Tools and spares for Toyota Trucks

[Arclight]

Hi all,

I'm trying to fine-tune my box of off-road fixing supplies. Currently, I've got everything in a large Contico box with wheels. Most of my off-roading experience was with my old Bronco and fixing other people's trucks who didn't take care of maintenance. The Toyota-specific stuff is new to me, so I'm looking for input.

The top things I've had to fix over the years include:

• Tires (Punctures from sticks, embedded rock, nails)
  Fix: Plug kit, good compressor. Can combine plugs for more coverage. (Not so great on the highway)
• Tires (cracked valve stem from poor maintenance/desert storage)
  Fix: Duct tape, spare tire, trip to tire shop.
• Tires (Sidewall rip/damage requiring change)
  Fix: Good breaker bar or 4-way wrench. Check torque after tire monkeys work on truck.
• Battery (Simple jump start from leaving lights/radios on, hole rubbed in case from broken mount, shorted plate)
  Fix: Good jumper cables (4ga copper). Low-voltage disconnect. A portable booster is another alternative to dual-batteries and/or cables.
• Check Engine Light (CEL)
  Fix: Scangauge and shop manual
• Belts (worn out, damage from something getting sucked in)
  Fix: Keep old belts from changes, sockets and wrenches to change.
• Rear u-joints and strap (Seems proportional to the size of tires, engine and gears. Lockers don't help)
  Fix: Spare u-joint and strap, vise grips, wrenches, sockets, needle nose pliers, large socket and something to beat it with.
• Plugged fuel filter
  Fix: Don't buy gas in Mexico. Spare fuel filter and open-end wrench to change.
• Rear drive shaft - other joints
  Fix: Wrenches and sockets to remove and stow rear D/S. Drive home with front wheels in 4HI.
• Hoses (power steering, radiator)
  Fix: Keep spares from changes. Use silicone hose-rescue tape. Duct tape is worthless for pressurized hoses, IMO.
• Flooded engine (aka spectacular water crossing fail)
  Fix: Drain oil/water from crankcase, dry+recharge battery with jumper cables, pull spark plugs and turn over engine. Carry spare plug wire and a plug, as these often break on removal. Keep 2qts of oil and beg your friends for 2-3 more.
• Broken exhaust
  Fix: Cut off part that is wrapped around the axle and setting things on fire. Need a good hacksaw with a new blade.
• Electrical wiring (Connector or wire strap snapped/disintegrated from heat and age, burned insulation from exhaust contact, etc)
  Fix: Electrical tape, zip ties, crimps/wire cutters/crimps, assorted spare wire, spare fuses.
• Alternator/charging/battery problem:
  Fix: Multimeter to determine charging system state, above items.
• General fluid leaks
  Fix: Radiator stop-leak, tube of RTV
• Gas tank leak/puncture
  Fix: Sheet-metal screws for pinholes, steel epoxy. Skid plates.
  
• All of the above happening at night
  Fix: Headlamp and trouble light

Any other experiences to add? I'm thinking I might pick up a starter contact rebuild kit, since this has never been done on my truck. Does anyone carry any other electrical spares or similar? Special tools for the 5VZFE?


Thanks!


John

 

[Saguache]

I usually carry the following in addition to the things you've got above:

Replacement spark plugs, gapped/spark plug shims:
Use these to fix busted plugs, had one come out of the head while way back in Death Valley years back in a 1995 4Runner.

Spare electrical wire/electrical tape:
Don't need much, but you never know when the mice will attack. I usually carry several different gauges and some connectors and splicers. Might mean that you can listen to the radio while completing the White Rim or that you can start your rig at the top of Engineer Pass.

Rescue Tape:
Saved my butt more than once. Old hoses crack and leak, this stuff will make it possible to continue on while still running coolant through the system.

Fuses:
Spare fuses for the same reason as the wire.

Hose clamps, various sizes:
Never know what these will be good for, but they get used.

Zip ties:
Maybe you need to tie up cattle rustlers? Always useful

 

[HorseshoeExpedition]

Great list, but like mentioned above, spare fuses.

