I just got off the phone with Toyota Corporate and was informed that my truck has too many miles and is too old to be compensated by Toyota for my leaking head gasket. I have read through numerous postings on this website and found that this mechanical problem is very common in my year 4Runner as well as other years. Toyota indicated that owners need to call customer service to report the problem before a recall is issued. CALL 800-331-4331 if you have had a leaking head gasket on your 4runner.

Word of warning...my head gasket didn't blow out. It was very sneaky. My vehicle started to idle rough when I would start it and then it would run fine after 30 seconds. Then, the check engine light came on along with these other SVC lights. The dealer made some minor repairs (replaced the battery, coils, and almost an injector) before finding the leak.

Toyota will not admit there is a problem. They said people need to contact them in order for a recall. Obviously there is a problem. I advise you to call them if you have had this happen to you.

2004 4runner, Limited 4X4, 98k Miles
Redwood City, CA

V8 or V6?

I had my head gaskets replaced this year on my V6. Thank God I bought the extended warranty or I would be on the hook for the $1300. I might call the Toy hotline to mention my issues.

Thought I would share since I am new here.
2006 Sport with 49K

I have a 2004 SR5 V-6/4WD with 133,000 miles on it, and I think I am facing the same issue - chk eng light, along with VSC and TRAC lights on. The OBD reported a #6 cylinder misfire, so I had taken it to the dealership and began the process of isolating the problem. Swapped wires, coil packs, and now they want to swap injectors...

The day before yesterday, I was driving (under the assumption it's the injector) and smelled a strange odor coming through the vents - I immediately recognized it as coolant/antifreeze, and drove straight home. At this point, my chk eng light flashed for about 10 seconds, but went back to steady. When i got home, i did a little web research, and came across this problem/symptoms of a blown head gasket. My next step is to take it back to the dealer to have them break it down, but I am concerned about the price to fix it. I have seen estimates from $1400 - $3800 (on the web) to replace this. I would look for a local mechanic/shop, but have been severely burned from shops doing shoddy work, overcharging, etc....uggghhh...what a way to end 2010...

I have just returned from my local dealer in Marietta, GA after leaving my 2004 V6 SR5 with 187,000 dealer cared for miles. I had read of the problem on this forum, so knew where to tell them to look. Same problem - rough idle after morning start until the leaked in coolant clears out, then runs fine. Today is set a code for PO306 for cylinder #6 misfire. I have read in other postings that this is the problem cylinder. Dealer confirmed leaking gasket or cracked head. Called Toyota Customer Care from the dealership and they claimed to know nothing about any reported problems like this. Dealer estimate to pull, inspect/leak check both heads, change all top end gaskets, about $2,500. I double checked with a independant shop, and got a estimate of $2,400.

Please call toyota and report this problems if you have it. It will be the only way to get a recall possibly started. Right not they are claiming no reports or knowledge of this problem. My local dealership has already had one head gasket failure on the 4th gen V-6.

If it was a misfire on #6 wouldn't you assume that the leak is on that side? Why pull both sides?

And please don't take offense to this but your 4runner is 7 or 8 years old and has 187,000 miles on it. How long should head gaskets last? Forever? The guy with 49k miles has a legit gripe but IMO at your cars age I don't think you have anything to gripe about.

Anyone here who owned a 3rd Gen V6 knows about the Headgasket problems that truck caused. It was so prevelant that they ended up doing a TSB and left it open. I was able to get my engine rebuilt after a blown headgasket in 2007, almost 15 years after the problem cropped up.

Those engines were going at 50k and it was happening to everyone. The problem is numbers. Toyota needs to see a LOT of these occurring before they will see a problem. Without statistical data showing a linkage, you could simply blame it on driver error. Letting your vehicle overheat, even once, will cause warping and your head gasket to go.

I am not saying I don't believe you, I am saying in order to get Toyota to see the problem it needs to be happening with a much larger statistical prevalence.

187k. yea. A blown headgasket at 187k is considered something that can occur. If it was popping at 40 or 50k like they were on the 3.0l V6 put in the 90-95 4runners, then you start going "huh". You were damn near to 200k.... I would expect things to start going.

Long time lurker...what is this? The 6th reported HG failure on the V6 engine in the exact same spot?

Says something about the durability of the V6 vs V8.

To add a technical discussion. This is exactly the kind of result you would see on the V6 vs. V8. The V6 has a much higher RPM power band. It attains peak HP at 5800 RPM. That is darn near redlining. The engine must work much harder than the V8 which has the power band in the 4000 range, with most of the power at low RPM.

U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study | JDPower.com

JD and Power continues to show Toyota well above industry average on reliability. Maybe this is proof positive that a V8 is a better all around choice in terms of reliability. RPM causes Heat, Heat Causes damage. The V6 probably is a hotter running engine to pull as much power as possible out of it.

The V8 was engineered for the Land Cruiser in '98 which has many 250k+ daily drivers. Mine has 130k and drives like new. The intended operating environment and design parameters that Toyota developed the Cruiser for was far harsher than that of the Tacoma, 4Runner, and FJ.

The V8 has a cast iron block, forged internals including connecting rods, lacks an EGR system and multiple other design features that make it one of the most bulletproof power plants ever put in a consumer truck.

That's one of the reasons the 4th gen V8 is one of the best value-for-money trucks Toyota makes. The VF4 Torsen from the 08+ LC and the 2UZ-FE V8 and Aisin A750f transmission from the land cruiser WITH the trans cooler that the V6 lacks.

Although the frame, construction, and general robustness of the Land Cruiser is greater than that of the 120 platform - the drive train is nearly identical.

Where are you getting 6 failures? The OP doesn't mention which engine he has. I count 2. And only 1 of them was below 100k miles. I wouldn't say it's a common problem in the 4th gens. There are problems with the V8's, go search for the manifold cracks that seem to develop on the V8's. And why are you trolling threads trying to turn them into a v6 vs v8 argument?

The manifold issue was on early models, especially with cruisers and is not a direct internal/vital engine component. There are 2 failures on toy120 and at least 3/4 here and even one on Mud. Besides, a cracked manifold won't stop the UN from getting home after rescuing jungle babies.

Just facts, and just sayin.

The 1GR factory redline or fuel cut out (go lean) is 5500 RPM. Peak HP is at 5200 rpm and peak torque is at 3800 rpm.

I completely agree I love my V8 4th Gen and have had zero issues with the power train... I like it so much so that I'm seriously considering trading in my "DD" Cadillac (Which is more of a daily repair than a daily driver) for a 2006/7/8 Lexus GX.

I currently have the engine out of my 4R to replace the head gaskets. It's on the stand as I type this. 89k miles.