Tuesday, December 12, 2006 - 07:55 pm, by: Anish Varsani(Yomama)
I got it off, just cut off the sensor lead and pulled the o-ring out with a piece of wire. After that I was able to spin the sensor out but grabbing the wire ends and twisting.
Oh well, another $150 towards the bottomless money pit.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006 - 01:10 am, by: Peter Nitschke(Pen)
Unclip the sensor lead from the mount that holds the power steering reservoir. I find it easiest to undo the mount first.
Then gently pull back the rubber cap to expose the top of the sensor. I then used an adjustable angle grinder spanner thing with 2 prongs to undo the sensor.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006 - 09:24 am, by: Tim Appleton(Timbo)
What a load of crap!! Tell them you decided to sell your Soarer and buy a local LS400 instead!
The Toyota dealerships up here are absolutely useless in my opinion. One of them has told me that their import parts catalogue doesn't work on weekends, and can't figure out the parts catalogue over the phone on a weekday when I'm working!! One has said that there is not a part in the country, only for another to say that there's one in Sydney, and would I like to pick it up in a couple of days.
Anyways, in the past I've just used a set of multi-grips using very light pressure on the sensor's serrated edge. It hasn't leaked yet, and as long as you're gentle, you shouldn't damage the sensor.
Thursday, December 14, 2006 - 07:13 pm, by: John Jantzen(Taslex)
I'm going to publish a $20-odd fix for the sensor soon. I'm just trialling it on my car then I'll "go public". It consists of breaking out the stem where the magnet moves, opening the tube out, getting all the "filler gunk" out of the tube, then Aralditing into it a level switch (currently $15 at Altronics stores) which is pretty close to exactly the same size as the reed switch assembly you've just broken out. This switch is normally open, though, closing as the level rises, so you need to rig a relay (another $5 or so) to reverse the "sense" of it. (This is pretty basic stuff). My major concern is how well this switch will withstand hot coolant.....
Thursday, December 14, 2006 - 07:41 pm, by: Anish Varsani(Yomama)
You'll will need some decent glue to withstand the temperature under the hood. Araldite and marinetex epoxy resin would only last about 3 weeks when I used it to seal a pin hole leak in the overflow tank. It changed colour then pealed off the plastic surface. Even sanding the surface and cleaning with solvent before gluing didn't help.
Thursday, December 14, 2006 - 09:56 pm, by: John Jantzen(Taslex)
You're right, there, Anish! I've tried the Araldite route to fix my tank and I agree with all that you say. I've used araldite to get the original positioning of the switch right, then filled the tube above the switch solid with epoxy putty - the float switch has 40-50mm of the stuff packed in on top of it. Initial tests indicate the damn float is sticking though, so this may not work. Pity.
Friday, December 15, 2006 - 07:20 am, by: Dave Hart(Davyboy)
Doesn't seem much when you say it fast but it's a lot of dosh if you haven't got it, especially at this time of year. One good thing, it should last another 15yr.
Saturday, December 16, 2006 - 10:07 pm, by: John Jantzen(Taslex)
Well, $178 is too rich for me! So: Bought this float switch from Altronics $15 (normally $19.95). It's stroke is almost identical to the "real thing"
Note how the original float on mine has broken up and just left the magnet!
After you snap the shaft off, you can open out the brittle plastic body to accommodate the nuts on the new switch.
And here it is assembled
I araldited the nuts into the body and supported it this way up until the glue set.
The body was full of some rubbery filler material. I scraped all that out and filled it with epoxy putty.
The finished job shows the circlip on the end of the shaft, so you can remove the float for cleaning, replacement, modifications etc.
Now the fun part. I bought a 12v SPDT relay from Jaycar (SY 4066 at $3.50), and a small jiffy (HB 6065) box. I wired the coil to a DC source, through a 0.5amp fuse, then wired the NC (Normally Closed - ie when coil is off) contacts through the new float switch wires into the car's sensor connector. I built the relay onto a little piece of Veroboard, and terminated all connections at pins soldered into the board. I used in-line connectors so that the sensor or the jiffy box could be removed individually. I mounted the jiffy box on the little bar at the left of the header tank. Fits nicely there. I'm using a continually live connection to the relay, but as this has a 400 ohm coil, it's drawing under .03 amps so it won't flatten the battery in a hurry! I would like to eventually wire it into an accessories or ignition switched circuit, but I couldn't find one easily under the bonnet. Any suggestions on this would be welcome
Top up the coolant if necessary and then do:
Test 1 - Without fuse - After 1 mins running I get the Kanji Display for "low Coolant level" - Good! Remember this switch operates in the reverse sense to the original so expect this - that's why we need the relay. Proves the sensor circuit works correctly from the sensor back to the display.
Test 2 - Fuse installed - Relay clicks on - After 1 mins running we get NO "low coolant" warning. We're there!
You may have seen earlier I was complaining about the float sticking - just a spot of araldite stuck on the switch shaft - easily cleaned off, thanks to the circlip.
WARNING - Don't know how this will hold up over time - I have no info on the temperature tolerance of the switch. It is stated to be capable of running fully submersed, but I don't know what in.. Jaycar sell a similar looking (materials, quality) product which is horizontally oriented, so won't easily go into our reservoirs. There's IS stated to be suitable for use in "Automotive applications", so I have some hope that all will be well.