Is this true? New 3L heads in '92..

[ahmed]

Hi all,
Considering a '93 2.4Lt. Surf import from Japan. Been reading most of the horror stories about cylinder heads going BANG. Pretty much went through most of the threads on the forum. I found this one quite interesting:

http://www.hiluxsurf.co.uk/forums/sh...ighlight=afaik

If you scroll down to the reply by "cataclysm". He mentions that the upgraded 3L heads were used in trucks made during the late '92 on. Any idea where to get any production figures (preferably by Serial No. or month of production) on when this actually started. That'll be great to assess the vehicle in question.

Cheers,
Ahmed
Calgary, AB - Canada

[stormforce]

these heads are the 2.8litre 3l head and not the actual 3.0l heads as some people think.
These 2.8 3l heads were fitted to the late 1992 to 1993 2.4's when Toyota realised there was a design fault with the original heads
When the heads blow on the 2.4's now these 2.8litre 3l heads are now fitted as a direct replacement just about all the 2.4's were involved in the faulty head design apart mainly from those within the dates stated above.
Like any motor tho the head can go on any motor no matter how old or new

[ahmed]

These 2.8 3l heads were fitted to the late 1992 to 1993 2.4's when Toyota realised there was a design fault with the original heads
When the heads blow on the 2.4's now these 2.8litre 3l heads are now fitted as a direct replacement just about all the 2.4's were involved in the faulty head design apart mainly from those within the dates stated above.
new

Cheers Richard,
What worries me is they usually brand late year production units as next year's model i.e. vehicles produced in, say, the 2nd half of '92 will be sold as '93 model. At least that's what the North American car manuf. do here. Not sure if it is the same thing in Japan. So, if the truck is sold as '93, then it is likely made late '92. Hence I was just looking for any clues such as production S/N's or such to assure myself before committing to the sale..

BTW, Where on the truck can I find the name plate with the month and year of manufacturing?

Thanks again..

[stormforce]

over we have a vehicle log book with all the vehicle details on it which each owner of the vehicle gets in his/her name when the vehicle has been sold.
On my 3.0l it has first registered 01/02/1994 which it would of been built in 1993 i would think. I'm not sure where you will actually find the year of manufacture on the vehicle tho.The main vehicle details will be on the bulkhead in the engine bay on a small silver coloured plate

.......EDIT........ i just looked on the reg document and it says year of manufacture 1994

[jotto]

If you know the chassis No. then you can see when it was made here http://toyota.mnc.ru/framno/LN130.html

Or have a look at the seatbelts there should be a tag on them that will tell you when they were made.

[ahmed]

If you know the chassis No. then you can see when it was made here http://toyota.mnc.ru/framno/LN130.html

Or have a look at the seatbelts there should be a tag on them that will tell you when they were made.

SWEET!!! Thanks Jotto for this link..
I looked it up and it was made near the end of March 1993. So, I would assume it has the "better" 3L head then, right?

Cheers,
Ahmed

[stormforce]

SWEET!!! Thanks Jotto for this link..
I looked it up and it was made near the end of March 1993. So, I would assume it has the "better" 3L head then, right?

Cheers,
Ahmed

it should do yes but be aware that you can still have problems if the last owner hasn't looked after the truck and had it serviced proper.Anything can go wrong as with any vehicle so just don't take it for granted that it will be ok

[cataclysm]

SWEET!!! Thanks Jotto for this link..
I looked it up and it was made near the end of March 1993. So, I would assume it has the "better" 3L head then, right?

Cheers,
Ahmed

Careful still, the difference between the 2.8 non-turbo head (the 3L) and the older 2.4 turbo head is only in the internal casting, you won't see a difference.

Plus, Toyota has a huge output, and most of the Surf's parts are in common with the regular Hilux. They probably have racks and racks of parts and only put everything together when needed. I've certainly seen Audis with Date of Manufacture = 1990, with engine parts cast in 1989.

From what I know (which I have to say is through research, NOT first hand experience) if the heads are particularly bad, they go within a year or two of coming to the UK. If it's been driven here for a while and you maintain well and don't thrash you should have many years of enjoyable ownership.

[TonyN]

I've fixed plenty of 92/93 2.4's with cracked heads.

To be honest, there is no magic way of telling, you're wasting your time. Make the most of the fact that 2.4's are amazingly cheap because of the head issue, and just live with the fact it might go and deal with when it happens.