SOLVED! Post 2853 Leaking Injectors, Dealer Techs Rock! Extended Cranking after Engine Swap 3.4L 5vz

http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/631402004/overview/

This Tundra looks NICE!! Me likey!!! Seems like MPG is the big downfall with this but otherwise it's purty darn perfect for us! Looks like all the features we want AND it's even a very nice looking shade of blue!

2 previous owners on Carfax, and an accident in 2007. Says airbags did not deploy. Wonder how concerned you should be mechanically about trucks that have been in accidents before?

 

everyone I know that has one loves them, they are beasts but, they do stay parked at the house and used for "certain" things because they cant afford them as daily drivers. most use them just for pulling trailers and nothing else.

would hate to see you buy one and decide you cant afford to use it.

 

Good point. Around town driving for errands and such wouldn't be too big of a deal as far as MPG (most stuff is fairly close), and hauling DIY stuff like lumber and whatnot is no big deal on MPG, because that stuff is all close. By the way, that would be the only advantage I could see with a Tundra over a Taco - never having to think twice about the weight capacity when running to Home Depot, landscape supply, etc. But gas expenses on road trips would SUCK, because we purposely choose trips geared around lots and lots of driving to remote places. That beast would be sucking up all the gas and every mom and pop crappy gas station in the state! Hmmm. Darnit, no way to beat the Tacos in that regard.

How much of a MPG difference are we talking about here, between a 2005 V8 Tundra vs. a 2004 V6 Taco? I remember some of you commenting on this before, I should go back and look........anyone know though? Is it an insane difference?

I really really like the look of that Tundra. The miles are not bad (80K), the price is not insane ($18K), and ALL the features we want, even being blue!??! Plus while it's bigger than a 1st gen Taco, it doesn't look like a ginormous beast that's impossible to get around in. And that extra power would be nice for home improvement supplies. 2 previous owners - both in Washington state (no salt). Hmmm. Sure is a purty blue.

 

LOLZ. Yeah, a bit biased. I liked the first gen Tacoma but it wasn't immortal either. I have plenty of Ford and Chev work trucks in my company lot with 200K plus and very little in the way of repairs. It's all a matter of luck. I'd agree that Toyota tends to be better than average, but that's as far as I would go with that statement.

 

I think its safe to say for every $50 in gas you spend in the taco now it will be around $100 doing the same things in the tundra.

the thing is 13 mpg is their listed mileage and most people say it doesn't even get that. depending on what you do with it you might get that or even worse depending on what you are hauling and where and how you drive it will change the mpg you will see.

I think all you can do is go by the listed mileages for both and "assume" you will get that.

for the v6 taco it is 21 mpg and for the v8 tundra that is 13 mpg so you can see that's almost half, so your gas costs will nearly double what they are now.

 

Yeah, the gas on Toyota's half tons are brutal.

 

Shit. Talked me outta that Tundra. Thanks for the advice though. I really don't want to spend that much more on gas, I'd rather stick with a Taco I think. The only advantage of a Tundra for us would be the once in a blue moon super heavy duty hauling trip - but that compared to the constant additional gas cost just doesn't balance. Taco wins again.

 

You are going to find it really hard to beat the 1st generation Tacoma for mpg. What were you getting with yours before you had all of these issues? Maybe 18-20 mpg? Most half tons will be around 13-15 mpg especially if they are older models. My wifes brand new F150 V8 gets 20 mpg and to me that's insane good mileage for what the truck is capable of.

There's a good point, hubby should treat you to a new truck .

 

hell girl, for that you can rent a full size truck for around $20 a day, much better then buying a truck for that once a year job if at all.

buy something designed and suited for your daily driving needs and weekend playtime needs, not the "what if"

if you want to, you can take over the notes on my 2014 Silverado 1500 metalic silver with the v8 and only 1,800 original miles on it, it gets 18 mpg and massages you as you drive with a vibrating seat as soon as you reach 70 mph, take over notes at just $390 a month plus insurance and you can be driving it this weekend, hell i'll even deliver it to ya (JK its a lemon remember)

its ok to look at chevy and GMCs too just don't go anywhere near the 2014 or 2015 models, one out of every 5 are lemons

 

Pops drove a brand new truck every year for about the last 30 years he was around. Traded in the year old for a new every time around.

He figured if he is going to make that big payment,,it might as well be top notch every year.

He lost a bit, sure. But in the long run,,no more vehicle headaches for the rest of his days working in the woods and he looked bigtime all the time.

The dealership took real good care of him. Had the hotline to the owner if any issue arose with his truck.

 

I just have the Ford dealership owner as a friend. You should of seen the shit storm he threw up when they found a bit of glue on the bumper of our new F150 at delivery lol.

I'm going to drive my Tacoma and my wifes F150 into the ground or until they start costing too much to repair, then go all new again. I wouldn't want a 10 year old truck in the bush, just too many questions for me under the hood.

Should of bought a Ford my friend . All of our Chevies and Dodges in the last few years have had quirks. The Fords just keep showing up and working.

 

I have a uncle like that, every 2 but no more then 3 years he swaps for a new one so it never gets out of warranty. he switches brands around too sometimes but mostly he likes the fords.

