I replaced my Big ends last week as precaution however when I took the old ones out, they were perfect, so it doesn't seem like the big end problem happens to all the 1HDT / 1HD-FT engines. My engine has nearly 150K miles on it.
For anyone who wants to do it, it was a pretty easy job, took just over 3 hours start to finish.
I got at them by running the front of the cruiser on ramps, then up the car on the front crossmember with a jack and a piece of fence post. This got me the clearance to remove the sump - the steering armas get in the way otherwise.
Only thing I wish I had was a quick wrench to undo the sump bolts as it's a bit tiring upside down with a ratchet and long bar.
Also used the fuel pump pulley bolt to turn over the engine to get at each of the bearings in turn and drop that piston down to BDC - removed the timing belt cover to get at it. Used this because it's easier to get at than the crankshaft pulley.
Also changed all the injectors as well as the engine has a bit of life behind it, runs quite a bit smoother now - even though it wasn't rough to start with.
For anyone who wants to do it, it was a pretty easy job, took just over 3 hours start to finish.
I got at them by running the front of the cruiser on ramps, then up the car on the front crossmember with a jack and a piece of fence post. This got me the clearance to remove the sump - the steering armas get in the way otherwise.
Only thing I wish I had was a quick wrench to undo the sump bolts as it's a bit tiring upside down with a ratchet and long bar.
Also used the fuel pump pulley bolt to turn over the engine to get at each of the bearings in turn and drop that piston down to BDC - removed the timing belt cover to get at it. Used this because it's easier to get at than the crankshaft pulley.
Also changed all the injectors as well as the engine has a bit of life behind it, runs quite a bit smoother now - even though it wasn't rough to start with.