My Sprinter Se Vintage Ae110 Related Problems

[tila]

Hi, this is my first post to the AL forum which I need to get some advice and clarifications from you all experts in the field. Your valuable time spent on this greatly appreciated. I always used to browse this forum and find solutions from the already posted threads and everyday this is my one of favourite place I most prefer to come and read posts.

I recently bought a Toyota Sprinter SE Vintage SE G grade Limited (AE110) 1997 (Auto Transmission) car. I got this from a car sale and the seller had it with open papers. It was not a good bargain I was so impatient and hurry to buy this car. Although this is my third car I didn’t drive my previous cars even ten thousand kilometres. I thought this time I don’t want to change the car frequently as I did earlier and do all the things which are necessary and drive the car for at least 50K miles with smile . I regret about my previous cars because even for the short period of time I had to use, I looked after them very well and sold. Now let’s discuss about my new purchase Sprinter SE Vintage.

Car odometer has 119K kilometres, but according the age of the car I can’t trust that the odo has been altered by the seller which is very commonly known as sale buggers do. Car interior looks very good according to its age and all upholstery, seat covers floor mat dashboard instrumental panel were in very good condition. Exterior also good but has few things to be considered including minor dent on left fender and it seemed that the front windshield has been replaced and the frame edges where windscreen attached started rusting. I didn’t bring any mechanic to show the car when buying and in my test drive I didn’t notice any issue according to my little knowledge. However after driving the car at my convenience, following issues identified,

1. Steering wheel is slightly hard to turn after engine reach to its normal operating temperature. I replaced the power steering pressure hose because when I show it to a mechanic he indicated oil stains on pressure hose. But the situation is same as before after replacing the pressure hose. I checked the engine bay for any oil leak, didn’t find any sign of oil leak on hoses and no sign of reducing oil level in reservoir. I think mechanic didn’t check the belt tension. However I’m not worrying much about this.
2. There’s a little rattle noise I suspect that it’s coming from left front wheel when driving at normal speeds.
3. When I shifted to Reverse gear car noticeably vibrating due to low RMP. Idle RMP decreases in reverse gear. Anyhow just after starting the car RMP is around 1000 and gradually comes down to normal idle level in D position. But in R position car vibrates and idle become very low.
4. Also I noticed that water dripping under the car floor mats in front passenger and driver side when running AC. I checked under the floor mat and noticed sponge layer attached to the floor mat where it touches the body also soaked with water. It doesn’t smell. One day I dried all the carpets on sunny day and checked, it happens only when AC running.
5. The radiator tank welded with brass. Sale guy told that tank has been repaired and will never come any leak in future. Radiator filled only with water without coolant.
6. There was a gear shifting problem when I drive on Highway, My normal RMP when driving on highway was around 2000 and the speed around 80-90Kmph. I wanted to stop the car at Welipenna station and slow down the car to its speed 40-50 and suddenly I changed the decision and wanted to drive straight a way to Kottawa then accelerated the car but RPM rises around 3000-4000 and car moves very slowly at 30-40Kmph. Then what I have done is stopped the car safely with hazard lights on. It seemed that gear is not shifting, however try to accelerate again and gear sifted, anyhow I drove the car with caution and noble triple gem blessed me to come to the destination without problem. But problem never comes until now; I drove the car on highway 2-3 times after that.

Except to the above mentioned problems car runs greatly, I don’t know how significant of above causes to be big issues. But I wanted to contact the previous owner and get the genuine comments of the car because it has been already sold by him. I searched all the classified sites and related web pages using web archives about this car and found the previous owners ad on famous classified site. But ad page expired and I got it from google cache. Found his mobile number and called him to build the conversation frankly. After the discussion with him got to know the engine oil he used which the sale guy didn’t know when I asked and few important things about the car.

1. He drove the car at least 40k Kms and when he bought, it had the clock around 103K. and he said now it should be around 156K, blamed that sale guy may have altered it. But I can’t trust him coz he said he changed the timing belt and the date and mileage on the sticker on timing belt cover. It is 109K and date was in November 2013. I suspect he is lier that not the sales guy but the previous owner has clocked the car before changing timing belt and advertised on classified sites. But I never mind the mileage, car seemed pretty decent comparing to the other cars in its age. I will post some photos later.
2. Said that he has replaced the cooler with brand new one which is not Japanese made or genuine reconditioned one. AC is working well but heater is not working, it has touch type AC controls with AUTO option which is native to the SE Vintage G grade.
3. Radiator tank not repaired by him but his previous owner has done but encountered with radiator leak and welded it as temporary fix and replaced the radiator cap. Since he had no time he neglects doing permanent fix. That’s his comment.
4. He did not changed the transmission oil recently and changed only when he bought and done 40K kilometres. Not sure he has done more than that without changing ATF.

