Engine block heater no longer available for 4th gen?

[OrdnanceMarine]

I placed an order for the engine block heater for my '07 1GR-FE and was contacted this morning that the part has been discontinued. Part number is 00213-00900, though they had my VIN to verify it was the right part. I had ordered from toyotapartscheap.com (Mossy Toyota in San Diego). I've also contacted my local dealership but that can often be a black hole.

Does anyone know if and where you can get the block heater for the 4th gen T4R? Had toyotapartscheap had the part, it was only $31.

Thanks!

 

[R.A.]

I did a quick google, and it looks like trdparts4u might have the part. Might be a black hole, but check it out. Certainly I would think that Canada might carry the part (the part being sold is a Canada part with a Canada Toyota part number):

Toyota Block Heater (see description) 00113-00902

 

[Bossman]

Toyota Canada should still have block heaters available for 4th Gen T4R.

Toyota Canada part number = PU140-00902

Toyota U.S.A. part number = 00113-00213-00902

(formerly part #00213-00889 or 00213-00885 or 00213-00900).

Your old part number is listed above.

Try going back with the updated part number.

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

I did a quick google, and it looks like trdparts4u might have the part. Might be a black hole, but check it out. Certainly I would think that Canada might carry the part (the part being sold is a Canada part with a Canada Toyota part number):

Toyota Block Heater (see description) 00113-00902

It does say they carry it but the $59 before they add shipping charges plus possibly "Delivery and Processing Charges" and you can't get any information on how much shipping costs unless you enter all of your personal information.

From their website:

"Shipping Charges or Delivery & Processing Charges (D & P)
D & P is the charge for internet order processing, item selection, packaging, processing, transport and handling."

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

Toyota U.S.A. part number = 00113-00213-00902
(formerly part #00213-00889 or 00213-00885 or 00213-00900).

Thanks! This was the ticket. Found a good half-dozen places selling it for under $40 before shipping. Ended up at toyotapartsbarn where I paid about $28 for the heater and $11 for shipping. Threw in some oil drain plug gaskets to have on hand.

 

[R.A.]

Thanks! This was the ticket. Found a good half-dozen places selling it for under $40 before shipping. Ended up at toyotapartsbarn where I paid about $28 for the heater and $11 for shipping. Threw in some oil drain plug gaskets to have on hand.

Glad you found what you needed.

I'm curious, though. Did the part look like the here:

Toyota Block Heater (see description) 00113-00902

Did the A/C cord have the nice metal shielding around it?

Thanks.

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

Glad you found what you needed.

I'm curious, though. Did the part look like the here:

Toyota Block Heater (see description) 00113-00902

Did the A/C cord have the nice metal shielding around it?

Thanks.

Will let you know when it arrives. Let me know if pictures would help.

 

[R.A.]

Will let you know when it arrives. Let me know if pictures would help.

It would nice to know if the parts look identical. Pictures would be nice.

There seems to be different looking block heaters with different part numbers. While the numbers sometimes are superseded and the part remains the same, sometimes the parts are updated and they update the part numbers. I have run into 3 block heaters from Toyota where the A/C cord shielding is different. The block heater itself looks to be the same.

I'm considering buying one myself.

Thanks.

 

[Kmvreter]

... I'm considering buying one myself.

Thanks.

Gotta ask why someone from the "Land of Too Much Sun" (Arizona?) requires a block heater? Do your cold soak temps ever get anywhere near the pour point of your oil (below freezing) for an extended period of time?

 

[R.A.]

Gotta ask why someone from the "Land of Too Much Sun" (Arizona?) requires a block heater? Do your cold soak temps ever get anywhere near the pour point of your oil (below freezing) for an extended period of time?

Headed north back to Montana. Fried my brain in AZ; now it's time to freeze it for a while.

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

Gotta ask why someone from the "Land of Too Much Sun" (Arizona?) requires a block heater? Do your cold soak temps ever get anywhere near the pour point of your oil (below freezing) for an extended period of time?

To be honest, I was waiting for that question myself. Why does my garaged 4Runner that will rarely see a start below 40 degrees need a block heater?

