Hi Livetodai members.
Long time kei car owner/enthusiast but only recently a Daihatsu owner.
A couple of months ago I was driving through an area I’ve never traveled through, when out of the corner of my eye I spotted it. “That’s a kei van!” I said to myself, and I took the next available opportunity to turn around and take a look. It was a Move, parked with 2 other cars in a driveway. Before I even got out of my car to look at it, I wrote a small note to say ‘If you are thinking of selling your car, please call this number’, just in case!
I looked over the Move and thought yep, this is for me, so I left the note under a wiper. A few days later, I got a call from the owner, we struck a deal, and now it’s my Move!
It’s very clean, only 2 previous owners and less than 90,000kms on the dail. However, the engine seems to be leaking from a multitude of places, so I’ve dropped the subframe/engine/gearbox and I’m in the process of pulling the engine down.
It’s a bit of a blank canvas, and I intend to make some small mods here and there.
Welcome to livetodai forums. I love moves and loved mine when I had it. The oil leaks is not something I am surprised about. Usually the front crank seal and rear, and the sump and rocker cover are 2 other usual leak points.
This may be a good way to go to get everything you need if you are willing to wait for postage.
Oh just in case you don’t know there are no sump gaskets available and gasket sealant usually does the trick no probs.
Thanks for the welcome.
Thanks also for the link, I bought that set a couple of weeks ago. It’s not easy to get parts, I’m used to using Megazip, so Daihatsu ownership is a bit more challenging.
It’s a shame to hear these engines are prone to oil leaks. I just took the timing belt cover off last night and everything is soaked!
I wouldn’t say prone to leaks but when they are not looked after this is what tends to happen with them.
I have no idea what Megazip is
This car has been sitting unused for ages, which is not great for seals.
Megazip is an online parts supplier that you can search for parts from a database linked to genuine items in warehouses in Japan.
It’s basically what dealers use to supply parts.
You search by manufacturer, then car model, then subcategories for engine, brakes, suspension etc.
Each category has exploded diagrams of the assembly in question, and genuine part numbers for every part.
Its awesome, but Daihatsu is not included?
Both of my MOVEs leaked at the distributor of which is sealed by a common neoprene O-ring. They dependably deteriorate every 20 years, similar to how all rubber bits deteriorate. If the vehicle is garage-stored, the longevity of chassis rubber and tyres will increase.
As far as both crankshaft seals are concerned, an old used car salesman trick was to add brake fluid to the engine oil. Brake fluid will swell the hardened rubber . One has to be carefull, however, not to pour in too much of it, given that these engines only hold ca. 2 liters of oil. If you add a higher percentage, then it would be best to let the oil/brake fluid combinaton circulate without applying the load of driving the vehicle.
As previously mentioned, the oil pan is glued onto the block with silicone. You could perform this, without needing to remove the engine. Here, resealing explained in detail: Butchered replacement MOVEs diary - Projects builds and rides - Live To Dai
Welcome. So glad you have joined us. As Mr Evilhighway said the oil leaks are less “poor design” and more “maintenance neglect”. My first Dia (ef-el) dumped its oil after the first drive. Bought it up the Sunshine Coast, drove 80km home, parked it to get a coffee once home, came downstairs ready to remove the green/pink factory stripes and found a huge pool of oil underneath. No oil sprayed anywhere on the chassis and no drips on the driveway so I can only assume the rear main seal let go (it was in crooked and the flywheel rubbed through). It was only supposed to be a stop-gap while I rebuilt the engine in my other car. With the flywheel out to do the rear main seal I lightened the flywheel and that sort of started a heap of other mods. Soon after I took the head and sump off in the car and did a home and new rings (note the blocks seem soft so don’t go crazy with the hone). That was probably 15yrs ago and Toyota had the rings and headgasket in stock. Looking forward to hearing more of your journey.
At this point I’m just about to replace all the seals and gaskets!
Thanks.
I was hoping to just drive it. I have a couple of kei car projects, and I didn’t want this to turn into a ‘thing’.
I’d like to get the engine sealed up and clean, give the car a really good detail and use it.
I’ve got some wheels I’m restoring, and a couple of parts from Yahoo Auctions, and I’m making a new exhaust system, but that’s enough for the short term.
I remember saying, “I’ll only do x,y and not z”. As you know “use it”. I hope you have better self-discipline than I did. I would recommend cleaning out the tappet cover breath (the labyrinth inside) and run an air oil separator. If the crankcase can breathe well it is less likely to pump things past any seals, and then if it is getting any blow by the catch can will keep the inlet sparkling clean. 90 000km, wow, good score.
[quote=“Mr_Gormsby, post:10, topic:5798”]…If the crankcase can breathe well it is less likely to pump things past any seals…[/quote]A common mistake made by mechanics who are not familiar with these is to replace vacuum hoses, without removing the restrictive orifice located within one of the hoses of which connects to the rocker cover. This restriction is also vulnerable to plugging (also explained in detail, in my last posted link).
By the way, these oil pans never leak, when factory-mounted