would you replace the engine with a re-manufactured or used engine?

both are on ebay

anyone buy a reman engine from:

JIS engines from arlington texas
http://www.ebay.com/itm/130859485881?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649&afsrc=1

oregon engines from sandy, oregon
http://www.ebay.com/itm/200794619432?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

 

That's terrible- you bought it and shortly after, it toasted? That sucks. At least I knew mine was done when I bought it- did you have any sort of a warning beforehand that it was on its way out?
I'd go ahead and get a reman so you've got a warranty on it. Or if you find an extremely low mileage used one, go with that. But that'll probably be kind of scarce.
Good luck!

 

That sucks. It's possible that the previous owner sludges up the engine and without looking under the oil cap the new owner would never know the condition.

 

Sorry about your engine detonating... I would do a remanufactured unit.
Plus have you gotten a quote from Toyota parts?

But as everyone stated be careful on who you buy them from.
Both ebay guys do have great reviews, but for what (all engines or a few engines) and how do they deal with a bad engine, pass it off to the person that actually do it and wipe their hands of the issue.

I have not heard of either of these persons.
I would try posting on TTORA or IH8MUD or YOTAtech forums.
Someone there will most likely heard of them.... good luck.

 

update. we ended up finding an engine from a totaled 2004 tacoma with the engine still in it from a local junkyard. verified the vin for mileage. found a great local mechanic that had worked for toyota for several years who installed the engine and replaced parts and now she's like new again. it ended up costing us around $2500 total for the engine, parts and labor. thanks for your help guys. the engine had 139,000 miles on it.

 

No basis of fact there. Simply an opinion. I have dealt with used transmissions and engines, as well as remanufactured, and the remans are MUCH better overall. When you buy a used engine you have no idea how well it was taken care of, if the maintenance was kept up at all, or if any major repairs were done to it that may not have been done right. There is no way to tell.

Agreed, it does depend on who does the work, and THAT is a much better comment.

ANY reputable shop will build an engine, regardless of manufacturer, to the manufacturer's specifications. There is no reason to do so otherwise. That being said of course, some of the shady shops are just not worth a dang. Before spending money like that I would definitely research the builder via BBB and internet searches. you can find the shady ones pretty quick that way.

I have bought engines for my customers from JIS before, but never heard of the other company. The engines I have gotten from JIS have never had a complaint.

Glad to hear you got a good deal! With the total investment you have, you are still I believe on the positive side of investment.

 

I was told I need a reman or rebuilt engine today after I told and showed the mechanic my troubles. What do I do? I have 195K on my engine...

 

If the truck is worth 2,500 to 3k to you then it is. IMO..... yes. Is the transmission in the truck good? Try and find a good running engine.....for $500 would be good.

 

Yes, it's worth $3,000 and transmission is fine! I need to get the flywheel polished (cuz it shakes when I let the clutch out) but other than paint chipping/oxidation of paint in a few areas, stereo,speakers needs replacing; it's a great truck! Its a work truck/daily driver...I think fixing it would be cheaper than a new truck. I've looked around here tonite and I'm thinking a remanufactured engine is the way to go. I have 3 places that I'm gonna google for prices/availability.

 

First, note that a rebuilt engine is a used engine. And a rebuilt is only a better choice if the work is done by the right mechanic. Rebuilding an engine properly takes skill and there are wide differences in parts and their quality, so depends what parts were used in the rebuild.

With a good used engine you know who built it, Toyota, at their factory under stringent quality controls and extensive testing. The Tacoma V6 is rated for an average life of 250k miles. So if you got one with less than 100k you'd be set for a long time.

Personally I'd choose the used engine over the rebuilt one, unless I knew who had rebuilt it and that they had a reputation for doing so. My guess is a $2k rebuild is a cheap one and probably used non-ohm parts and limited skill labor. That's my view on it anyway.

 

Did you mean oem parts? So a used engine is the way to go huh?

 

I rebuild the engine in my 01 myself and used all Toyota parts except for the Pistons and rings. With everything said and done I was in it about $3000. I choose to rebuild it myself because of the fact I don't trust other ppl with my truck. If you have the tools and a enclosed work area I would say do it yourself. Talk to the machine shop you intend to use and ask if they can install the crank, rods, pistons and valves after they do the machine work on the block and heads if you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself. If you choose to rebuild it yourself and have any questions just let me know.

 

if you cant rebuild it yourself, then the odds are much better that a low mileage used working engine (between 90-120k miles) will be a much better engine then any rebuilt one simply because they use worn out "broken" engines for those rebuilt engines you buy, and while, depending on the shop, they often do a very good job on rebuilding them, they often just hone the cylinders, throw in a new set of rings in them, and rebuild the heads.

when it comes to making coin flip decisions on replacing things like camshafts, cranks, rods, or pistons, they choose to do "good enough" jobs on them rather then do what should be done so its fairly common for "bought" rebuilt engines to not have "like new" compression readings and possibly even don't last as long as one you would rebuild yourself simply because when things "should" be done, but don't "have to" be done, they just simply are not done on those rebuilt engines you go buy, all in order for them to save money on the rebuild costs to increase profits. remember, they are rebuilding them to maximize profits, NOT make them the best rebuilt engines they can make.

just my opinion, don't shoot me over it

 

Yes I did intend to say "OEM". This damn " smart phone" is embarrasing me by correcting my spelling/words.

Yes, I do believe a low mileage used engine is better then a rebuilt. Less risk that the engine will be bad, costs a bit less also - that's a happy bonus.

 

Absolutely! Thank you!

 

No I'm not planning on doing it myself, not enough time and don't have a garage or enclosed area to do the job. But funny you mention what you did, I called a Japanese engine importer in the area today who said he has the engine, just a matter of getting it to my mechanic. Also talked to a reman business who says they would install it.

Glad you're all here to bounce this off of. Thank you!

 

Glad yer going again OP & alot of differing opinions but all with legit points, as far as going to wrecking yard for motors I look for the totaled vehicles, because you know they were running up to that point, & we go with a remote starter, good 12v car batt. & compression gauge, real easy to find motors with good life left in them....

 

I agree. I have had both, and I can say that 95% of the reman engines and transmissions I have had have been garbage... Blown head gaskets, leaks, low oil pressure and in the case of a "Goodwrench 350", aligned piston ring gaps!!! At least this has been true for my Blazers and Scouts... Maybe Toyota remans are better, but I bet they aren't.

 

When I got my truck the motor was already blown, p.o. shot out a spark plug and kept driving it. I wasn't sure how the rest of the truck was so I was willing to gamble $700 for a 106k motor vs 3k for rebuilt. The truck had almost 300k miles on it when I got it so I knew the motor would be pretty reliable.