Should be all back together today, Hopefully no more issues...

I'm currently in the middle of this repair. Do you have any advice for removing the oil pan and timing cover with the engine still in the vehicle? Thanks in advance.

I had the same issue on my 2004 4runner. Dealer looked at it but could not isolate problem before I had to leave. But I re-tightened the gas cap, tossed in some injector cleaner and filled up the tank. Rough idle stopped and the CEL light wen off by itself. Its been about 6 months, no problem yet. Go figure. Maybe bad gas, a loose cap, or the injector cleaner helped.

Well I'm having the same issues with my 04 ltd with 140k miles. It started 2 weeks ago, rough idle then CEL and threw codes. I found related threads and most point to HG issues. Went to an indie shop and mentioned that, and they said nah, probably just need new plugs. Since the shop was recommended by someone I know, I went along and they replaced plugs (I guess I don't want to face reality). Ran fine for 2 days and rough idle and threw codes again. So I dropped the car off for shop to check again today and when they opened the hood, coolant smell is present, but no noticeable loss of coolant. Now I'm waiting for a quote to get the heads changed. The problem is I have 2 other issues that needs repaired:
1. left wheel bearing is going, I can hear it on highway and smooths out when turning right.
2. Frozen driver's side caliper again. I changed it 2 years ago and it's frozen again. It is constantly holding the rotor, shakes hard when braking on highway.

Caliper I can change myself, but the other 2 I don't want to attempt. So my dilemma is whether to take the hit on repair cost, or just trade it in. From reading the other posts I assume $2000-2500 for HG is reasonable? what about wheel bearing change?

Sad day, wan't expecting a big repair bill.

HG changeout at the dealer will run 3K+. Front wheel bearings are no big deal to change out by yourself for $220 each. I bought mine from Bluepit bearings. Look at the Youtube video and decide for yourself if you can handle it.

Not to hit you'll while your down but if your pedal shakes when you pressed it, thats because your rotors are warped and will need to be replaced

I just had this happen to me. I replaced all the spark plugs, swapped coils and even used FI cleaner, it all worked temporarily. The 3rd time the light came on I took it to the dealer, they told me cyl 6 had coolant in the cylinder and that it would be $2500 to take it apart and put it back together, that's if there weren't any other problems. When they got the heads off the heads were good but they recommended a valve job +$500, and they needed to replace a bunch of fasteners that broke in the process. Once they got it all back together one of the O2 sensors $200 was bad due to the engine burning coolant. All totaled, with a new water pump $200, timing chain $800, & valve job, it totaled $4800. Think very seriously if you want to keep your ride, hopefully I'll get another 111k miles now.

You probably could have installed a rebuilt engine for that price. Sounds like you wanted to go the extra mile to have a like new condition engine, or your dealership took advantage of you. But for people who need to do this in the future and are on a budget, it can be done for less.

Man... same thing has been happening to me for the past week and a half. I have a 04 Limited V6 with 169K miles.

I first noticed a small shake right at startup, but it would go away after about 15 seconds. I thought there was some condensation in the gas tank, so I filled up with premium, put in some Sea Foam, and made sure the gas cap was nice and tight. A couple days later, the CEL went on. Read the codes and it was a P0306.

I took it to a shop I trust on Saturday and they switched out the coil in cylinder 6, changed all spark plugs, and cleaned the fuel injectors. $350 later, I hoped the issue was gone, but the CEL came back on today. I still notice a slight shake on startup. Just pulled the codes for the CEL and it's a P0306 again.

So should I recommend my tech to look at the HG? I haven't noticed any usual signs of an HG going bad, but from what I've read, it appears that it could be. Any other suggestions before I take the 4Runner back in early next week?

I'm having a #6 miss fire as well. Do any of you find this even remotely acceptable on what is supposed to be a "reliable" vehicle? Head gaskets before 300+k miles? I can tell you I never had this kind of trouble with my 97 Pathfinder. and seriously 2200 for the repair? That's have the value of some of these trucks....

I've had the same issue with #6 miss fire. Mine occurred around 130k (3-4 years ago). Dealer quoted me $3500 for repairs and I said screw that. I never got it fix but my 4runner is still running strong at 190K. Knock on wood. I'm going to drive it till the engine blows then replace it.

Since I cant get it inspected with dash lights on Im not afforded that luxury....

Just though I would share, I tried a bottle of Blue Devil head gasket sealer and I am on day 3 of no #6 misfire or stumbles at start up. Not sure how long this will last but for now its working.

So, its been doing the misfire/warning lights at start-up thing for 60k miles, without overheating or any other issues? do you lose coolant slowly, but just keep topping it off?


keep us posted on this. I've read of some people using Bar's Leak stop with some success also.

My truck developed this problem just as I decided to stop using it as my daily driver and was going to keep it for Home Depot / winter snowstorm duty only (so maybe 2000 miles/year max). If I can keep it going, even another 20k miles without a $3500 fix, I would be thrilled.

For the record I used the White label Blue Devil product. I read bad things about the yellow label. I only need my truck to last another year as well, I have been wanting to sell it as I'm not really a fan of it. I will post again if it fails or something else goes wrong with the POS.