Engine replacement/overhaul options

[turbotommy]

It looks like i have a shagged engine (1KZTE, '96, 75K), since i have blue smoke and excessive oil consumption (and have replaced the turbo, a possible cause). I'm not sure if the cause of the oil consumption is valves or cylinders/piston rings; the head looks as if it has been replaced so it may not be the valves, but the 'new' head might not have been OK.

The blue smoke is absent at idle, but gets stronger with acceleration, and is not bad at speed. I don't think that there is much at all on deceleration (a good test of valve guides/seals ?).

Any suggestions on my options ? I don't have the time or garage to do the work myself. Either i have a re-bore and hope that the head is OK (it's at least accessible) or i get a short re-build. Are these available, from whom, and how much ?

To add to the excitement, the engine to gearbox mount is cracked, which causes an intermitent judder while pulling away. Joy.

Suggestions on a condolence card, please...

[Vagrant No2]

It looks like i have a shagged engine (1KZTE, '96, 75K), since i have blue smoke and excessive oil consumption (and have replaced the turbo, a possible cause). I'm not sure if the cause of the oil consumption is valves or cylinders/piston rings; the head looks as if it has been replaced so it may not be the valves, but the 'new' head might not have been OK.

The blue smoke is absent at idle, but gets stronger with acceleration, and is not bad at speed. I don't think that there is much at all on deceleration (a good test of valve guides/seals ?).

Any suggestions on my options ? I don't have the time or garage to do the work myself. Either i have a re-bore and hope that the head is OK (it's at least accessible) or i get a short re-build. Are these available, from whom, and how much ?

To add to the excitement, the engine to gearbox mount is cracked, which causes an intermitent judder while pulling away. Joy.

Suggestions on a condolence card, please...

Have you got excessive crankcase pressure ? . Diesels rarely wear piston rings in my experience as there is far more bore lubrication due to diesel fuel then petrol . Check if the breather system is blocked or a breather pipe kincked because this will cause crankcase pressure to build and force the oil up past the piston rings and burn it .
Hope this helps

Rick

[stormrider]

Try disconnecting the breather hose between the rocker box and the turbo.Bung up the turbo connection end and leave the rocker box hose open,(you might have to extend it away from the exhaust) and try it down the road.If its clear,you`ve got ring problems.If it`s still smoking it could be valve/seal trouble or turbo seals.Valve stem seals can crack or come off the guides if its been overheated.You mention a replacement head .Do you know owt` about it or why it was changed?.It`s not summat daft like the air filter is it,because that`ll cause the symptoms you`ve got.The engine looks a bit of a pig to overhaul,so I hope its not owt too serious.Hope this helps.

[turbotommy]

Have you got excessive crankcase pressure ? . Diesels rarely wear piston rings in my experience as there is far more bore lubrication due to diesel fuel then petrol . Check if the breather system is blocked or a breather pipe kincked because this will cause crankcase pressure to build and force the oil up past the piston rings and burn it .
Hope this helps

Rick

I don't think that it is excessive crankcase pressure, as i tried disconnecting a breather pipe. I disconnected it, and started it up, to see if there was much oil vapour in it, and saw very little or none (even with revving). There seemed to be no oil in it, which left me wondering if i had disconnected the right pipe (it was from the valve cover...). There was still blue smoke from the exhaust.

When i got this vehicle it was really 'clattery' at low revs; it sounded like a very noisy diesel. This got a lot better after the timing belt tensioner was done, and also an overhaul of the injectors. This made it run a lot more smoothly. However, i don't know how long it was run like prior to this (it has service history, but clearly this has not helped), and wonder if it might have knackered the pistons/bores.

I'll keep trying to find ways of testing the PCV system and turbo before an engine overhaul, but it seems to be hard to make or get a definitive diagnosis...

Thanks for the suggestion, though..

[turbotommy]

Try disconnecting the breather hose between the rocker box and the turbo.Bung up the turbo connection end and leave the rocker box hose open,(you might have to extend it away from the exhaust) and try it down the road.If its clear,you`ve got ring problems.If it`s still smoking it could be valve/seal trouble or turbo seals.Valve stem seals can crack or come off the guides if its been overheated.You mention a replacement head .Do you know owt` about it or why it was changed?.It`s not summat daft like the air filter is it,because that`ll cause the symptoms you`ve got.The engine looks a bit of a pig to overhaul,so I hope its not owt too serious.Hope this helps.

