The Runner

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CMiles

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I picked up this 1995 4runner for super cheap.. The guy said it had a blown head gasket but I can find anything wrong with it. No water in the oil, or oil in the water. Did a compression test and got a steady 125 psi in all cylinders. Doesn't over heat ect.
Anyone know anything else I can/should look for?
I'm about to just give up trying to find something wrong with it and just drive it and call it a win.
Its got 240k miles.
it also has a really loud lifter noise. Should I try and use some different oil? if so what should I try?
it idles at 2200 rpms and I cant figure out why.. any ideas? I figure its a vacuum leak but I cant find one anywhere.
I would love some ideas. Thanks

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With 220k youll have some valve train noise. A valve job on this motor is definitely an all day job, but certainly do-able. You could try a thicker oil to quiet it down.

For the high idle, check your throttle position sensor and air flow meeter. The Factory service Manual will tell you how to do all that, and can be found in a link on the top of the classics section.

Welcome to the forum! Good looking truck.
 
As far as oil is concerned, I have had good luck using 20w-50. It actually stopped a leak as well as quieting down the engine a bit.
 
Hyde802 said:
With 220k youll have some valve train noise. A valve job on this motor is definitely an all day job, but certainly do-able. You could try a thicker oil to quiet it down.

For the high idle, check your throttle position sensor and air flow meeter. The Factory service Manual will tell you how to do all that, and can be found in a link on the top of the classics section.

Welcome to the forum! Good looking truck.
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I tried checking the throttle position sensor but it doesn't appear to be an issue. the sensor isn't touching the throttle at idle.
 
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CMiles said:
I tried checking the throttle position sensor but it doesn't appear to be an issue. the sensor isn't touching the throttle at ideal.
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You won't really know if it's a TPS issue unless you test it with a multimeter. Same thing with the AFM. Both of which among a list of other things can give you a high idle.

I would definitely keep an eye on the engine though. At a whopping 125 psi for a compression check, I wouldn't put a lot of faith into that engine. I believe the FSM says the 3.0's should be above 150 and all 6 cylinders be within 10 psi of eachother.
 
SV_Dude said:
You won't really know if it's a TPS issue unless you test it with a multimeter. Same thing with the AFM. Both of which among a list of other things can give you a high idle.

I would definitely keep an eye on the engine though. At a whopping 125 psi for a compression check, I wouldn't put a lot of faith into that engine. I believe the FSM says the 3.0's should be above 150 and all 6 cylinders be within 10 psi of eachother.
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I was told the a new 3.0 should have 150 and will go down over time but anything over 105 is still a solid motor as long as the cylinders are within 10% of each other.
 
CMiles said:
I was told the a new 3.0 should have 150 and will go down over time but anything over 105 is still a solid motor as long as the cylinders are within 10% of each other.
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Do all of your checks by the FSM. It's the only safe way to be 100% sure. The FSM is what Toyota publishes to their mechanics and the standard on how and what they do to the vehicles.

I did a compression check on a buddies 91 4runner a while back and if memory serves me correctly, it had about 160psi +/- 5 pounds per cylinder.

I don't have the FSM in front of me but I believe that the 3.0 should have upwards of 170 psi when it's new or rebuilt. When I rebuilt my 22re, the FSM said it should have 175psi. Even the newer 3.4's should have around there as well. The numbers above may be off a little because I'm working off of memory but they aren't far off if at all.
 
Page EM-98 of my '92 FSM says for the 3.0 that compression should be 171 psi, minimum is 142 psi, and max difference between cylinders should be 14 psi or less (10% of low number).

So you're below the min by more than 10%. Check that your pressure gauge is right and that you are doing the check right (you probably are, but my first test wasn't). But if the PO thought the head gasket was bad, your easiest choice would be to find out why the PO thought that.

(I spent some time finding what was leaking oil on a 3000gt (return line from the oil cooler), only to find that it was diagnosed correctly in past mechanic notes, twice I believe)

Good luck. Looks like it was kept in nice condition!
 
giro said:
Page EM-98 of my '92 FSM says for the 3.0 that compression should be 171 psi, minimum is 142 psi, and max difference between cylinders should be 14 psi or less (10% of low number).