 

[Kmvreter]

To be honest, I was waiting for that question myself. Why does my garaged 4Runner that will rarely see a start below 40 degrees need a block heater?

Good question. Why would it?
But you already bought it. Can you cancel the order or return it?

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

Good question. Why would it?
But you already bought it. Can you cancel the order or return it?

I'm kind of in a unique situation. I installed a solar panel system on my house a little over a year ago and produce more power than I use even after I power everything in my house with electricity except for heat water and cook on the stove/oven (electric water heater should be delivered any day now if Sears can get their act together). I've been preheating my Civic in the morning before work for about a year now and like starting with the coolant temp around 120F. The electricity is essentially "free" and it can only help slightly lessen the effects of a cold engine start and mitigate the fact that my engine doesn't truly reach full operating temp very often.

I'd like to do the same thing for my wife and kids with the 4Runner since their usual driving consists of trips that are even shorter than mine.

 

[Kmvreter]

Nice. A T4R heat sink.
You need a plug-in hybrid. Can you get off the grid?

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

Nice. A T4R heat sink.
You need a plug-in hybrid. Can you get off the grid?

Can't get off the grid with my current setup. I've have to swap to a different inverter and then figure out where to put the necessary batteries. The utility made it too attractive to not be grid-tied. The incentive was 34-cents/kWh for 5 years and I produced 9700kWh last year. Plus I am on the time-of-use plan where I'm getting a higher credit for generation during peak hours (when the sun shines). This plus the 30% federal tax credit means that my system will have cost me $3400 after 5 years and that's not counting ANY savings in electricity and gas. My gas and electric costs combined were about $1800/year. The return on investment was only this high because I live in the sunniest valley on earth and I did all of the planning and installation myself.

Plug-in hybrid would be cool but as it stands right now I burn less than a tank of gas in my Civic per month commuting.

 

[gm350reratliff]

Can't get off the grid with my current setup. I've have to swap to a different inverter and then figure out where to put the necessary batteries. The utility made it too attractive to not be grid-tied. The incentive was 34-cents/kWh for 5 years and I produced 9700kWh last year. Plus I am on the time-of-use plan where I'm getting a higher credit for generation during peak hours (when the sun shines). This plus the 30% federal tax credit means that my system will have cost me $3400 after 5 years and that's not counting ANY savings in electricity and gas. My gas and electric costs combined were about $1800/year. The return on investment was only this high because I live in the sunniest valley on earth and I did all of the planning and installation myself.

Plug-in hybrid would be cool but as it stands right now I burn less than a tank of gas in my Civic per month commuting.

Wow 34 cents per kw? My electric co-op only pays 2.8 cents per kw. I'm planning on building a new house soon (hopefully will strike a deal on the land today) and was thinking about using a photovoltaic system like you described. Any details or tips on your system that you could pm me? I'm still not sure if its worth the investment. Coolness geek factor yes.

As for the block heater in the 4runner, I have one installed on my 4runner. I was going to use it once when I was in northern ND and the temp outside fell to -35F. But after a night of playing poker and drinking I simply passed out and forgot about it. The next morning the 4runner started just fine. At those temps it takes awhile to warm up so the preheated engine would have been nice but no damage was done. It hasn't been that cold anywhere I've been since then so there has been no need for it. But its there just in case.

 

[fayraree]

helpful thread, thank you! I'm looking into an engine block heater so my mom can use my 4runner over the winter in Toronto. It gets pretty bad on the worst days so I was going to set her up with a timer, etc.

The car is from Delaware and stayed around NYC all of its first owner's life but now will be doing a lot of Canadian winter duty so I'm planning to get the rust proofing done with POR-15 type stuff and also get the block heater.

I found Kat's block heater for my 2008 Sport V8 for only $20 but I'm a bit weary about its quality and fit. Put questions out to several parts departments in local NYC Toy dealers as well as one in Toronto. I can easily return on Amazon if I locate the OEM part.

Will update this thread with my results. The parts numbers were helpful, thank you!

