tofubiscuit Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 I have read plenty of posts about others with a 4 cylinder going everywhere, up and over incredibly high mountain passes. It makes me wonder about my Toyota (or maybe my driving). I have stayed on the east coast so far, where we aren't nearly as tall as the west coast mountains. I just really chug slowly going up and over. Example, the other day went over a 3000 foot pass - it was an 8% grade for 3 miles to get over. I was at 40 at the beginning, with my speed dropping to a steady 25 quickly and until the top. I know these things are slow, but if I feel like I'm having that much trouble on small mountains, it really makes me question when I go out west. On roads (I try as much as possible to stick to state and county roads) it seems that even not to intense inclines REALLY slow me down, with 25 being the speed I usually drop to. Mine is an automatic 87 Sunrader. Now I have never driven a manual transmission, so shifting, even an automatic, on mountains doesn't come naturally to me. I am going to install a tach, having read some posts about using that to gauge shifting. I keep up the engine with maintenance - just put in new filters, am going to change o2 sensor soon. I guess I am just wondering if this is how slow all 4 cylinders are, or is there driving techniques and engine work I can do to help me out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Back East Don Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 Mine is an 87 4 cyl 19 foot Itasca. I would think we have to be comparatively similar in weight. Here in New England I've encountered some hills but have yet to go to places like the White or Green mountains. Just the normal interstates such as 95 up through Maine. When I first started driving this thing, I just put it in drive and stuck the pedal to the floor. After some reading here on overheating the trans, I started taking a different tact. My driving style has always been one where I keep the RPM's at a minimum and just toot along so winding up the engine wasn't a comfortable thing for me. Now on inclines I keep it out of overdrive and make sure I wind the engine up. I've not hit any really steep high elevation driving yet but on normal highway driving I am able to at least keep it over 45 even on the steep interstate grades I've run into. I know when I drove my old landcruiser through Denver I had issues going up some of the mountains. I think the combination of the elevation and grade and the fact that it just wasn't tuned for it made it really hamstrung in that environment. It was a stick and I just kept dropping gears until I could at least maintain some kind of speed. It was the first time I encountered anything like that and was startled by it as the thing is geared pretty low. 25 on normal highway grades around here would seem really slow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 , the other day went over a 3000 foot pass - it was an 8% grade for 3 miles to get over. I was at 40 at the beginning, with my speed dropping to a steady 25 quickly and until the top. I have a 1988 20 foot Minicruiser with the 22RE engine and A43D auto-trans. Loaded pretty heavy with dual deep-cycle batteries in back, microwave, 3000 watt inverter, large extended rear bumper and cargo-carrier, three people and a dog, etc.. On a long 8% grade - it will slow down to 40 MPH and the trans get up to 230 degrees F. Once the road flattens out - trans temp goes right down to 190 F (engine temp). Originally had a 4.10 to 1 rear and now have a 4.56 to 1 rear. Makes little difference on hill-speed but engine works less and revs more. 4th OD was never very useful with the 4.10 to 1 rear - even on flat roads unless there was NO wind. With the 4.56 to 1 rear- MUCH better. I recently moved out of New York and here in morthern Michigan - the steepest highway I've found slowed us down to 50 MPH. No mountains here to speak of - just hills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 I live in Maine and go over to VT a lot my old MH would be in second going through Crawford Notch and cranking pretty good and that's before I ever got to the Green Mt. those little engines will turn some pretty good rervs they are built to take it that's were their max power is. Yes they are painfully slow but so are loaded tractor trailers. The transmission does a pretty good job of matching road and engine speed it's pretty hard to over rev the engine with out holding it in a lower gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tofubiscuit Posted June 22, 2015 Author Share Posted June 22, 2015 The crazy thing is I am not loaded down. It is my son and I, together weigh 250. We travel with very little - and no microwave, no generator. Just a few pair of clothes, a few dishes, bedding and a few books. Probably travel with a lot less than many people. So either I'm not driving properly on the hills, or something is wrong. On non hills I move fine, usually hold steady at 50 on the country roads. Have gone 65 on interstates, but try to avoid them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tofubiscuit Posted June 22, 2015 Author Share Posted June 22, 2015 I've been going up and down steep mountains in second. I do hear the engine really rev up. Maybe when I get the tach I'll be a better judge of how much to push down on the peddle and let her rev. Like I said I am used to regular automatic cars where you don't have to do anything. I did actually come to a complete stop going up a hill onetime, had to back down using my emergency brake, but that was totally my fault, I let up on the gas b/c I saw a big pothole and didn't want to bottom out my holding tanks. Maybe I should attend a Toyota driving school... