Builds Something followed me home (I bought another LJ78) (1 Viewer)

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So I got around to pulling the head off today



Tried to mark things out as well as I could.









After removal it would seem the cylinders are in decent shape.



The head was another story...

4 cracks in total...







This is what I expected when I bought this truck. I do have a spare head that has been sitting for awhile under a tarp in my yard (Still attached to the block) I am going to pull that one soon and hopefully swap it.
 
Nice work. I'm glad the short block is in good shape. Maybe drop the other head off at a machine shop and get them to check all the valve clearances etc. before you put it on? I seem to remember you having some low compression on your old engine, and it could have been the valve clearances?

Was the head ever done on this truck before? Did you get any receipt for it with the truck? If you don't mind, I'd like to snag that old cracked head from you. I'd like to cut it in half on a band saw at work and see the insides.
 
GTSSportCoupe said:
Nice work. I'm glad the short block is in good shape. Maybe drop the other head off at a machine shop and get them to check all the valve clearances etc. before you put it on? I seem to remember you having some low compression on your old engine, and it could have been the valve clearances?

Was the head ever done on this truck before? Did you get any receipt for it with the truck? If you don't mind, I'd like to snag that old cracked head from you. I'd like to cut it in half on a band saw at work and see the insides.
Click to expand...


Thanks! Yeah plan is to take the other head to the local machine shop. I’d assume he would have access to the shins required for setting the valves.

My big fear now is I take the old head off and find it hasn’t cracks too!

The head was replaced in the new truck. I have a receipt from mustang connections.

You mentioned that you replaced your head with the updated version? Did you get into from Toyota? Any chance you have the part number still? Any reason you didn’t go the 3L route?

Yeah cutting it in half would be cool. I have seen a cross section somewhere on the net before. I’ll have to try and find a link.

Jarrat found an interesting article from the VW guys. Apparently the head design is quite similar in their diesels. They are also prone to cracks. But some guys have had success “peening” the cracks closed.
 
The machine shop can just grind the ends of the valves to get the right clearance. No need to do shims. (thats what they did with mine anyhow).

If you weren't going through coolant on the old truck, it's probably fine.

Both the 3L and 2LTE head's were updated in the mid 90's. The updated 2LTE one is what Mustang connection recommended to me, so that's what I went with. The updated 2LTE one was actually more expensive than the updated 3L one.

The old 2LTE head part number is 11101-54120 and the new one is 11101-54121. The old 3L part number is 11101-54130 and the new one is 11101-54131.

Yeah, I've seen the pictures of the head cut in half too. But I think it's the early part number. I want to cut one in half that is the later part number. Would be interesting to see what the difference is.

Yeah, I've read that about the VW's too. In fact, basically any IDI turbo diesel from any manufacturer at that time had some form of over heating or head problems. They all got a bit better as time went on. For example, the GM 6.5 IDI turbo, Ford 7.3 IDI turbo, the VW IDI turbos, Mitsubishi IDI turbos (4d56), etc. As I've been preaching, it's a problem with the technology, not any one particular engine. Even the 2LTE 2LT-II got better as time went on. They kept making it until the early 2000's. Really it's only the 1989-1994 ones that had the bad head issues.

All the overheating problems went away with the direct injection engines. It's the same with Toyota. Basically all their IDI turbo diesels have a form of overheating or head problems. All the direct injection turbo diesel engines are good though. IDI works fine until turboed.
 
Not trying to high jack, but all this talk of cutting heads in half got me curious, and made me go yank my old 1st gen head to have a look. Not pretty. Looks like at least 6 cracks.

And Nick, thanks for sharing all the part numbers with everyone!
Not sure why I was under the false impression all the 2L-TII and 2L-TE has the new improved head design. