P11EC

My Tacoma threw the dreaded P11EC code at around 86,000. Toyota dealer wants almost $12k to replace the head. No help from Toyota Corporate so far. I did my own routine maintenance and changed oil and filter at no more than 5k. Trained army vehicle mechanic 55years ago.
Have my eye on a used engine but swapping out too much for my 75 yo bones. Can anyone recommend a good shop in south Jersey that can do this work if I supply engine.

 

welcome!
You may find more local help in the Regional forums https://www.tacomaworld.com/forums/regions.36/

 

Alright y’all. I got the dreaded P11EC code after 110,000 miles!!
Was driving fine, no misfires, no lagging, nothing. ECU spit out the code to my digital gauge/reader but didn’t throw a check engine light. Code disappeared after restart, not even stored in ECU. Then reappeared a week later, this time with check engine light. Still truck was running fine!!
Have had a magnuson supercharger on the truck for 50,000 miles, just put in a new tune but that wouldn’t affect this.
Took it to the dealer to diagnose. Yup 20psi lower compression in cylinder 1.
Pulled the engine out and fluid leak on cylinder 1 intake valves.
$10k later I’ll be picking up tomorrow. UGH!!!

It’s ok, i run this truck hard! Just knocking on wood that this is the only engine issue i have for the next 250k miles.

 

If it's within your abilities to do I'd recommending doing a full compression test, if the results are not drastic (eg cylinders are mostly the same, youtube it) I'd leave it alone for the time being. If the engine has started to be different noticeably then it is time to address this... If your engine otherwise is fine and you've been maintaining it well I think it would well worth to get the heads done instead of doing a full engine swap. I hope you can find a reputable shop to do the work. Dealerships are the absolute worst for this type of thing unless you are well within warranty period.

Another thread I read recently somebody has been driving fine with this code for a long time. My worry is carbon build-up will eventually break off and cause piston/piston wall damage and/or break/bend a valve but I have no idea if this is the case)

Cyl 1 seems to be the main culprit from my memory but I may be wrong. I still haven't seen any conclusive evidence as to why this happens (length of intake runner(s), location of EGR, etc).

 

A compression test was done, mentioned that it was 20psi lower than the other cylinders. When they pulled the motor a part the did further testing and sent over a video of it slightly leaking, proving the valves were not sealing.
The work is already done. It’s 10K in parts and labor, picking up today.

My post was more of a “hey it happened to me to” post, not a request for suggestions. but thank you.
I chose to go to a dealer because Toyota will certify the work. I live on the road full time and If the repair has issues i can take to any dealer. Not an option for me to take to a mom-pop shop and have to drive back 2,000 miles if there is an issue in a few months.