Update: Finally did my head gasket. And then the very next day, my 1 year old radiator failed. I haven't had great luck with this truck but hopefully this is the last headache.
The reality of the Landcruiser Head Gasket Issue (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter The Raven
- Start date
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Could be the HG issue damaged the rad, or something got tweaked during the swap? Would seem an odd coincidence...
Yep, my hunch is the hotter temps and higher pressures with the bad HG caused premature wear on the radiator. With the new HG, maybe the cooling system was subject to even higher pressures with no "leaks" to alleviate pressure. I'm just hoping that after a new radiator these issues are over. I've sunk more $$ into this than I ever imagined. Not sour about it.. I just want to enjoy it for what it was intended for.
Hey, the more you fix, the less there is to go wrong. Make sure you have the proper Toyota pressure-relief cap on the rad; 14# I think it is.
Sorry for your troubles, My guess is it's coincidence, if the radiator is after market then there hit or miss ( I have been rocking one for 8 years )
If the HG was done right there should not be more pressure ! Most people will replace the radiator no matter the condition when doing a HG to avoid this issue
I did and the radiator was only a few month old.
Even though these trucks are very well built it's 30 years old now and well be a on going project, and at this point they always need something. For most of us it's a labor of love and a never ending drain on our wallets
If the HG was done right there should not be more pressure ! Most people will replace the radiator no matter the condition when doing a HG to avoid this issue
I did and the radiator was only a few month old.Even though these trucks are very well built it's 30 years old now and well be a on going project, and at this point they always need something. For most of us it's a labor of love and a never ending drain on our wallets
Use case matters. IMO, if you're driving in town, close to AAA access and the truck shows no signs than just don't worry about it.
Some use it almost exclusively for trips into areas where alternatives are limited and some real physical difficulty can occur with such a critically disabled rig. In that use case, PM is cheap insurance. Peace of mind is worth it. Lost time on a trip is worth more than a HG.
Things can happen on the trail, and you need to diagnose and resolve. So, PM is logical with that mindset.
If you do it as PM, HG also is an opportunity to do a lot of other things on the motor that are difficult and expensive to do otherwise.
So, its a chance to really refresh a lot of parts.
If you plan on keeping the truck, maybe build a budget and parts list for PM on your timetable.
In 5 decades of being a auto enthusiast Mud is the only place that I hear people refer to a HG job as PM
Your truck blew it's hg at 270k.
The owner I was responding to is at 240k.
Many cars have HG's that blow well under 100k - like some BMW and Subies. They just wait till it blows.
That's all I said, drive it until it blows or replace it on your terms if you intend to keep it for a long time. What's so objectionable?
I am one that 'can' see it being a viable Preventative Maintenance item for some people.
But before explaining what I mean by that....let us consider some unique aspects of the Land Cruiser that might cause an owner to consider replacing items that they normally would not on other vehicles.
- MANY Land Cruisers will easily go 300K (or more miles) even with marginal engine maintenance. Most other manufacturers (of the same era) don't enjoy that same longevity. So the average L/C engine is up there in age and usage.
- More than a few owners have been long time owners OR plan to keep their vehicle a significant amount of time.
- L/C's with cast iron blocks and aluminum heads experience widely dissimilar expansion/contraction rates. This is hard on head gaskets. Especially those gaskets created at a time when asbestos was phased out and 'new' materials had to be found.
- The polls taken on this site (anecdotal as they may be) show that your 'original' gasket WILL fail at some point.
- The L/C being a capable off-road vehicle is used that way by a fair number of owners. Having a head gasket fail way out in 'BFE' isn't the same thing as having it fail in the supermarket parking lot.
- A head gasket failure depending on how it failed and how quickly you realized it, can cause additional damage to rings, cylinders, rod and crank bearings, etc....
Why do PM on ANYTHING? Why not just wait until it breaks?
The reasons in favor of P/M are normally three:
1. A failure will/can result in an unacceptable inconvenience
2. A failure will/can result in additional damage to the vehicle
3. A failure is likely to create a significant safety concern
With respect to replacing a head gasket (proactively) it really comes down to personal decision and how it would affect you.
But the same can be said for replacing/servicing other parts. The difference being a head gasket replacement, the attendant labor costs and other (while you're in there items) is expensive.
That is where most folks balk (understandably).
IF someone were to offer the service for free.....everyone here would jump on it. Nary a person would say "Naw, I just don't think it needs it, I will wait until it breaks".
Seriously though, each person carefully consider what your L/C means to you, how you use it and how a head gasket failure might affect you. Proceed from there.
In MY case....the HG failed right after an engine block flush, so no big deal. It was sitting outside my shop and I have other vehicles to drive. It lasted 316K miles....but clearly it was about to go at any time and the engine flush just pushed it over the edge.