So you're below the min by more than 10%. Check that your pressure gauge is right and that you are doing the check right (you probably are, but my first test wasn't). But if the PO thought the head gasket was bad, your easiest choice would be to find out why the PO thought that.

(I spent some time finding what was leaking oil on a 3000gt (return line from the oil cooler), only to find that it was diagnosed correctly in past mechanic notes, twice I believe)

Good luck. Looks like it was kept in nice condition!
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hmm alright, My Chiltons manual said 150 psi but I guess it could be wrong... The guy said it was having an overheating issue. I havent had an issue with overheating.
 
CMiles said:
hmm alright, My Chiltons manual said 150 psi but I guess it could be wrong... The guy said it was having an overheating issue. I havent had an issue with overheating.
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Don't be discouraged. Low PSI isn't the end of the world but it does mean that your engine is old and tired. I wouldn't want to take it on any long drives. If you ever tear into the engine for a rebuild or replacement I would research a 3.4 swap.

In the short order of thigns to do, I would fix your idle issue as that seems to be your biggest issue at this point.

Congrats on the new runner though!
 
SV_Dude said:
If you ever tear into the engine for a rebuild or replacement I would research a 3.4 swap.

In the short order of thigns to do, I would fix your idle issue as that seems to be your biggest issue at this point.

Congrats on the new runner though!
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Is there a 3.4 swap thread somewhere?

I have thought about it but I feel like I'm not quite the mechanically inclined yet... I have pulled motors and put new ones in but I dont know about swapping a different kind of motor in it.... I thought about doing a 22re swap but then I heard that its really just as difficult as a 3.4 swap.
 
CMiles said:
Is there a 3.4 swap thread somewhere?

I have thought about it but I feel like I'm not quite the mechanically inclined yet... I have pulled motors and put new ones in but I dont know about swapping a different kind of motor in it.... I thought about doing a 22re swap but then I heard that its really just as difficult as a 3.4 swap.
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22re swap is much more difficult.

Swapping in the 3.4 is easy. Trans bolts up, motor mounts bolt up. The only fabrication you need to do is exhaust and a little bit of wiring.
 
I know there are several 3.4 swaps on here. But I'm on my phone so can't link anything. Just search on google toyota 3.0 to 3.4 engine swap toyota 4runner forum
 
If the PO said it was having overheating issues, then chances are he may have removed the thermostat. Does the truck heat up to normal temp? If not, this will cause it to run at a high idle. There maybe a leak somewhere in the heater lines and, if he hasn't used the heat in awhile, when he turned the heat on, it drained the radiator. Mine will do that.

You can check for exhaust in the coolant with this: Amazon.com: Lisle 75500 Combustion Leak Detector: Automotive
 
nicnmike said:
If the PO said it was having overheating issues, then chances are he may have removed the thermostat. Does the truck heat up to normal temp? If not, this will cause it to run at a high idle. There maybe a leak somewhere in the heater lines and, if he hasn't used the heat in awhile, when he turned the heat on, it drained the radiator. Mine will do that.
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No issue with it heating up, heats up to about half way on the gauge but doesnt lower the idle..
 
giro said:
Page EM-98 of my '92 FSM says for the 3.0 that compression should be 171 psi, minimum is 142 psi, and max difference between cylinders should be 14 psi or less (10% of low number).
Click to expand...

It doesn't look like you are at elevation, but I wanted to note this:

Our rental is at 7500', above about a quarter of the atmosphere, and I was talking to a neighbor there. It turns out elevation mucks with this. He said to use a table, but I'm guessing it comes down to multiplying the compression ratio by the air pressure.
1976 Standard Atmosphere Calculator
http://www.coloradoevo.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4683
Technical Articles at Greg's Engine & Machine
This table in this last one would use ~.795 as a ratio at that altitude, so the 142-171 psi range would instead be 113-136 psi, all below the unaltered minimum.

Fun stuff. Glad to realize that before ever doing a compression test at this altitude.
 
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