#6 Piston sleeve damage, need help. (1 Viewer)

[leitev8]

I recently bought a 1993 land cruiser, and the truck was consuming coolant so I decided to tackle the head gasket job. I just removed the head and this is what the cylinder #6 looks like.
Does anybody have any idea for what should be my next step?
Buy an used engine?
Remove engine and take it to a machinist to get it rebuild?
I wasn't expecting to drop this much money, that's why I was doing the head gasket myself.... just a big bummer right now.
I'm located in Tampa Fl.

 

[gbeltran]

I'd look for another engine. It look like that sat with water in it. For a while, I'd say that coolant problem was going on for quite some time. Also has that chip at the top of the cylinder which isn't right. You would have to get that sleeved to repair it, not worth it really, engines are easy enough to source.

 

[baldilocks]

Boat anchor

 

[leitev8]

Does anybody knows a good source for 1FZs in Florida?

 

[half k cruiser]

@leitev8 there are few times I would ever write off a motor based on a couple of pics posted in a thread. The fact is it may be salvageable, but you won't know until you pull it and take the short block to a reputable machine shop. I would want the following questions answered before I tossed it.

- what if any damage has been done to the rotating assembly ? It will be obvious if water has caused any issues lower down once you have the bearing caps off and the crank pulled.
- how much work would it be to fix the pitting in the cylinder wall ? If its not too deep the machinist might be able to fix it with a step hone. Or they may recommend you have that cylinder over bored to correct the issue.
- can the deck height be brought down enough to correct the issue with the fire ring ? I had damage to the fire ring in my 94 when I pulled the head. I took the block down to the machine shop and they planed it right out.

It would most certainly be easier to buy a used motor and drop it in. Then again you won't know what you have. At minimum the motor you have will require cylinder honing x6 and decking of the block and timing cover. Front and rear main seals, some RTV for the oil pans, torque converter seal since the block will be out ( lets say $100 in gaskets ) and you would need new rings. A good set of NPR rings will set you back at least $150.

The real unknowns price wise depends on that #6 cylinder. If it does need to be bored to correct the issue then you will need a new piston which will bump your price up. However, here's something to think about. Lets say you buy a spare motor for $800 - $1000, you now have a used motor that you know very little about. If you were to spend that same $800-1000 on your current cylinder block ( assuming its saveable) then you will have a nicely refreshed block with new rings, better compression, and no leaks.

 

[nukegoat]

New block

 

[leitev8]

If my rotating assembly is in good condition could I just get that cylinder resleeved, get one new piston and new rings?

 

[half k cruiser]

If my rotating assembly is in good condition could I just get that cylinder resleeved, get one new piston and new rings?

I don't see why not, but that question would be better asked of people who do it for a living ( your machinist ).

 

[gbeltran]

You theoretically could, but for the amount of work involved you would be ahead with another engine. You will have to fully disassemble the engine you have now and take the block to the machine shop. So at the very least now you are looking at more gaskets and a good amount of labor taking it apart. That is in addition to getting it out of the truck. And judging by the picture you are probably going to find a 'whole lot more' parts that will require replacement.

 

[890man]

Our motors are sleeved???

 

[gbeltran]

No they are not. Cylinders that are badly damaged or worn can be sleeved on some blocks to repair them. Depending on the extent of the damage and the thickness of the cylinders.

 

[890man]

Didn't think so. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[repey3]

So take this for what it's worth, but depending on the planned use of the rig (i.e. are you planning to drive to south america, daily driver, etc.) and if money is tight, I would knock down the high spots and run it. Worst case is you will have accelerated ring wear on that piston which may result in burning a little oil. You can slap it back together and run a leakdown and compression test to see how bad it is/what type of performance loss you may experience. As for the deck damage, there are also "homebrew" options to patch that up as well. Again this is if $ is worth more than time because you may end up tearing it down again anyway.

Along the same lines as what half k cruiser said, if you're considering repair options, rent or borrow a dial indicator and get an idea of how deep it is...the FSM specifies limits for cylinder boring. If you do want to bore it, this should give you enough info to determine if it is salvageable. There are also options for "in vehicle" machining which would not require a full engine pull, but you may be better off just doing it right the first time (i.e. full rebuild) if your plans are to keep the vehicle long term and need it to be reliable for long trips away from home, etc.

Summary - don't write off the motor just yet. There are options, talk to a machinist.

edit: typo

 

[half k cruiser]

You theoretically could, but for the amount of work involved you would be ahead with another engine. You will have to fully disassemble the engine you have now and take the block to the machine shop. So at the very least now you are looking at more gaskets and a good amount of labor taking it apart. That is in addition to getting it out of the truck. And judging by the picture you are probably going to find a 'whole lot more' parts that will require replacement.

The motor has to come out of the truck regardless of what he decides to do with it. If you have the tools to do that, its not much more work to disassemble the rotating assembly. If he doesn't have the tools/ability, then yes, he will be out more money having it rebuilt then having it swapped. I was assuming since he could pull the head that he can pull the block.

 

[leitev8]

I don't have an engine hoist.
I was using the garage of a good friend of mine. I didn't want to leave the cruiser sitting in his garage so I got it towed to a mechanic that I know... it's gonna cost me but unfortunately I don't have the tools for this job