Video of Van Running After Engine Rebuilt HG Replaced.

[mahleek87]

Your van takes the Bosch style injector. They sent you the inverted Denso type (used only in 88 & 89). It could be made to fit, but there's too many variables to know how it would perform next to the others. Why complicate your life? If it were me I'd insist on the right one.

The Bosch injectors were used from 84-87, but in 84 it could be 2 different ones. To minimize the chance of another wrong one, I'd specify 85-87 ONLY. Tim

I went to a junkyard 70 miles away from my house yesterday. I called in and they said they had one 85 van that was still in tact. When I got there I was amazed on what great condition it was in. There were plenty of parts engine was still in tact etc... I got some stuff of of her but the fuel injectors were different. They were the same ones "Denso" that the other junkyard had sent me. So for the record it seems like 86 and 87 are the only ones that use a Bosch connector. I mean on this 85 van the door tag said Nov of 1984 so production may be a factor.

[timsrv]

I stand by what I said before. Perhaps that van had an engine swap sometime in the past??? A lot can happen in 25+ years. Bummer about finding your injector though. Tim

[mahleek87]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Pytho...Q5fAccessories


What do you think? Worth it?

[timsrv]

I have no idea what gets done to these and what their quality standards are. There's the old adage "you get what you pay for", so if you go by that alone these sound pretty good . Wish I could be of more help . Tim

[mahleek87]

UPDATES: PROBLEM SOLVED

Got another mechanic to take out the Fuel Injector on Cyl 1.
Turns out the part # was actually 23250-45011

I still had the spare 23250-45011 part from the junkyard so I had them put that in. Once they put it in and connected everything back together the van was still running on 3. They played around with it more and found out that the connector on #1 was messed up. The two wires were not connected like they should have been. It sucks because the other mechanic tested this with an injector connector kit and completely ruled it out. This other mechanic had no kits but just moved the wires around and found out that while moving them the RPM was jumping up and down. I wish I had known this before because it turned out that my injector was fine after all!

My injector came out looking nice and clean but the one I put in there looks like crap. Probably has been sitting for a while. The van now runs on 4 cylinders but backfires a little bit. Im suspicious about this new "used injector" I put in. I hope when I add a bottle of BG44K stuff it smooths it out.

[timsrv]

If you re-read the 1st post I made in this thread you will see I said to check the injector connectors . I know you're not the one doing the work but any competent self respecting mechanic would check these before going to all the trouble of splitting the intake manifold and changing out an injector. If it were #3 or #4, then fine...........but it was #1!........come on, that's the easiest and most accessible connector of them all! I'm sorry you had to go through all of that but I'm happy it's running again. If it's back-firing that indicates a timing issue............or God forbid a leaky injector. Did you have them cleaned and tested prior to reassembly? Make sure the timing is set correctly and verify the electronic advance is working. Tim

PS: Thanks for the update.

[mahleek87]

I did not get them cleaned and tested because I have practically run out of money. Since my HG blew, I have spent around 2500+ in parts / labor on my van. (New Head, HG kit, Thermostat, plugs, wires, cap, ignition coil, rotor, water pump, bvsv valve, alternator, vacuum hoses, radiator hoses etc. and now fuel injector!

Yeah I understand the injector connector!!! He tested it with his test kit and it had a blinking light and I asked him, is that light supposed to be blinking or is it supposed to be smooth? He said the injector connector is working. He was the kind of mechanic you didn't want to argue with but he was wrong twice. I mean it did make sense for the injector to go bad as well, I mean who really could tell. If a mechanic tells me that my connector is fine then I'm going to believe him. Sucks I had to go through the trouble but alteast its working again.

Where can the injector leak from? I noticed a very small crack in the plastic part at the tip of the injector where it goes into the head.

[timsrv]

Injectors are basically little on/off valves that open/close when voltage is applied/removed. Sometimes they don't shut off all the way and can dribble gas into the cylinder. Unburned gas can build up and ignite (back-fire). I don't know how much your "mechanic" charged you to swap it out, but if he charges going rates, having these cleaned and tested would only be a small pittance in comparison (and certainly cheaper than having the job done twice). It's also important to be able to rule things out when problems persist or change. Check the timing and let us know what you find. Tim

[mahleek87]

OMG... Here we go again.

