Blown head gasket-help!

2377 Views 9 Replies 4 Participants Last post by camryvibe, Feb 18, 2008

tiredandwired

Discussion Starter · Feb 15, 2008

I'm pretty sure that all the white smoke I reported last night turned out to be a blown head gasket this morning on my 1995.5 Tacoma 2.7L 4wd. There is no coolant in the radiator and it won't turn over. It hadn't been running hot SINCE WE BOUGHT IT TWO WEEKS AGO, so I suppose this came as a surprise.

I have a mechanic who will replace the gasket but do I need to have the heads machined/valves checked? The shop said this was required, but expensive!

Thanks,

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chipsndukes

· #2 · Feb 16, 2008

head needs to be checked for warpage and cracks and then go from there.

minimum is resurfacing which I pay $30 for, don't know what the prices are in your area.

Chipsndukes

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tiredandwired

Discussion Starter · #3 · Feb 16, 2008

Thanks, I will have them checked...it's a bit pricier here. The engine is locked, just thuds when I turn the key. The oil smells a bit like gas but doesn't look milky...any thoughts?

Thanks

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chipsndukes

· #4 · Feb 16, 2008

tiredandwired said:
The engine is locked, just thuds when I turn the key. The oil smells a bit like gas but doesn't look milky...any thoughts?

Thanks

only that there is water in the cylinders.

how did you conclude head gasket?

Chipsndukes

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tiredandwired

Discussion Starter · #5 · Feb 16, 2008 (Edited)

There was a lot of white smoke billowing out of the tail pipe, ( I thought it was lousy fuel), the night before and when it wouldn't start, I checked the radiator and saw that there was no coolant. Anything else it could be? How bad is water in the engine? Typical of head gasket failure?

Thanks

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chipsndukes

· #6 · Feb 16, 2008

tiredandwired said:
How bad is water in the engine? Typical of head gasket failure?

Thanks

yes, question is why. bad gasket, cracked head?
pull the plugs and look. you'll have to pull the head one way or the other.

Chipsndukes

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tiredandwired

Discussion Starter · #7 · Feb 16, 2008

A friend is coming over to pull the plugs tonight. What will this indicate?

There is a new Japanese long block engine on ebay. Is replacement a better way to go? I have read about these trucks and this, ( head gasket and/or cracked head), does not seem to be a common issue. Is there something that may have caused this? Only owned the truck for 2 weeks so have no idea what came befire me, but it only has 121,000 mi. on it.

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chipsndukes

· #8 · Feb 16, 2008

tiredandwired said:
A friend is coming over to pull the plugs tonight. What will this indicate?

There is a new Japanese long block engine on ebay. Is replacement a better way to go? I have read about these trucks and this, ( head gasket and/or cracked head), does not seem to be a common issue. Is there something that may have caused this? Only owned the truck for 2 weeks so have no idea what came befire me, but it only has 121,000 mi. on it.

if they are very clean, it means that they were washed by coolant, just confirms your diagnosis before you tear it down more.

I read your PM's and answered them, you're on the right track.
first diagnose the plugs, then look into other options.
if you know wrenching, the head gasket is the way to go.
if not, the whole engine swap is probably easier.

it sounds like someone sold you the truck already with the problem, sorry that happened.

Chipsndukes

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razornpc

· #9 · Feb 18, 2008

its dumb but i had my block get warped once so be sure to check for that.

best of luck

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camryvibe

· #10 · Feb 18, 2008

chipsndukes said:
it sounds like someone sold you the truck already with the problem, sorry that happened.

I'd be suspicious of that as well. Friend of mine bought a used car years ago which ran fine for a short time and then developed engine problems. Turned out to have a crack in the head which the previous owner had epoxied as a temporary fix and put back together. Ironic thing was that the cost of actually fixing the crack was pretty minimal. Almost all the labor was in disassembly and reassembly.

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