I am trying to get my '89 3VZ pickup ready to gift to my nephew. He only needs a truck for about 30k.mi. My Toy has a slow oil leak that makes its way onto the exhaust manifold and the smoking in the engine bay is gonna keep it from getting smogged. I just pulled the valve covers off to replace gaskets but can't say for sure that is where leak is coming from. BTW, VC gaskets felt very hard so maybe they weren't sealing?? Gunked and steam cleaned sides of motor but still can definitively determine where leak is starting from. Since I have the V-covers off, I was thinking of doing a LIGHT re-torque on the head bolts to slow (or stop) the leak temporarily so it can be smogged and my nephew can drive it. Currently, it runs smooth, idles great, no power loss, and no bad signs in radiator of oil filler cap to make me think a blown head gasket is culprit. Basically I'm stumped.

My question is... could I do a 1/8 or 1/4 turn on the head bolts without causing a bigger problem? Don't wanna snap a bolt! The Toy is my ONLY vehicle that does not govern head bolts strictly by overall torque value so this is NEW to me (33ft/lb initial, then 1/4 turn, bla-bla). Don't know if previous owner had HG done or not. I bought it with 118k on it in 2003 and she now has 195k.

THANKS in advance for any helpful input from you experts!

Mike

 

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

Iirc, these are torque to yield. No way I’d try to retorque them. Be better off buying all new bolts and pulling one at a time and then reinstalling properly.