levi_plummer

hey guys, i bought my truck cheap thinking it just needed a timing set, then i heard the knock and went for a full rebuild.it now has what you see in my signature and never has ran strong. it has never got me more than 15mpg. and if i free rev it it will hit right at 5,500rpm and in first gear it will barely turn 5,100rpm. i know these engine's aren't good to turn that many rpm's but i have to run it up to atleast 4k to get enough power to get up to speed. i have to drive on the interstate 55-60mph in fourth gear. and the engine doesn't seem to be working to hard. the plugs have been changed three times. the first too sets were ngk v power and this last set was E3's. it has right at 1,000 miles on the rebuild. and it doesnt seem to lose any more oil than one would burn with a fresh rebuild. it loses most all of its power above 4k rpm. can anyone tell me any possibilites of what this is? i was told maybe cam timing by engnbuildr but i dont want to tear into untill i get more input. all input is appreciated thanks!

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

Hard to really say

I am sure while the engine was out you changed the fuel filter and relocated it while you were doing it.. What did the plugs look like you pulled out??

all ignition parts replaced?? For what it is worth my engine ran like crap till I changed to Toyota wires

Have you checked the compression and the timing??

My high mileage 4Runner will run all day in 5th gear at 55 or 60 mph around 2500 rpm. Of course if you come to a good hill I need to drop a gear to maintain speed.

As for mileage I have never checked it would get better if I removed all the stuff I cart around .

I really doubt if I ever rev the engine much over 3000 rpm I have no need to

sam333

Like wyoming9 said compression and valve /ignition timing.

What all did you do/ replace in your rebuild.

On a full rebuild ,back to factory specs/ clearences, the engine will run like new.

levi_plummer

i did install a new fuel filter but i did not relocate it. all of the spark plugs seemed to be okay. they were a tanish/white on one side and realy dark on the other. as for parts during the rebuild i did everything the kit came with, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, water pump, i have also reset the tps sensor, replaced the oil pressure sending unit. and i had the head milled about .1200 (i know that messes with cam timing).. i did all of this rebuild at my tech school where we had an adjustable timing light and my timing was set to run best at 25 degrees advanced.

I am sure there is more but i cant remember any right now. thanks guys!

sam333

How many miles and why did you rebuild it? Did you bore the block , new oversized pistons, valve job...ect. What machine work did you do? .120 is alot to remove, but I dont think is your problem, was it warped?

levi_plummer

it had 294,6xx when i bought it i thought it needed a timing set. then we got it running and realized it was way weak and was knocking so we tore it down. we found a blown headgasket, two burnt exhaust valves, and a rod bearing had turned causing the knock. the block was still good with no scars in the cylinder walls so we went with standard pistons, and the crank i got from my parts engine was still good and true so we used standard size bearings. we did a valve job at the tech school with the machine in the shop. and we put the engine together. then we were filling up the radiator with antifreeze and it started leaking down the block. we tore it apart to find that my rock headgasket had came apart. then we used a strait edge to find the head was warped (I know stupid we didn't check it in the first place) i then took it to the machine shop where we started milling it down. i was there during the process of milling it down and on the back of the head i am thinking on the passenger side there is a round coolant passage. it had warped higher than the rest of the head and we had to take it down .1200 before it was all completely flat the whole head other than that corner was flat after about .0600 but we had keep taking more off for the corner. and put it all back together using a felpro hg. thats why i am also thinking maybe my timing has slipped a tooth as to the fact that we had the chain tight to the cam sprocket but dropped the gear down in the cover. as we were removing the head.

sam333

At 300000 miles your cylinders have to be worn out of spec., and it would be hard to get a set of standard rings to seat right( low compression). Did you measure the cylinders and was there a ridge at the top? I am not saying you didnt do a good job( done it myself when money is tight). There is a lip in the timing cover that keeps the chain at the crank gear from slipping off /skipping even if you drop it in. How do your cam bearing bores look? Just curious, if most of the head didnt clean up until 0.60(still alot) the warp is gone on the head surface but not in the rest of the head. Did you check to see if your cam bearing bores are in line? They can be out enough that it will damage your cam and head.

levi_plummer

noo we didn't check any of that that i know off. i guess i will learn how to use a compression tester soon. i sure hope we dont have to tear back into this thing. it doesn't smoke any or have hard starts. thats why i think it is in the timing.

