1998 Tacoma Engine Replace v Repair

Hello everyone, recently I blew the head gasket on my 1998 Toyota Tacoma. Would it be better to replace the whole engine or replace the head gasket? It also has a minor oil leak. With this being a first car for me I have no idea what I should do.

 

Need information. What engine? Extent of damage? Service history?

 

For all i know its the original engine from 1998. a 4 cylinder? and no known service history.

 

When it happened to mine I went by price. Price to repair vs replace with a used one was within a couple hundred dollars. Mine had about 154k on it and what they told me they were putting in had about 75k on it. So I went with the replace. Of course, no idea what they actually put in and they did a horrible job (about a year later dealership found several lines not even connected when diagnosing a misfire). But...everything else was in good shape, I knew I'd keep it a long time, etc.. A lot goes into that decision. Might even sell as is and start over.

 

Since some new people aren't always super well informed, you're talking about an oil leak in the head gasket so you're getting oil in your coolant or on the side of your block or? Just want to clarify since some people mistake a leaky valve cover for a leaky head gasket.

If it's the head gasket it is a little harder of a decision to make with a 4 banger since they're more expensive when buying a jdm replacement than the v6 typically (more scarce and therefore more expensive) and only replacing one head is cheaper than trying to do both on the v6. If you can find a low miles engine out of a running wreck that's ideal and you can hear it run before buying it.

 

Which 4 cylinder? 2.4l or 2.7l?

Count your lug nuts. If you have 6 it’s the 2.7l. If it’s 5 then you have the 2.4l. This rule of course does not apply if you’re one of those rare 5-lug trucks with the 3.4l v6.

 

And if you can't count to 5 you've found the right place

 

so the oil leak is not from the head gasket but from somewhere else. i believe it is a 2.7l.
one morning my truck started to shutter and make weird noises and i put it off as it being cold or something. but when i got to school it completely died and smoke was coming from under the hood. the temp gauge was well past 'hot' and i decided to let it rest until later that day. i decided to drive it home. that is where thing broke.

 

You’ve smoked your motor find a competent shop to replace

 

i think it was more than that. there was a ton of coolant everywhere.

 

Don't take it to Jr.Sample Sales whatever you do.

 

Sounds like time for a swap....

 

The question is do you have a place and the know how to swap a engine??

If you need to pay a shop to do this it can get quite expensive.

What shape is the rest of the truck since you don`t say where it lives?

 

So to give you perspective:
Repairing the motor can get expensive and at this point is a 50/50 if it is relatively cheap or expensive.
Reason:
The head gasket itself and seals are cheap BUT....
The head itself will have to be taken to a machine shop. The machine shop will probably charge around 50 bucks to test it.
You are lucky if:
The head is all good then you can just replace the head gasket.
The head is slightly warped but repairable where you have the chance of paying the machine shop to shave the head back flat. Still a cost. Then you would need to use a slightly thicker head gasket (the machine shop will tell you what size)
The cost will be expensive if:
The machine shop tests the head and warrants the head as not useable since it is too warped.
OR the machine shop tells you the head is cracked.
At this point you need to find a new head which can potentially cost as much as a used engine. If you find a used one it can cost a bit less but you need to make sure the guy you're buying it from is honest.

Either way you would need to also buy the head gasket kit and while you're in there go ahead and replace the timing components.

Buying a used engine is not a bad option but it involves a lot more labor and you never know the state of the used engine. 80% of the time used engines are good to go but you have to look out for the 20% that people can potentially scam you with.

I would definitely first find the cause of the overheat. I would hate for you to rebuild the engine or swap in a used one and it overheats too.

It's up to you just throwing out info for you to make your own decision.