Well I just took the plunge and picked up a 88 4Runner SR5 3.0 with a 186k pretty cheap. The PO bought the car with a blown head gasket and tried to replace it himself but never got it running. He just dumped it in frustration even after putting a lot of money into every other piece of the car. So here I am looking at this thing now and it's a milky mess even after his head gasket job. I'm thinking he blew it again or didn't install it correctly. Should I even bother tearing it down to look or should I just do the swap? I found a 3.4 engine and computer for $1500 with 75K miles and compression readings of over 170 on all cylinders. I'm leaning towards the swap but I'm still on the fence.

Thanks in advance

Alex

 

Probably depends on what you've got into it, and ultimately what you want. Most people say that you'd be happier with the 3.4 because of it's power.

There are a lot of threads about the 3.4 swaps (i think they have their own forum) and you'll find a lot of info by searching.

Whichever you decide, if you take the plunge, look me up. I wouldn't mind helping, and I'll probably benefit from the knowledge if one of my 3.0's ever kick the bucket.

BTW, welcome to YT!

 

my advice, to the despair of alot of others, try Thermagasket (www.rxauto.com) i did it last week and it worked.

140 dollars.

don't ignore the reason(s) why the HG could have failed. Mine was a VERY terrible and neglected cooling system.

parts totaled less than 400 for the repair(radiator / hoses / thermostat and lots and lots of flushing). i'm back on the road and as good as ever.

 

Yeah I've reading the crap out of the 3.4 swap threads and it seems doable but just a lot more money. The car seems to have the body lift already done but I need to verify that. What part of town do you live in? The truck is over at my buddies house in the Springs off of Fontanero. He's gonna let me do a lot of the work myself and when I need help I'll get a fair rate. Its a pretty good deal if you ask me!

 

The car has a whole new cooling system radiator and all. The previous owner dropped a lot of money on this car but gave up right at the finish line. The thing is it won't even pretend to start right now. It does have spark and gas so I'm guess the timing might be off. So I got some work before I could even try that thermagasket stuff.

 

Yeah, sounds like a good deal. The swap is definitely going to be $$. That's what you've got to weigh out to see if it's worth it. If you have the money for the swap, from what I've read, you probably won't regret it. But it is significantly more (most likely) than the HG on the 3.0. Who knows, you could get the 3.0 apart and find other things wrong with it- cracked head etc.

I'm east of Powers. Nearly to Kansas compared to Manitou.

 

The PO claims he fix a cracked head during his attempt at the HG job but who knows. It wouldn't suprise me if he missed something.

Yeah you are way out in Kansas

 

Did my 3.4 swap a year and a half ago. Zero regrets. More money, to be sure. More fun and more knowledge, though, has no price tag.

My 2 cents, which at the current conversion rate, is about 1.4 cents in US currency.

 

Today I took a look at the truck again and there are a few nice puddles underneath the engine. It seems to me this engine has been through a rough 186k miles and will probably just continue to plague me. Another thing I was thinking was who knows how long a long all of those fluids have been sitting in the engine. I was told anti-freeze can really cause some havoc. I used to have a 90 4runner 3.0 and it was brutal to drive in the mountains around here. 3rd gear in the right lane barely going 50 while getting passed by semi-trucks in the snow was never fun. I think once my tax return comes I'm gonna take the plunge. I'll be sure to take a lot of pictures when I get it started.

 

sweet. make a build log. i cant wait to do this to mine.

 

Look at this, then decide to do the 3.4 swap. :-) If mine doesn't work out this time, I'm swapping SOMETHING into it; sounds like you have a line on a great 3.4.

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116...-ghost-108156/

 

Hills that I used to have to take in 3rd gear just to maintain speed I now take in 5th. If I actually want to accelerate up a hill, I just grab 4th. That's right, accelerate up a hill!

And remember I'm turning 33" tires. With 31", it would be even better.

Did I mention I also get better mileage?

 

Got it started (timing issue) but it has a nasty knock and have decided to do the swap. You can follow it here