Paseo91

I had it looked at and the guy said replace the TX valve and the pipes that connect to it (the ones that go through the firewall), because these usually leak on older Toyotas. I did just so, and while I was at it cleaned the evaporator. A new evaporator was priced at over $500 by the way so you'd be looking for a second hand one if you needed one of them. I also replaced all the O - rings provided to me by the air con mechanic. I took it all into him and he retro fitted it, pressure tested it and gassed it for about $280. The parts also cost me about $75 so in the end it was a very cheap recondition job. The Paseos are extremely easy to work I spent probably an hour all up removing and fitting parts, compared to say a Ford Falcon which would have taken about 8 hours.

Has anyone had any experience restoring the EL44 Paseo air conditioning recently?

I have been driving my Paseo for a couple of months now. Since replacing the engine oil with Penrite HPR10 I noticed a difference in how the motor runs, before with the $10 oil it was very sluggish, now it seems to have the expected response when putting the foot down. Is that a possibility or is it more psychological? Anyway now it has to be by far the favorite car I've ever owned

I got mine registered and have been driving it today. I have to say I'm not used to such a tiny engine, cruising around town under 3000 rpm feels like the motor is barely putting out any power, and putting the foot down does nothing. Above 5000 rpm there's a bit of power happening. Does anyone happen to have a power/torque curve graph of the stock engine?

I put in coolant and assumed it would be hold 5 litres of coolant but only 3 litres was needed. Amazing, I've never seen an engine with only 3L of coolant. The extra strength coolant wont hurt it will it?

The water was leaking out the little hole in the housing of the water pump which a mechanic told me indicated the seal was gone again. It was a new water pump but the engine hadn't been run for 2 years so it must have gone hard (the seal). I got the water pump replaced and it doesn't leak water anymore.

I still haven't driven mine as it's not registered but looks pretty good quality. One thing I should point out is the cost of parts is rising rapidly, the front bearings are one of a kind jobs as far as I'm aware and cost a couple hundred or more PER WHEEL, I ended up just getting the old ones repacked (if anyone knows where to get them cheap I'd like to know ;). The rear bearings were not so expensive. The shock absorbers are fairly dear, I spent $500-$600 on all 4. I spent $60 on a set of boots for the front shocks too so fairly pricey. I believe the 91 model I bought was the old air conditioning system and has since had a retro fit kit added to make it compatible with the new gas, that would be something to consider when purchasing a car in the mid 90s. Always using the correct coolant is a good idea as the one I bought had just had the engine replaced due to a corroded head. Are the wheels everyone is referring to as being no good the 14 inch alloys with plastic center caps? They're not too bad if you just need the car as a shopping trolley like I do.

Ok I have another stupid yet serious question. Do rear spoilers actually improve fuel ecconomy? I read on Wikipedia that they ''spoil'' the turbulance coming down the rear of the car. Apparently the downward vacuum effect the rear window and boot etc causes a bit of drag, and sticking an ugly big heavy piece of plastic interrupts this swirl thus cutting out a fair bit of drag, thus giving better fuel ecconomy. The more I think about it the more it makes sense. Maybe I will put the thing back on... thoughts?

I followed the PDF and managed to get the water pump off. It turns out the PDF knows what it's talking about. I'm not sure why it was leaking though, should I replace it?

lol, thanks mate, but mine has done 319k km's. And i got it for less then $2k. It had a lady owner, and serviced and looked after very well! The inside is mint too. Just a little dryied out on the dash, but what do you expect for a car that is 17 years old. :P 319,000 ks!!! How did she do it? Keep it garaged at all times... mine has 259,000ks and has already been repainted on the roof. Hmm my interior looks almost new also, Toyota must have designed the interiors well

Yeah lol it's all I can afford. I was thinking Lukey I've had one before on another *cough* car.

I need a new exhaust so whats a good subtle notey muffler for a 91 Paseo (5e-fe engine)... with a little crackle but wont make people laugh _too_ much

Mine idles about 1500 when cold and 900-1000 when warm which I would call fine, I don't even know what the factory spec is for idle but it sounds right for a little 1.5L. Your car is nice looking it must have low K's, I'd be too embarrassed to post up a pic of my 91 Paseo here it looks like a wreck compared to yours. EDIT: Yeah they rev high wikipedia says 100hp @ 6400rpm, although I probably wouldnt rev my old Paseo over 5500... on the subject remember when I was into Dattos the enthusiasts on the forum would often say the stock 1.6, 1.8 and 2L Datto engines happily revved over 7000 rpm and some even 8000 although anything over about 4500 was only noise as the torque peaked then. Apparently they had a tough 'bottom end' which could handle the revs (?)

Yes the guy I bought the car off said it gets jammed in the 'in' position (as in the way you have to push the key in to turn it to the locked position). A can of degreaser (didnt have WD40 handy) did the trick. I'm still wondering if I can buy a replacement barrel and key that matches the rest of the car though, this key is worn right down you have to see it to believe it :)

I can't seem to get the steering unlocked, the key wont turn from the locked position. The old wiggle the steering seems to do nothing. What options do I have? Can you take the key cylinder out without turning the key? I read somewhere that Toyota can make a new key based on the VIN, would that be worth a try?