Supurcar Posted November 14, 2007 Share Posted November 14, 2007 Well I just bought this thing, a 1987 Sunrader with about 65K miles. It had been on a back lot for two years waiting for a clear title. Overall it is in okay shape. Some things I have noticed, the plexyglass windows above the cab have bad seals and may leak a little, there is some play in the steering (I am used to rack and pinion), it is underpowered. I have already cleaned it up, changed oil,tranny,brake fluid. It has air bags in the rear suspension that are working fine. My questions are as follows....How to find info on lighting the pilots and running the gas, finding an owner's manual for the interior features (fridge,heater etc.) My gas guage does not work and I am wondering how to fix it as well. And last how do I get some power out of the 22er FI engine? I can barely get over hills and always in passing gear to climb the smallest crest. My wife and I are looking forward to a lot of fun in this thing, we drove it 150 miles round trip and it was fine so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 14, 2007 Author Share Posted November 14, 2007 (edited) Oh, I am reading alot of things about these RV conversions. This one is an '87 as I mentioned, any axle problems inherent in this model I should be leary of? I did read about the problems with earlier models, Can I help prevent this by changing the fluid in the axle or repack bearings?? It has sat for two years so I am wondering if there is any areas besides what I previously mentioned I serviced I should pay attention too? I did just winterize it, but filled the LP tank to try out the stove and heater. It has a fridge which did not get cold when I plugged the thing in to my house, but it was only for about 2.5 hours on my house ' power. It says it is gas and electric fridge. And one last question, there is a brown switch just under the sink on the wood paneling, it has a red light that kinda blinks after after a fews second when the switch is thrown. I have no clue what this is. I attached a photo, and last what is the reccomended tire pressure, I had them in the high 30's but read how tire pressure is critical and I have nothing to reference what they should be. Thanks for any help, and sorry for shotgunning the questions at you all. SC Edited November 14, 2007 by Supurcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Posted November 14, 2007 Share Posted November 14, 2007 SC, Welcome to the Toyota Motorhome Forums. Looks like you found a nice one. You can find a copy of the owners manual over at the Yahoo Toyota Campers Group forum in the files. There should be instructions for turning on the pilots on each appliance. There are instructions for the repacking the axle both here and at the Yahoo Groups also. You should not have to worry about that for a while. For the windows, you want to use Putty Tape (http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/caulks-sealants/97741.htm) and a very thin coat of ultra clear silicone windshield sealer over the explosed side of the putty tape. There is a discussion going on about how to do this over at the other Toyota group right now. The fridge takes at least 12 hours to get cold on gas, longer on electric. The brown switch??? I don't know but it sounds like the outside light or the water pump. My outside light switch (brown) is right near the door. As to the gas gauge, are you talking the cab gasoline or the coach propane gauge? Suggest you visit the Yahoo group. They are more active, but it is hard to follow discussions over there. This site is better laided out, but not as active. You can find a link to them about 3/4 of the way down the main page here. Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 14, 2007 Author Share Posted November 14, 2007 (edited) Thanks for the info, on the windows it looks like the top edge is like an overbite to the bottom edge and the seal is being stretched a little. I wonder it the seal is getting too old. I already smeared some clear silicon around the edge and it seemed to work. I do not know who could remove the glass and reseal permanent. I have a picture of the brown switch, my water pump, vent, and range light switch are all on the kitchen vent edge. My front door light switch is by the front door. I did see it is prewired for A/C so maybe it is a dummy switch for now, but like I said a few seconds after I throw the switch it blinks red. I wonder if it is some kind of electric pilot lighter or something. You can barely see it in the interior picture I posted, if you put your mouse on the steering wheel at 12:00 and trace the wheel to the left, the mouse will land right on the switch as you reach the wood panel at about 9:00 on the wheel. I just notice a brown metal grate down below the sink as well, don't tell this thing has trash compactor or something? Thanks again! Edited November 14, 2007 by Supurcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motoyhomme