Head / Head gasket

Well I replaced the clutch last weekend, and blew a head gasket this week. I do not not if I blew the head gasket or cracked the head. Someone said take the head to a machine shop and have them check it. But if it is cracked then I just paid extra to replace it. It is 1996 Tacoma 2.7l 5 speed. Any ideas? Anywhere I can get that head relatively reasonable?

 

Without knowing where you're located it's hard to give you the best answer so fill that in under You>Personal Details and it will show on the left under your avatar each time you post.

If you got it machined recently I'd see if the machine shop will inspect it for free. If not and you don't want to pay to have it inspected again there is an alternative.

I'm working on a 5vz V6 from the block up and am looking to buy some rebuilt heads from this head rebuilder. I didn't see your 3RZ head in their eBay store, but you could give them a call. They're the highest rated business of their kind that I've come across in searching for cylinder heads. I've found nothing but great reviews online through eBay and internet search.

http://www.headsonly.com/

 

I have never had it machined. It only has 140,000 miles. This is a complete surprise to me. In my opinion a Tacoma is the best truck money can buy and a blown head gasket possible cracked head this early is just odd to me. I had some recommend liquid glass in the radiator, but I feel like that is a cheap temporary fix. Any opinions?

 

Do it right and have it checked by a machine shop. The fact that it has failed twice points toward an uneven deck surface or crack. You could do it yourself but you'll at least need to buy a tool for the valve keepers. You should have at least checked the deck surface for levelness with a machinist straight edge last time to see if it had warped at all. It'll save you time and frustration this time around to be more thorough about your inspection of the head, but I'd recommend a machine shop.

Keep all that junk out of the cooling system. That can clog up your cooling passages and heater core and you don't want to be opening up those cans of worms.

Here's a six part video series of someone doing a head gasket repair along with the FSM. I know it's for a 5vz and not a 3rz but the same principles apply in this video. Also you can see how easy it is to miss a crack.

 

This is the first time it has failed to my knowledge.

 

My bad - read it last night and saw "replaced head gasket last week" instead of clutch :-/ Check out the video I mentioned and see what the repair looks like when done according to the FSM.

 

Ok thanks.

 

Also looking at doing a timing chain as well. Will both of these options work? Is one better than the other?