Hello
I have a 99’ 4Runner with 218,000 miles. I purchased it in 2010 when it had 80,000 miles. Since I’ve owned the vehicle, I’ve done regular scheduled maintenance, and I’ve used it primarily for commuting to work.
Normally I take my vehicle to be serviced at a Toyota dealership, but I recently took it to a local mechanic to have the MAF sensor and left cv boot replaced due to the mechanic offering to do the work at a lower cost.
The day I took it to the mechanic, I was told they wanted to test to MAF sensor to make sure that it indeed needed to be replaced. Two hours later I was told that the rod cap that connects the piston rod to the crank shaft had broken while they were testing the sensor, and that there was a hole in the engine block leaking oil. They explained to me that something like this happens rarely and it was of no fault of the mechanic. I was given an option of replacing the engine with a used one with 180,000 miles and that they would charge ~$5500. I declined and towed my vehicle from the shop and was charged nothing.
I never had any indications of the engine failing like it did such as hearing a knocking sound. The only thing I noticed a week before I took my vehicle in was a slight drop in gas mileage. Is a rod cap failing something that could happen normally, or should I suspect foul play?
I have a 99’ 4Runner with 218,000 miles. I purchased it in 2010 when it had 80,000 miles. Since I’ve owned the vehicle, I’ve done regular scheduled maintenance, and I’ve used it primarily for commuting to work.
Normally I take my vehicle to be serviced at a Toyota dealership, but I recently took it to a local mechanic to have the MAF sensor and left cv boot replaced due to the mechanic offering to do the work at a lower cost.
The day I took it to the mechanic, I was told they wanted to test to MAF sensor to make sure that it indeed needed to be replaced. Two hours later I was told that the rod cap that connects the piston rod to the crank shaft had broken while they were testing the sensor, and that there was a hole in the engine block leaking oil. They explained to me that something like this happens rarely and it was of no fault of the mechanic. I was given an option of replacing the engine with a used one with 180,000 miles and that they would charge ~$5500. I declined and towed my vehicle from the shop and was charged nothing.
I never had any indications of the engine failing like it did such as hearing a knocking sound. The only thing I noticed a week before I took my vehicle in was a slight drop in gas mileage. Is a rod cap failing something that could happen normally, or should I suspect foul play?
