Well, I just got the call from my mechanic that my car is giving him every reason to believe that the HG is bad. So hes going to tear it down and inspect the heads and all that. He quoted me about 1400.00 to replace the gaskets and if the heads were cracked up to about 2,000.00. I've been reading old posts but a lot of it is so scattered, Im trying to find out what exactly needs to be done to get the job done right and so that it wont happen again 30,000 miles down the road? I would just like to have some decent knowledge when I talk to this guy cause the mechanics sure can lead you to believe what you thought was right is wrong. THanks for the help. Now I need to figure how Im going to afford this.

 

Absolutely put in some high quality head studs and be sure to use the improved HG (ie the one they put in when they do the recall. This will about double the clamping pressure and greatly minimize the cance of it happening again. You might want to check and see if your truck qualifies under the Toyota recall and you can have them do it for free!

 

How many miles do you have on it? I got a 95 4runner too. It was built in Jan 95 so they said it's not on the recall campaign.

 

Also tell him of the possibility of the fact that the headgaskets can be put in backwards and you won't know till it starts overheating. Even toyota mechanics have done this so tell him you're aren't trying to insult him but to check it two or three times. Just a thought.

Steve

 

Hang onto your wallet... These Head Gasket jobs can get seriously expensive.

I'm going to be down about 2400.00 and I'm doing all of the work (except machine shop charges). Of course I'm going through everything else at the same time (might as well it's all torn down.

Good luck..

 

Mine just blew about 4 weeks ago...I know how you feel! That was the second time it blew. I would go there everyday to check the progress and the mech showed me pieces of the HG they left on the first time. I asked him to clean the pistons and the heads....after he was done you could eat off them. I now have more power than ever and my pinging is gone. Thought I was going to sell it, but it just runs great now....good luck and hope its not the dealer doing the work...I know how money can be tight, but while it is apart I would do timing chain and water pump...and check pulley's.

 

Hey thanks guys,

I dont qualify for the recall. Mine was made in Feb of 95. But it still has the HG problem unfortunately. In the back of my mind I keep thinking that if he does all this work and my car is still messed up, I may go crazy and wont pay him until he fixes the engine. So the Mech.(no not the dealer, I hate those guys) quoted me around $1,400 for the job and thats if the heads are okay and they dont need to be machined. Im guessing they are okay, maybe I should have him clean them too. If the heads need machined, that will be another $600 or so!! This is expensive stuff. I hope my car runs as good youre saying yours does now after the job. I cant wait to take it on the highway after its all done and feel the difference in power! Cant wait to get it all paid and try to forget about all the money i just spent too.


by the way, does my engine have a Cam chain to control the timing and all that. I was told by a friend that if it does to replace it too while the mech. is in it the guts of my engine. Anyone know?

 

Wouldn't it be cheaper to find a used engine and have someone swap them?

 

Anyone know why Toyota stop the recall at 95 model? I heard of too many 95 with HG problem.

 

I have no idea, but it sure sucks for us 95'ers. I have 128k on mine now. Im hoping for a good recovery though, I want to hit that 200k marker.

 

I believe some 95's are covered...maybe the first few months of the year or so. Mine was made in mid-May, and is not covered.

 

I don't think so...mine got a Jan 95 date on it.

 

1995 models produced prior to May (or October) '94 are still covered as per Toyota (National) when I spoke to them last month.

 

I just finished rebuilding the engine in my '93 4Runner after 6 months of brutal stress and despair! First the head gasket blew, and then two days after replacing it, the rod bearings went out in the #6 cylinder. I never did much "mechanicing" before this, but I will tell you if you can manage to do it yourself, you'll save a fortune!!

My heads needed machining and I found a guy that did BOTH of them for $70, including the cleaning! So don't let your mechanic get the best of you. Even if they are cracked, you could get rebuilt or new heads for a couple hundred bucks each.

Just as a heads up, I've spoken to a few Toyota mechanics in my neighborhood and they claim that there is an angineering problem with these engines, making them prone to overheat and blow the gaskets. I think it had something to do with a lack of water jackets near the #1 and #6 cylinders. So, I am deeply afraid of keeping this truck long enough for it to happen again. It is a shame though because I love it so much.

Another problem that results from this is that if coolant has been getting into your engine, it effectively washes the oil from the bearing shims. This is how my shims were squashed for the same rod where the head gasket blew.

If I would've paid $1400 for the first head gasket repair, I would've been extremely distraught to realize I needed to rebuild the engine only days later(requires changing the head gaskets again at $140 a pop)!

Also, I hear alot about how the "new" gasket has supposedly improved the issue. Maybe it has, but I've also heard that the gasket design has been changed about 6 times or so! For the record, the previous owner of my car had the warranty repair done on the gaskets already, yet it happened again to me!

Frankly, after all was said and done, I am extremely surprised the damn thing works again. I've become used to seeing my engine hanging from that cherry picker!


Good Luck!

Drew

 

I have a '95 and mine was done about 10k miles ago by the previous owner of the truck and it was covered...for some reason I think it was made in Jun '95 but im not exactly sure.

Fink

 

So it looks like the heads are back on but I spoke with the mechanic and he said my head studs were still in good shape and that Toyota says if they are in good condition to go ahead a re-use them. Im a little worried but the guy says he's gonna give me 1year warranty and unlimited mileage in that year. Well, last year I put 30k on the beast. So Hopefully this guy is right about the studs. After reading other posts, I thought it would be a good idea to use new ones, but obviously he doesnt. Im crossing my fingers. I should get it back this afternoon! I cant wait to drive it.