So I picked up my van from my other mechanic today which is about 2 miles away from where I work. I drove it and was excited and said what the hell lets fill her up with some gas. Spent 40+ Anyways. It was running on 4 and everything but the power just wasnt the same as it used to be. I got to work and lifted up the seat and started checkin her out. I was excited to have my van back/running etc. I looked at everything and then I checked the dipstick. When I looked at the dipstick I saw white cream all over it and the oil wasnt as thick. This to me immediately looked like a BHG. But how? We used a genuine TOYOTA one. Please tell me that this is some weird effect of the van now running on 4 Cyl and cleaning everything out. I mean there isnt any white smoke at all through the tail pipe but I can hear the motor does not sound right. I then drove it home which was 4-5 miles away. It didnt overheat but when I got home looked at the dipstick its def mixing with water. The oil is not oil.

Could this be a partially blown hg? It never overheated after that and before I took it to my mechanic who changed the fuel injector the oil looked fine and brand new.

I will take pictures tomorrow.

[timsrv]

mahleek, I'm very sorry to hear that. Coolant in your oil is always a very bad sign and unfortunately having a blown head gasket would be the best case scenario (cracked head or cracked block being worst case). I have no way of knowing how the work was performed, but there are several precautions to take when replacing a head gasket. Simply failing to clean mating surfaces or not following torque values/sequences can cause premature failure. In your case the thing I'd be most worried about is the fact your engine was severely overheated when the gasket blew. Aside from the normal concerns of cylinder scoring and severely worn pistons, this could also mean a warped deck or possibly a crack somewhere in you water jacket. I'm assuming the head was decked, but did your mechanic check it and the block deck surface with a straight edge?

As for your symptoms, Head gaskets can blow in different ways. It all depends on what part of the gasket or mating surface is damaged. There are several ports where oil and coolant travel between the head and the block. Then theres the cylinders and they contain high pressure combustion gases. The head gasket's job is to seal all these areas and keep them separated from each other. If the gasket and/or the mating surfaces become damaged between an oil and a coolant port, then these two fluids can mix creating a milky brown foam in the oil pan. Oil can also enter your cooling system and should be evident when you look into the radiator fill port (oil will float on top of the coolant).

Sometimes the leak can occur between a cylinder and a coolant port. When this happens combustion gases can pass into the cooling system and depending on the severity of the leak, the combustion pressure can force coolant out of the cooling system overflow (this leads to overheating). Sometimes coolant leaks into a cylinder and is expelled through the exhaust in the form of steam. In severe cases coolant can leak into a cylinder after shut-down and hydro-lock the engine.

Sometimes the gasket can blow between cylinders. When that happens the end result is 2 cylinders next to each other that have low or non-existent compression. If the van runs at all it will have severe performance problems and/or exhibit a very bad miss.

Sometimes the gasket can blow allowing coolant to leak externally. This type of blown gasket simply causes your van to lose coolant and depending on the severity it can still be used like this for extended periods (assuming you keep the coolant levels topped off). I have been experiencing this type of head gasket failure (for over a year now) but the severity of the breach isn't terrible, so I continue to top off the coolant every couple of weeks. I also get to look at a small puddle of coolant on my garage floor every morning when I leave for work (I need to fix this one of these days).

So, to sum things up, your head gasket can fail in any one of these ways or a combination of 2 or more ways at the same time. Based on the fact you are getting coolant in your oil I'd say your problem is the 1st one type outlined. Of course it could also be a crack in your head or block, but by far having the head gasket fail is most common. I'm sorry to be to bearer of bad news . Tim

[mahleek87]

Well Tim I sincerely appreciate all of your help and your excellent write ups. I have tried everything I can to get this van up and running but have not been able to. I went through alot these past 5-6 months trying to figure out what was going on etc... Too much time and headaches beating a dead horse. 2500+ later I am no where. I was really down and depressed earlier today but now I'm over it. I do not have anymore time or energy or money to go ahead and do something about it. I'm giving up for now and am going to park my van.

I never really realized how much I loved my van until it died. As my first car it set the bar of expectations really high for me. All of those countless miles of reliability etc.

Moral of story: Never let anyone drive your van, and appreciate the hell out of it while its there.

[timsrv]

I know this doesn't help much now, but for older vehicles that have experienced a severe overheating it often makes more sense to find a good used engine. I know they are not easy to find in your area but if you keep your eyes open and you're patient one will eventually come along. I just had a 4y shipped to me from a salvage yard. The yard claimed it has 80k miles on it (but who knows). When the parts request was made several quotes came in for available 4y engines with similar miles. These used engines can be had for about $1,000 + about $200 shipping (just do a search on one of those salvage yard parts locator sites).