 

[Stone_Blue]

If you have manual front hubs, especially the stock Aisin's, (even though IMO these are VERY good hubs), I would carry one or two spares w/gasket/stud rebuild kit for them...At the very least, the gasket/rebuild kit.

Also, a couple GOOD 6" or 8" C-clamps...Can possibly be used to re-place U-joints, and maybe separated leaf packs, or broken center pins. Speaking of which, a spare center pin might be good to carry...lol

Hmm...Maybe a set of front caliper pins and pad retaining springs?...Not sure if the large majority of Toy trucks used the same size pins and springs tho...

Maybe a 4ft length of the proper sized brake/fuel hardline, with a flare tool and metric fittings, to replace broken hardlines...Also maybe a replacement front and rear rubber line?

And maybe a spare diff/tranny/tcase fill/drain plug?...These can get mashed and rounded off pretty quick...Would suck to have to fix a broken axle or anything else that requires changing diff/tranny fluid, only to find out theres a ruined plug that needs to be put back in..

 

[washington taco]

A spare CV for the front axle if you drive it hard.

 

[Arclight]

That's funny that you say that - I was on a trip 2 weeks ago, and we found a broken CV shaft lying in the dirt about halfway up one of the more steep hills.


Arclight

A spare CV for the front axle if you drive it hard.

 

[Stone_Blue]

A spare CV for the front axle if you drive it hard.

I'd say the same for a solid axle rig, too...A spare Birf, with both a left & right side inner axle, if weight isnt TOO much of a concern. I use to carry these, and a few other "long" items, in a military rocket case, about 3 1/2ft long...Looked like an elongated 50mm ammo can, stretched to be that tall...

I also carried extra front brake pads, and rear shoes, and a rear drum hardware kit (all the springs, clips, and short ebrake cables that hook to the shoes).

 

[Revco]

Clear packing tape can hold a snapped off taillight/parking lot in place, or cover up a big hole in your lights, act as a replacement window if you shatter one on the trail, etc. etc. etc.

Electrical tape, preferrably 3M brand, can actually work to repair a hose. It may still leak, but it can atleast get you off the trail, or to safety. I've used it on radiator hoses, PS hoses, etc.

A bar of soap can be rubbed on a hole in the gas tank, crack in the diff cover, etc to stop a leak. You can also clean up with it.

Roll of wire. I always keep electrical wire in various sizes, obviously for electrical repairs. Another thing you can use them for is for tying up stuff, like a broken exhaust or driveshaft. I also keep bailing wire in the toolbox for the same purpose.

Tarps. I always keep tarps. They are cheap as hell at harbor freight/northern tools and they are great to lay on when doing trail/roadside repairs, or to rig up as a fast roof if you're doing a repair in the rain. If they get ripped, damaged, greasy, whatever, they are less than $3 for an 8x10. I have about 30 new tarps on a shelf in my shop, and another 3 in the storage box in my truck, I just buy them when they are on sale. A friend started carrying them with him on hunting trips for dragging his kills back to the truck, but also ended up using one in an emergency when a hunting buddy of his slipped out of his blind and broke his leg. They used the tarp as a stretcher to get him back to the truck because they thought he broke his neck. (he didn't)

 

[86tuning]

You can replace torn tire stems if you have a method to air up the tire and seat the bead. This is almost always done after you've put on the spare on a long trip and get a second non-repairable flat.

I do carry one spare tire stem, and a few tire stem cores. Seems like they tend to get lost sometimes after airing down if they're left loose.

Gotta break the bead to access the backside of the stem. Cut it off with a knife and then lube up the new one (soap, wax, phlegm) and yank it in place with pliers. Re-seat the bead with your air tank or power tank and carry on with life.

 

[86tuning]

Also, do the starter contacts at home. They're simple and easy to do at home in one evening, vs in the field in crappy conditions.

This is one reason that I also leave my engine running while waiting for others at trail junctions and obstacles. It costs me 1/2gal of fuel per hour to idle, but not having a starter issue in the middle of nowhere is priceless.

Any mechanical device (like a starter) only has so many hours of life before failure. My starter has already been overhauled once, I have no desire for it to crap out when I'm not at home to deal with it as a maintenance issue. Lol.