2.7L Compression Test Numbers

look in the for sale section and post a thread there asking if you can find a new mount for it with the bolts you need, if they broke off then they probably wont come out very easy if at all anyway, so just replace the whole thing. people here sell off trucks for parts all the time so it shouldn't be hard to locate a new one for what you need and your local salvage yard might have one. I learned a long time ago when old stuff starts breaking, just replace it and stop trying to salvage something that has fused in place.

 

Advance auto does, thats where i got them at.

 

Which of the HF compression testers did you use? This one?

Other than pulling the plugs, was it pretty easy to use?

 

alldatadiy has specs.

For my '97 2.7L it indicates this for the compression ranges:

Minimum - 127 psi
Standard - 178 psi or more

Expected diff between cylinders - 14 psi or less

The procedure is nicely illustrated as well.

 

MrRiverMan, I used this one: It was very easy to use and is unusually rugged for a HF tool. I have no doubt that it isn't as accurate as a high-end version but for as little as I'll use it I'm happy with it.

Thanks for all of the advice. I did end up getting it all back together tonight. I already had the replacement mount (I did the front 2 last weekend) and because of the design, breaking the heads off of the bolts wasn't really that detrimental. I just took my mount into Ace Hardware and went through their bolts until I found the right one. I bought 4 of them and got it all installed without a hitch. I can tell a big difference in how it drives already.

I was able to find a good set of plug wires too (5 minutes before the store closed) so I'm all good to go until I tear the valve cover off of it the week after Thanksgiving to repair the gasket and test/adjust the valve clearance.

I really appreciate all your help. I'm 36 years old and before this year I've never even changed my own oil. My Dad liked Chryslers so we were the kind of family that always had a good mechanic on retainer. When you're teaching yourself it's nice to have the forums. I've come a long way. It would take me quite a while to list all of the things that I've done to my truck over the last few months.

 

You have me curious as to whether my numbers are on the up and up, but I really don't wanna pull my plugs (just put new ones in) so it'll be a while until I bother.

 

Probably not worth it unless you have a reason to. I only did it because I wanted to know how much time to take off of work next week. I have to pull my valve cover and was going to replace burned valves if there were any.

 

Thanks for the info!

Be ready for this job to be somewhat of a bitch if you have to adjust the valve clearances, and be prepared to wait a bit while the new shims are ordered. I did mine back at the start of the summer. Checking them is easy - just pull the plugs and valve cover, then rotate the motor to test the clearance with a feeler gauge when each cam lobe is pointing up.

On the front valves on the exhaust side, I was able to change the shims using the "special tools." I bought a cheap set online instead of the Toyota ones. When I got to the rear valves, it became clear that there wasn't enough room to get the tool in there to remove the shims. I ended up removing the exhaust camshaft completely and swapping shims, then unbolting all of the bolts except the front two that hold the input camshaft down. I loosened those two and tilted the shaft forward slightly to slip the old shims out and the new ones in. Make sure you zip tie your timing chain on the front gear on the input camshaft so you don't lose your place and have to reset the cam timing. Then torque the shafts back down with a torque wrench when you're through, making sure you get the exhaust shaft lined up the way it was before (there are dots on the backs of the front meshing gears that should line up at TDC).

In retrospect, I would not have bought those tools if I knew I was going to have to lift the camshafts to get to some of the shims anyway, and I could have saved a lot of time that I wasted struggling with those tools.

 

Thanks for the info and pictures. I saw a video of a guy swapping out his shims using a much smaller valve tool used for Honda motorcycles. I think I'll pick up one of those. It went really smoothly for him and it didn't look like clearance was an issue at all.

 

Did he do the back two? Those are the ones that are a bitch to get to with the tools.

 

He didn't show the rear ones but mentioned that he did them. The tool was much smaller than the plier type ones that I've seen.

Here is the video :

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pKEkOdQuJR4

 

For me it was the tool that he uses to hold the bucket down while removing and replacing the shim that didn't work. It wouldn't hold the bucket down quite low enough for the shim to slip out, and it kept popping out while I was wiggling the shim. There was also no room to really work with it back near the firewall. The guy in that video made the whole thing look about 10x as easy as it will be for a first-timer.

ymmv.

 

It's got to be done. All I can do is hope that it goes smoothly.

 

I also struggled with that Toyota-style tool and gave up. Then took the truck to a local, non-dealer, reliable mechanic ($$$).

 

Lol - you sound exactly like me 6 months ago. i saw a video or two and didn't think it looked that bad. several guys who had done the job before told me I would end up pulling the cams in the end and to go ahead and do that from the start.

Of course I dug in my heels. Dropped $50 on tools that I will never use again, and spent 3 hours cussing while changing out shims before it became totally apparent that I was gonna have to pull the cams anyway to get the back ones out.

Guess everybody has to learn somehow.

 

^^^^^ agree 100%

fdbyrne its easier to remove the cam bearing caps so you can lift it by hand to tilt it forward to replace the shims without fighting the spring compression to do it.

first step is to take all your measurements and check the lifter pad shim numbers and record all this so you can see if you even need any new shims. if you do, loosen the cam bearing caps so you can lift the cam and pull out the shim so you can turn the shim over to get the numbers off of it to be able to order the correct shims to change the clearance to where it needs to be. often the cam will lift itself by the one or two lobes with spring pressure on them so that may be all the room you need to take out the shims. I would not remove the exhaust cam or you could lose the correct gear tooth position for it but if you do need to remove it completely (and I don't think you do) make sure you clearly mark the gear teeth to be able to be repositioned exactly the same.

then unless you want your truck disabled for a week or maybe more, put it all back together because this is an order and wait for your parts to come in item so do your measurements and order parts one weekend then reassemble and your driving it until the parts come. then the next weekend or the one after that when you finally have all the parts, that's when you replace the shims and install your new cover gasket.

 

That's good advice guys. I appreciate it.

 

I have 160-170 psi on my 3rz. 245kmi. Turbo with 7psi for past 4kmi and still going strong

 

Some good information on properly performing a compression test. Remember to do it on an engine that has reached operating temp with all spark plugs removed and the ignition and fuel disabled.

http://www.linnbenton.edu/auto/perform/compress.html

 

Acting on the good advice I got from you guys I pulled the valve cover off to check my valve clearances. I haven't actually checked them yet because, per what I've read, they are supposed to be checked when the engine is cold. I'm letting it cool down.

I do have a few questions before I go replacing shims (I'm definitely assuming some will need to be swapped out). If I pull or loosen the cam to get to them, what steps to I need to take to make sure I get it lined back up right and don't mess up my timing? I see the post a few back where a zip tie was used to on the right side but that doesn't look like it will work on the left which is most likely where I'm going to have to do some work.

On a side note, every one of the bolts that held the valve cover in place was so loose that I wouldn't even call it finger tight. I can't believe that the whole thing wasn't gushing oil.