I was always partial to the chevys until I got screwed with my lemon and then was shocked to find out GM wont stand behind what they sell, THAT was an eye opening experience for sure. what I hated most was at year 10 every chevy I ever owned the dash cracked up like a broken storm door window and you couldn't fix or replace them. hell I even contemplated having a metal dashboard hand made like the old 60's trucks had but that was way over the top expensive. but what can you do with a truck that has no dashboard left in it?

jen, I came across something you might have interest in:

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/4945932554.html 2000 with 140k miles $9,000

the ad was posted today just an hour ago

 

Ooh, that Taco isn't too bad! High miles but the price seems fair. Wonder if it's in good shape. Might show that one to Eric, thanks!

 

now don't go all freaky on me when I say this

but let me throw this out there,

whatever is wrong with your truck now, you are in a very unique position here.

I'm positive its the truck that has the hard start problem and it has nothing to do with the new engine so ....

you "could" swap your new engine with the one in the truck you buy and salvage the financial investment you made in having a new engine and keep the peace of mind and assurance you have with having a brand new built engine.

so put your engine in this 140k mile engine in yours with the hard start issue and then sell it for all or most of what you pay for this one, if you should decide to buy it. or buy any truck, not worrying about high mileage because you have a new engine ready to put in it.

so in effect you get a good working truck and solve all your problems and have your new engine in it for little to no extra expense by the time its all said and done and you sell your old truck with the high mileage engine taken from whatever truck you buy..

the other guys here can chime in and back me up on this

I think it is a good idea, since I can see no reason how the engine could be the problem with your old truck so you can keep it and put it in the new truck

 

I don't know, how much are two engine swaps going to cost? And with cars this old with brittle plugs and wires, how many are they going to break and not tell her about it? How many of these bad connections will get moisture and start giving her hell? She already inherited a "bad hot start" issue from one engine swap, what else is down the pipe from two engine swaps?

Too many unknowns for me to even consider this.

 

how much does it cost? nothing, with her neighbors help it can be done in one afternoon for the cost of a few beers and BBQ.

the problem she had with the engine rebuild was with a bad shop with poor working habits and what I would call complete unprofessionalism in the things left filthy and undone that no "decent" self respecting mechanic would do. because all along the way there were signs things were done half assed or just done very sloppily, I think they did something to damage the trucks electrical system, wiring harness, and possibly the ECM.

lastly, she finally has a mechanic she knows she can trust not to do a hack job so if she were inclined not to do it herself he could do it in one day for both trucks and I bet its less then $500 to do it.

swapping engines is easy, unplug about 6 connectors and unbolt the tranny and motor mounts and its out in under 2 hours. any untrained truck owner could do it in 2 hours by just paying attention to things. its not like they need to rebuild anything, its already done, unbolt lift out, lower in, retorque everything to specs, connect wires your done.

swapping engines is not any harder then replacing a flat tire, you just have wires to unplug and replug. its more work involved in doing a waterpump replacement then an engine replacement. (well maybe about the same)

 

Full disclosure: I just bought a '03 2.7L AC 4X4 with 213K. I know it's going to someday give me issues, just like what I read here on the forums. I've always wanted a 1st gen tacoma so I bought one. I am willing to go through the pain for the pleasure it brings me.


That said. Ford no longer makes the ranger, but I have two friends that own one, and they are great trucks. There are issues with the 3.0v6, avoid those.

Frontiers are great, I have two friends that own one. Both great trucks. No issues with the 3.3V6. The transmissions on the 3.0 all have issues.

Consider that you could be trading your issue for another issue. Not that I know what is wrong with your Taco, I find it frustrating that it hasn't been found yet.

Also for heavy duty hauling, you could rent a trailer that can haul the payload (that was the correct term). Your taco can tow up to 5K pounds, one of my neighbors has a great trailer that is also a dumper and can handle up to 5000lbs. You could alternately rent a heavy duty truck, or pay for delivery. The cost would be saving wear and tear on the Taco.

As general question does the 3.4 have VVT? Your needing to jumper a wire to test timing makes me think it does. There was a thread somewhere that timing is a PITA, but I think your mechanic has looked at it.

 

I wouldn't do it. What if this issue has to do with a faulty electrical connection to a sensor or something similar on her engine? What if he trucks harness on the original is barely holding together and quits after the swap? Too many things to go wrong and leave her with two trucks down instead of one. I get what you're saying, but you are definitely overlooking the potential for issues to come up due to the fudging around that will happen during two swaps.

 

so in two years the new truck needs an engine rebuilt for another $5k she already spent on this engine but she gave it away with the truck. how is she better off that way?

she already has made the huge expense in the new engine, it would be stupid not to put it in the truck she buys unless it has under 100k on it, in that case then I would agree to leave it be.

its a simple matter to replace the two or three sensors on the engine if there is an issue but she has already had them all checked and tested (several different times) and at least one of them replaced already so there is no chance this could be an issue she transfers to the new truck, zero chance of that. if it were that easy her truck would have been fixed long ago and we wouldn't be here today.

I see what you are saying too, just turn the key and drive. but that also means flushing that $5k down the drain she spent on the new motor and she will have to spend on the next motor at some point in a few years.

 

I haven't been on here in a while, so Jen, can you catch me up to what the current situation is? Just curious.

Oh, and TYVM for the cookies! YUMMM!!!