jforte5650

Ok I'm picking up an 87 4Runner with a blown head gasket and 240,000 miles. So far, this is what I've bought to replace while I do the headgasket:

Timing Chain Kit
Headgasket Kit
Headbolts
Oil filter
Thermostat
Water Pump
Front Cover gasket

What else should I do? I plan on getting the head pressure checked, resurfaced, and have the valve seals done at a machine shop. With 240k should I be doing rings and bearings? I wanted to keep the price to a min, but I don't wanna skimp on the important areas. I want to leave the engine in the car, because I don't have a hoist. I've done head gaskets and motor swaps in other cars, this is my first Yota. Any advice? Tips? Tricks? any help you can give me is very much appreciated.

SoCal4Running

First off only use a TOYOTA brand head gasket. I know others might say that Felpro and the like are equal but I have never heard anyone say that after they compare the two side by side.

If money allows use these head studs to replace your streched head bolts, the studs are RESUABLE and headbolts generally are not. Not to mention that studs will let you torque the head down alot tighter. They do not cost anymore than stock toyota headbolts.

Have all the tools on hand to repair stripped exhaust studs unless you are going to have the machine shop replace them, more likly than not you will not find out if any are stripped untill re-assembly.

Do not forget to remove the bolt under the cam-sprocket or you will invent some new cuss words as you look at your cracked head or timing chain cover. It will be covered in oil so you wont see it but it is there.

There is a long allen head bolt hidden under the thermostat that is one of the intake manifold bolts.

Take pictures of your vacum hose arrangement and also make a detailed diagram of where they go. Alot of people mess this up.

If you do want to change the piston and rings it is possible to do with the block still in the 4runner. You will have to drop the front diff. and remove some suspension and steering parts. If you are going to go this far though I would pull the block and have it machined because after 240k miles your new rings might not seat correctly. I would leave the bottom end alone if you are not going to have the block machined.

Hope this helps alittle, good luck.

desert whomper

i like fel pro, half my gaskets on my 22re are fel-pro. im not saying which one is better but i beat my truck and the gaskets work good

SoCal4Running

I am not saying they are bad, I just dont trust them on such an important part of the engine. Its alot of work to replace a HG when you can get one that will last another 240k miles.

Trailtoy

For gaskets just get the Toyota engine overhaul set. You need all of it anyway. It has the metal gaskets for the fuel lines, injector seals, etc.

Timing kit and oil pump from EB.

Get the injectors cleaned.

Whether or not you need to do rings will depend on the condition of the cylinder walls.

Run a tap in the head bolts holes then clean them out with some brake kleen and air. If you have time clean out all the other holes with a tap too. Clean the piston tops and the top of the block with a small wire wheel.

Use moly lube on the head bolt/stud threads and washers. The ARP studs are a beautiful thing. They are high $$ though. I got a slightly used set a couple years ago for a good price. The 22R head bolts are not torque-to-yield like the 3.0l so they could be reused, but with the mileage yours has I would replace them.

There is a coolant pipe that connects to the bottom of the intake. It has an 0-ring on it. Make damn sure you don't forget it!

SoCal4Running

Yea that pipe is a PITA, even with the O-ring mine still leaked. Got a new O-ring and fixed it.

Clean out your Throttle Body too while its off.

jimbo74

do not run a tap in the block to clean out the bolt holes... unless its the new style arp brand block chaser or an older worn out tap... it might take off too much material and then you are screwed!

i just replaced mine.. reused the stock bolts also... you must make sure you clean everything really well.... i ended up going through about 30 cans of carb cleaner! i also used a wire wheel on a die grinder on the block surface and also to clean off the head bolts from jsut scale and stuff.... i have had no problems... i uesd an original toytoa overhaul kit... has everything in it.. except a few egr system gaskets, that ended up being another $20.... the toyota overhaul kit has the hg, vc, valve quides. coolant passage, intake, exhuast, timing cover, water pump gasket and otehr stuff too... tis expensive... but you cant fight quality... that thing was about 1/8" thick! also get the head milled and rebuilt if you can.. at the minimum, check it for leaks...... the factory service manual walked me through the process...

Trailtoy

Huh? A properly sized tap should remove little or no material from a threaded hole. I've done it on 2 22R's and a 3.0.

Bumpin' Yota

One other thing I'd add is to solder a ground to the shield on the knock sensor coaxial wire....a simple mod to prevent high rpm ping from too much advance. Typically mine will ping occasionally at WOT as the RPM passes through 3400-4200 rpm...and this is from all the interfierence that the coaxial picks up before it gets to the ECU, so the ECU doesn't 'hear' the pinging due to the high noise floor. Grounding the shield will lower the noise floor significantly. That's my next 'to do' when I yank the intake plenum and lower intake off the block to do my valve covers/pcv valve...


SoCal4Running - a long allen head bolt under the thermostat? I that also the case on a 3vze? I just did my t-belt and never saw such a beast... That bolt 22re specific?

ekim121

That bolt was a pain in the ass to get to...and took like 5 minutes to find when I couldn't get my intake manifold off...

Trailtoy

Yes..

SoCal4Running

Yea the same thing happened to me, take bolts out of intake, beat on it but still wont come off. Go look in book and count intake bolts in diagram, count bolts I already removed. One missing, look around for 5-10 minuets, find it hidden under thermostat but just out of reach of my longest allen wrench.

WTF, must be some sort of Toyota revenge.

jimbo74

i finally found that bolt too..... luckily, i have a dead engine and i just counted the locations on the otehr one and then figured out where i was missing one..... also dont forget about the timing cover bolt under the lobe on the cam sprocket towards the front... there is a bolt hiding in the head, and the haed wont come off and might crack should you forget this bolt....

jforte5650

Got the head off tonight, going to the machine shop in the morning to get it pressure tested and then rebuilt if everything checks out ok. The head gasket didn't look too bad...so now I'm worried that maybe the prob was somewhere else.

Maybe the timing chain wore a hole in my front cover... I'll see tomorrow... I've heard about welding the hole shut if it's there. Can this be done? How easily? I have access to a mig welder.

So many wires and vacuum hoses... but I labeled everything well. How can I clean the tops of the pistons and the gasket surface without getting debris down between my cylindar walls? Is debris this small a major concern or will it burn off?

Yeah, that allen bolt was a bitch. I ended up taking off my fuel rail so I could vise-grip it. Allen bolts suck. Just be glad you're not working on VW's.. I've been doing them for years and EVERYTHING is an allen bolt, usually stripped of course. Ok guys, thanks for the help.... keep up the good advice!!!

SoCal4Running

Was the engine running when you got the 4runner? If there was excessive oil blow by you probably need new rings. I would drain the oil and then run it thru a scrap piece of window screen and see whats in it, should cut open the old oil filter also and take a look.

If there is one piston that is alot cleaner than the rest, this is the cyclinder that has coolant leaking into it. Steam cleaned pistons look shiny.

To clean the pistons I alway use mild carb cleaner and a soft wire brush or scotchbrite pads. Use a lot of compressed air to blow the debris away.

Sometimes the head will corode between where the headgastket ring is and a coolant passage, I have seen this many times before. Can be fixed with welding and resurfacing.

Just out of curosity, where you at?

jforte5650

Hey, all of the cylindar walls looked good, and none of the pistons were steam cleaned. The coolant passages were eating their way around the head though, so I ended up having to order a reman. head. I'm located in palmerton Pennsylvania. I guess I'll take a good look at the timing set while I wait for the new head to come in. Both guides were there, and they looked decent.

jforte5650

Thanks for the help guys, It's all together and running. I just gotta get it running right now!!!!