LUVTruck.com

I just bought an '80 Luv about a month ago, didn't even know they existed before then. When I decided to tune it up I discovered, to my dismay, 3 out of 4 plugs were crossthreaded bad enough that the plugs will only go in about half-way, I think they're leaking and dropping my compression too. Anyway, I borrowed my buddies HeliCoil, but in the instructions it says to take off the head to prevent shavings from getting in the cylinder, but from what I've read in the forums that sounds like a whole lot of work. I wanted to know if there was anyway to re-thread those holes SAFELY without taking the head off..?

I'll post some pictures of the truck as soon as I can get ahold of a camera. You guys are awesome.


Richard Barnes
Salt Lake, Utah

For piece of mind, pull the head. A little work, but you won't be wondering if that new noise is your screw up coming back to haunt you. Read the earlier posts on what to do with the timing chain, so you don't have to pull the front cover because it slipped a link.

Where did you buy your luv from?

GOT LUV?

the first time i changed the plugs on an old toyota pickup i had, the previous owner crossthreaded a plug. we helicoiled it, then fired up the engine with the other 3 plugs in and the freshly rethreaded plug hole empty. that blew all the shavings out through the spark plug hole, never had a problem after that

I bought it from one of my co-workers' dad. $600. It's a 1980 Mikado with the 4 speed. It's brick red with a carpet kit and the back wall of the cab is cut out so the carpet goes all the way. It's gonna be awesome in the summer for off-roading and camping in the back. Got alot of work to do to it though.. New clutch, carburators running way too rich, exhaust leaks, I'm lookin' for a body lift, maybe two inches, and some 15" wheels like John Schoolcraft has on his Luv, just not quite so bigga tires. I'll track down a camera and shoot that carpet kit and post 'em so you guys can see. Laters,


Richard Barnes,
Salt Lake, Utah

JC Whitney sells body lifts for $77.95 - $88.95 on their website.

GOT LUV?

I'll have to look into those prices, thanks.
But, anyway. Since I'm taking the head off.... Do I need to buy just the head gasket, or will I need to buy the head gasket kit? I have no idea what's in the kit, but I don't want to not get it and miss something I need to reassemble.

Also, what else should I do while I'm in there, don't get too many oppurtunities to delve this deep into the engine.

I look through the message boards alot and I read up on all these awesome modifications and stuff we do to our trucks, but one thing I don't see too often, at least not with the stuff I wanna do, is prices.. How much on average would it cost to overhaul, or rebuild this engine?

I haven't done a compression test, but I'm bettin' it's a tired old motor. I think it's just the clutch, but my truck will absolutely not go over 50 mph without the motor running at RPM's that scare the crap out of me.

Can I put a bigger exhaust system on my stock manifold?

My truck apparently came stock with the manual fuel pump, but was upgraded cause I can hear the electric one work, and all the hoses off the manual are plugged, but is there a cover I can put on the motor so I can take that bulky pump off to make getting to my distributor easier?

Where can I find a new oil pan, cause mine's dented about half an inch in?

I also acquired a MSD Blaster 2 Super Stock Ingnition coil, some nice plugs and wires...Can I bolt those straight up, or will I need to put something else in to keep from frying my electrical system.

My rear bumper is rusted out by the ball, and dented in from four wheelin', how much am I looking to get another one? I don't even need a tow hitch, just a bar along the back, to keep from wrecking the truck.


Sorry if I'm a pain, but this truck is nice and I want to make the best of it.


Thanks All!
Richard Barnes
Salt Lake, Utah

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You didn't say, but is your LUV 4WD? If yes, changing the oil pan is a bitch. You might wanna get a new valve cover gasket. Have you read here how to pull the head without dropping a link on the timing chain off the bottom timing gear and causing yourself a lot of grief? When you get 'er back together, be sure to keep the head bolts torqued right, or you'll develop an oil leak from the head just behind the carb. Let this condition go on too long, and you'll end up with a warped head.

you can get a engine rebuild kit from http://www.northernautoparts.com if you have a fuel pump sticking out of the head, then your head came off a later model isuzu pup, with a g200 engine. they had mechanical fuel pumps. if you look on the front of the head it will have g200 stamped on it. i have a g200 head on my luv and it has a plate blocking off the fuel pump hole. not sure if this plate was bought or made, it was on the truck when i got it. if you have any welding experience, you could make a pipe bumper for the rear. you can put bigger exhaust on but don't go crazy with it. the 1.8 needs back pressure to keep low end torque. too big of an exhaust will cause you to lose torque. if your truck is 4x4 then the front axle has to be pulled to get the oil pan off. if you are going to be pulling the head and thinking about rebuilding the motor, just pull the motor to fix the oil pan. you might could dent your pan back, if not you can look in junkyards for an isuzu pickup with the g200 motor. it has the same oil pan. all the ignition stuff should work. you might want to make sure the plugs are right for your luv. as long as the wires are the right length and fit on the cap good, they should work. the coil will work, just make sure you hook all the wires up right.

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1980 chevy luv 4x4 1.8 liter
1979 luv long bed parts truck
1984 2wd isuzu pup parts truck

"A man who says it can't be done shouldn't interrupt a man doing it."

Alls I got to say is WOW. That's a lot of stuff to swallow. Thanks a ton for all the help. For now, I'm gonna keep all this stuff written down, I'll get a head gasket and thread the plug holes right. I'll probably rebuild in a year or so when it needs it. You're right about the g200. Called the guy who sold it and they told me they swapped an engine a couple years back.
I'll keep any mods posted, for advice, thanks alot.

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Richard Barnes Salt Lake, Utah
1980 Luv Mikado 4X4
http://geocities.com/luvtruck2004/

Well, over the weekend I pulled the head off and rethreaded my plug holes that were really, really cross-threaded. Took me about a day, but when I was putting it all together I dropped one of the timing cover fixing screws into the oil pan. I tried to pull it out with a magnet for about two hours, to no avail, so I pulled the motor. The cylinder walls were smooth and still carried the cross-hatch honing marks. No sign of oil at all in the cylinders. Picked up a fuel pump cover from Autozone. Dented out the oil pan and the igniton works great. Put in the new clutch, I had to tap out the pressure plate screw holes because one was stripped and one bolt was snapped off, the old pressure plate was fried.

So I took care of everything but the bumper, exhaust, and rebuild (which I don't think I'll do for awhile since everything looked new). The motor is an '84 G200.

How big of an exhaust would suit this truck?


Thank for all the info, it helped alot! A little advice though. When putting a head back on, DO NOT drop a bolt into the pan!

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Richard Barnes Salt Lake, Utah
1980 Luv Mikado 4X4
http://geocities.com/luvtruck2004/

P.S. I submitted a couple pictures of my truck about a week ago, but I don't know when they will get posted.

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Richard Barnes Salt Lake, Utah
1980 Luv Mikado 4X4
http://geocities.com/luvtruck2004/

i would run 2in. exhaust with a turbo muffler. that would still allow the motor to have some back pressure.

_________________
1980 chevy luv 4x4 1.8 liter
1979 luv long bed parts truck
1984 2wd isuzu pup parts truck

"A man who says it can't be done shouldn't interrupt a man doing it."