Posted November 14, 2007 Share Posted November 14, 2007 Make sure you have fresh water in your tank, turn on the water pump, turn on a hot water tap to see if you have water running out (this ensures the hot water heater is full). Make sure the propane is turned on. Now switch on the brown switch and leave it on. The red light should come on for a little while and then go out. Don't touch it anymore. Now go outside and see if your hot water heater is lit. You probably have the DSI water heater (I just installed one in mine to prevent going out in the rain to manually light the old water heater). Your Sunrader has the 1 ton axle so you're ok on the axle issue. You have the upgraded wheels on front that match the back wheels so that let me know yours came from the factory with a true 1 ton. I couldn't see if you had 6 lug nuts on the back wheels. Your windows have shrunk from old age. I just filled the holes on the corner with black silicon and have never had a problem. I have an 83 Sunrader with the 22R carb engine and I seem to get plenty of power except when climbing the mountains, I just take it easy in the far right lane and wave to the bicyclists as they pass me by. Check your temp gauge your timing may be off. Attached is a pic of my sunrader dash as I was traveling on a level Interstate in Tennessee keeping up with traffic, but I eased it back down to my normal 65 mph. I just wanted to see what a 4 cyl could do. The fuel gauge has a sending unit located in the fuel tank, more than likely that is your problem. There are plenty of good posts on this site, you just gotta dig a little. Check out Sitztoy's fix to his fuel gauge in the Fuel Topic. Allen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 14, 2007 Author Share Posted November 14, 2007 Right on, thanks for the info! I got mine up to 65 going down hill with a 70mph wind behind me....no really it is kinda snappy except going uphill it is hard to pickup speed unless I keep it buried. I will look to a high flow kit and maybe a better exhaust to gain a few horses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86rader Posted November 15, 2007 Share Posted November 15, 2007 motoyhome, what is that gauge next to the speedo? 78 mph is pretty good. i have seen that speed in my 86 sunrader.... with a bit if gravity assist. If you did that on the level, I suspect you either had a nice tail wind or you were flogging it mercilessly in 3rd gear. I have seen 70 in third, maybe 75. Does anybody know what one of these things will do in third? I'm not brave/dumb enough to find out without a tach installed. I guess it doesn't harm anything to wind them out a bit. Lugging them probably causes more wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86rader Posted November 15, 2007 Share Posted November 15, 2007 upon further review, I believe that is a tach. Looks like you are spinning about 4300 rpm. Seems a bit high for OD, but, maybe not. I really need to get a tach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulfstream Greg Posted November 15, 2007 Share Posted November 15, 2007 Hi and welcome Tere are a few manuals here in the gallery http://www.toyotamotorhome.org/forums/inde...q=sc&cat=48 Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 15, 2007 Author Share Posted November 15, 2007 (edited) I lowered the PSI to 30 in the tires as it was handling kinda floaty. We took it to Hermiston for a test run and it drove much better. I failed to mention it had 2 year old gas in it, and since the fuel gauge does not work I did not know how much old gas was in it. I know for sure I have used 15 gallons, since that is what it took to refill it for this test run. The power felt much better so I think the old gas is finally getting thinned out. That is my next project to attack, fix the fuel gauge. I managed to reduce the amount of squeeks and rattles by systematically listening and fixing each sound. The medicine mirror in the back was very noisy, I kind of balled up some of that thin double sided foam tape and stuck it to the inside edges and it seemed to work. I tightened all the wood screws anywhere I could find them, I found under the couch the screws had backed out and where on the flooring, that was a major culprit in the noise and shuddering. I foam taped anywhere I could (and it would not effect performance of that item). We had a nice quite ride, about 60 mile, most of the noise we heard was from the water bottles in the fridge..ha ha. One last area to mention is the paint and fiberglass. I used to detail cars way back when. I used fine steel wool on the aluminum to shine it up, and the rims. I used 2500 grit sandpaper or elbo grease and wax to hit the side of the fiberglass and paint on the cab. Here is the kicker, I had used a product called "Penetrol" on fiberglass boats to restore the gloss. I used some on the fiberglass on the RV and it seemed to work well. Try it on small