These are probably some dumb questions, but I just bought my first mini-truck, a Hijet, and I'd like to figure out what year it is. I've gathered that it's seventh generation, and it looks to be in the early 1990's based on photographs I've seen, but I'm not sure. What year did they transition from 6th to 7th generation? Also, down behind my gear shift & below my emergency brake is a handle that reads "D" & "N". Any ideas? ALSO, & this info is probably somewhere on the site, but while I'm typing.... I'm wondering about the different methods of governing these things down. I've read about a plate welded up so that upper gears aren't available to me, but that appears not to be the case, I can shift through, L, 1, 2, & 3. It runs on LPG, & i'm still hassling with replacing the leaky hose this afternoon, & haven't ever run the thing, but the speedometer redlines at 25mph & pins at 30, so I'm concerned that when I DO get it running it'll be dialed down somehow. I'm geared at about 3.6 to 1. Thanks in advance for any thoughts for a newbie-propane-minitruck-family-man-coffee-roaster. Nick
It sounds like you bought a USA marketed Daihatsu. the US Gov. bought a ton of these in the late 80's and early 90's. Ive owned about 4 of the left hand drives.. I assume it is left hand drive. Yes, it is speed limited. Some had a switch under dash which either kept it around 12 mph or flip it and you could flame out around 23/25 mph. There are a few things to look at. One being the speed cable where it meets the trans. has a control box that when it reaches a certain rpm it kills the fuel. The other will be a clip inside the trans to keep you from shifting into high range. Even though it says D and N between the seat it is possible to come up farther into H(which is high range) but you have to remove the clip in the trans. Use the search function and type in something like "Daihatsu speed limiter" and you should be able to read some info.
Thanks TRAX, I'll bet that's what it is. I got it running yesterday, had to find some new LP hose, and fix a little leak. She runs like a top.... but only at about 18-20mph So I pulled out the little box between the speedo-cable & the tcase, and then set about hunting for that clip. I pulled the driveline & started unbolting the transfer case and time got away from me, I had to go sleep. Now I'm rushing through my "real work" so I can get back to my hijet. I appriciate the info. I knew that info was probably somewhere, I just needed a little push in the right direction. Any ideas on how I can figure out the year on this bad-boy?
Tie that little box off on the frame somewhere and leave the wire hooked up. If you have the right trans. on the drivers side of trans. you will see a square cover with 4 bolts. Take that cover off. Have someone else move the shifting lever inside cab while you look towards about 1 O' clock. You will see the shifting shaft want ing to go into high range. it wont because it will have that clip on the shaft to prevent it from moving. Get a 10" needle nose and pull that clip. That will enable you to go into high range. If you drop that clip SOL. Dont drop it inside the tranny. If you do drop it I suggest getting some adult beverage and start fishing.
Year model, look on the seat belt tag where it is attached to the truck. Little white tag. That will get you within a year of when truck was made. If you have 2wd your truck will be S80 with a EB 550cc engine. " " " 4wd " " " " S81 " " " " " . Under the seat, between the seats should be a metal plate that will give you more info.
more speed! Thanks again, TRAX, helpful info. It looks like a 1994. Well after your first response I took your advice & searched a little deeper in the forum & came up with instructions. I read that some people were using the little hatch, (four bolts), but that it was a hassle, etc.. So being a semi-novice with plenty of beer I naturally decided to tear into the transfer case. these projects are good for me, they help me know my vehicle a little better! I tore off the driveline & after much head-scratching, the rest of the transfer case cover, & there she was, sticking out like a sort thumb! That allowed me to get into high range, which is decidedly helpful. ...but I want MORE So what's the story, if you don't mind, and if YOU know the story, with these? It sounds like there's a mess of them out there, like you say, late '80s, early '90's, government fleet rigs, lefties, lots of propane etc.. Is there a trick to driving 45-50mph? I thought I'd poke through a few threads I've seen regarding a little taller tires/bigger wheels, but that's not probably going to do me right. Is it a gear reduction issue? Do I need to source a different transmission or something? Why do these have transfer cases anyway? Seems like it could come out of the transmission & into the diff., but I'm probably missing something. And if I DO change out the transmission/transfer case/something to adjust gearing, will I be underpowered with my propane-burning 550? Should I resign myself to 35mph & smell the roses? I'm handy, but I'm learning so... Help a brother out! I appreciate the responses, & there's no tearing rush because after I put the thing back together & out for a spin around the block this afternoon I realized something's not flowing right in the cooling system, heater doesn't blow hot, hoses aren't hot where they should be etc., so I went to check the thermostat & discovered I have to take the distributor off! Nice. Nice.
