if it even matters anymore...

exactly. Like when people say "I know a secret, but I'm not telling you"

 

Most of the 4.0 head gaskets fail at 173K miles. Just because Toyota engines are are well known to last 300K+ miles, head gasket failure at 173K is hardly a sueable offense. Nobody's sueing Ford, Chevy, or Chrysler because 80% of their products get scrapped before 150K miles, because they cost more to fix than they're worth. The ones that do make it to 150K have cost them thousands in transmission rebuilds, blown out spark plugs, injectors under the manifold, etc. There's even a few engines where they put the starter under the intake manifold.

 

A remain long block from jasper is around 5k. Best of the best reman motors. Hope you haven’t spent more than that on this whole issue.

 

Well if he spent more than the cost of a new long block on attorneys fees, his own lawyer screwed him. Seriously your life’s savings for a motor what the hell were you thinking.... wish we knew more of the back story.

 

You have to know when to cut your losses and move on. . I would have just bought a $20 bottle of head gasket sealer to bandaid it and then trade the it in.

 

My 06 is nearing 200k. Does anyone know the build time when this was corrected? No issues so far. Been a great engine/transmission.

 

I can't provide any source documents but I’ve read the change over was sometime in December 2005.

 

I agree and can't add much to what Badger has said here.

 

That's the only reason I moved on from my 2nd gen. It was absolutely bullet proof for 13 years. But it was an 05, so I knew head gasket issues were on the horizon. I probably would have kept it 20 years at least, but read too much on here and knew it would be a problem eventually.

 

Guys,

I'd like some insight on this issue. I, too, have a 2005 Tacoma. It has been great for me and has incredibly low miles (I just crossed the 50K marker). I bought it used and overpaid but I wanted the truck and didn't care. In the few years since I have owned it I have had to replace the entire exhaust system (due to rust and normal wear and tear) and also replace the AC compressor (not necessary but for me an important convenience). The truck has had the Toyota frame replacement. So overall I am happy with it and have made some modifications.

My questions:

1) Should I worry about the head gasket issue now even if I am at 50K miles? If the problem emerges in the 150K and beyond I won't need to worry about it for quite some time. Is that correct?

2) Does this head gasket issue impact all 2005s or is there a possibility that I can get lucky and it won't impact me?

3) Given the cost of a head gasket replacement is $3K (let's say) and I like the truck wouldn't it make sense to just have it done when it happens (or perhaps get a new engine or an engine rebuild) and then keep the truck? Yes, spending $3K is a bummer but it would cost a lot more to upgrade to a newer truck anyway.

Since I am not mechanically inclined (certainly not on the level of the folks here) I would appreciate any and all insight and advice.

 

Give Toyota some credit. Most of those issues you spoke about, particularly head gasket, motor mount, leaf springs and rust, were all addressed by toyota either via recalls or warranty extensions.

 

If the head gasket lasted until the warranty ran out you are wasting your time and a competent lawyer would have told you that. Toyota is already doing far more than most to deal with parts replacement. They put new leaf springs on my 12 year old 200,000 mile truck at no cost just last week. With about 1/2 the cars on the road the transmission is going to fail at 100,000-150,000 miles regardless of how many times it was serviced. The manufacturers know it and don't care, that is the built in life expectancy.

All of the older Toyotas need a timing belt replaced every 90,000 miles and it isn't a cheap job. Are we going to sue them and all other manufacturer who used a timing belt

 

I agree with you, Marshall. To me, you run the course of the warranty, check on the recall and see what Toyota is going to do -- or not do. You let that run its course and it is what it is. I will say Toyota is more generous than most (said the guy who got a frame replacement). Buy a BMW and then call me on how well that works out the exact minute the warranty runs out.

I think the better discussion than will they cover it is at what point does it make sense to fix it. The interesting discussion that I am trying to figure out if at what point do you replace the head gasket (or engine?) versus find another vehicle, new or used.

 

Toyota did that on the 2UZFE V8...

But to the OP, kinda at a loss why you would spend your life’s savings on sewing a major corporation over a decade and half old truck just because the fucking head gasket fails after hundreds of thousands of miles...

 

You had that truck 13 years without issue, planned on keeping it for 20 years. With 7 years remaining on your plan, you let a gasket get the better of you...and it hadn't even failed. You effectively got psyched-out by TW mob mentality.

The potential for a gasket failure [albeit an expensive one to repair respectively, at ~$3k for a shop (sub-$1k to DIY)], caused you to go out and buy a $30k+ truck.


Great logic.

 

Well... u seen his avatar?

 

1) I think it varies - some have it earlier on, some don't see it until 200k+

2) There is a thread on here somewhere that polls the number of people with an 05/06 that have bad head gaskets. It is nowhere near 100%.

3) I don't think anyone would advise proactively changing your engine out. There is a chance your engine will never have any head gasket issues. When/if it does happen, depending on the condition of the rest of the vehicle and maintenance records, you can decide whether or not it is worth it to you to rebuild the engine or buy a used/re manufactured engine.

I am by no means even close to an expert, and everything i've said here is based on things i've learned/come across on this forum.

EDIT: here is that poll
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/05-06-tacoma-head-gasket-failure-poll.595994/

 

"Beyond it's mechanical limits"

I always appreciate your posts.

 

If i'm recalling correctly it is any trucks manufactured after 11/05 have the updated design, so if your build date is 12/05 or later you are not prone to this issue

edit: this thread has some documentation on the build dates.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/head-gasket-failure-on-4-0-toyota-engines.457364/page-7