Have tried a new air filter; no effect.

I think that i already did this (see reply to previous post); though i just revved it rather than driving it. I left the turbo open; would it make a difference if it were closed off ?

I've no idea why the head was changed; the previous owner didn't know that it had been, and it wasn't marked on the service history. There was quite a bit that needed done, eg the timing belt tensioner and injectors.

I had the compression checked and it is 285-/+5 per cylinder. This is at the low end for toyota standards (min 285, max 440). It starts really well, so there seems to be enough compression, and it pulls quite well. It could still be a duff oil ring.

The diagnosis continues, but thanks for the suggestion..,

[stormrider]

Compression testing

Dunno if you`ve seen this comp. test procedure but it might help deciding the next step :Engine at working temp -battery well up -glow plugs out -pull plug on timing control valve(bottom one at rear of pump) -fit screw in type comp. tester -throttle fully open and crank the engine until gauge stops rising. Check other cylinders and note readings.If they are on the low side like yours tip a SMALL amount of engine oil into the cylinders and try them again.The following might help your diagnosis.-PISTON RINGS -low on 1st stroke building up each stroke until you get good readings.-VALVES-low on 1st stroke and does`nt get much better even with the oil in the cyl.-HEAD GASKET/PROBLEM-if the readings are low on two adjacent cylinders and adding the oil makes no difference the gaskets blown through .You`re going have to have your gear ready to do it all while the motor is still hot, but once the glow plugs are out it should`nt take long, seeing as you`ve tested it once already. Have you changed the oil since you had the injectors o/hauled and how much is it actually using ?I`ve had a look in the book and the oil rings are the 3-piece type which don`t normally give any trouble ,not at only 76k miles anyway.But you never know.Good luck with it.

[turbotommy]

Dunno if you`ve seen this comp. test procedure but it might help deciding the next step :Engine at working temp -battery well up -glow plugs out -pull plug on timing control valve(bottom one at rear of pump) -fit screw in type comp. tester -throttle fully open and crank the engine until gauge stops rising. Check other cylinders and note readings.If they are on the low side like yours tip a SMALL amount of engine oil into the cylinders and try them again.The following might help your diagnosis.-PISTON RINGS -low on 1st stroke building up each stroke until you get good readings.-VALVES-low on 1st stroke and does`nt get much better even with the oil in the cyl.-HEAD GASKET/PROBLEM-if the readings are low on two adjacent cylinders and adding the oil makes no difference the gaskets blown through .You`re going have to have your gear ready to do it all while the motor is still hot, but once the glow plugs are out it should`nt take long, seeing as you`ve tested it once already. Have you changed the oil since you had the injectors o/hauled and how much is it actually using ?I`ve had a look in the book and the oil rings are the 3-piece type which don`t normally give any trouble ,not at only 76k miles anyway.But you never know.Good luck with it.

Thanks for the suggestion about the oil to check if the problem is rings/bores or valves. I can't do it myself (no gauge or garage) but could take it back to where i had it tested before. They replaced the turbo and put too much oil in, so i'm not overwhelmed by their abilities. It wasn't 'frothing' the oil so i let it burn off rather than draining it. I read another post of a surf for sale where someone described having a cooked engine, doing the head, and then discovering that the cylinders were knackered too. I was a bit surprised at that, and i wonder if this has happened to mine. There wasn't any sign of overheating (eg red dust ?) that i can see, though there was some signs of oil in the coolant expansion tank some time ago (none after it was cleaned and new coolant added). I've yet to calculate the exact oil usage, but the level goes down 'faster than an essex girl'....If only it were as cheap....

I'm off to the lakes, so will see what the oil usage is over the trip.

I'm even thinking about slinging in some of the STP oil stuff, i think it used to be called 'engine honey' to up the oil pressure and reduce the blue smoke. But this would only make diagnosis harder...