Another option is to purchase through a used Jap engine importer. According to what I understand the 4y was never used in Japan but the 3y was. If you don't mind the power loss (2.0 liters instead of 2.2) it will drop right into your van. These go for about $600 and there should be an importer somewhere in your area that might even have one in stock. It's not guaranteed, but these importers usually claim their engines have less than 60k miles on them. If you end up keeping and eventually repairing, one of the above might be a better choice. Tim

[mahleek87]

Yeah I know initially though this process I bought a used motor for 500 bucks but then returned it because just by looking at it, it made me depressed. It also had a crack near the water pump assembly and the dipstick had grime on it. I wanted to do whatever I could to get my original one running because my heart was with it and since I wasn't the last one in the driver seat I wasnt ready to say goodbye. It hurt way too much.

Its going to be very hard for me to trust anyone now that this has happened. With used engines who knows. I do not know if I am willing to go down that route right now. I am not mentally ready because I have already gone through alot and its just a scary road. Who knows how long a used motor could last? I mean my mechanic before he fled he told me he did his job by doing a compression test on my van getting 170psi+ on 4 cylinders. Now I talked to him and he was like damnit, so he says hes going to give me a Toyota tundra to borrow for a few months and then ofcourse hes getting deported so oh well and I have to return that to him. I spent 1,000 on labor with him through this whole process and he doesnt have any money right now nor do I want it back.

I am not sure right now what I am going to do with my van. I want to one day get it back on the street for sure but do not know right now.

What do you think about these?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TOYOT...Q5fAccessories

[timsrv]

I don't know anything about that rebuilder by I personally wouldn't trust them. IMO the job cannot be done correctly for $1,000 so I am assuming short-cuts were made or questionable parts were used. I'd trust an original Toyota motor with 100k miles on it more than I'd trust one of those............but that's just me. Tim

[zeratool]

I second that. I spent 450$ on machine shop work on my block (clean check, bore, new cam bearings and freeze plugs), 200$ for toyota gaskets, 450$ for bottom end rebuild kit (japanese kit--pistons, pins, bearings, cam, lifters, oil pump). This is just for the short block--the head will be about 250-300$ for reconditioning. With me doing the assembly I have ~$1400 in parts. Will probably spend another $300 on misc on install. I find it pretty hard to trust someone to do a rebuild too. I am not willing to put a 2.0L in an already underpowered van so there is not a real option but to rebuild for me. Sooner or later I will attempt a 2.7L swap like Josh's "Death Metal" van.
Rob

[Dogfish]

What do you think about these?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TOYOT...Q5fAccessories

I have never used them or know anyone who has, but I have heard good things about JIS. I would consider them and do more research, of course if /when I need an engine. I heard that they consider the work they do of such top quality that their warranty exceeds a new block from Toyota.
I don't know who the ebay reseller is though... I thought one could deal direct with JIS.

[mahleek87]

Could a leaky fuel injector cause the oil to look funny? Loose lubrication? A little white creamish? Im starting to think this may be the problem. Before I gave my van to the guy who changed the fuel injector there was fresh clean oil on the dipstick. Also I had to transport my van running on 3 cylinders 4-5 miles and would occasionally start it up for the past 2-3 months and the oil was always fresh and clean. It was until I put that fuel injector in where all the problems started happening. The engine does backfire and runs rough/crappy.

Today I drove my van to homedepot 2 miles away from my house and back and looked at the dipstick its starting to look kinda normal but still does not have its texture.

[Dogfish]

So... change the oil already.

What do you have to lose if you are driving it anyway?

[mahleek87]

Some updates.

Since last Sunday I have driven my van every day and have done flower deliveries in it as well. I have put 600 miles on it since then and Im happy to say seems like everything is fine. The white cream/condensation on my dipstick was most likely due to a bad pcv valve.

Sometimes when I checked my dipstick it looked normal and sometimes there was white cream on it. I went to the store today after 1 week of driving the van and bought new oil and a new pcv valve. Im going to do those soon but I also made some video of a problem that I am having.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h9nN0DOPV4

The engine is backfiring. I moved the distrbutor very slowly from advance > retard while the engine was running and did not notice this backfiring go away. Then I set it back to where it was for a long time because I could still see the shadow of the bolt engraved so I lined it up with that.

I had the same problem a long time ago and it turned out to be a bad set of wires and cap. (That time the wires and cap were not OEM)

I ruled out my wires and cap because I put the old ones that were on before my HG blew which were good . Now I put my new ones back on with the cap. The spark plugs are new.

Could it be the ignition coil? Its brandnew from Toyota. The one I had on there before went bad to due excess heat when my HG blew. Could it possibly be my distributor? The engine chokes randomly when Im in drive. To me this looks like some kind of spark issue because Ive had this problem before.

[timsrv]

Well I'm thoroughly confused. Maybe somebody else here can help you. Good luck