Like I said the USA Gov. bought boo coo's of Daihatsu and Mitsubushi in the 80 .90's. The truck you have is a USA Marketed truck. They went to National Parks, Military Bases, Veterans Administration Complex's ect. The trick to going faster is what you just did. These should top out about 35 / 45. Its a gearing thing. The cost to change the gearing would eat up a lot of Bud Lites. Mater of fact last winter I went and look at about six Daihatsu's that were fixing to go through a Gov. auction. This facility had just gotten new China made mini trucks. The guys at this facility were pissed for the Gov. getting rid of these early model daihatsu. Simply put he said we never work on them. They are like the energizer bunny. They have been using the china trucks for about 8 months and he said they stay in the shop. Something is wrong all the time. Daihatsu's are my favorite trucks hands down. On the thermostat, it will come off without removing dist. I know on the 660cc engine it has to be removed from the top. Tilt the housing up and there is just enough room to slip around the dist. For some reason some of the 2wd drive trucks came with transfer case. They just blanked off the drive shaft hole. Production line deal I guess. Easier to built the truck with it than with out it?
Before you pull the thermostat, you might read about bleeding the cooling system on these trucks. The heater coil is higher than the radiator so it air locks. Some use the bleeder, some jack the back of the truck up real high and leave the radiator cap off and run it. I have done a few times by just taking the radiator cap off and running the engine rpm's up and letting off and it would bubble some air out each time. You can do a search on the forum and it will tell you. I have two left hand jumbo cabs one 2wd and the other 4 wd and have lifted them up and pulled clips from transfer case and bypassed the speedlimiter.
Good thoughts, & thanks for them. Today I did go ahead & pull the thermostat. I also pulled the distributor to get the t-stat off of there, thanks, TRAX for the notes so far, but on my Hijet, that baby wasn't coming off without pulling the distributor. I kind of let myself go and got to reefing on it pretty good there. Glad I did, though, the thermostat was shot indeed. It showed a spot that had been rubbing for some time, and when I boiled it.... no thermostat-ing. So after searching the forum, as well as calling Leon @ Daihatsu Help, and discovering that indeed... there is no crossover part number for that thermostat, I took it to Napa where I did a little comparison shopping, so to speak. My local guys are pretty knowledgeable & helpful, especially when you show up in something they don't readily recognize like a mini truck. BUt after no success there either I ****-canned the old thermostat & I'll call my local dealership tomorrow & try to source a new one. IN the mean time, I hooked everything back up pretty-like & took it for a spin. It still seems like I have trouble in river city, it smells a little hot as I drive around, but that might be partially because with all the access panels up I'm actually riding IN the engine compartment... The gauge doesn't register at all, ( I may have left a wire unplugged someplace... I mean NO registry whatsoever) & there's still no heat coming through the vents. Although, my little laser thermometer still only registered 185 degrees F.:frustration: I changed the oil & tomorrow I'm going to get to know my cooling system! I tried to fill & run the thing, but the fluid level never really drops in the filler reservoir. I did download the maintenance & cooling system sections, so perhaps tomorrow I'll dig in & see how it goes. There's a pretty good diagram, & I was wondering if I might have gravity issues with this little guy. So my priorities for moving ahead are to explore & conquer the cooling system, check the timing, (I think I'm doing okay, but I have a light, & I need practice & one's timing can never be "too perfect", don't you think?), & then look at adjusting the valves. Most of my mechanic-ing experience has been on type I & type II VW engines, and the doggon things were constantly needing an adjustment. Or two. Or three. Out of curiosity, how fast do yours move, louann? I put my GPS in today and went out on a lonely stretch & 30mph was about all I could muster.
As louannfd1 said..you needto bleed the air out of the system or it will never circulate properly...start it and crank the heat on high fill the rad and cap it,top up the reservoir and let it warm up then open the bleeder screw on top of the thermostat housing to let the air out...and check your cap to see if it is opening too soon or stuck open.if it is stuck it can vacuum air into the system every time the engine cools off
Hey guys , have a 1993 lefty s80lp. Only 11,000 miles on it sand been leaking propane since I got it,( ca an NOT find leaky hose for the life of me)! Also can’t not find ANY type of diagram for the wires and hoses going in to the main propane regulators, any help would be appreciated 310-283-5316
Mix up some dish soap & water in a spray bottle and spray along the entire path where the propane travels and it will blow bubbles to indicate any leaks. Be careful, propane is heavier than air and will pool at ground level untill it accumulates enough to support fire from a spark or such. Fred
