tell the this isnt as bad as i think, 99, v6

i just picked this truck up not too long ago, its a 99 SR5 V6 auto 4x4 with 220,000 miles. the truck dosent smoke, seems to run pretty well, dosent use any oil that i know of and gets the gas milage i think it should. the previous owner was an idiot, said he changed the oil regular but the K&N air filter was filthy. the truck was a lot dirtier then i thought and stained the hoses and such, even after 2 hours with the pressurewasher. Well the passenger side valve cover was leaking a little oil, just enough to get a smell when you stopped and it needed new belts. Ive replaced the belts and this evening i pulled the valve cover to change gaskets and this is what i found. im thinking the motor needs to be flushed out, like seafoamed with new oil and filter, or do i need to put it back togeather and sell it to try and salvage any money back out of it. the frame dosent have any rust issues and looks to be in ok shape. anyway back to the pics.

 

For 220,000 miles, this looks pretty clean. With this mileage, I would certainly expect SOME leakage, smoking, or some sort of wear indicators. I would say keep it and enjoy making it sing again. She seems to have many songs left in her.

A Toyota with that many miles is still not "wore out". This is why we maintain our Toyotas well. So they get to 220,000 miles and still run well. I would assume there is some sludge in the pan and settling areas, but that can be dealt with.

I say be happy and now you have a project. A strong truck with much truck left.

 

the milage dosent scare me,one reason i went with a toyota to replace my honda. its the grit and the burnt looking grit in the top of the valve cover along with the texture/color of the top end. wasnt looking for a project, i have plenty of those was just wanting a realiable daily.

more pics

 

yea for 220K i wouldnt worry about it. Just replace the valve gaskett and drive it with regular maintence. If your going to be using seafoam, just be careful with it since that gunk may be plugging small leaks here and there. I'd say run a can in your gas tank and call it a day.

 

Your cam surfaces look clean and polished. Not scored or pitted. This engine has had good maintenance. I agree with wildjersey on this.

Enjoy your find. A well maintained toyota will continue to deliver many more miles.

 

drive it. you cant expect a spotless motor for 220k miles. worse case, get a replacement motor if that one takes a shit.did you get the truck for a "good deal"?

 

Theres nothing wrong with that top end at all. Its not even sludged up. The texture you see on the cams is just the area where it wasn't machined.

 

ok deal, seen some older go a little higher seen some newer in worse condition. it just worried me with the grit and such in the valleys, i can go pull the valve cover off my 90 crx and it is spotless. ill do a good oil change and make sure to keep a good filter on it. Thanks for the input.

 

these guys are smart, so I'm gona go with them and say drive it, i will add, that you should run 1/3 can of seafoam through the brake booster 1/3 with the motor oil an the last 1/3 in the fuel tank, drive it for 60 or so miles and then change a few things. as it's a new to you truck, after doing the seafoam, i'd replace the fuel filter, do an oil change and try synthetic, i dont think you'll have any leaking problems. hopefully you got a new air filter, if not do that too. and lastly clean your throttle body

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/technical-chat/50153-how-cleaning-throttle-body.html

then have some fun with it! thats a very nice looking truck.

 

i noticed the TB was a little dirty, ill prob try to clean everything while im into it.

 

Agreed. That's a normal looking DOHC engine with a couple of miles on it. I've seen import heads turn that "rusty" color at about 75k that have been perfectly maintained. 220k miles, you're bound to have a couple of leaks. Slap some new gaskets on and you should be good to go for another 100k, judging only by the looks of your top end.

 

well, i guess no matter how much you try to maintain if the intake hose is cracked its not going to help. can anyone recommend a good intake?

 

got the valve cover back on, patched up the intake tube and cleaned the MAF and the TB a little. Still has a burnt oil oder, could be from let over cooking off, i cleaned everything pretty well while it was apart, and its idling a little high, could be because of the cleaning and/or any air leaks, but i pulled the ecu fuses and going to restart it here shortly to see if that will help reset it.