areas until you figure out how to get a good shine and then do the whole thing. I failed to mention this thing sat in the hot sun for 2 years and was faded and chalky when I bought it. So yes we had a good day in the Sunrader land, my wife loves the crap out of this thing. Edited November 15, 2007 by Supurcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motoyhomme Posted November 15, 2007 Share Posted November 15, 2007 SC, glad to see that you have hot water. Also I meant shrinking window seals not shrinking windows. Check the load rating in PSI on your tire sidewalls, mine are rated at 65psi and I run them at 60psi. Yours seem to be low unless you have P tires, they should be LT. Glad your wife loves your Sunrader, so does mine, she hated the much larger Class C we had years ago. Thanks for the info on the "Penetrol", I'm going to give it a try. Oh yeah, my gas pedal spends more time on the floor than anywhere else. Rader, you answered your own question, it is a tach. The original owner installed it. I actually had the speed up to 80 mph on level ground with no tailwind or gravity assist. It takes a while to build up a head of steam. I normally never go that fast, usually around 60 to 70 on good roads. Just wanted to do it once. The tach was reading about 4300 at that speed. I have the 22R engine with the 4 speed manual transmission and it was in 4th gear. The gas gauge shows full, I had just fueled up the 26 gal tank. Attached is a pic of the Interstate where I had taken a pic of the dash. It was flat at that point. Allen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulfstream Greg Posted November 16, 2007 Share Posted November 16, 2007 I have to agree with motoyhomme 30 psi is probably to low for the weight. If you have the right tires on your rig they should be at least 50 psi min. One thing to check is the clearance between the duals. The tires should not touch each other, there should be a good space between them If they touch they will cause overheating of the side wall and could result in a blow out. I run my fronts at 45 and the rear at 55 for my tires. But I have 15 inch so they are different than yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 16, 2007 Author Share Posted November 16, 2007 (edited) On the sidewall it says 50LBS max PSI, I do not remember the ratings on them. But I did notice they where wearing on the inside when I had them at 40lbs and it felt real bouncy. I read where the weight of the vehicle effects the PSI, so I am being real cautious, and yes they are the 6 bolt dually. I did not check to see if they are touching, that is why I am in here is for tips like that. I just filled the LP tank and have not figured out how to get the furnace going. I wonder if I use the brown switch to light the pilot, will the fact my water tanks are empty be a bad thing if the water heater lights. It gets below freezing here often, so I winterized the thing so I do not freeze the pipes. But I do want to use the heater sometime this winter, and the stove. I assume I just turn on the gas valve and hit that brown switch to light the pilots? I will gather some more info before I am brave enough to do it, I did have a local RV center check it out for leaks, and they said everything works fine. SC Edited November 16, 2007 by Supurcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulfstream Greg Posted November 16, 2007 Share Posted November 16, 2007 Tires: I would run them at least 45 plus pounds. To give you an idea of weight, I had our 18 foot Sunrader weighed at a public scale, 6900 pounds fully loaded. most of that is on the rear wheels. 50 psi max is probably cold temps. Go out and write down the exact tire codes and re post here with that info, every thing you can read on the tires. Someone here will throw up any red flags if needed. The furnace, your thermostat should have a on and off switch unless someone replaced it with something different. Its a little thingy stinging out below the adjustment, "on" should be to the right, then adjust the temp control to the right and after awhile it should start up, it can take awhile so be patient. If nothing happens then something is wrong. Usually the fan will start and then the burner will blast off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motoyhomme Posted November 16, 2007 Share Posted November 16, 2007 The brown switch only lights the waterheater. Do not light it if you don't have water or rv antifreeze in the heater. Greg is right about the thermostat, it controls the furnace. Attached are pics of my thermostat in my Sunrader. The little knob on the bottom is the on/off switch. With the propane valve open, place the switch to on, move the lever to desired temp and the furnace should kick in. I'm running LT195x14 Yokohoma's on all 6 wheels with 60 psi cold. I still have at least 1 to 1 1/2 inches at the closest points on the duals with no rubbing. On one of my trips I stayed in