Hi guys,
I've used the forum for many months to troubleshoot a number of issues with my 1994 NJ 3l 12v SOHC - for which I thank you! I thought I'd share some of my experiences, especially as I have fallen out of love with the car (again) and hope for some encouragement to carry on! For anyone that's interested I'm a 30 yr old married Pom living on the Northside of Brisbane. Not sure who else on the forum lives around here??
I have broken the post down into sections, this may take a while...
Fixed
(do bare in mind I had no previous mechanical experience or knowledge prior to owning this car!)
- Replaced CV boot with a 'glueable' one I bought from ebayUK - worked well however the metal clips aren't so good so will probably replace with a cable tie (pic attached)

- Replaced the oil cooler hoses - they were leaking bad and it took me ages to figure it out
- Replaced the coolant expansion tank
- Replaced the head gaskets with only two 'spare' bolts left over at the end haha - PITA (not sure if entirely successful)
- Installed new dashboard bulbs
- Replaced radiator fan
- plenty of servicing and belt replacement etc
Fixes Needed
- Transmission pan is leaking oil around the join/seal/bolts. Will remove and replace gasket plus clean out the filter at the same time.

- Oil leak... I thought I'd fixed this by replacing the oil cooler hoses however these were masking another leak from the rear of the sump. I fear its the sump gasket. I have checked the back of the rocker covers and the oil isn't coming from here... (pic attached - btw is that ding near the sump plug supposed to be there?? or is this a 'mod'?) ha

- Heads - now my brother and I replaced the head gaskets when he visited from the UK back in March. It was a rush job because much of our fun revolved around utilising the car. However when we got the car all back together the car idled at 3000rpm and thus we thought we had severely stuffed the job with a massive air leak somewhere. Well we left it for a week and a half bitterly disappointed. The day before he was due to fly home I was stood gazing aimlessly at the engine bay, again! It occurred to me that in our haste to put the engine back together we had put the intake plenum on with the throttle and cruise control cable underneath; so rather than take the plenum off we detached the cables... anyway, turns out we could have done the boys' Fraser & offroading trip after all, it turns out we'd simply bolted the cruise control cable up too much causing the high revs. Once loosened off the car work perfectly.
UNTIL NOW!! The car is displaying all the same symptoms as it did the last time the gasket went, although not half as severe. We didn't get the heads tested or anything and we did all of the 'cleaning' ourselves. I just hope they're not warped or cracked. We did however, whilst in the midst of euphoria at the thought of being at the stage of putting the car back together have too much
. What ensued was a dumb conversation about having put the first head gasket on the wrong side... off came the head again after having torqued it down... we decided to use it on the otherside anyway. Yes, I know what you're all thinking... stupid Poms botching a job. Anyway, I suspect that either this gasket is the one leaking air into my coolant system forcing it into the expansion tank or the heads have a crack or warping. I'm tempted to just take the rocker covers off and re-torque the head bolts in hope - given that the car has been good since March with two trips to Fraser I have a small hope they may just need a re-tighten. I may also replace my thermostat and radiator cap. However the wooshing bubble noise from behind the dashboard makes me think its defo the heads leaking air into the coolant passages somewhere.
- My bullbar is sagging at the sides and wobbles when in transit (pic attached). Any suggestions?

- I have attached a pic or two for this, I bought a timing light to do the ignition timing myself as I didn't trust the mechanics I took the car to when I first had the car with little knowledge. The timing mark/TDC plate that sticks out from the timing belt cover seems to be off at an angle to me and I'm not sure if this is normal? I have put the timing at 5BTDC based on this but it just doesn't feel right to me and makes me think the plate/bar it bent to one side... is this how its supposed to be??


Mods/Accessories
We love offroading, touring and exploring the national parks around here and enjoy a good secluded camp spot too...
-I have raised the front end 2.5cm to level the car off
-Roof racks with pull out awning and rooftop tent

-DIY rear storage box with dual agm 120ah battery with various sockets + 55l fridge




