Resurface the head??? I dunno a whole lot about head gaskets, but good luck to ya. Come on, the 3.0 isn't that bad. It takes a lickin, and keeps on tickin. Next time take it to a shop that will guarantee their work, so you won't be in this position again. Once again, Good luck.

 

Since he had the experiance he wanted to rebuild it himself.

If I remember correctly he came out ahead of the game (price wise) with the rebuild and tons of new tools bought.

But I guess now that she popped another hg..

 

TN,
I would give OEM gaskets and bolts a try. I believe they are of better quality than anything else out there.

 

Gary - I am sooo sorry to hear of this happening -- Mine was done a week later than yours, knock on wood....

I have a question -
*** I know that you tow with your rig - tell us about your break in after the rebuild...

--- I would give it another go. Get another set of HG's and put them on - you can tear it apart and get it back together in a weekend at this point - you know how to do it pretty quick now... I tore my most recent one down to the shortblock in about 5 hours... I would grab some stock gaskets like CHICKINLOVER said and put it together - followed by an easy 5000 mile break in....

Sorry again to hear about your dilemma

KAT

 

Damn man im sooo sry.....but i dont think it would cost all that much to change the headgaskets, since you did most of the motor already! but good luck to ya man!

 

hey i got a 87 maxima i was gonna sell for 1750 but ill take 1500 for it. got 119,000 miles. just changed the oil 3 weeks ago and put some new tires on it... got a toy so gonna sell the mad max. what part of TN you from??

 

I'm from Sparta, TN, originally, but live in MD now. I wouldn't be adverse to a trip to TN to pick up a car...

PM me...

 

TN If you find yourself doing the rebuild let me know and I will come and help as much as I can plus it would be kinda cool to meet someone from here in person then I may even be able to brib you into helping me do the 3.4 when I get ready to try that. Oh I maybe able to talk my friend into letting us use his shop as well but he is a cop as well so if you have any bad habits not such a good idea plus his k-9 is very curious at real good at his job.

 

Thanks, Katie!

My break-in went like this:

1. 0-100 miles: first oil was standard 10w-30 with easy driving, no engine work over 3000 rpm and no full throttle
2. 101-1000 miles: changed oil to standard 10w-40, still driving easy with no engine work over 4000 rpm and no full throttle
3. 1001-3000 miles: changed oil again with standard 10w-40, gradually increased pressure on engine, occasional full throttle, periodic forays up to 5000 rpm at the end of this period
4. 3001-8000 miles: changed to Mobil 1 synthetic 15w-50, began to drive it like a regular truck (not babying it, not abusing it) with a few hard runs to see if it would stay together! I took a 2,000 mile trip with it during this period. with no problems and average speed of about 75 miles per hour. I was @ at the 8,000 mile point when I towed a 2,800 lb trailer for about 20 miles. Nothing abusive, normal driving, didn't lug the engine or push it hard.

The next day, I began smelling the telltale coolant smell & when I started the truck it sounded like it was running on five cylinders and was blowing small amounts of steam. I drove it to work about 45 miles, then when I started itto drive home, it REALLY didn't want to start or run. Once I got it running, it was fine all the way home, but when I shut it off, I pulled the #2 plug and was greeted with steam pouring out of the cylinder hole. Radiator was down also, but the engine never got the slightest bit warm. I should mention that up until I towed the trailer, it hadn't used ANY coolant whatsoever....

 

thanks for the info on break in - I dont see anything that should be an issue there(with my vast knowledge lol) - On mine, I changed the oil at 100, 300, 1000, and now every 3000 - I am at 7200 on it right now. I still haven't given it a full throttle run.

This is probably a simple question - but you had the thermostat installed the right direction, right? Any chance you boiled it and tested it prior to install? you replaced the water pump, right? again with no high temps I question if your sender is working properly - because that doesn't make sense to me.

On a side note, I just picked up a 94(I am parting it out) with 171k on the clock, motor runs great - if you can make it down this way, you can have the short block if you want it --

Kat

 

Thanks, Kat; I sent you a PM...

 

I have worked on many of these motors. I have noticed a great deal of heat related issues in the #5 and #6 cyl's as Ted pointed out. Here is what I think is going on. IF you did not clean out the block threaded holes that received the head bolts, you likely ended up with false torques. You can't imagine the oil and water that collects in those blind holes. Also, I use Ted's stud set to prevent this problem. Furthermore, I finally made some custom 1mm thick copper head gaskets. I do not tow but after 20K miles, no problems and I ditched the crossover pipe in the rear which retains mucho heat on #6 cylinder. I would work with Ted and get his stud set and his recommended head gasket set to eliminate false torques. I would also probe the #2 coolant passages to ensure they are open and not partially blocked by some core defect. Finally, eliminate the rear crossover pipe by running the passenger side exhaust down and across behind the transfer case or at the flywheel area. Towing really builds heat. You may want to get a new radiator and flex fan. The old clutch fans can fail with little warnings since they die a slow death. Under tow, you got to reject that excess heat or pay a price! Those aluminum heads "walk all over that gasket" when they start to soften under extreme pressure and heat not seen during daily driving and I think the core walls of those heads are marginal.

My $0.02

 

The motor ran normal temps for the past year & has continued to do so. I saw no evidence during the rebuild to indicate it every had any hotspots that would cause the HG to blow unnecessarily. Both heads & block were meticulously checked for warpage and any measurable amount was less than 1/10 of the specs allowed per the FSM. I read thru both YotaTech & ToyotaNation forums very extensively to identify any potentioal problems with the entire rebuild & believe I covered every potential problem area. Thanks for your $.02, though! Any other ideas?

 

I'm no mechanic but I had to replace the head gaskets on my 95 3.0 4Runner last November because I was losing coolant and it had the rough starting and milky oil etc.... My friend who is a mechanic at a Toyota dealership fixed it for me and 10k miles later at 165k it runs awesome. My point is that he used new head bolts and factory Toyota gaskets. There was no extensive rebuild or anything else done except valve stem seals, timing belt, water pump, plugs, wires, cap and rotor. He told me no head resurfacing was necessary. He refused to use anything besides Toyota head gaskets. He said that aftermarket ones are crap. Maybe you should try some Toyota gaskets and new head bolts and see how that goes. Is it possible the Rock Gaskets are weak? Like I said I'm not a mechanic by any means but it's just a thought.

 

Did you ever retourque your head bolts ? I've found it to be good practice to retourque them after a little run time. And what did you tourque them too ? I've always tourqued mine down 20 lbs over FSM.

My thought would be to buy just the basics for the headgasket and replace it , quick and cheap. Then plan a motor swap or sell it .

 

I've not heard of anyone having trouble with ANY of engnbldr's parts. I used his 10.9 extra hard HG bolts as well as HGs.

I think I'll try a Yota brand this time...although it was a Yota brand that blew the first time...

Also, Toyota FSM doesn't recommend a torque setting; you use an initial torque of @ 33 lb/ft, then turn 1/4 and again 1/4 for a total of 1/2 turn past the 33 lb/ft torque

 

They've been redesigned since. Plus, your oem gaskets lasted a hell of a lot longer than the EB ones.

 

The OEMs were replaced at 92,000 miles under the original HG recall by the dealer. It had the redesigned ones on there.

 

Does no one read the very first post in this thread?!?

 

I see. The dealer usually doesn't replace the head bolts when they are doing the HG recall. If that was the case with your truck, it probably contributed to your second failure.