a primitive area on the Tennessee River. I traveled 550 miles back home. Upon checking everything on the MH, I found a flint arrowhead buried in one of the inside duals with that tire being flat. I never noticed a thing on the drive back, the other tire managed to take the entire load, and kept the weight off the flat tire so that it wasn't ruined or worn. Allen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 16, 2007 Author Share Posted November 16, 2007 WOW, you's is really nice on the inside. Mine is in good shape, but yours looks like new. My layout is alot different, the fridge and kitchen are by the cab, the shower and potty is in rear with a couch on the side in the middle. On one side whatever was there is gone, just a veneer box with plywood to sit on and a few heater vents. Which is fine because I used some wood screws to attach the dog crates (Jack Russels), this part of mine is a work in progress, I am not sure what I want to do with it. So if I turn on the gas and throw the switch on the bottom of the furance it will just work, I am wondering if I do not light the water heater is raw gas coming out for a apilot somewhere, or does the brown switch open the pilot valve as well? Thanks again for the good info! I will spend some time looking closely at the tires to make sure I have them at the correct PSI, this is why I have made some short hops to try the thing out. They are Kirkland all season load range C, LT 195-75r/14. I do have the bags in the rear with about 60LBS, so maybe I have to much air in the bags and it is putting to much weight on the front tires? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motoyhomme Posted November 16, 2007 Share Posted November 16, 2007 Robert, The brown switch in the off position closes the pilot valve with no gas leaking. On the furnace move the bottom lever to right (usually on) and set your temperature. When you throw the lever back to the left (off) it will shut off the pilot valve in the furnace. The next time you need tires, you may want to get LT range D. You're OK as long as you keep the cold pressure near the rating on the tire (What Greg said). Thanks for the compliment on my rig. The original owner had the interior gutted and custom oak cabinetry, wall paneling, and ceiling panels installed. I had traveled over 3 states looking at small motorhomes (didn't know the Toyota's existed). Most were junk. A Winnebago LeSharo actually blew up when it's owner started it up to show it to me. Diesel fuel and oil pooled on the ground under it. The owner shouted that he would knock a $1000 off of the price as I ran for my car. First time ever, bad timing was on the owner's side and not mine. I had given up on finding anything, when one day I was driving out a back road 5 miles from my house when my Sunrader's original owner was pulling it to the street with a For Sale in the window. I stopped and bought it on the spot, not knowing anything about the axle problem or anything else. Luckily it had the 1 ton axle upgrade, 6 new tires, tv/dvd combo, microwave. smoke and CO2 detectors. AC front and rear. He wanted $4000 for it and I was trying to pay it , but he kept talking and wanted to tell me that since he had a few days earlier backed into a pole and bent the rear bumper that he would sell it to me for $3500. Even though it is an 83 model it rides better and shifts gears better than my SUV. The oven didn't work and it was $129 for a new valve vs $330 for a new range and oven, I bought a new one with piezo electric ignition, and installed it. I installed a new DSI water heater that could be lit inside with the switch, and installed a larger btu furnace when the fan in the old one went out. 12 volt furnace fan was over a hundred dollars. The previous/original owner had replaced the original 3 way RV refrigerator with a Norcold marine refrigerator that has a 12 volt compressor instead of heating ammonia. The fridge will run for 24 hours on the coach battery alone. It stays colder than the gas fridge and I don't have to worry about keeping the motorhome level. First time in my life I lucked out. Of course the pics always makes things look a little newer, better, and cleaner than they really are. Allen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 17, 2007 Author Share Posted November 17, 2007 That is really a nice rig, I am getting ideas now. I need to recover the couch in mine, and get curtains etc. It is in decent usable shape, but at some point I will redo the interior. I have a fridge that is gas or electric, I imagine if I do not turn on the gas controls it will be fine running on electricity. I am almost there, I will assume the stove is a simple click igniter when the knob is turned. I was just concerned if I turned the gas on for the heater, pilots on the other appliances would leak if not in use, you have put that concern to rest. In the spring I need to fix my shower valves, as they just click past the stopping point. I was told it is about $250 for the parts and a lot of work to fix. I may try to replace the parts in the valves before I try to replace them. This may not be possible. I do not think I would use this shower much anyway, but good to know it is there if needed. someone at work told me a header would really boost the power, any thoughts there?