New head gasket poll

[Gumby]

You forgot the PNW

See post #11

 

[okefenokeefzj80]

I voted East Coast...original HG, but didn't read....originally a Colorado Truck.

sj

 

[knorrena]

I propose we do this a little differently. I propose that we build a map with precise coordinates, i.e. longtitude and latitude, how many miles on your rig, if you have not replaced the hg, replaced the hg as a pm, out of need, or due to failure, average seasonal temp for the past 5 years (average temp for summer, fall, winter, and spring). Here is how I will contribute. One of my jobs is to take spatial informatoion and map it. I will take the information provided and construct a map and post the results for each variable, look for spatial correlation and post anything that I find that is weird. Its ok to guess at the temps. Why am I suggesting this? I suspect that there is a little bit of myth working here that has been propagated by actual hg failures. Why do I suspect that there is alittle myth at work? For a few years I have been taking my cruisers to a local cruiser guru for care when I dont have time or the patience to do things. I recently bought an 80, my first and a propoer intro and set of pics will follow. My mechanic worked for Toyota for some time before he took off on his own. He said he has never had to replace a head gasket on an 80 series and this got me thinksing about all the times I have been to Dallas, Houston, and Austin and the driving conditions there and that we hardly ever hear from the land of OZ (Australia) about this issue. I am not proposing that I know why the hg thing is an issue, just that maybe with some sleuthing we can figure something out.

Karl

 

[Beowulf]

My mechanic worked for Toyota for some time before he took off on his own. He said he has never had to replace a head gasket on an 80 series ...

Karl,
Is your mechanic in Canada? They did not import the Toyota 80-Series to Canada; only the last 2 years under the Lexus brand and not very many of those.

-B-

 

[p8nt]

I live in a modest sized city, about a 100,000 people. I am guessing (I know, I know) that there are 20-30 80s in my general area. ive stopped and chatted with three other local owners and none have reported any issue with the HG. The local "high end" mechanic, who works cruisers and is quite framiler with the 1FZ-FE, had never heard of a HG failing on one of theses motors. However, on every poll and thread about HGs on mud, the failure rate falls right around 20%. To me thats a big number. Do we just use our rigs harder, leading to high prolonged temps, and then premature failure?

 

[Grench]

So... In the structure of this... Where am I?

People in New York tend to think the Midwest begins at the eastern Kentucky border and includes everything from there to California.

I prefer to do it by rivers & oceans. Every state that borders the Pacific is on the West coast. Every state that borders the Atlantic is on the East coast.

Everything east of those and west of the Colorado river is the 'west'. Everthing from the Colorado river to the Missouri is the 'Midwest' or 'Central'. Everything from the Mississippi east is the 'East'. From the Missouri to the Mississippi is the 'Middle East'...

 

[Beowulf]

p8nt,

I don't know why the number is high for those of us here on 'Mud. I have been closely monitoring any discussion regarding HG replacement since early 2001. The percentages have steadily increased.

We also see a spike in May-Aug as one would expect with hotter weather. Outside of that though, there seems to be a steady 2 or 3 each month. Maybe Dan can chime in on how many valve grind sets he has sold over the past 3 or 4 years. I would guess maybe 25% of 'Mud members (80-section) would buy the rebuild parts from Dan. That would be about the percentage that would be doing the job themselves or having their mechanic do the job with them supply the parts. Most shops would acquire the parts through their own Toyota resources.

 

[Beowulf]

So... In the structure of this... Where am I?

Same here. We are at the end of the Rocky Mountains and generally considered as a Mountain state and in the Mountain Time Zone. We are also in the Southwest. I picked SW.

-B-

 

[Gumby]

It's entirely possible that given a $2-3000 repair on a 150,000 mile vehicle most mall-80 owners choose not to fix it and have their husbands trade it in on a new Lexus.


Sexist, I know, but just making a point.

We may not be the normal 80 owner in a large metropolitan area.

 

[Beowulf]

... most mall-80 owners choose not to fix it and have their husbands trade it in on a new Lexus.

When I was monitoring each 80 listing on eBay, there was a surprisingly high percentage (~5% ? ) that were being sold by dealers and the listing would specify that the engine had a new HG.

I am certain those were "trade it, don't fix it" decisions.

-B-

 

[whodat]

east coast in the house

 

[PabloVTA]

So cal,
blew a huge crack in the block on cyl. #5 from gasket failure.

I was an idiot and drove for months with a CEL and finally blew in Summer going up Conejo grade.
~6% at ~900' . Twice a day on my commute, drove it like I stole it in 101 freeway traffic.

yeah, the 6K bill is a huge lesson...

 

[p8nt]

When I was monitoring each 80 listing on eBay, there was a surprisingly high percentage (~5% ? ) that were being sold by dealers and the listing would specify that the engine had a new HG.

I am certain those were "trade it, don't fix it" decisions.

-B-

Now THATS interesting. For the average family, when a 10+ year old, 100-150k mile vehicle springs a 2k repair, its of to the dealer for a newer "more reliable" ride.

Perhaps the reason Mud members see/experiance this issue with seeming frequency, is because we are seeking these vehicles for long terms of ownership. That would explain why Average Joe 80 Owner has never had/heard of a HG problem. He owns it while it not giving him problems, sells it when it does.