Build Build: 1994 Project - "Spring"

[MTrun]

FSM sounds like this indicates a possible sticking valve, improper seating, or leakage past the gasket? Is this low enough compression to be seriously concerned or point to the source of the ticking? Still above FSM minimum of 128psi. Does anyone have advice on next steps to rule out or identify the source of this one? TIA!

 

[BILT4ME]

FSM sounds like this indicates a possible sticking valve, improper seating, or leakage past the gasket? Is this low enough compression to be seriously concerned or point to the source of the ticking? Still above FSM minimum of 128psi. Does anyone have advice on next steps to rule out or identify the source of this one? TIA!

I think your next step is a leak down test to determine if you have a leaking valve.

Yes doing a bore scope would be a good idea also.

 

[MTrun]

I think your next step is a leak down test to determine if you have a leaking valve.

Yes doing a bore scope would be a good idea also.

Thanks BILT4ME!

 

[MTrun]

Okay - scoped cylinder #4. If there was anything concerning -- here are the worst looking of the photos. The cylinder looked great as I rotated it except for the light scoring you see here. Also not sure what the wet residue was in the last photo -- possibly from when I added oil to the cylinder for the 'wet' compression test?

 

[MTrun]

Leak down tests are in, cylinders 2, 3 and 4 are low. 2 & 3 are at 45% and #4 is the lowest, coming in at 66%, I can hear/feel air moving through the oil cap and the air line out the top of the valve cover.

 

[MTrun]

Wondering if this means it is definitely leakage around the rings, or could still be something else like the head gasket?

 

[BILT4ME]

Wondering if this means it is definitely leakage around the rings, or could still be something else like the head gasket?

During the leak down test, did you rotate the engine so the valves in that cylinder were closed?

Hearing air in the valve cover (oil cap) would indicate rings or a hole in a piston, but it would be 100% leakdown.

If valves were closed and no air through intake, then valves are ok and it's more serious. Typically a HG doesn't leak to the crankcase unless you have coolant in the oil.

 

[MTrun]

During the leak down test, did you rotate the engine so the valves in that cylinder were closed?

Hearing air in the valve cover (oil cap) would indicate rings or a hole in a piston, but it would be 100% leakdown.

If valves were closed and no air through intake, then valves are ok and it's more serious. Typically a HG doesn't leak to the crankcase unless you have coolant in the oil.

Thanks BILT4ME! I did close the valves. Top dead center, compression stroke. Poured an ounce of oil in #4 and re-ran the leakdown test, pressure was great then!

 

[SaturnAscends]

I might be way off base here but could it be something as simple as a bad injector?

 

[MTrun]

I might be way off base here but could it be something as simple as a bad injector?

That would be nice. I was picturing the injectors being outside of the compression/ leak down envelope, but happy to pursue that test before putting in a new engine.

 

[CVBackroads]

Thanks BILT4ME! I did close the valves. Top dead center, compression stroke. Poured an ounce of oil in #4 and re-ran the leakdown test, pressure was great then!

Thanks BILT4ME! I did close the valves. Top dead center, compression stroke. Poured an ounce of oil in #4 and re-ran the leakdown test, pressure was great then!

Thank you for documenting this! I have a 1994 and it is making the exact same knock/ticking sound. I purchased it in July of 2021 knowing that it had the engine noise. I drove it 2000 miles to get it home and it ran great the whole way. I didn't have to add oil once. Does yours use oil? Your documentation is very helpful. When I drive mine I can hear the knocking as it shifts through the gears and then when the transmission shifts into overdrive I can no longer hear the noise. Is this the case with yours?
I dropped the lower oil pan and found non-ferrous metal so I went ahead and replaced all of the rod bearings. Getting the upper oil pan off was a chore, especially because I missed two of the bolts on the upper-rear portion of the pan. It took months to receive all of the bearings from Toyota, but the process of installing them was enjoyable. The knocking is lesser, but definitely still there.
After the results of your leak down test what is your next step? What exactly did the leak down test reveal?

Best of luck and thanks again!

 

[MTrun]

Good luck in your adventure CVBackroads! Same here -- no real oil loss.

At this point, the leak down test appears to point to piston rings. Leakage on cylinders 2, 3 and 4 with air coming out of the oil fill cap. It is hard for me to quantify how bad it is, the rig still drives fine and I have no issues at low or highway speed though the pick up is weaker than it should be. Hard to tell exactly how much of that is running 35's but I would say the engine feels a bit more sluggish than it should. I can sometimes smell some unburned fuel in the exhaust as well - another clue.

