xrayyota

Im looking at maybe getting a 92 4runner that the owner says needs a new headgasket. I have done a search and didnt find much. Does anyone know of any good write ups on how to replace the headgasket? I have never done one and would like a write up to follow so I dont screw it up

Kaydon

I'm not sure of any write-ups but..

What engine?

First and foremost,

Have you made sure the gasket is blown?

One sure fire way to tell is if the oil has a milky consistency, check under the oil cap.

Second, get an FSM. There are some links to FSMs on the forum here.

You're gonna need a gasket kit, everyone on here will tell you to go to the dealer and get OEM parts, but I used a Fel Pro gasket kit. You'll need new headbolts, they stretch when torqued so it's a bad idea to reuse them. They don't need to be retorqued afterwards, some people say to do it.. I say it's not necessary.

I prefer using ziploc bags to organize bolts and such, and be sure to keep them organized. Label vacuum hoses like "a" to "a", etc.

It's also a good idea to just go ahead and replace the timing chain, guides and gears.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some stuff, but others will chime in.

JDMSLIK

how mechanically inclined are you? Like what kinda jobs do you have experience with?

76ANTHONY

its really not that hard to do iffffff you take your time and mark everything
take your time. and i used felpro and some aftermarket bolts. clean everything very well and torque per manual......

xrayyota

Ive never done any real motor work. But it doesnt seem to matter cause they guy keeps blowing me off. But thanks for the input

JDMSLIK

Probably a good idea to let it go then. I don't know how many headgasket jobs I've done and I'm still pretty careful everytime I do one.
The write ups are good but you'll still run into stuff that'll stump you and worse comes to worse you could miss something vital.
I'm just giving you a heads up. You can calculate the labour you'd save by doing it yourself but you still have to invest a good chunk on machining costs, parts and tools if you don't got em. To have something screw up would suck, and could turn into a really large hit.

thook

OOooooo....I hate it when people do that. I had my eye on a brown/gold '87 SR5 4rnr that was in f'n great shape that I really wanted to swap my powertrain over to. Called the guy a few times, finally got him, made a date to meet but couldn't meet him that day...somethin' came up...it happens, tried to call him again several times, but he'd never return my calls. Finally gave up on the idea. Probably just as well, anyway, but it burned me up. It was almost like the feeling when you the girl of you dreams, but your on vacation and you know you'll never see her again.

Was that melodramatic? Okay....it was.