I've owned the vehicle since it was three years old (turned in off a corporate lease) and have all the service records from that time and my own maintenance on it. It has never been overheated or abused. I've had the L/C since 2000 and plan to keep it until I die.
So maintenance (regular and preventative) are important to me. But this might not be the case for everyone.
I know all this stuff.
With all due respect you did not do yours as PM, you have been on Mud for almost 20 years where the HG issue has been widely talked about !
At that point why just do the HG just do a complete rebuild for peace of mind !
Think for a minute about being on a long road trip far from home and especially if you happen a few miles off the beaten path and that HG let’s go. I’ve talked to a couple folks who had this happen. Luckily they were with in reach of a tow truck. Vacation ruined and major expenses to fix it where it is or ship it home where the owner can do it themselves. No thanks.
Same reason you don't hear too many folks planning their 120th birthday bash: everyone else is dead by then.
This makes no senseSame reason you don't hear too many folks planning their 120th birthday bash: everyone else is dead by then.
To be clear, everyone should do what they feel best for there own Rig.
By no means am I trying two tell people how to maintain there rig and I'm no authority on blown head gaskets.
Any statements made by me are solely My opinion and we all know what opinion are !!!
By no means am I trying two tell people how to maintain there rig and I'm no authority on blown head gaskets.
Any statements made by me are solely My opinion and we all know what opinion are !!!
This is the only forum where you read about HG change as PM because many (most?) other engines/vehicles are dead before the HG blows. We plan on running these long past the point of HG failure, which is typically ~250-300k (by which time probably 95%+ of all other vehicles are dead, sold, or traded in). Likewise, for some of the folks driving these rigs, a sudden HG failure could strand them in a fatal environment, like Death Valley or Downtown L.A.
So...PM.
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I'd surely rather be stuck in DV than DTLA.
What that has to do with 120 year birthday bash I have on idea.
My rig is highly maintained, the HG has been done And you won't catch me dead in downtown L.A.
In my opinion if your doing the HG and it's not blown then that's for peace of mind, I would not call it PM but that just me.
It can cost up to and more then 3k to get it done, that could keep you from the very trip that some are worry of have a HG failure on
I'm done with this whole HG PM nonsense Good night !!
Good night !!
Correct. Mine was not done as P/M.....it simply failed before I had a chance to get to it....but that wasn't the point of my reply. I'm simply submitting that for 'some' people it could make good sense to replace it before it fails. I am not arguing that with many other engines/vehicles it isn't really something that one would normally consider.
But given the age and average mileage of our vehicles, it is well to recognize that at some point the HG will fail. Couple that with the desire many owners have to keep their Land Cruiser.....it then becomes a reasonable action to take, for those who can afford it or whom simply want to do the job on their own time frame and terms.
I didn't rebuild my engine when my HG failed. Having seen the pristine condition of the cylinders and having no tell-tale signs of trouble or excessive wear in the lower end, I chose to continue to run it. I would not be surprised to get 500K miles out of my engine before needing a complete rebuild. So I am not one to advocate for things that are unnecessary. There is a 'high end' to everything, including preventative maintenance.
Historical evidence (of these engines reasonably maintained) points to a lower end that tends to outlast the factory installed head gasket and certain valve train parts by a good margin. Thus it makes sense (IMO) to consider addressing the one 'Achilles heel' the engine has which is the original head gasket (iron block/aluminum heads).
It can (and has been argued) that if the original head gasket goes 200K miles (or thereabouts) then it has done its job. But I'd wager the engineers of that era intended them to last longer than that. Since the lower end has proven itself to be robust....why not get all the practical use out of it by upgrading the head gasket with current materials and design?
In closing....I would reiterate the notion of head gasket 'PM' does not make sense for everyone. We all use our vehicles differently and for different reasons. For some the vehicle is a daily driver, for others its vehicle #4 or just a toy.
Some can easily afford to do any amount of work on their vehicle, others are on strict budgets.
We have folks that enjoy spending their time and money on repairs and modifications. Other's cuss each dollar spent and often don't keep any vehicle very long anyway.
Personally, it doesn't bother me to spend whatever is necessary to keep ALL of my vehicles in good running condition, such that I can reasonably expect to get from point A to point B with no unexpected problems.
Conversely, my FIL will not spend a dime on any of his vehicles or farm equipment until it has broken down (in at least two places) and absolutely can not be used.
I'm pretty sure he co-authored the book 'The complete cheapskate'.
And its not a money thing, he has plenty of money. Its a 'mentality'. But his choice. As it is for all of us.
Good night Sir, sleep well.I'm done with this whole HG PM nonsense