Trying to decide my next steps -- driving it like it is, engine rebuild (getting some engine quotes now), or selling this one with all of the disclosures if I don't want to tackle a full rebuild. Was hoping for a more simple fix but it is not looking that way for Spring. I have a lot of blood sweat and $ into baselining this rig as I ran through my massive to-do/wishlist over the last 6 months so it is hard to let it go -- but that was also the point of this project!

 

[MTrun]

This was my list -- you can see what remains!

Next Up:

• Register Vehicle
• Have OTRAMM inspect and evaluate
• Have second mechanic take a look at it (2nd opinion before I do something dumb)
• Repair Front right turn signal
• Repair brake light
• Replace all engine fluids
• Replace front and rear diff Fluids
• Replace window belt trim
• Replace window felts
• Replace drivers window run gasket
• Replace Headlight bulbs
• Repair and re-install Drivers side mirror for flop
• Upgrade to new drive flanges to support longer birfs
• New birfs, axle and front wheel bearings
• Rebuild swivel hubs
• New front axle wheel bearings and trunnion bearings, seals etc
• Replace stripped Transfer case fill bolt
• Engine tick
  • Try chainging oil grade
  • Perform Schrodinger straw/screwdriver test to check for rod knock
  • Remove and replace Power steering pump for gear noise check
  • Re-torque flywheel
  • Check harmonic balancer & re-torque
  • Compression Test
  • Leak-Down Test
  • Rebuild power steering pump
• Reinstall battery clamp
• Fix drivers side doorcard
• Repair drivers side moisture barrier
• Replace Fuses
• Replace O2 Sensors
• Replace screw in drivers side door handle (93520-54010)
• Seal or replace right rear tail light
• Troubleshoot & repair source of ABS light
• Replace radiator?
• Re-string spark plug cables
• Tighten e-brake
• Replace Windshield sprayers
• Leak check A/C
• Remove fake wood trim
• Repaint Rear custom Bumper
• Upgrade Destaco clamps on rear bumper
• Replace T-bar pulls on rear bumper
• Flush power steering system
• Replace front brake pads
• Flush brakes
• New firewall boot
• Replace fusible link
• Replace charcoal cannister
• Remove factory rack (Removing factory roof rack - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/removing-factory-roof-rack.976361/#post-10857869)
• Repair Left Rear fender flare broken bolt

 

[MTrun]

So taking another crack at this to find the source of the engine tick and power loss after driving and sitting for a while longer... Thinking everything is pointing to the rings in cylinders 2, 3 and 4. Compression however is only low in 4 and not terrible at that.

Tonight I pulled the plugs again and this time added a little Marvel Mystery Oil to the cylinders to let is sit for a couple days. Long shot I know, but I figure worth the attempt if there is a chance it is stuck rather than worn rings. Definitely a lot of deposits in this engine.

Also I noticed oil on all the spark plug threads (hard to see in the photo given the newer oil, but definitely there). Could be from bad rings, or the valve cover & spark plug gaskets that I KNOW need to be replaced?

 

[MTrun]

Well, not a huge shock, the Marvel Mystery Oil soak might have impoved things slightly, but the tick remains. No silver bullet. Had to try it to see if it was a stuck ring easily freed.

 

[MTrun]

Final hail Mary, I did the thing you are not supposed to do. With all other options exhausted and looking at a rebuild, I put two cans of BG EPR in the engine, following directions and attempted an engine flush in a last ditch effort to see if blow-by was caused stuck rings that could be freed. Figured it was worth the $35 risk at this point. I'll save the long dialog, but no such luck, the tick remained. Then, talking to the shop about quotes to put in a new block, my mechanic suggested I take another look at cylinders 3 & 4 with the scope before sourcing the block and this is what I found. I believe at long lost we may have pinpointed the source of the tick and power loss. The first two photos are of the top of the cylinder walls, the second two are near the bottom stroke of the cylinder walls (both are upside down).

 

[mudgudgeon]

Might be time to open it up.
Driving it now may prolong the inevitable a fee thousand miles at best.
It also may push the engine from being repairable into being scrap metal if you have a catastrophic failure.

You have a couple of options.

Pull the head,
and inspect head, valves, pistons, and cylinder walls etc.
Still can't check the rings.

