Rod broken - bummed out ...what to do?

lcchik

lcchik

New member
Rod broken while turning ('01 w/76K mile)..would Toyota cover????

Bought my 2001 4R last October with only 76K on engine. It was a soccer mom truck, dealer maintained, and exceptionally clean. It is my daily driver.

Went to pull into a parking stall yesterday and while braking, the engine rev'ed high for a few seconds with a slight metal sound at the top of the rev then the truck started shaking. No knocking sounds. CEL on. OBD codes read misfiring on 1 and 4 cylinders. Replaced plugs, wires and coil on cylinder 1 with no luck. Brought it to local Toyo dealership - found that piston 1 was not moving. They were very surprised as the truck sounded normal while running - shaking was the only symption. Since this engine has so little miles and I baby my other Toyota trucks, I am stunned and saddened that this happened to a Toyota engine. Dealership said it was wierd fluke - and it would cost around 5K for a used motor with 12 mos warranty.

My question - before I sink major $$ - has anyone had luck in Toyota honoring an outdated engine warranty? I read on the forum that there were sludge problems on some 3.4's and that perhaps Toyota would replace or somehow compensate for a blown engine that had so little miles and was not abused.

My BF is going to pull the engine to see if the cylinder wall and the crankshaft has been damaged. If the engine cannot be rebuilt, wouldn't paying extra for a rebuilt (rather than used) be worth it? My fear would be getting a used with low mileage and having the same thing happen. What kind of prices should I expect with rebuild? May be a silly question, but if I order a rebuilt engine, would it definitely be a Toyota engine?

Thanks in advance for any advice!!
 
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I have never seen Toy warranty an engine that was up in years; the only reason they would do such would be for a recall or possibly TSB, which the thrown rod does not fall under.

5 big ones seems excessive for a used engine. You may have better luck finding one at a yard:
Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market
 
If ur bf can turn A wrench then around 2500 should be about right

http://4runner-engine.info/


Chk Car-parts like LC said

I would just tear it down and go for a rebuild myself
Little miles and it's a Toyota

Heck buy a short block

All my 2 cents
 
Yeah, if the cylinder wall is damaged, then I would say troll here, yotatech and some of the other forums fo someone parting out and see if you can get the engine. I have seen them go for under $1k that way. Otherwise, watch ebay and salvage yard for a new arrival, maybe go to some insurance auctions and see if you can pick up a totaled 4runner to pull the engine out of. If your BF can pull the engine out,then he can do the swap for you too, so it couldbe well worth your while to try a used engine.

This really does sound like a fluke. I don't think I have ever heard of anyone else throwing a rod, high miles or no. I think you can feel confident that this won't happen again, even on a used engine.
 
i dont know about your area, but out here in the PNW, i see 3.4l motors on craigslist all the time for $700-1000 and occasionally $500... id start my search locally first and see what you can find. ive heard of rods getting tossed through the side of the block before but this is an odd case with the motor still running and just "missing". but yes the truck is worth keeping and repairing, as the others have said this is a fluke and very rare.
 
If you end up going with a used engine off of Ebay of CL, make sure the water pump and timing belt have been done. If not, buy the kit and have your BF do it before the engine goes in. Its recommended to be done at 90,000 miles but I myself am at 140,000 on the original. My water pump just started seeping so I'll be doing this job very soon. Best of luck!
 
dont forget, if searching craigslist check for tacoma part outs or engines too. not everyone selling them knows what else they fit, deals are out there.
 
Thanks everyone...

Thanks for all the words of wisdom (and sympathy :cry2: too). I know it is a longshot, but I will be checking with Toyota tomorrow to see if they would compensate me in any way. It is a rare event that should not have happened - perhaps a defective engine?? I will let you all know the outcome. In the meantime I will research the prices on rebuilds, used engines,etc. using the links you gave. Hopefully the engine hasn't been damaged too far beyond a rebuild. If so, since this is my daily driver and I plan on keeping this truck for many, many years, I just might bite the bullet and buy a new short block from Toyota - around 3K but the labor will be free :wink2:

Thanks again...I love this forum
 
Don't buy a rebuild. Almost all the threads I have seen where someone bought a rebuilt ended up bad eventually.

