Bottom end knock? 4.0 V6.

Maybe not quite that loud but it has that same tap sound.

 

I blew the bottom end of a 4.0. the sound coming out of that engine was waaaaay more aggressive then that! Run her. She sounds normal to me. Toyota's always have a little knock to them

 

You could send an oil sample in to an oil analysis company if you are really concerned about it, any abnormal engine wear would show up I would think.
I'll try to grab a video of mine when I get time.

 

Mine has this noise. I took note of it when I started up the first Tacoma I took for a test drive. I drove three different trucks with the V6 and they all had this noise and everyone I asked about it all said it was normal. One of the mechanics even offered to go out with me and start his so I could hear it.

Maybe it would help put your mind at ease if you look at it from another direction: If there truly was a rod knock problem on the V6, all the vehicles that had it would fail eventually and quickly and it would be a well known/infamous problem; and well documented here and everywhere else on the internet. We'd all know about it. The 4.0 has been used in many Toyota's for years. Thousands of them out there in all kinds of vehicles. ...and no one would be calling the engine "bullet" proof.

 

100% agree. I find myself trying to listen to others, but there aren’t many to compare to online. The ones online have serious obvious issues.

Plus, that 30k I put on it.. I just can’t get around the fact that if it were a spun bearing or rod, it would HAVE to be getting worse or have failed by now. IMO.

Either or, just going to keep it, drive it, and try to get another 150k out of it.

 

Go on YouTube and search for "Ever wonder what Rod Knock Sounds like?" This one happens to be a 4Runner. Poor guy: It sounds like a jack hammer. I'm surprised it lasted for the duration of the video.

 

If an engine truly has rod knock, you literally have a very very short time before the motor goes bye bye. Talking like a few miles. Never ever will you see a motor with rod knock go thousands of miles.

 

Could the bearings just be worn but not yet spun?

 

Not really how rod bearings work.

 

ah.

unsure if you know who Scotty Kilmer is from YouTube. I asked him what he thought and he said…

“Yeah it kind of sounds like bearings are worn if you want to keep that engine I'd rebuild it sooner than later. Or I would just drive until it dropped and then put another engine in”.

So that’s why I asked. Didn’t think someone that big would even respond lol. I took his word as gospel

 

Bearings that are that worn out would usually be accompanied by low oil pressure.
I'd take anything that Scotty Kilmer says with a grain of salt, some of his early stuff was ok but now it seems like he's just in it for the clicks and views.

 

Understandable. Oil pressure is fine, not burning oil. Oil stays pretty clean.

When I read that I was puzzled myself. Appreciate your feedback.

 

rod bearings don't really wear. They are either okay and in spec or they are damaged. With proper oil pressure there is a constant film of oil between the 2 metal surfaces. It's not normal ball bearing style that most people are used too.

 

So it’s basically either spun or it’s not. No in between?

 

For the most part. I'm sure there are cases where super minor damage has been done and an engine may run fine for a while but if it's bad enough to hear then its already too far gone.

 

They can get excessive clearance on an extremely worn out engine but you would almost certainly have oil pressure problems before they got to the point they made noise.
Engine bearings don't really wear except when the oil is dirty/low quality/low.
They are essentially just machined bushings to set the clearances, the oil itself acts as the bearing to keep metal surfaces from touching, when oil pressure gets low or oil gets dirty that's when the majority of wear occurs.
Rod and main bearings typically spin when there isn't enough oil pressure to keep the surfaces separated and enough friction occurs between the bearing and the crankshaft that they essentially weld them-self together.

If you wana see what spun bearings look like check out "I Do Cars" on youtube, the majority of engines he tears down have spun bearings (and other carnage).

 

This hits the nail right on the head.

 

Here's mine at a warm idle, it's louder when it's cold out but we haven't had any cold days recently to catch that.
https://youtube.com/shorts/qyv-iJjt8yk?feature=share

 

It’s crazy, because everything y’all say makes sense.

what doesn’t make sense is things like this…

Putting it in idle (free spin) and it’s at its loudest.
https://youtube.com/shorts/KvJC06NSTpM?feature=share

yet I’ve had no oil lights, oil never burns and is always at level.

just weird..

 

That's a Tacoma 4.0l if it aint ticking it's broke.