New Tacoma owner needs help

hey guys I'm brand new here and just bought a Tacoma from a friend that needed money. It is a 99 auto 4x4 4 cylinder. he parked it back in may with a problem. He told me the shop told him the head gasket was out. I bought it from him for $100 and the truck is in really good shape overall. I don't know a lot about these motors but did see it has a 8 port manifold. Just looking for some advise on this thing on where to start.

 

Score. Welcome to TW. I don't see how you can go wrong with this deal if the frame is rust free.

 

Congrats on what might be a great deal on the truck! I had a '99.

 

Do you want to sell it for $200? I'll double your money.

 

Good deal, are you looking at replacing the head gasket yourself? If so, take a look through this thread. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/blown-head-gasket-h-g-replacement-thread.148524/

There are plenty of knowledgeable individuals on this forum who can help you through the process. Otherwise, you'll be looking at some pricey shop fees. Welcome to the forum! Post pics of the truck if you get the chance.

 

Kyle,

Welcome to Tacoma World. You scored big on buying that 1999 for $100.00 especially if it doesn't have frame rust. Obviously, the first thing you want to do before you get to the head gasket problem is check it for frame rust if you have not already done so. Ho-w many miles does it have by the way?

Okay, so now lets tackle the head gasket issue. The first thing you want to do is check to see if it legitimately has a blown head gasket. Did your friend over heat the engine is that why he told you the head gasket was blown? If the engine has been over heated, you also need to check what kind of shape the head is in. The best way to determine this before dissembling anything is to do a compression check on all cylinders. Do this test and then report back here with the results, and we can tell you where to go from there.

Good Luck,
Paul

 

Wow thanks for the replies. I will get some pics Monday when I go pick it up. As for rust I didn't crawl under the truck but the body is rust free and here in South Dakota there is no salt used in the winter so not a lot of rust there but I will check that. He said he drove it home from work the night before and it ran alittle rough, he didn't know why. The next morning it ran rough a few times while to work. Right when he got to town the gauge started coming up. The truck has been at the shop(work) since may without being drove or started and the boss wanted it out of there so it's mine now. The truck does have 356k so it's up there in mileage

 

Also he didn't know what engine was in it only that was a 4 cylinder. I have been looking at parts and I see there is a 2.4 and a 2.7 what would this truck have?

 

Wow, great score on the truck!!!! Welcome to the board!!

 

Sounds like it might be ready for a head gasket. I believe your talking about the 3rz motor. Good little motor. When you pull the head you can take a straight edge to get a rough check if the head is warped and needs decked. While your at it check across the top of the block. Usually it's just the head. Not sure where you live but, here where I live there is a good machine shop down the road that we send all our work. A head decking costs about $150.

 

I live in South Dakota. I'll get tore into it early next week and see what kinda of problems I'm looking at. Hopefully the head is good and I can just slap a head gasket in it and be off and running

 

Hey Kyle,

Wow, it does have a lot of miles on it, but you still scored big. Remember check the compression of the motor first. This will be the best way to determine what kind of shape the engine is in. The motor that is in your truck is the Toyota 3RZ 2.7 liter inline 4 cylinder. They did not put the 2.4 in the four wheel drives or pre-runners.

Take it easy,
Paul

 

Is there a reason to do a compression check? What else would cause the symptoms the truck has?

 

Compression check can give a clue to three things without removing the head. Compression loss between cylinders can show a stuck valve, or a blown head gasket, worst case a crack in the head.

 

But in all instance won't the head have to be removed?

 

Yes, you are right in my book.

 

You can rent the compression tester from Autozone for around $75 I believe. They'll give you your money back once you return the tester.

 

I'm starting to lean toward a junk yard motor with a few less miles on it I think.

 

That's always an option. Then again you don't really know what that motor went through. But it could be put on an engine stand and rebuilt in preparation for the current runner to die

 

That is true too. Do you guys think the current engine with 350k+ will be a reliable engine. I know service and oil change intervals all have a factor on that but what do there engines last?