So far I wanted to know your comments from you all and advices on followings and greatly be appreciated for your valuable time spent on this thread.

1. What causes the power steering issue? Is it normal or should it be checked?
2. Does AC condensate on floor mats or any leak? Should I need to replace the cooler with good reconditioned one because it’s not Japanese made. Don’t know how accurately fitted it.
3. Should I need to replace the radiator with good reconditioned one?
4. How to get the heater fixed although not necessarily wanted.
5. How to avoid rusting on windscreen frame? Can it be repaired? Car got caught to heavy rain (all the day it was raining) and I had to park the car at open space since I was away from home, noted that water condensation under roof velvet cover area where windscreen edges meet. The car windows originally came with light brown (bronze) colour tint. But front windshield colour has green tint since it has been replaced. Few scratches and chips noticed on windscreen. I wanted to get original bronze colour tint windshield but difficult to find. Any expert advice appreciated.
6. What should I do for transmission issue even the problem gone now? But previous owner said there was a misfire but I didn’t notice.

Sorry for long thread and if I posted in wrong category . Please help me to prioritize the things to be sorted out. Thanks in advance for your great support

[Davy]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your purchase!

From your story, it looks like it was a "love at first sight" buy (which is not a bad thing). It's normal to have to deal with problems that you have mentioned with a car that is over 15 years of age now. With a bit of love and care, you'll be able to get her to run to any corner of the country without any issue. Here goes my 2 cents on the questions you have raised.

1. Your drive belts might be worn out or loose. As the engine heats up, the drive belts expand a little bit and slip. As a result, your power steering pump doesn't pump enough oil through the system to provide as much assistance as required. So get your belts checked and replaced for a start.

2. AC does not condensate on floor mats if the system is working normally. The first thing that comes to mind is a blockage in your AC drain pipe which fills up the tray underneath the cooler in your car. The tray gets filled up with water and the excess water overflows onto your carpet instead of going down the drain pipe. Get the drain pipe checked out first.

3. if your radiator is working as normal and if there are no leaks, then I don't see a reason for you to replace it. Since water is currently being used, drain the water out and use a good coolant. You should be settled for a good while.

4. Since the car's radiator has been replaced, there's a little chance for whoever did the job to close out the heater lines which go into the car. The heater lines carry water from the radiator into the car to radiate heat through the AC. If the heater lines are closed out (deliberately by a mechanic), then your heater would not work. Check this first. If they are, then you'll have to reconnect the pipes and it'll start working normally if everything else is not faulty.

5. To repair rust on the windscreen frame, the windscreen will have to be removed. This could be just surface rust which can be removed and painted over after treating the metal (with no metal fabrication needed). Since there seems to be a leak at the top of the windscreen, my guess is that the bonding has not been done properly by whoever fixed the replacement windscreen. A good body repair shop will be able to assist you with both the rust and windscreen re-installation. They'll remove the rust, re-paint the area and mount the windscreen so that there are no further leaks.

6. Since you do not know about the condition of the transmission oil, get an ATF oil change done. This is the starting point for most automatic gearbox issues. This applies to you mostly because it looks like an ATF oil has not been done for quite a long time.

One other point I would like to add is to get your timing belt changed. Don't take any risks on this one. A good EFI tuneup (throttle body clean, injector cleanup, spark plug replacement) and you're all good to go for a long time.

Good luck and hope this helps.

PS: Thank you for asking all your questions in one thread instead of opening 6 different threads for each question.

Edited November 1, 2014 by Davy

[ramishkad]

Congratulations on your purchase. In addition to the excellent advice Davy has already given, I'd suggest you do a check on all engine hoses and replace any that have worn out or has burn marks.

I'm pretty sure someone has tampered with the odometer. When I sold mine it had 260000 kilometers (registered in 1999). But as you said this is not something you should lose sleep over.

And I'd start using coolant instead of water if you are continuing to use water. I used to own the same car and I loved it. It's a great vehicle. Good luck!

[Reckless]

First of all I like your avatar Congratulations and a good choice of a car. Davy has given you excellent advice, get those things done and most likely all the problems will be solved. As Davy mentioned get a good tune up done, change the plugs and air filter with good quality ones, and change your ATF asap. Hopefully your low RPM issue will go away after that.

