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I've owned a few Toyotas in the past but never quite as old as my current 1992, Xtra cab pickup, 3.0, 4wd with a 5 spd that I just picked up. I had an itch so I found one with 225,000 miles. Power windows, locks, mirrors, cruise control all works. Sunroof and super clean interior, minimal rust were all deciding factors in my purchase. Runs smooth. Cruises at 75 easily. I love the truck and have quite a few plans for it but after reading some threads it turns out people really hate the 3.0 Here I was thinking it was the preferred motor. And now I'm nervous. Right after buying it I drove it 8 hours. And now it's currently in route on a 19 hour trip the rest of the way home and is doing fine. But all kinds of concerns seems to be arising. I'm even considering spending a few grand on a motor with a 7 year unlimited mile warranty and turn this one in for a core just to know everything is solid. I need this thing to not only take me places but also bring me back as well. Still going to build it and will post more as I begin the process
Last edited by Andrew92; 11-28-2021 at 06:16 AM.
Reason: Spelling
I never had an issue (other than a burnt valve on #6 because of the crappy stock exhaust) with my 3.0. I loved it. had good power, sounded good, and never really let me down. Dont rev the hell out of it and youll be fine. My rule of thumb was to always shift between 3k and 3.2k. if i really needed the power, wind it out to 4k, but that was rare. Threat this motor right and she will treat you right. Or do what everyone else and their brother does and swap in a 3.4.
The hate for the 3VZ-E is way over-hyped. They are still quite reliable engines. Yes, they did have head gasket problems, but when taken care of, they can be just as reliable as the 22R-E.
I suppose people were expecting V8 power and 4-cylinder fuel economy with the 3VZ-E, but you get a bit more horsepower than the 22R-E, but at the expense of fuel economy. Which I think is reasonable.
If your truck was taken care of, and you continue to take care of it, you shouldn't have anything to worry about.
Thanks for the feedback, always makes people feel better when people are on their side... Anyway, truck made the 19 hour trip. Had a few bouts of what I thought might be low oil pressure but after investigating turns out it's completely normal. It's getting a full tune up as we speak. Along with a mild overhaul on the front end and a cheap set of bilsteins to make it drive right until I decide what route I'm going with the truck. An engine swap is intriguing but honestly the truck has more power then what I expected. I expected a dog that struggled to gain any speed at all. So I'll stick with the 3.0 for now and delete that crossover pipe.
Thanks for the feedback, always makes people feel better when people are on their side... Anyway, truck made the 19 hour trip. Had a few bouts of what I thought might be low oil pressure but after investigating turns out it's completely normal. It's getting a full tune up as we speak. Along with a mild overhaul on the front end and a cheap set of bilsteins to make it drive right until I decide what route I'm going with the truck. An engine swap is intriguing but honestly the truck has more power then what I expected. I expected a dog that struggled to gain any speed at all. So I'll stick with the 3.0 for now and delete that crossover pipe.
The crossover delete is a solid plan. I picked up a 1991 a couple of years ago with 225,000 miles and a blown head gasket. When I pulled the heads I found that all six cylinders still had good crosshatching from top to bottom all the way around the bores. There was no cylinder ridge at all, of course. These engines can go a long way before they get tired!
You might consider a preventive head gasket job at your convenience if you're so inclined. With the heads off, the LCE headers slip right into place with no muss or fuss and give a little power bump to go with the crossover delete. You could rebuild the starter, alternator and injectors while they're out, clean the crap out of the intake manifold and maybe even slip in a new radiator while you're there. Replace any coolant hoses that you think might fail in the next decade and you're done. I went that route instead of the 3.4 swap just to cut down on the complexity of the job for myself and I'm pleased with the result. Nothing fits as well as the engine that grew there initially and a 3.0 that is running properly, particularly with the manual transmission, does absolutely fine.
The final point to consider is that these trucks are getting collectible, even with miles on them. The insurance guy put mine at $13K, and mine's not as well optioned as yours. The swapped ones I've seen are priced around $10k or a little less, usually.
I'll need to keep those things in mind. Seems like a solid plan. The more I realize how valuable these trucks are becoming the more I'm thinking I shouldn't chop this thing up too much. Originally I was thinking long travel, fiberglass and much more. Maybe I'll just keep it simple. Upper/lower ball joints, inner/outer tie rods, idler/pitman arm, center link, control arm bushings and the bilsteins are going in next week. Should be night and day.
11-28-2021, 06:14 AM