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted November 18, 2007 Author Share Posted November 18, 2007 (edited) WoooHoo! Well I got brave and tested the heater, opened the gas valve and turned on the switch. The heater goes from 45 to 75 faster than the truck does...ha ha. Nice and toasty real fast. I tried to light a burner and nothing happened, so I need to find out where the on valve is for the stove. Hopefully it is not tied to the water heater somehow. I set the tires to 40psi front and 45psi rear based on a math scale I read somewhere. That a 12klbs rig would disperse 200lbs on each tire (given 6 tires in the equation) would set the tire pressure at 80lbs per. Taking a guesstimated weight of about 6k on mine I figure about 1K per tire with a little room for error and ended up with a figure of around 40 lbs per, and weighted it toward the rear. Hence the 45psi in the rears. And yes it is a little bouncy but better overall. I found an RV center that carried the clearance markers and went ahead and got them all to light up and replaced the badly faded ones, looks good as new now....well almost. Thanks again for the tips from you all. P.S. Moto you scored on that one, that thing is real cool! Edited November 18, 2007 by Supurcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motoyhomme Posted November 19, 2007 Share Posted November 19, 2007 Robert, Thanks for the kind words about my rig but I think you scored pretty good for a newer model with what appears to be everything in working order. On your stove/range it appears that it is the original model most Toy houses came with. They do not have igniters. To light the oven, you need to get one of the long propane lighters or a long match will work. Turn the oven control to pilot, press in and hold while lighting the pilot on the gas valve towards the back of the oven, continue to press in the control after the pilot lights for about 15 to 30 seconds and release the control. If the pilot goes out, try again holding the control in longer. After it stays lit, you can turn the contol to desired temp. You have to do this each time you want to use the oven. In a camp setting you could just leave the pilot burning, but it eats the propane. If I can remember correctly for the stove top, all of the burners receive their gas from a central pipe in the middle with pipes feeding from that point to each burner. Again use a match or lighter to ignite the pilot and as you turn on each burner the gas and flame spreads from the center to that burner. There should be a brass valve under the top of the range. To check, remove the burner grates and lift the top, the valve should be in the back. I replaced my original oven with one that has a piezo igniter to light the burners, but the oven still has to be lit with the propane lighter. This gas valve works the same as your other appliances, when it's off, no propane leaks. For your shower check out this item: http://www.go-rv.com/coast/do/catalog/page...amp;pageNum=370 I'm lucky that I have a Camping World store in my home town. They sell the same thing as the above link: www.go-rv.com. Well, I guess you're going to be burning up the roads pretty soon. Be ready for people wanting to look inside your little spaceship or Class A motorhome escape pod. Glad I was able to help answer any questions/concerns. Allen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supurcar Posted December 7, 2007 Author Share Posted December 7, 2007 (edited) Well I have a couch on one side and an empty box on the other. The box or frame just had plywood on top, with wood siding over it on the sides, and vents for the heater. Originally I was going to attach the dog crates to the ply wood tops. I decided to fabricate up some vinyl covers for the plywood and use foam for a cushion. I have attached a photo of what I did, this may be a temporary fix and it was real cheap to do, about $25.00. I rolled some vinyl up and stapled it to the edge of the plywood so there are no rough edges. I thought someone else might be able to use this information as a quick cheap fix instead of buying a new couch assembly. Edited December 7, 2007 by Supurcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doli lover Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 hello there,A friend of mine has a 25' sailboat that he moored on vancouver island.Talking to fiberglass boat owners,they used mop and glow to restore the shine,just thought i'd share/Randy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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