wrenchtech

The cheap sets on eBay claim to have "graphite" head gaskets. An enginebuildermag.com article I read suggested multi-layer steel gaskets as the best. Any suggestions? What's the FelPro Permatorque made out of? -- Matt

a4runnerfreak

I'd pony up the money and get a factory Toyota HG. Esp for the 3.0.

machine23

yeah i hear you. my hg just blew a few days ago. i wanted to cry. im driving my dads old 89 ford ranger until i can fix it. im trying to decide if i really want to fork out the 300 for a dealer gasket set v.s. an aftermarket fel pro. its a sad day when your trusty yota blows the hg

TNRabbit

DEFINITELY MLS is the best HG for the 3.0. If you're going to go that way (they ain't cheap), get the block & heads decked & resurfaced properly.

Otherwise, OEM from the dealer. And they are NOT $300; they're less than $60 each.

machine23

60 each? i called my local toyota dealer the other day and they quoted me about 300 dollars for the head gasket set. i guess maybe just the head gasket themselves are 60 each.

KentuckyMudder

Ready to cry myself! The day I joined this forum,yesterday, my hg blew on my 3.0. I was just bragging about having 252,XXX miles on it without a problem. Shoulda kept my mouth shut! thanks for the advice

machine23

yea mine has 250,000 too. it was running fine. i was proud....

a4runnerfreak

Yeah, I hear ya on that. Forget Fel-Pro. They are not as good as they used to be. Trust me, buy the HG from Toyota. Your last 1 lasted this, right?

I had a buddy blow the HG on his '94 3.0, and did the HG himself with Fel-Pro gaskets. Only 1 blew but he replaced both while he was there. Well, with 3 months, the HG went again. He went to Toyota, bought new 1's, and hasn't had any problems since.

But thats just my 2 cents, and a lil story.......

wrenchtech

What brands have MLS? Is the Toyota MLS? Decking the block is a little extreme for a head gasket job, unless you are doing a full rebuild. It would be a sad state of affairs if you had to tear the motor down completely and haul the block into a machine shop every time it needed a head gasket!!

<BTW> www.1sttoyotaparts.com sells the Toyota gaskets for $41.38 ea -- Matt

mt_goat

Here's some good info on surface finish requirements for different types of HGs. http://www.babcox.com/editorial/us/us80222.htm

borz170

I replaced the head gaskets in my '94 Runner about 4 years ago. I blew the gasket on the outside of the 1 cyl, and coincidentally, there was a small chip out of the piston in the same area as the blown spot oin the gasket. I replaced the head gaskets with Yota ones, spent ~300 bucks on the set that included everything from the valve covers/cam shaft seals to the rear main seal and everything inbetween. I also pulled the piston out from the bottom of the engine and replaced it, using the same rings, bearings and everything. The only thing new was the piston itself. I didn't use any measuring devices or tollerance checks, I just unbolted and rebolted, with the correct torque settings. Anyways, I have put 40k miles on her since then and shs is still kisking ass. I towed a boat from FL to NY after testing her with about 10k miles. Boat weighed about 2k lbs loaded and I couldn't go very fast, but we made it fine. I used permatex copper spray on the gasket prior to reinstallation. This was very contraversial, but I decided in favor of it rather than not using it. I had very experienced mechanics strongly favoring each side, I chose the MOST experienced guys who said to use the stuff. I'm glad I did. I did have the heads magnafluxed and planed. I plan to take her to NY with a boat in tow. She is rated at 3500lbs and I will be towing at least that much, as my boat weiths 2300 unloaded without the trailer. I will be going about 60mph, which will be ~3500 RPM's. I am not worried other than the fact that I will have to drive so slow. I like to get there!

mt_goat

That's interesting, did you use it on the head side or the block side or both?

borz170

I coated both sides.

wrenchtech

Thanks mt_goat. That article is packed with info. Wherein I read that MLS gaskets are the best, but you need good head and deck surfaces to get them to work properly. The second best choice seems to be the graphite coated steel gasket. They are said to conform to irregular surfaces better and to stand up to the friction caused by the use of an aluminum head against an iron block with their different expansion and contraction characteristics. I'm probably destined to do a full rebuild so I'll most likely end up getting the block machined for new pistons and decked. Then I'll be ready for the Toyota gaskets. -- Matt

Justinlhc

I also used copper spray(on both sides). I've been using it for years. I've also repaired pistons and bearings like that before, remove and replace and hope for the best. I've had pretty good luck with it, although I wouldn't recommend it.