dodgy cylinder heads

[theabbiss]

Hi,

I don't have a Surf yet, been looking for one, this is the best site I've found for info yet.

Do all surf's (diesel) suffer from a poorly designed head or is it just the 2.4/2.8? What normally causes the overheating, dodgy water valleys, heater valve??

Do many suffer from BHG's? Toyota seem to be good at this in the early 90's, the 7M supra's have a terrible head that causes gasket failure every 50-70k miles, most of them taking a piston with it, this was due to Jap coolent not being used and is cured by torquing the HG to 72lb instead of Toyota's figure of 58lb. Can't see how this would help a Surf head from failure but I don't see how it helps the Supra that much, any ideas if a higher torque level would help?

Do these engines suffer from bearing failure, big ends etc at 100k plus?

I know I'm asking a lot but I'm getting fed up of buying a quality body older car that then needs its entire engine rebuilding within 6 months. Any advice what to look for under the bonnet would help.

Cheers

theabbiss

[Tallyman]

About 20% of the 2.4L Surf's over here seem to have problems with cracking heads. It's mainly a design problem which was cured by a redesign but is caused by overheating. The cooling system needs to be kept in good condition and if used off road, the rad needs to be washed clean.

The 3.0L does not seem to suffer from the same problem to any extent, although 2nd Gen automatics can suffer if the ATF fluid is working hard, as the design of the radiator puts the ATF oil cooler in the bottom of the rad, obstructing the outflow of water and helping to re-heat it before it goes back into the engine. A supplimentary oil cooler run in line, but before the inbuilt cooler, helps to overcome this, especially when towing.

Other than that, the engines appear to be fairly robust and should be good for a few hundred thousand miles provided you stick to the recommended service intervals (3-5K for oil & filter) and use a good quality oil.

[theabbiss]

Any ideas how I can tell if a 2.4 has the redesigned head?

[Tallyman]

If it's already been replaced then the seller/dealer ought to have bills to prove it, although you need to be sure it's been replaced with a new, not a reconditioned head. Other than that, I don't believe there is any easy way of telling just by looking, although the later the 2.4L (i.e, 1993) the more chance you probably have of getting one that was built with the modified head.

Best way to overcome this is to buy a 3.0L, as they give better power/torque for about the same mpg.

[Koi]

Any ideas how I can tell if a 2.4 has the redesigned head?

strip it down and measure the thickness of the walls between the water way and valve guides.
Or buy one with the head done (like the one i am selling ) with receipts to prove it has a new head. Otherthan those two options theres no external way of telling.

[dirtydog]

strip it down and measure the thickness of the walls between the water way and valve guides.
Or buy one with the head done (like the one i am selling ) with receipts to prove it has a new head. Otherthan those two options theres no external way of telling.

lol - smooth move, thats very a good price for a SSRG with a new head though.
Hope it sells quick.