 

[fayraree]

...as an update, I took the car to a local Toronto, Canada dealer and the foreman was a bit cautious about installing the freeze plug block heater because of the potential for coolant leaks. Even though my truck has pretty low miles (37k), it has been exposed to the northeastern climate for 9 years, so there could potentially be rust that could cause hairline fractures when undoing the freeze plug and replacing with the heater, sealed by rubber vs. the factory-sealed freeze plug.

Since the car will be sitting in an indoor garage this winter, I may opt for a magnet heater this season, since it will spend most of its life parked in NY or DC, where it doesn't get as cold in Toronto.

Couldn't muster the courage to proceed! Also, the dealer quoted as a 3-4 hour job including the coolant flush, which made me question the whole thing. If any confident mechanics want to help me out in Toronto/NY/PA/DC, there will be cash + beer waiting for you!

 

[m85476585]

...as an update, I took the car to a local Toronto, Canada dealer and the foreman was a bit cautious about installing the freeze plug block heater because of the potential for coolant leaks. Even though my truck has pretty low miles (37k), it has been exposed to the northeastern climate for 9 years, so there could potentially be rust that could cause hairline fractures when undoing the freeze plug and replacing with the heater, sealed by rubber vs. the factory-sealed freeze plug.

Since the car will be sitting in an indoor garage this winter, I may opt for a magnet heater this season, since it will spend most of its life parked in NY or DC, where it doesn't get as cold in Toronto.

Couldn't muster the courage to proceed! Also, the dealer quoted as a 3-4 hour job including the coolant flush, which made me question the whole thing. If any confident mechanics want to help me out in Toronto/NY/PA/DC, there will be cash + beer waiting for you!

The V8 block heater is a totally different kind of install than the V6. V6 is easy.
Here's a thread about the V8 block heater:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/179593-04-v8-block-heater-install-question.html

I read a few reviews that say the Kat's one won't fit, so don't risk it. The Toyota one is hard to find but apparently still available in Canada.

I can't imagine any chance of hairline fractures in the block. It's a big chunk of metal. Leaks around the heater are possible, but you can put some FIPG sealant around the O-ring to help. Just don't scratch the opening where the freeze plug goes in, and scrub away any excess rust inside the hole before you install the heater. It might be a good idea to use a brass wire brush to clean the hole before you remove the freeze plug, to clean up any rust without getting it inside the engine.

Changing the coolant is easy, honestly. There's a nice drain port on the engine and on the radiator. The hardest part is just getting a wrench on the engine drain bolt, since it is difficult to reach. Once you refill and get most of the air out, it bleeds itself*. The coolant should be changed anyway around 10 years or 100k miles to refresh the corrosion preventing additives, and doing it a few years early wouldn't hurt. I just changed mine, so I'll collect it and put it back in when I install a block heater. If you want to save money you could put the old coolant back in, or refill with Zerex Asian formula. Make sure debris doesn't fall in the bucket of coolant if you put it back in. Keep in mind that when you change the timing belt it's a good idea to change the water pump, which involves draining the coolant. The timing belt should be done at something like 7 years(?)/ 90k miles, so it's not too early to do it now despite the low miles. You can go longer, but I wouldn't risk it for too long.

I couldn't find a good place to install a magnet heater. You could put a flexible silicone heater on the oil pan or a maybe narrow one on each valve cover.

* The way it self-bleeds is not obvious, but I think I figured it out. When the engine warms up the cooling system pressurizes and pushes air into the overflow tank. When it cools it contracts and sucks coolant from the overflow tank. I don't understand why the overflow tank isn't pressurized, but maybe the radiator cap seals it off as pressure builds up. It might take a few hot/cold cycles of normal driving to get the last air bubbles out.

 

[fayraree]

^thanks for the advice! It comes down to me paying for the labor for someone at Toyota to do exactly the prep and cleaning and sealing as you mentioned, and they were just worried that they wouldn't do a perfect job and I'd come back really upset about it later...maybe I'll do this when I do the timing belt and water pump since the coolant will be out anyway. Appreciate the tips!