Recent content by Fresh727

Turns out the heads are cracked and not repairable which leads me to believe the bottom end could've heated up enough to be a total loss. Having bought this vehicle last year and not knowing its full history I think I am now going to err on the side of caution and put another engine in...HG best...

Ok...update fellas. Well you folks are just an amazing help and I appreciate it. My coworker had a Toyota mechanic in town he trusted with his 3rd gen and I decided to take some advice from folks here to get the work done right. I wanted to take it to YotaMasters or The Truck Shop but time and...

That was a quote over the phone with what I imagine is a best case scenario situation. If he gets in there and a head is cracked...well then I guess my wallet is off to the races!! lol

Interesting experiences on the JDMs..if I lived in NJ I'd make the hike to that warehouse...I checked out there website. Anyhow, I'm 2800 miles away in CA and the price for shipping $500 plus $1500 for the engine plus $800-$1200 to install is just too rich for my blood on a vehicle I paid $4k...

That's a solution I've been looking into but after $1500 to $1750 for the engine..another $200 additional charge for shipping to CA and not having a friend to install...I'm looking at $750 so far to install the donor. $2500-2700 is a bit steep ....And that's if everything goes as planned. Don't...

You fellas are an awesome source of info and I appreciate it. So an update here...been pointed to a very reputable toyota specialist about an hour away and over a small mountain pass....so before I commit to heading over there. I wanted to do some tests. First, was a Block Test today...it was...

lol...good to hear your voice either way! I'll give them a ring at the RIGHT number! Funny thing...I just ran a third block test and it came out negative. I know those things aren't all together accurate but I was baffled by the results.

Wow...awesome reviews: Yotamasters - Corona, CA | Yelp That's not terribly far from me. maybe an hour tops...I think my rig will make it. Couldn't imagine a better place to have the work done either. I don't feel sketchy about it at all. I mean, how can you argue with a name like "Yotamasters!"...

Ok...thanks fellas...with all of the great advice floating around here, I decided to keep my beloved 99 4runner SR-5 4x4 despite the blown HG. She is otherwise mint and has all the features I ever wanted in one of these awesome vehicles. I've got alot of great OEM replacements in her too...So I...

Now that's the kind of news I'm looking for!!!!! Thanks!!

An accident donor...That's another fine idea. Yes, it's my daily driver and while I go easy on it, I'm sure I'm not helping the situation. So, the consensus is head gasket! Now, I need to find a reputable mechanic who could take on the job. If $2k would get it done, I'd be elated.

Thanks for the tidbit...I wanna keep her and if I could get the whole thing done for under $2k I would for sure do it...rebuild sounds more promising than a swap plus I can pick the parts I want to use. Anybody got a good mechanic for a rebuild project in San Diego, Riverside or Orange...

Well...looking for a little feedback based on the symptoms described but it seems pretty grim. I put awesome high quality replacement parts in with all the work done. I appreciate the info on the gasket kit for $290. I'll look into that....still not sure if test confirm whether I want to have it...

Yeah...I'll have to get that test done...considering worse case scenario, I wonder if anyone here can recommend a mechanic who specializes or just loves working on these things? Again, I'm in Palm Springs area and could probably drive her to San Diego or Orange County. The rebuild and swap are...

Hey folks, So I've been following a number of posts since I bought my beloved 99 4runner 6cyl 4x4 last year with 180k miles and wanted to get some advice. Over the last 6 months it has started burning coolant at a rate of about a gallon every 7k miles. It has a short bout of bellowing white...