SOLVED: Can I re-ring a 1HZ with the engine in place (1 Viewer)

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Jun 27, 2021
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Location
Chatham Islands
Hi all, I have a 105 series that the previous owner fitted an 80 series turbo to (max boost 10psi)

I don't know if the turbo is a factor or not but the engine is down on power, has blow-by and the compressions are less than 200psi. It's amazing that it still starts. It holds great oil pressure, uses no water and doesn't overheat so I'm guessing the bearings etc. are all good still

I live on a remote island so getting parts and/or covered spaces to work on a vehicle is hard. I may have access to a good used 1HZ motor but before I spend money on purchasing that I'd like to take a look inside my own engine.

Does anyone know if I can change piston rings with the engine still in the engine bay? Perhaps someone with an 80 series has done this already?

I understand that I'll have to remove the head, sump and conrods. I'm just unclear if there's enough room. It's possible that I'll find cracked pistons or something else serious of course, but if the motor can be 'freshened' in-situ I will have a go at that option first.
 
Thank you. I'm sure it won't be a pleasant job and will not achieve quite the same level of re-build quality... but an in-situ freshen would save me several days of effort and probably $5k
 
My 80 had the rings replaced at Toyota while they were doing the head job. Engine remained in the bay. New rings make a huge difference.
 
It's doable but it's a PITA,
 
^ Agreed. I'll order a bunch of tools (ring compressor, torque wrench, gaskets, hone, mollylube etc.) and a few different sized piston rings and hope for the best.

With freight delays I'm unlikely to see the parts until mid January, but that's part of the reality of living remotely
 
Possible, but why? That's like trying to do the PHH while sitting in the passenger seat.
 
Why? Because if a re-ring is all I need to do - completing it in-situ would save removing and re-installing the engine (so about two days effort) and I don't have an engine stand nor an easy way of lifting the engine out. If I whip the head off and find a giant mess the motor will need to come out and be replaced

If I purchase anything over ~ 50kgs it has to come by sea which is expensive and will take a month. Air freight is more expensive @ $3.70 per KG but it's faster.
 
To close the circle on this thread: Yes I was able to replace rings and big end bearings with the engine in place.

As predicted - it wasn't a comfortable experience but it did get done and compressions are now largely ~ 500psi.

Sadly the valve clearances are also too tight so a shim job is in my near future.
 
Shim job ain't hard.
It's just time consuming figuring out which shims you need, then ordering and waiting for them.

Last time I did it, I removed the rocker cover checked clearances, measured shims, worked oit what I could swap around, and which ones I needed to order.
Put them all back in, put the rocker cover back on so I could drive it again.
Then when parts turned up, swap them in.

There's a table in the FSM that helps work out what shims you need
 
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Thank you.

I'm likely to lap down my existing shims as getting parts is very slow here and unfortunately I can't measure the existing gaps on some valves as the thinnest feeler gauge I have managed to source is still too thick (0.035mm).

The valves have receded into the head a fair way. The vehicle is not road legal, is rusty and pretty worn out so I'm hoping I can lap that ~0.2 mm out of the worst shim.
 
This isn't a very useful comment, but the first engine my dad "rebuilt" was in an 80s accord and he did it in a day without so much as popping the hood. He was able to take the pistons out from the bottom, around the crank, and put it back together with new rings and bearings. I don't suppose there are many engines this could be done but it does make me curious
 
Are you on Chatham Islands? I had to google that. Never heard of them.
Tiny place. Looks beautiful and very interesting!
I sure am.

Chatham Island is about the size of Singapore (pop. ~ 6 million) but we only have around 650 people here. A reliable 4x4 is essential but everything metal here dies of rust and freight is expensive and time consuming to arrange
 
^ If you're ever out this way I live on an 11,000 acre farm, have spare 4x4s, spare rifles and access to all the crayfish you could possibly eat

I also have some good tow strops. It can be a bit slippery in winter (peat soil) but it almost never snows. :)
 

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