94toy22re

i would replace those e3 plugs with a ngk or denso and see if that helps.

Bojangles

This isn't a 327, 350, or a 383 stroker...Its a 22RE...
It cant do but so much.

There's also no point in revving past 5500 RPM's.
I dont like to take mine past 4200.
These are very strong trucks, but they are not built for speed.
Over 4000 rpms your not going to get a whole lot of power unless you swap a cam out.

15MPG is decent for the winter time. The cold and winter gas affects your MPG.
I was getting 17-19 before winter,
Not im getting 14.5. With stock gearing and 33x12.50's. Its 18 degrees or so at night, 20's in the morning on my way to work, and in the mid 30's in the day time

Unless you Re-gear, 4th and 5th gear battle is pretty normal. We all have to deal with it.
if you want to keep the 31x10.50's then go to 4.88 gears and you'll be able to keep up with everyone just fine, and your MPG will increase.

Go to
Addictedoffroad.com
Or
http://www.wabfab.org/

Either of these sites have gearing prices and everything you need to work out that 4th 5th battle.

Jeff Parker

iTrader: (1)

I don't know what an ISR mod is, but "EGR and other nonsense deleted" combined with an engine not running right, make me say "Hmm". There's no telling what is screwed up when you start removing "nonsense".

levi_plummer

i just put the E3's in it. they have all of 60 miles on them. i was replacing the ngk's. the plugs are good in it.

levi_plummer

and i know they are not power houses but on level ground i cant get over 71 mph. i know thats no where your mpg is at but still driving 55-60 in fourth (It just loses speed if you try it in fith) i will get right at around 15 mpg i have never got better than 15mpg

levi_plummer

well guys.. i just tore it down and turned the cam gear one tooth counter clockwise. it ran like hell when i finally got it started. it would only rev up to 4,000 rpm. and i just set it back to what it origanaly was (It would only turn 5,500 rpm). it had me thinking would it be possible to turn it one notch more clockwise and have it run the way it needs too? this truck has me dumbfounded. ANY Information is Greatly apreciated!! thanks to all who have helped me out so far. i think tomarow i am going to get a compression tester and try that. any input is appreciated. thanks

Flash319

Sounds like you are running on 3 cylinders. These engines run very good on three. Also if you drop 1 injector, that cylinder will scavenge from the others a bit because all the injectors fire at the same time.
I also find it very hard to believe that a 22re can jump a tooth.

levi_plummer

All of the plugs seemed to look decent. In color range. I appreciate your help. It seems to idle good. It just runs like a turd. Weaker than I would expect this kind of truck to run. Do you think maybe weak fuel pressure could cause this?

Flash319

YEs fuel pressure could do it. Also make sure your timing is set to 5-8 BTDC with the plug jumped.

bicklebok

Im with bojangles. Revving the stock motor to 5500 rpm's probably isnt going to give you any more power. In fact it probably is getting flat on power long before 5500 which is actually hurting your acceleration. Mine seems to start getting flat(time to shift) when I rev it to 4k and I only do that when Im pushing it.

levi_plummer

Hey, i had my timing set by ear then i set it so i could drive it the best. as i recall we had it set to 25 degree's because it wouldnt run right when we set it with the timing light. we set it the way i like it then we checked it with the timing light and with the knob set at 25 degree's it was where it was idling at. and i have to rev it out to make this thing acelerate. it wont hold speed in fith gear. i dont use fith gear because of this. i can go 71 with the wind behind me down hill in fourth. if this is normal i will just settle with what i got but from what i understand a stock truck will run like 90mph with 31's and all the mod's i have done are to help my mileage and power!

bicklebok

Yeah, maybe you do have a problem. Maybe some of these guys can give you some things to check.

my motor is wore out and my truck has a little more power than that. i can run in 5th on open flat highway, but any incline has me downshifting. I just dont get in a hurry and drive smart. i can still pass people on a 2 lane. I just have to back off and "get a run" on em. LOL