A bit dusty after a day at D'aguilar NP (after which I discovered the radiator had emptied into the expansion tank)
Future Mods/Accessories
Bloody none 'til the car starts behaving! But I'd like some AT tires and I would like to change the timing belt, water pump etc. I cant really be bothered though until everything else is fixed. There is a very slight bottom end knock which disappears once warmed but this doesn't particularly concern me atm. Have contemplated buying a used engine to put on a stand in the garage to be used a project/rebuild then put it in the car once finished then rebuild the one I have taken out...
Anyway, hope that wasn't too boring? Any feedback, questions or advise welcome. Theres much more to do, things to finish off in the storage box etc. The wife wants the computer now to skype the MIL
Look forward to hearing from some of you soon
Mat
I've used the forum for many months to troubleshoot a number of issues with my 1994 NJ 3l 12v SOHC - for which I thank you! I thought I'd share some of my experiences, especially as I have fallen out of love with the car (again) and hope for some encouragement to carry on! For anyone that's interested I'm a 30 yr old married Pom living on the Northside of Brisbane. Not sure who else on the forum lives around here??
I have broken the post down into sections, this may take a while...
Fixed
(do bare in mind I had no previous mechanical experience or knowledge prior to owning this car!)
- Replaced CV boot with a 'glueable' one I bought from ebayUK - worked well however the metal clips aren't so good so will probably replace with a cable tie (pic attached)

- Replaced the oil cooler hoses - they were leaking bad and it took me ages to figure it out
- Replaced the coolant expansion tank
- Replaced the head gaskets with only two 'spare' bolts left over at the end haha - PITA (not sure if entirely successful)
- Installed new dashboard bulbs
- Replaced radiator fan
- plenty of servicing and belt replacement etc
Fixes Needed
- Transmission pan is leaking oil around the join/seal/bolts. Will remove and replace gasket plus clean out the filter at the same time.

- Oil leak... I thought I'd fixed this by replacing the oil cooler hoses however these were masking another leak from the rear of the sump. I fear its the sump gasket. I have checked the back of the rocker covers and the oil isn't coming from here... (pic attached - btw is that ding near the sump plug supposed to be there?? or is this a 'mod'?) ha

- Heads - now my brother and I replaced the head gaskets when he visited from the UK back in March. It was a rush job because much of our fun revolved around utilising the car. However when we got the car all back together the car idled at 3000rpm and thus we thought we had severely stuffed the job with a massive air leak somewhere. Well we left it for a week and a half bitterly disappointed. The day before he was due to fly home I was stood gazing aimlessly at the engine bay, again! It occurred to me that in our haste to put the engine back together we had put the intake plenum on with the throttle and cruise control cable underneath; so rather than take the plenum off we detached the cables... anyway, turns out we could have done the boys' Fraser & offroading trip after all, it turns out we'd simply bolted the cruise control cable up too much causing the high revs. Once loosened off the car work perfectly.
UNTIL NOW!! The car is displaying all the same symptoms as it did the last time the gasket went, although not half as severe. We didn't get the heads tested or anything and we did all of the 'cleaning' ourselves. I just hope they're not warped or cracked. We did however, whilst in the midst of euphoria at the thought of being at the stage of putting the car back together have too much
![Beer[1]](https://www.pajeroforum.com.au/core/smilies/0/0/5/4/3/6/images/smilies/beer[1].gif)
- My bullbar is sagging at the sides and wobbles when in transit (pic attached). Any suggestions?

- I have attached a pic or two for this, I bought a timing light to do the ignition timing myself as I didn't trust the mechanics I took the car to when I first had the car with little knowledge. The timing mark/TDC plate that sticks out from the timing belt cover seems to be off at an angle to me and I'm not sure if this is normal? I have put the timing at 5BTDC based on this but it just doesn't feel right to me and makes me think the plate/bar it bent to one side... is this how its supposed to be??


Mods/Accessories
We love offroading, touring and exploring the national parks around here and enjoy a good secluded camp spot too...
-I have raised the front end 2.5cm to level the car off
-Roof racks with pull out awning and rooftop tent

-DIY rear storage box with dual agm 120ah battery with various sockets + 55l fridge




A bit dusty after a day at D'aguilar NP (after which I discovered the radiator had emptied into the expansion tank)
Future Mods/Accessories
Bloody none 'til the car starts behaving! But I'd like some AT tires and I would like to change the timing belt, water pump etc. I cant really be bothered though until everything else is fixed. There is a very slight bottom end knock which disappears once warmed but this doesn't particularly concern me atm. Have contemplated buying a used engine to put on a stand in the garage to be used a project/rebuild then put it in the car once finished then rebuild the one I have taken out...
Anyway, hope that wasn't too boring? Any feedback, questions or advise welcome. Theres much more to do, things to finish off in the storage box etc. The wife wants the computer now to skype the MIL
Look forward to hearing from some of you soon
Mat
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