Motor BLEW UP...Used or Rebuilt replacement?

Good advice on the rear main seal, I forgot that one. There is no timing belt on 1GR-FE. But, what you can do is look at the cam chains for scarring and compare the discoloration on each side. If you have had low oil flow, the left "driver side" cam chain will show scarring and the components on that side will be a shade darker than the right (passenger side). This is because the cam chain tensioner on the left side depends on oil pressure and is just about the last component in the system that is fed oil. If you have low oil pressure the tensioner will not extend all the way, the cam chain will have slack, causing scarring. If you have low oil pressure it will also cause all the components on that side to run hotter, they will be a darker color than the right side.

 

Excellent job bro! Under a time constraint, as far as cost goes, the motor that you got and what you accomplished, that's pretty good! If you would have spent a few weeks/months searching and inspecting motors before you bought you could would only have saved maybe $1,000. But when you factor in the cost of your time, I vote.... Excellent work bro!

 

It takes someone who knows every detail of every spec of a 1GR-FE to try to rebuild it after head gasket failure. Alot of people get lucky and there is no wharping, but your talking extremely tight tolerances. And you mill the heads, your screwed.

 

Note to add. Mill heads, and in Cometic head gaskets with the thickness that matches the material taken off. Problem solved.

Unless there is too much warpage.

Done it plenty of times. From either the head or the deck.

 

Thanks! Yeah, it is my daily and I needed it back on the road asap. I was willing to pay a little more to get it swapped asap. After swapping, I'm much more confident with my shade tree mechanic skills and I know every inch and electrical plug of this motor lol. I was able to leave the AC and PS pump connected in the engine bay, so that saved me a little time and $$ having to recharge the AC. I do not look forward to replacing my starter (hope I never will). Its almost easier to put the truck on a lift and pull the tranny than wrestle the starter out the side or top.

 

Glad to hear that she is running great again! For future reference and diag, just curious if you tore into the old engine to find out what failed?

 

There was coolant in the oil, so we didn't spend the time taking it apart to pinpoint, but we have a good idea of what failed

 

Gotcha! Yah, it was toast! On a 2008 with coolant going into the oil and not exhaust into the coolant block or head was cracked.

 

Thanks for sharing the details and especially the price info! So many threads trail off without proper follow up.

I'm here to proclaim that the 05s and 06s with well known HG defects can be reliably repaired if you catch the leak in time, which is easy to do. It's a totally different ballpark than an engine that has been abused, overheated, or has suffered a catastrophic failure like yours did. Once you have milkshake in the crankcase, who knows what other damage has occurred.

Glad you got yourself a good running truck again.