In July the fan belt broke in my car at 80 MPH. Had to replace the radiator and was all fine until yesterday. Now, I see air bubbles coming from my radiator.... an indication of bad head gasket, correct?. Car already has 222K miles. Two options, replace the engine or replace the head gasket. What do you guys recommend?
My beloved Toyota Sprinter.......
- Thread starter nissanh
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Whitson Metalworks
New member
I'd do the engine.
shadow247
New member
Depends on your mechanical skill. If you can rebuild the engine yourself you will save a ton of money. If you can at least pull it and take it to a re-builder that is the way I would go. A new reman engine for one of these trucks can run upwards of 3k from what I have seen. There is also the option of a junkyard engine, although finding a low mileage one can be a challenge. If you choose to go the junkyard route, look at LKQ Corporation. They have salvage yards all over the country and ship parts daily. They can sell you a lifetime extended warranty on the used engine for a few hundred bucks as well.
I found this rebuild kit on Ebay - Toyota 4Runner Tacoma 3 4 5VZFE DOHC Engine Rebuild Kit | eBay -
AllData shows 48.6 hours to rebuild the engine, 14 of which is pulling the engine out of the truck. You should be able to work a deal for around 20 hours if you bring the stripped down engine to your builder. You just have to check around and see which is most cost effective.
I found this rebuild kit on Ebay - Toyota 4Runner Tacoma 3 4 5VZFE DOHC Engine Rebuild Kit | eBay -
AllData shows 48.6 hours to rebuild the engine, 14 of which is pulling the engine out of the truck. You should be able to work a deal for around 20 hours if you bring the stripped down engine to your builder. You just have to check around and see which is most cost effective.
ChildrenOfBodom
Moderator
4A-GE?
A rebuild at 222k will revitalize that engine. Had a friend with an old AE86, ran like a whole new car after rebuild.
A rebuild at 222k will revitalize that engine. Had a friend with an old AE86, ran like a whole new car after rebuild.
Stick Figure
New member
Throw it away and swap in something better. Now is the perfect time and there are a LOT of better engines out there:
4AGE is good
4AGZE are a lot of fun
3SGE or 3SGTE would be a blast too, but require a lot more fab work.
The list can go on and on club4ag.com might be a good place to get some ideas.
