body work on the hiace and have come here to see if anyone is interested in sharing knowledge? Cheers, 1981 Hiace reviver