Hello ToyHome folks,
I think I've finally got my 1986 Toyota Mini Cruiser 4cyl 22RE ready to hit the road. 94K miles. I'd like to summarize what I've had done and see if there is anything else those of you with more experience think I should look out for as I prepare to embark on my first long trip with the old girl. Also hoping for wishes of good mechanical juju and maybe even a little encouragement. How far have you driven your ToyHome?
It feels like she's running great now, but I definitely went through the ringer this fall learning about the 22RE and what it feels like to drive a chassis that is a bit overloaded. I drove it around my home state of Maine all fall in hopes that anything that MIGHT go would just die while I'm close to home. Here's what I've had done:
-New alternator
-New cylinder head
-New Gasket kit/thermostat
-New hoses
-New radiator
-New studs in exhaust manifold
-Clutch fan/water pump looking GOOD
-New timing chain
-New house battery with cleaned up charging line
-Transmission fluid checked out, looking good not burnt or off color
-Suspension looked at, looks tight, nothing loose or broken
-LP lines tested, all got the green light with no issues
-Checked the roof and seems, cleaned out any old/failing caulking on the outside and resealed
-Tires on the newer side, good to go with brand new spare on the back
Basically the entire top part of the engine was taken apart and reassembled piece by piece - the mechanic who did the work seemed very confident that there was no evidence of anything bad happening in the lower portion.
I'm hoping to drive it down the east coast to Florida, then if everything is feeling good I'd like to hit Highway 10 from Jacksonville to Phoenix and then up into southern Utah. I picked Highway 10 as I imagine it's probably fairly flat and wont be too hard on my MiniCruiser. Right now I'm beginning to nest in my new home and I just really hope it's up for the trip. Do you put serious miles on your RVs? What are things I should watch out for as I drive to make sure I keep her healthy, happy and hopefully able to get back up to Maine at the end of the winter?
Now that I've had all this work done, the only thing I'm feeling paranoid about is the tranny. Granted that said, it's not whining or clicking, seems to shift fine, gears don't slip...no evidence of anything wrong here. I've read it's normal for the 22RE to run at high RPMs, that's the only thing that's really made me nervous as I've gotten used to how it feels to drive it/what the engine sounds like...am I right on that?
Some basic driving tips I've pulled from scouring the forum are to never use the overdrive feature, don't push her over 55 and check fluids every day before hitting the road. Any other tips and tricks for getting the best gas mileage? Should I generally avoid big highways and/or long stretches driving at 50-55MPH? On long driving days should I let her rest every couple of hours? When to use gears rather than just letting the auto transmission do it's thang?
I've attached a picture of us so you can put a face to the super excited and somewhat nervous person writing this post! :'D
Thanks in advance for reading, and for any tips or words of encouragement you might post here.