Pull the sump
And pull rod caps, inspect bearings and crank journals.
Pull main caps, inspect main bearings and crank journals
Still can't check rings.

Pull the whole engine out, tear it down and go full inspection / rebuild

 

[MTrun]

Agree! Thank you for the insight and advice. I am thinking seeing those gouges in the walls a rebuild is in order at this point.

 

[MTrun]

Well crew - I had the opportunity to pull the trigger on a new OEM short block and have a shop that is open and willing to help put it in so this is happening. It is time to finally call this a build thread.

After spending the past few months scanning the threads of other builds, the following is the initial parts list I am going in with (UPDATE 1/23: I will continue to add to the bottom of this list as parts are found that are worn, missing, or make sense to replace "while in there"):

*Note: The final list below was updated on 2/20/2023 after the engine build was completed with the final list of parts*

Name	Qty	Part #
BLOCK ASSEMBLY, SHORT	1​	1140066041
GASKET KIT ENGINE	1​	04111-66036
TENSIONER ASSY, CHAIN, NO.1	1​	13540-66011
Gasket chain tension	1​	13552-66010
Head bolts	14​	90910-02111
Head bolt washers	14​	90201-12222
Front engine mount	2​	12361-17011
Rear Mount (aka Trans mount)	1​	12371-66030
GASKET, OIL COOLER	2​	15785-66010
BOLT, STUD(FOR MANIFOLD TO CYLINDER HEAD)	4​	90080-12007
STUD(FOR MANIFOLD TO CYLINDER HEAD)	4​	90126-08008
NUT, LOCK	4​	90080-17187
NUT, LOCK- FOR MANIFOLD TO HEAD	13​	90179-10128
BOLT, STUD(FOR EXHAUST MANIFOLD TO CYLINDER HEAD)	13​	90116-10169
Throttle body gasket	1​	22271-66010
PCValve Grommet	1​	90480-18001
Fuel Filter Assembly	1​	23300-69045
103 FIPG	1​	N/A
Engine Oil Pressure Switch (sender unit)	1​	83520-60011
Alignment - 11434H Front near tining cover	2​	90253-11021
Alignment - 11434X bottom right	2​	90253-13002
Alignment - 11434C Rear top	2​	90253-15007
Alignment - 11434D Rear by trans	1​	90250-06068
Alignment - 11434B Rean by trans	2​	90250-08054
Rotor Set, Oil Pump	1​	15102-66020
Updated Block Drain	1​	90910-09129
Timing Chain	1​	13506-66010
Timing Chain vibration damper NO.1	1​	13561-66010
Timing Chain Tensioner Slipper	1​	13559-66011
Timing chain gear or sprocket, camshaft timing	1​	13523-66020
Camshaft sub gear	1​	13529-62901
Gear or Sprocket, Crankshaft timing	1​	13521-66020
Engine Water Pump	1​	16100-69325
Radiator	1​	16400-66040
HOSE, RADIATOR, NO.1	1​	16571-66030
HOSE, RADIATOR, NO.2	1​	16572-66021
HOSE, RADIATOR, NO.3	1​	16573-66010
Thermostat	1​	90916-03117
HOSE, HEATER WATER, INLET B	1​	87245-60480
HOSE, HEATER WATER, OUTLET A	1​	87245-60350
HOSE, HEATER WATER, OUTLET B	0​	87245-60340
Small heater hose clamps	6​	90467-21010
Small heater hose clamps	2​	87124-60070
Knock Sensors (was planning to re-use originals, one broke upon removal so replaced both)	2​	89615-30050
Fuel Injectors Professionally Cleaned & Flow Tested	6​	RC Fuel Injection
Fuel Injector Insulators	6​	23291-41010
Engine Cooling Fan Clutch	1​	16210-66020
Engine Coolant Outlet Flange (would have re-used but nipple came out of original)	1​	16304-66020
Spark Plugs	6​	90919-01176
Bolt - Manifold to head (TBD if needed)	4​	90126-08008
Thermostat gasket	1​
Power Steering Pressure hose	1​
Attachment points for engine cylinder head (hoist)	2​
Bimetal Valve	1​
Used electrical connector for #6 injector idle control	1​
3 gallons antifreeze	3​
16 qts engine oil	16​
Oil Filter	2​	90915-YZZD3
Vacuum Hose	2​	90999-92003
Bulk hose for power steering and transmission

 

[MTrun]

Adding a few of the more recent photos for fun now that I am excited this has REALLY become a project...