2000 toyota 4runner at wits end

[shall36]

Wooooohhhhhh....hold the phone.

No compression on cyllinders 1, 2, & 3. Believe it or not, I'm inclined to think that the timing belt jumped a tooth theory may have credance.

Unless you beat the hell out of this motor (or overheated it at some point in time), you should not have physical damage to the cyllinders, much less the valves. Something's still not right here.

The whole valve thing just doesn't sound right. Can they explain to you WHY they think the valves need to be replaced? In other words, what objective data do they have to indicate that the valves are not sealing properly AND that replacing them is the solution. See, a timing belt slip could do this, though you would expect #4 to be bad, too. BUT, the cam timing could be such that a slipped tooth would only impact 1 to 3. OR it could be the case that they didn't run compression on #4.

Can you get the compression numbers and post them?

Either someone is pulling your chain or you're pulling our chain.

[theyotaguy]

Originally Posted by normancay

I took it into a toyota centric garage. They called me and said because of the misfires...they have to open up the engine...$1500 and most likely replace all the valves...the mechanic said no compression in the first three cynlinders...

each valve replacement would be $35 on top of the 1500....

he did not even finish running his tests...he also thinks that the catalyitic converter is not functioning but tommrow he will test it...

what should I do guys? like donate it and take the tax write off and get another vechicle? repair it? its only worth 8 grand...

i have such a headache

I have a 4cyl 4Runner in my shop right now with the same problem.Burning exhaust valves is not uncommon on this engine.He can't test the cat. with the engine running poorly and the check engine light on-the ECU will not run the cat. monitor with misfire codes set.Fix the valves and get it running good and then re-evaluate your options from there.MSRP on the exhaust valves = $22.11 each.

You can confirm this without pulling the head.The valves tend to burn all the way around and the valve gets smaller in diameter.This causes it to sink up inside the seat and it loses the valve clearance.By pulling the valve cover off and checking the clearance,you can tell which ones are affected.You will probably find at least 1 ex. valve for #1,#2,& #3 has very little or no measurable valve clearance. Good Luck.

[theyotaguy]

These are from the engine I have apart now.An unburned exhaust valve is 1.200" in diameter.The burnt valve appears mostly round,but measures 1.163" in diameter.That cylinder had only 50 PSI compression.

[shall36]

Yah...that would do it...

Any theories as to why this particular motor is burning valves?

[pagemaster]

First the check engine light came on, I took it into Buena Park toyota, never take your cars here. They said it was my first cylinder and the engine was built incorrectly, they had to rebuild it to fix the spacing of the piston in regard to the cylinder wall

My dad had a Chevy S10 4.3 V6 when I was younger. When bought it, very early in its life the check engine came on. The result was a engine cylinder that was not firing correctly. The dealer had to open the engine up and repair it which took 11 days.

this was all done within the frist 5000 miles and was covered under warranty. So sometimes it could be the engine cylinders. The light never come on again and the engine never had trouble again.

However, same light came on my GMC which was a faulty EVAP valve or control.

[normancay]

HAHAHAHAHA! Victory is mine!

Well guys or maybe gals too, who knows my 4runner is alive!

Turned out to be 8 burned out valves and timing chain. Each one was only 22, Bryan the mechanic who worked on my vechicle said the person who called me that time was an idiot he apologized for that. He kept me updated from then on, sorry for not keeping everyone up to date. I was also told that after my accident on Feb 6th of this year that the collision center should have caught these problems if not the compression/valves at least they should have replaced the timing chain.

From all the things I did and combined with these 8 brand new valves, the 4runner is like a brand new suv. It is truly outstanding....now I kinda want to hang onto her for a bit longer than just quickly trading her away because it is a joy to drive.

The cost was unavoidable I think...total came to 1708.60...but very well worth it. The mechanic Bryan is highly trained in toyotas and several other import vechicles. They use only reputable machine shops and parts so on...fantastic service...it is called Fullerton Hills Toyota & Lexus Specialists-Mercedes, BMW, and all Japanese Car Services. Ask for Bryan if you live in southern california and near Fullerton.

What would you guys recomend as tire replacements? Currently I have 31" tires on 15" wheels. I want to keep the 15" wheels but I am thinking of getting the factory specified tires but like all terrain types I suppose. I have the 31" because I go into the mountains, desert, beach, some random trails for mountain biking. The 31" tires do cause me to not get as good mpg as I would the factory specified ones....what do you guys think? Also what would be good shock replacements? For a better ride and a bit more clearance.