Rod broke in half at only 78K.....lousy Friday night...

lcchik

lcchik

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Rod broke in half at only 78K.....lousy Friday night...Now have pictures

Well, pulled the engine out last night from my 2001. Inside the oil pan were the remains of the cylinder 1 rod. Appears that it broke in half and took out chunks of the block and crankshaft. The piston remained at the top of the cylinder, but it too was cracked. Still in disbelief....happened while turning into a parking stall.

Through the dispair, I forgot to take pictures. Will post later.

Today I am shopping for a used motor. Has anyone had any experience with JDM Japanese motors? TOYOTA 4RUNNER T100 TACOMA TUNDRA 3.4L 4-CAM 24-VALVE ENGINE JDM 5VZ-FE 5VZ | eBay

I was looking into wrecked vehicles, but it seems that only auctions are where you find these. Any advice in finding sources for used engines?

Thanks in advance...
 
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I know..I know. So many people are incredulous when I tell them, especially Toyo owners. I contacted Toyota Motor Corp. several times to see if they would offer some sort of compensation. Their offer for being a loyal Toyota customer? A whopping $1,000 off a new car. What a slap in the face. They know they have a loyal following...they think they don't have to keep current owners happy.
 
Did you happen to break a mirror while driving under a ladder after waiting for a black cat to cross in front of you before pulling into that parking spot?

That is terrible luck.

As for as Toyotas response, I could see possibly a better offer if you were having the work done at a dealer where they could possibly offer to cover a bit of the labor or something.
 
stickfigure...I had the truck at my local dealership because I was willing to have them do the work. But they didn't offer any discount - not even 20% on parts. Plus they wanted $800 just to see what was wrong with it. And their customer service relations were horrible. Had the truck towed back home.
 
Wow, that sucks. I'll have a spare motor available in a couple weeks. But I'd throw a rebuild at it if I were you. And I'm in PA so probably not your most cost effective route.
 
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What a bummer! No personal experience with JDM motors but have been warned that they spend a lot of time sitting around before being sold here in the states and that it can cause the seals to go bad and other problems.
Good luck getting her up and running.
 
Thanks all for the condolences lol. Good info Yoter regarding the seals on the JDM enginer - never thought about that. And thanks LittleCaeser for the car parts link...I found two engines a few hours away to check on next weekend.

Is there anything I should be looking for when shopping for a used engine? I know to check the VIN number with carfax to confirm mileage. And to be wary of a spotless/ie steam cleaned engine.

Any thing else to check?
 
Gotcha, I have to imagine you could find a clean used motor in central/south FL, there are never any up this way. If you find a good source please post up.
 
long road ahead...

Something tells me looking for a used engine will be a long journey: one yard advertised an engine with a little more than 100K miles, but the VIN checked out at over 200K miles. Sheesh...
 
lcchik said:
Something tells me looking for a used engine will be a long journey: one yard advertised an engine with a little more than 100K miles, but the VIN checked out at over 200K miles. Sheesh...
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This world is full of liars and thieves out to make a dollar. Its sad really. But there's no lack of 3.4 5vz-fe's out there. Ive looked around at them to guage what I might pay in the future to replace my current engine when it croaks. The used car part site listed above is pretty good. Ive seen several of them on craigslist as well in areas where 3rd gens are popular. Good luck
 
If that happened to me, I'd spring for the JDM diesel and matching tranny... A few more bucks for sure, but if you're going to be that deep in it anyway, might as well go whole hog! You certainly won't regret it.
 
There is something inherent to the the 5VZ-FE that is causing this to happen.

Literally EVERY rod-breaking story I've heard with the 5VZ, the rod breaks when you are turning the vehicle at low speed. What in the world could cause this? As rare as it is....if every time it happens the vehicle is turning at low speed, then it's not random.
 
quicksilvr said:
There is something inherent to the the 5VZ-FE that is causing this to happen.

Literally EVERY rod-breaking story I've heard with the 5VZ, the rod breaks when you are turning the vehicle at low speed. What in the world could cause this? As rare as it is....if every time it happens the vehicle is turning at low speed, then it's not random.
Click to expand...

thank god i drive my truck like i stole it lol
 
Caution: Disturbing photos

First picture is exactly what the oil pan looked like when it was lowered. :sobbing:

Second picture is where the parts blew a hole in the shield between the block and oil pan.

I was considering buying a new block if the cylinder head assembly was undamaged. No such luck...took it apart tonight...toast. Metal fragments went all through the engine. With so much damage, I still can't believe the trunk ran with no noises, just shaking. Ironically, I guess it shows how tough these truck can be despite running on only 5 cylinders with metal pieces floating everywhere.

To make it even more unbelievable, the engine was immaculate inside. Previous owner certainly kept up the regular oil changes.

Will now be resuming the search for a low mileage engine from a reputable source (LOL)
 

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