I redid the heads on my engine but I kept the block. But I know the truck very well and trusted the bottom end was good. I never would buy a rebuilt engine for $4000 even if it came with a warranty. Just because it runs for 12 months doesn't mean it will last 5 years.

When you get a rebuild, it will not be rebuilt with OEM parts. This is because NO ONE can afford to rebuild a Toyota engine with full OEM parts. They are so expensive. A singe head (with all moving parts) would probably cost $5000 - I asked around when I blew my top end. What you will get for the $4000 is a rebuild using cheaper parts && you won't even know if the rest of the engine is really that good.

In FL you can probably find a wreck with a near perfect low mileage engine for less than $1500. This is mainly because it is really easy to fully total a used 4Runner these days. With almost every wreck, insurance companies total them out and send them to the scrap yards. That is just how it is with cars valued at < $7000. A lot of the wrecks never compromised the engine bay.

:lookout:
 
brianemc2_42 said:
Don't buy a rebuild. Almost all the threads I have seen where someone bought a rebuilt ended up bad eventually.

I redid the heads on my engine but I kept the block. But I know the truck very well and trusted the bottom end was good. I never would buy a rebuilt engine for $4000 even if it came with a warranty. Just because it runs for 12 months doesn't mean it will last 5 years.

When you get a rebuild, it will not be rebuilt with OEM parts. This is because NO ONE can afford to rebuild a Toyota engine with full OEM parts. They are so expensive. A singe head (with all moving parts) would probably cost $5000 - I asked around when I blew my top end. What you will get for the $4000 is a rebuild using cheaper parts && you won't even know if the rest of the engine is really that good.

In FL you can probably find a wreck with a near perfect low mileage engine for less than $1500. This is mainly because it is really easy to fully total a used 4Runner these days. With almost every wreck, insurance companies total them out and send them to the scrap yards. That is just how it is with cars valued at < $7000. A lot of the wrecks never compromised the engine bay.

:lookout:
Click to expand...

I wouldn't buy a "rebuild" for that much either when you can get a new short block from Toyota for $2500

2000 TOYOTA 4RUNNER Parts - Carson Toyota/Scion/Lexus Ultimate OEM Parts

I have rebuilt a lot of engines (Toyota and Honda mostly) over the years, and there is nothing wrong with a rebuild if you don't use junk parts. Yes buying factory parts is a little expensive but still cheaper than a new vehicle and still cheaper than rebuilds twice as often to do crap parts. The other part of the equation is finding a machine shop that is 100% as meticulous as Toyota was on the original assembly. I went through several machine shops before I found a couple that I could trust to do what I needed at the exact tolerances I wanted.
 
brianemc2_42 said:
Don't buy a rebuild. Almost all the threads I have seen where someone bought a rebuilt ended up bad eventually.

I redid the heads on my engine but I kept the block. But I know the truck very well and trusted the bottom end was good. I never would buy a rebuilt engine for $4000 even if it came with a warranty. Just because it runs for 12 months doesn't mean it will last 5 years.

When you get a rebuild, it will not be rebuilt with OEM parts. This is because NO ONE can afford to rebuild a Toyota engine with full OEM parts. They are so expensive. A singe head (with all moving parts) would probably cost $5000 - I asked around when I blew my top end. What you will get for the $4000 is a rebuild using cheaper parts && you won't even know if the rest of the engine is really that good.

In FL you can probably find a wreck with a near perfect low mileage engine for less than $1500. This is mainly because it is really easy to fully total a used 4Runner these days. With almost every wreck, insurance companies total them out and send them to the scrap yards. That is just how it is with cars valued at < $7000. A lot of the wrecks never compromised the engine bay.

:lookout:
Click to expand...

Yes, these are my worries in buying a rebuild -it is not really the same as a Toyota assembled engine due to using aftermarket parts. I am really hoping that I can get away with only replacing parts ie rod, piston and crankshaft, etc. If not, then I might go the new shortblock route. Even though buying a used engine (low mileage) would be less than half the price of a new short block, how would one know if the used engine hasn't been rebuilt or abused in some way?
 
If Toyota won't help, tear it down and asses the damage. A new Toyota short block would be great, but there are decent rebuild kits out there too. LC Engineering has a pretty good one.
 
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