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob C Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 I drive an '88 Escaper with 22Re and auto. The first modification I did was to install a tach. I drive on the highway at 55 mph and I take the hills at whatever speed the engine is comfortable with. If I didn't have my tach, I would never rev the engine to the speeds that I do. I took a trip through the Rockies last summer and went over several passes over 9000 ft with steep grades. The steepest grades required first gear and some time. Most of the grades were in second gear, 4500 rpm's and if I remember correctly, about 45 to 50 mph. I never came close to stalling out. Even while spinning at those speeds, my engine temp stayed well within safe operating temps, never got hot. If I start to get a train of cars behind me due to my speed, I will pull over at the first safe spot and let them go by. I drive mostly state roads and stay off of the interstate unless I want to get someplace fast (remember, this is a Toyota RV.) My suggestion, install a tach and use it. Shift when the rpm's start to drop and DO NOT LUG THE ENGINE. The 22 Re is build to spin, make it happy and rev it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skydancer2992 Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 I owned an 85 4Runner with a 5 speed manual. The engine seemed underpowered for that vehicle. Peddle to the metal when accelerating. On a 5000# camper with an automatic transmission draining 10% of the power at high altitude with less O2 for the engine, just be patient and pull over for to let the less patient ones proceed. The yotatech guys say the engine does well at high RPM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunningMan Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 Pull ur throttle body and clean the butterfly and check the spring function of the tps sensor. Replace the tps if necessary and reset the tps sensor. The 22re is notorious for carbon buildup. I would also send out the injectors for sonic cleaning. You want them to spray not drip into the intake. Next is check the egr valve operation and make sure all the vacuum lines are routed correctly and not torn. If the recirc of exhaust gasses aren't correct it will loose substantial power in mid range. If u change the O2 check ur cat to make sure it isn't filled with scale and Rust Last , check ur timing. If it is off even a bit it can make a huge difference in the power delivery. All these suggestions are good to do when you are ready for a full tune up. But the timing is an easy one to check and can make a huge difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linda s Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 Valve adjustment gave me the best improvement in performance. Easy to do and cheap to have done on the 22re Linda S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shibs Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 Pull ur throttle body and clean the butterfly and check the spring function of the tps sensor. Replace the tps if necessary and reset the tps sensor. The 22re is notorious for carbon buildup. I would also send out the injectors for sonic cleaning. You want them to spray not drip into the intake. Next is check the egr valve operation and make sure all the vacuum lines are routed correctly and not torn. If the recirc of exhaust gasses aren't correct it will loose substantial power in mid range. If u change the O2 check ur cat to make sure it isn't filled with scale and Rust Last , check ur timing. If it is off even a bit it can make a huge difference in the power delivery. All these suggestions are good to do when you are ready for a full tune up. But the timing is an easy one to check and can make a huge difference. in lieu of injector service, you can dump couple of bottles of chevron techron in the gas and drive like crazy, I would run it with half tank for the techron is more in concentration. before you drop big money, take off your spark plugs and analyze them. at high rpm, you can get some kick by having a free flowing muffler at the expense of low end torque. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunningMan Posted June 22, 2015 Share Posted June 22, 2015 in lieu of injector service, you can dump couple of bottles of chevron techron in the gas and drive like crazy, I would run it with half tank for the techron is more in concentration. before you drop big money, take off your spark plugs and analyze them. at high rpm, you can get some kick by having a free flowing muffler at the expense of low end torque. i have taken apart many a 22r and re. they all are gunked with carbon. we can thank ethanol fuel for that. yes valves and timing are easy to check and adjust. a header from LCE does wonders for low end torque. but just know nothing will make it a v6. these tune ups will make it run better and pull a bit harder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 Nothing wrong with tune-up type work - but it won't do a thing for performance unless there is something wrong to start with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linda s Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 An 8% grade is pretty steep. 25mph is not that bad. At least you were still moving. I stupidly attempted a 16% grade once and just stopped. Not fun Linda S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 An 8% grade is pretty steep. 25mph is not that bad. At least you were still moving. I stupidly attempted a 16% grade once and just stopped. Not fun Linda S I lived on a dirt road with a 32% grade for 25 years (the place in NY I just left). Hill Road, Worcester, NY. My 1988 Toyota Minicruiser with auto-trans could climb it just fine at 10 MPH - but if I stopped mid-stream - the torque-converter would just slip and it would not start again. Point to the story is - don't stop on a steep hill like that - just keep rollilng. My 6.2 liter diesel Chevy Blazer with a TH400 auto trans and 3.08 rear also could not go from a dead stop on that hill either unless I put it into low range. My 2002 Subaru Impreza with a 2.5 engine and 5 speed trans also could not start from a dead stop on that hill. Geared to high and would just stall the engine in 1st gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tofubiscuit Posted June 23, 2015 Author Share Posted June 23, 2015 We have loads of those 6-8% grades around here. With everyone going all over the place out west, does that mean the mountains are higher but the roads over them are longer and cut less steep? Thanks for all the tune-up advice, I'll definitely have a good list to work with. I absolutely love my Sunrader, but don't want to be too limited as to where I can go, especially since I'm planning an extended trip eventually to see the west coast, and all exciting places from here to there. And am playing with the idea of moving to Oregon for awhile. I have been wondering if I should trade in for a v6, although any v6 Rader I'll seen has been way out of my price range. Have seen a few Odyssey Americas coming on the market... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5Toyota Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 by all means don't be afraid to wind the 4 cyl up with in reason . they were made sturdy . 5 main bearings. you newcomers are just not used to a hard working Toyota 4. and it is a bit different if your not used to shifting.i do shift my auto manualy at times . this is different for me in a way out of 7 Toyotas all 4 cly . this the first auto trans I ever had. went to grab the floor a few times at first.LOL I have aways run 20w50 heavy duty oil never had a failure . had a station wagen 15 years load it to the gills 3 kids 2 adults top rack back all .went to Colorado , Wyoming over dunraven pass around 10,000 feet was 5 speed 3rd or secend gear eng winding up. put 240,000 on it got wreacked not my fauilt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob C Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 If you are driving with your foot smashed to the floor and the engine is not accelerating, you need to shift to a lower gear. Coming off of a stop I don't think I have every put the pedal all the way to the floor. For the most part, you are just dumping fuel out of the tailpipe without getting any extra go. Watch the tach, temp gauge, and listen to the 4 cylinder band play its song, Going south out of Rapid City SD is a very long steep grade with a stop sign at the bottom, trucks frequently top that hill at 20 mph, I went over it at 45 without a problem and never mashed the pedal to the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shibs Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 Running Chemtool will help clear out carbon in the engine, but loose debris will clog your EGR though. I have had EFI engines go whack going up and down the passes going west out of Denver. I had severe loss of power in my nearly new Honda 4 banger. Maybe it was the altitude and engine could not compensate for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunningMan Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 if u do need parts jerry @ 22RE Performance is super knowledgable. they rebuild only the 22r and 22re motors. he has every OEM part for these and at very good pricing. http://www.22reperformance.com/22RE_Performance_-_Installation_Parts.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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