[tila]

Hi, I’m very glad to see that so many precious comments are being posted, Hope I can get the things sorted out by following the excellent advices given by Davy. Thank you very much Davy for your invaluable time spent on this. Also thanks to ramishkad and Reckless for sharing your valuable thoughts.

@Davy –

As to the first step I checked all my drive belts from a garage very close to my place, mechanic said that all the drive belts are ok and tension is at the correct level. He didn’t drive and check how power steering works to get some sense as I described the problem to him. Alternator and AC fan belt looks changed recently with Mitsuboshi brand but power steering belt looks very old and its brand BANDO. Any how I cannot trust the mechanic as he was busy with other works at that time. He further said that to inspect the power steering U joints (as he said it’s ‘Kurusiya’), if all ok then it would be PS pump or rack. Anyhow I want to get my power steering belt replaced and see the results.

I wanted to check the radiator; although they are not experts in radiators they said that radiator has been repaired several times inspecting the signs on top tank still there is small leak and previously applied some glue on it. Since I wanted to get rid of this I got reconditioned radiator for 10k from Delkanda. I got an aluminum AE110 radiator but noticed that one of tube from the lower tank has a big bent which blocks the flow of fluids. Then I have to change it, bugger at shop gave me AE101 model copper made (tanks are made with plastic) radiator instead of AE110 model. I didn’t notice that at the shop. It’s lengthy 1-2 inch than the original. Mechanic said it doesn’t matter It can be fitted into my vehicle. So I let them to fit it, there after no any sign of leak. But I’m worrying that shop has AE110 aluminum radiators almost like brandnew. I would have changed it again and get the correct one which comes as AE110. Doesn’t matter if this radiator will perform the same function without any problem?

Checked the AC draining on floor mats from T*P Co*L @ Kalubowila. Guys checked the AC system for any leaks, draining system worked well also pouring water to the tray and checked whether it drains from the draining tube. They suspect that the seller has done an interior job without properly drying the floor mat and refitted everything. AC guys applied newspaper sheets underneath the carpet to absorb any water residue and instructed to look for any water dripping after driving with AC on. If the problem persists said to come and further checked.

I told them the heater is not working, a guy checked it and said heater lines are not blocked or bypassed. Heater valve is also working; they asked why I’m worrying about the heater, they also block or bypass already working heaters in vehicles as the heater is not necessarily needed in a country like Sri Lanka except not living in Nuwar-Eliya. If heater is working engine may heat up excessively? Don’t know why they bypass heater lines.

I have to get the ATF and timing belt change without getting any risk. Previous owner can’t remember what ATF brand he used. Should I flush the ATF? I can remember same happened to my first car (Corolla EE111) when I needed to change the ATF, mechanic removed the ATF oil sump and cleaned it with petrol, used Toyota DII as ATF. Is it ok to doing the same? I didn’t have any knowledge at that time.

With regards to the windscreen should I do frame rust repair in a good body repair shop and get the windscreen re-installation done at a separate place like S*m*r*s*n*ha windscreen?

I forgot to mention last time; previous owner said that since this car had not been used for a long period by first owner engine oil was frozen/clotted and after flushing the system engine worked like a charm. My mechanic also said that this cars engine sounds good as AE110 model.

@ramishkad –

I’m going to use coolant after replacing the radiator. Any how I followed the awesome post on this AL forum about flushing the radiator by Schiffer. I didn’t use any chemical just used plain tap water to flush. What kind of coolant good for this radiator? Premixed coolant or concentrated coolant which has to be mixed with water?

@ Reckless –

Thanks that you like my avatar . ATF and tune up still pending. I must do the ATF change in my next schedule as the first priority and change spark plugs. This car plug cord set replaced with so called Japanese made one not the genuine oem. It looks very new and hope does the job without any issue. Should I get the genuine plug cord set, I asked agents they quoted 16.5K for plug wire set.

--

Sorry again my thread becomes lengthy. Thanks in advance again Davy, ramishkad and Reckless for your prompt replies on my issues.

[The Don]

I will touch on one subject I have experience in. Rust on the windscreen frame. Have this attended to immediately. The faster you repair this, the cheaper the repair will be because the rust starts in the windscreen frame, but will cause water to flow inside the car rusting the floor boards and sometimes the fire wall.

The same needs to be said about the water leak from the condensation drain pipe.

