NLXTACY
Wits' End
Well its been almost two years since I tried the Bar's Stop Leak trick to "solve" my blown head gasket:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-...-gasket-months-before-doing-supercharger.html
I kept putting it off because I just never had time to deal with it. Well I really don't have time now due do my work/travel schedule but now I don't have a choice.
Once again this little mod saves the day:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/222467-faq-installing-photomans-coolant-level-sensor.html
This time the alarm goes off while my wife is driving on her way back from taking my son and his friends to Magic Mountain. The alarm was followed by the CEL. She checked the number and told me it was 306. So she came home and its now parked.
Checked the radiator after it cooled down. All the coolant was basically gone. Quick check on this site points to exactly what I was worried. Head Gasket has finally given up the ghost.
So I have some choices and I really want to be as pragmatic as possible. Here are my choices as I see them considering my wife and I agreed that we absolutely do NOT want to get rid of the truck. We were really hoping to hit 300k but oh well. Options:
(Caveats: I have a used low-mile S/C collecting dust on my garage floor & the engine block as a front and rear main seal leak)
• Keep the block in place and just rebuild the head and replace the headgasket after making sure the block is still flat. Using all OEM gaskets and quick and dirty. I'm not a fan of this because it doesn't take care of the oil leaks and the S/C doesn't get installed but its the cheapest and more importantly the quickest.
• Remove the entire engine, have the head rebuilt and purchase a brand new short block from American Toyota for $2900. If I went this route I would most certainly install the S/C.
• Call up Christo Slee and figure what the timing and approx cost of the 4.7 retrofit would be. I am considering this route as I would just get the
something else to drive and then just ship the truck over to Slee. I would guess I would be contacting LDQ for a low mileage 4.7
• SBC but Im in Cali. The money isn't scaring me away as much as the potential to be without the truck for months at a time. If the conversation could be done in just a few weeks I would probably be heavily leaning this direction. [edit: Just talked to Georg @ Valley Hybrids. He has a back log of work pushing him well into summer. That removes the SBC as an option for me. Pricing on the SBC with a Vortec would approach $10k.]
• Diesel is just too many unknowns and not enough of them done on the 80 series within CA.
Then of course WHO does it all? Certainly not me.
• K&H (pro: very close to me, I trust him. Con: doesn't touch conversions)
• Georg (pro: has done tons of conversions for the CA market. Con: is in Stockton, hard NOT to have him do all sorts of other stuff which could get super spendy
)
• Robbie (pro: the man KNOWS his shiznit and I know it will be done right and if we have a spare bedroom he will come to me. Con: I need to find others around me to make it worth his time)
• Christo (pro: the man KNOWS his shiznit and I have been lusting over doing the 4.7 conversion. Con: I would need to have the truck shipped to Colorado and I'm fairly certain I will be paying for his new basement
BTW, I really don't want to have to buy my wife another vehicle just yet so if anyone has a cruiser they aren't driving and want to make some rent money on it
So give me all of your feedback and help me make as informed a design as possible and of course I will document every step of the way of what happens here.
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-...-gasket-months-before-doing-supercharger.html
I kept putting it off because I just never had time to deal with it. Well I really don't have time now due do my work/travel schedule but now I don't have a choice.
Once again this little mod saves the day:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/222467-faq-installing-photomans-coolant-level-sensor.html
This time the alarm goes off while my wife is driving on her way back from taking my son and his friends to Magic Mountain. The alarm was followed by the CEL. She checked the number and told me it was 306. So she came home and its now parked.
Checked the radiator after it cooled down. All the coolant was basically gone. Quick check on this site points to exactly what I was worried. Head Gasket has finally given up the ghost.
So I have some choices and I really want to be as pragmatic as possible. Here are my choices as I see them considering my wife and I agreed that we absolutely do NOT want to get rid of the truck. We were really hoping to hit 300k but oh well. Options:
(Caveats: I have a used low-mile S/C collecting dust on my garage floor & the engine block as a front and rear main seal leak)
• Keep the block in place and just rebuild the head and replace the headgasket after making sure the block is still flat. Using all OEM gaskets and quick and dirty. I'm not a fan of this because it doesn't take care of the oil leaks and the S/C doesn't get installed but its the cheapest and more importantly the quickest.
• Remove the entire engine, have the head rebuilt and purchase a brand new short block from American Toyota for $2900. If I went this route I would most certainly install the S/C.
• Call up Christo Slee and figure what the timing and approx cost of the 4.7 retrofit would be. I am considering this route as I would just get the
something else to drive and then just ship the truck over to Slee. I would guess I would be contacting LDQ for a low mileage 4.7• SBC but Im in Cali. The money isn't scaring me away as much as the potential to be without the truck for months at a time. If the conversation could be done in just a few weeks I would probably be heavily leaning this direction. [edit: Just talked to Georg @ Valley Hybrids. He has a back log of work pushing him well into summer. That removes the SBC as an option for me. Pricing on the SBC with a Vortec would approach $10k.]
• Diesel is just too many unknowns and not enough of them done on the 80 series within CA.
Then of course WHO does it all? Certainly not me.
• K&H (pro: very close to me, I trust him. Con: doesn't touch conversions)
• Georg (pro: has done tons of conversions for the CA market. Con: is in Stockton, hard NOT to have him do all sorts of other stuff which could get super spendy
)• Robbie (pro: the man KNOWS his shiznit and I know it will be done right and if we have a spare bedroom he will come to me. Con: I need to find others around me to make it worth his time)
• Christo (pro: the man KNOWS his shiznit and I have been lusting over doing the 4.7 conversion. Con: I would need to have the truck shipped to Colorado and I'm fairly certain I will be paying for his new basement
BTW, I really don't want to have to buy my wife another vehicle just yet so if anyone has a cruiser they aren't driving and want to make some rent money on it
So give me all of your feedback and help me make as informed a design as possible and of course I will document every step of the way of what happens here.
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