I think I’m screwed?

How does a dealer look over your truck and tell you #3 isn't firing strong and NOT do a compression test? I mean, let's rule out mechanicals, right? That will let you know right off the bat whether you should be looking at a used engine or not.

 

Thanks for that info. We suspected it could be a fuel injector, but after sending a probe down the cylinder they found fuel in what looks like a bunch of carbon buildup. So they’re suspecting may be a piston ring has blown.

If only I lived in Florida, I’d be headed over now. I live in South Lake Tahoe, Ca.

 

No doubt I will ever purchase a used vehicle without one going forward. Hindsights 20/20 and regret is a bitch. Thanks for for the advice and luck, I’ll need it.

 

I was wondering the same thing. He said The ignition coil going to #3 was weak or bad so swapped one of the three other coils (going to cyl 4) for that one. Connected it to cyl 3 and was still misfiring. Then the starter dies so his best option without putting a new starter in, send a probe down the cylinder to check for fluids. He found gas, darkish fluid (more then likely oil), and a crap load of carbon. Suspects busted piston but can’t be sure without a new starter and compression test. I just gave him the go ahead to put a new starter in so I can at least check that and drive the thing.

 

Good luck, Man. I’m rooting for you to find a solution. Edit: I’m gonna guess fuel injector. Fingers crossed for you

 

Post this on the Norcal Board. It's a super active board. Lots of people will see this and offer local knowledge that can help you out.

 

I used to manage a bike shop back in school, and I had a shirt that (jokingly) said "I recommend replacement".

That's pretty much SOP for dealers. Pretty sure they just jumped right to the expensive parts to try replacing first, to "see if that works". Had a jeep dealer work on one of our fleet vehicles with a shifting issue. They repalced the trany 3 times (seriously, 3) before it ending up being a glitch in the ECU. It was under warranty, so at least we didn't have to pay for it, but I got the distinct impression they just started throwing parts at it.

Total BS.

Take it to another (independent) mechanic, get a local/trusted recommendation if at all possible.

If you're good at reading people, don't you think you would have noticed them being shady *before* purchasing the vehicle? Confronting them after the fact will do nothing besides create a confrontation with no actual outcome.
https://law.freeadvice.com/general_practice/contract_law/used_cars_private_sale.htm

As others said, it's buyer beware. We take risks buying a used car (hell, even buying a new car is a risk).

I'm certainly not going to take the seller's word for whatever the condition is, no matter what they say. In fact, I'd rather them not be around at all when I'm looking at it.

But back to the OP's issue, hopefully it turns out to be something cheap, but it sounds more and more like rings, which of course mean tearing the ENTIRE engine apart. Keep in mind, however, that swapping in another used engine carries the exact same risk as what you've encountered here. At least now you have gained experience on what to look for and what to avoid. The other option, and probably the safest, is to swap an engine from a company that offers you a warranty on the parts. Cheapest option is buying one from a wrecking yard, but that's even more risky since you can't really have it checked out until after you buy it and swap it...

 

I'm going to talk with my mechanic and see what the cost would be if I were to swap and if it ends up being more practical I will seriously consider it. Curious, do you have any experience with swapping or would you have a guesstimate as to how much that could cost?

thank for your help!

 

You wouldn't notice it before because there's no confrontation going on. As soon as you confront someone, there's a good chance you could tell by the look in their face whether they screwed you or not. I'm not saying go over and start a fight with the guy, but let the guy know you just discovered a major problem with the engine and see how he reacts.

In this competitive market for highly sought after Toyotas, you have to act quick when you find a good buy. Many times it's the person who races to the seller first that gets the first crack at purchasing it. I know this is the case for 1st Gen Tacomas and 3rd Gen 4runners. So, you can say the buyer screwed up by not getting the truck checked out by a mechanic, but the seller might have just offered it to the next guy who's coming over in 20 minutes to take a look at it. Sometimes you take a risk and hope the owner is being honest. In this case, I feel there's a very good chance the OP was screwed by the seller.

 

I recently helped pull the motor and trans out of a 3rd Gen 4runner for a V8 Swap project. I think it's less labor to pull the engine than to pull the head. So, replacing the engine might be the more affordable option if you can get a good deal on a used engine.

If it's your piston rings that are shot, replacing the engine is definitely the way to go instead of doing a full rebuild.

 

Go to a local shop. See my post what a local dealer wanted to charge a woman for basic stuff.they want $1334.00 for shocks alone..3400.00 for a driveshaft,that's never been greased.and they did the service since it was new. They over her 2000 for it on a trade in, because she's a loyal customer..the crooks

 

I'm a pretty honest guy, but honestly, I don't think I'd care that much if you drove 5 miles and the engine blew after buying it form me, as long as your check doesn't bounce (why I refer cash, lol). I might feel bad for you, but really, that's just because I'm a fairly empathetic person: that could have been me had I not sold it that day...

Anyway, my point was that I'm just not sure what you'd get out of contacting the seller, the result will be the same no matter what: you're stuck with the bill and there isn't much you can do about it, and there certainly isn't anything the seller *should* do about it. In other words, it's probably just a waste of time.

 

The guy is most likely not going to give the OP a cent. That's not the point. The point is to confront the guy and basically let him know what he did was downright dishonest and shitty. Call it getting some satisfaction or whatever you want. If I think somebody screwed me over, I'm going to look the guy in the face and let him know. Maybe the seller starts thinking the buyer is going to take some revenge out on him. Maybe the guy loses some sleep over it. I personally don't let people take a shit on me and do nothing about it.

 

I agree 100% the OP got screwed on this deal. Whether it was intentional or not, it doesn't really matter, as the result is the same.

I guess you're just more confrontational than I am.

 

And you know, it doesn't hurt to try either. If the seller didn't actually know the engine had something seriously wrong with it, maybe when the OP shows the guy the estimated cost to fix it, he feels bad and offers the OP some money back. If it were me, I wouldn't let somebody get screwed on a vehicle I sold them. But, I'm a decent person. If the seller blows off the OP, then they're not an honest person.

 

Timmah is correct, even the seller got his end covered sold "as is" it will be good to have the conversation like Today, dont let time pass by, talk to him nice 1st and let see what he respond, he may end up do the rigth thing or may not but if he doesnt tks for screwing me up, anyway Karma is a bitch and all get back to you , one way or other, Is Not about confrontation but make clear I'm not stupid ....up 2 u buddy

 

Meh,

For me, I don't sell vehicles to be nice to people. I'm an honest person, but I sell things to get rid of them as they are no longer useful to me.

 

In my case 10 years ago 400 for the motor 400 to install

 

As I said earlier, if you are a good read on a person, you'd hopefully get that vibe from them before you even buy it. Ever spend time on a used car lot? Yeah, it'd be like that, lol. I've walked away from plenty of trucks I *really* wanted for that reason.

If we were talking about a used car lot, that's a whole other ball of wax, and I'd absolutely go after them. But we're talking about some schmuck with a truck who is under no obligation (legally or otherwise) to know *anything* about it, other than that he's the legal owner of it.

I'm actually curious: What if the seller was a woman? Would you make the same assumptions that she should know everything about the vehicle and is purposefully being shady, and go back and confront her in the OP's situation? Or is this a "guy thing" and he's "supposed" to know all about his truck?

 

Agree totally! A leak down test is in order. 100,000 MILES IS NOTHING FOR THESE 3.4L engines. Also, Toyota dealerships from my experience are not experts on the older Toyota engines. The starter is a cheap fix in most cases. Remove it and replace the contacts. get the parts off ebay. $9.95. contacts and plunger. You can do it yourself.