[Davy]

As for your radiator, I always like to go for what originally came with the car instead of modifying things with copper cores and stuff. I have had my fair share of problems with full copper radiators but I don't think yours will be an issue since only the core is copper. Most copper radiators develop problems and leaks in the tanks as per my experience. Since this is a recon radiator which has not been used for quite a while, use water on it for about a week or so, then flush it out and then move to a good coolant and stick with that.

Water on the carpet issue - if the car was out in the open in the car sale, water might have got into the car following the heavy rains during the past few weeks. This might be related to the corrosion around the front windscreen where water pours down and settles on the carpet. It might also be a corroded and leaking wiper motor + arm chamber just above the firewall. This is a common area to develop rust and leak water into the car during rain and even when washing the car. You can check if this is the issue easily if you remove the carpet totally on the passenger side to reveal the floor board, and run a stream of water down the windscreen while observing drainage to the floor board.

Usually, the heater lines are closed when the AC heater inside the car develop leaks resulting in the loss of coolant. Instead of replacing the heater radiator inside the car, people opt for closing off the lines. The impact on engine cooling is not affected much by the presence of a heater.

I'm not an expert on automatic transmission as I have not owned or maintained a car with auto transmission to date. So I'll leave this for a member who has more experience on auto transmission than I do. My 2 cents is that an ATF oil change would be sufficient. Removing the gearbox sump and cleaning it is part of the oil change I believe.

If you take your car to a good paint shop, they will do the bodywork, paint AND install the windscreen for you. Then you wouldn't have to run to another place to get the windscreen mounted.

[tila]

Hi Friends, I found the culprit for AC leaking, Please look at the below attached pictures I have taken for reference, AC drain water coming from a wire sleeve. I started the car with ac on to see how this enigmatic water leaking happened. After observing for 10-20 minutes I noticed that water drops come along the wire sleeve attached to the cooler. That sleeve touches dash plastic panels and I think water flows along them to the floor board. Please give me advice on how to get this sorted. Do you know any reliable person to do the job or if it’s a simple fix, please brief me.

[The Don]

Hi Friends, I found the culprit for AC leaking, Please look at the below attached pictures I have taken for reference, AC drain water coming from a wire sleeve. I started the car with ac on to see how this enigmatic water leaking happened. After observing for 10-20 minutes I noticed that water drops come along the wire sleeve attached to the cooler. That sleeve touches dash plastic panels and I think water flows along them to the floor board. Please give me advice on how to get this sorted. Do you know any reliable person to do the job or if it’s a simple fix, please brief me.

I think the issue here is either the condensation drain is blocked, not connected, cover not sealing properly or the after market cooler has not bee installed properly. I don't think it will be competent to fix. Get an AC guy or even your mechanic to take the cooler cover off (the white plastic cover with the Toyota mark) and insect the inside. The problem should be obvious very quickly. Might not even require dismantling the AC and re gas.

Where do you live?

Edited November 6, 2014 by The Don

[Davy]

Hi Friends, I found the culprit for AC leaking, Please look at the below attached pictures I have taken for reference, AC drain water coming from a wire sleeve. I started the car with ac on to see how this enigmatic water leaking happened. After observing for 10-20 minutes I noticed that water drops come along the wire sleeve attached to the cooler. That sleeve touches dash plastic panels and I think water flows along them to the floor board. Please give me advice on how to get this sorted. Do you know any reliable person to do the job or if it’s a simple fix, please brief me.

Good job on being persistent about finding the source of the leak!

I'm with The Don on this one. The water level shouldn't rise up to the level where the wire goes into the cooler housing, if it's being drained out properly.

[tila]

I inspected the water drain tube from the firewall when ac running, I could see water drained out from the drain tube drop by drop,

Don I live in Dehiwala area.

Yes, Davy I think the water draining from the drain oulet is not enough.

[The Don]

I inspected the water drain tube from the firewall when ac running, I could see water drained out from the drain tube drop by drop,

Don I live in Dehiwala area.

Yes, Davy I think the water draining from the drain oulet is not enough.

There is a chap on Pepiliyana road called Situlya AC works which a number of Autolanka members swear by.

I use ATCO which is closer to my house and have heard good things about Bullion Auto AC as well.

[tila]

There is a chap on Pepiliyana road called Situlya AC works which a number of Autolanka members swear by.

I use ATCO which is closer to my house and have heard good things about Bullion Auto AC as well.

Ok Thanks Don, I'll try to contact one of them.

[virajh]

Any idea of your car engine oil type and brand? please help