axel1
Member
So, I have been very pleased with my 2014 SR5 and it's served me great for the 7 years I've owned it. 160k total miles, 100k of those mine, and I've had to do basically nothing except basic maintenance - oil changes, filters, etc.
Recently, on a trip up to Wisconsin I was driving to dinner at around 20 mph when it started shaking badly, and the flashing CEL came on. Pulled over, read the codes - P0300, P0301, P0303. Two cylinders misfiring, not great, but I figured it would be something simple like coils or plugs. I tried swapping the coil packs around, checking all the harness connections, etc, and no luck - still the same misfires and the engine was sputtering out after around 10 seconds of running. I admitted defeat and had my insurance tow it to the local dealer in Oshkosh.
After fighting with the dealer for a few days about my aftermarket electronics preventing them from diagnosing things (laziness most likely) they finally came back with bad news: no compression in cylinders 1 & 3, with lots of carbon buildup and fluid in cylinder 1 (though they wouldn't tell me what the fluid was nor did they take any borescope photos). Their recommendation was a new engine at a pricetag of $13,800.
It being a dealer, I was skeptical, since I had had zero mechanical issues up to this point and it hadn't been overheating or smoking or anything. I had it towed again to another local shop who managed to squeeze me in on short notice (shoutout to Jacobsen Auto Service in Oshkosh!). They confirmed the same findings - essentially 0 compression on cylinder 1 indicating a major engine failure. Their recommendation was the same, a new engine, though they advised towing it back home would be best since they couldn't get to it for at least a month.
So far, I've called a few local shops near home and have gotten estimates between $6000-$9000 for a remanned or used 1GR installed. That's not great, but swallowable if it means I can run the truck for another 10-15 years. It's otherwise in great shape with minimal rust, especially for the midwest, so I think I'm willing to pay that much.
So that's where we're at - my 4runner is sitting in the lot in WI, 150 miles from me, while I call around local shops and prepare to trailer it back home for repairs.
Now onto my question - my understanding is that even if the engine is rebuildable (which I assume it is considering it still runs and is likely just a head gasket or stuck valve or something) - once you factor in all the labor to tear it down, you're basically paying as much or more than it would be to just rip the old one out and throw a new one in. A few local shops have agreed with this conclusion, but a few more have been skeptical that it could still be something relatively easy to repair. I'm waiting to decide on where to take it until I get all the estimates in and can compare, but I'd love to hear what the hivemind thinks about the whole situation. I don't have a garage or a friend with one, so DIY is unfortunately out of the question.
Recently, on a trip up to Wisconsin I was driving to dinner at around 20 mph when it started shaking badly, and the flashing CEL came on. Pulled over, read the codes - P0300, P0301, P0303. Two cylinders misfiring, not great, but I figured it would be something simple like coils or plugs. I tried swapping the coil packs around, checking all the harness connections, etc, and no luck - still the same misfires and the engine was sputtering out after around 10 seconds of running. I admitted defeat and had my insurance tow it to the local dealer in Oshkosh.
After fighting with the dealer for a few days about my aftermarket electronics preventing them from diagnosing things (laziness most likely) they finally came back with bad news: no compression in cylinders 1 & 3, with lots of carbon buildup and fluid in cylinder 1 (though they wouldn't tell me what the fluid was nor did they take any borescope photos). Their recommendation was a new engine at a pricetag of $13,800.
It being a dealer, I was skeptical, since I had had zero mechanical issues up to this point and it hadn't been overheating or smoking or anything. I had it towed again to another local shop who managed to squeeze me in on short notice (shoutout to Jacobsen Auto Service in Oshkosh!). They confirmed the same findings - essentially 0 compression on cylinder 1 indicating a major engine failure. Their recommendation was the same, a new engine, though they advised towing it back home would be best since they couldn't get to it for at least a month.
So far, I've called a few local shops near home and have gotten estimates between $6000-$9000 for a remanned or used 1GR installed. That's not great, but swallowable if it means I can run the truck for another 10-15 years. It's otherwise in great shape with minimal rust, especially for the midwest, so I think I'm willing to pay that much.
So that's where we're at - my 4runner is sitting in the lot in WI, 150 miles from me, while I call around local shops and prepare to trailer it back home for repairs.
Now onto my question - my understanding is that even if the engine is rebuildable (which I assume it is considering it still runs and is likely just a head gasket or stuck valve or something) - once you factor in all the labor to tear it down, you're basically paying as much or more than it would be to just rip the old one out and throw a new one in. A few local shops have agreed with this conclusion, but a few more have been skeptical that it could still be something relatively easy to repair. I'm waiting to decide on where to take it until I get all the estimates in and can compare, but I'd love to hear what the hivemind thinks about the whole situation. I don't have a garage or a friend with one, so DIY is unfortunately out of the question.
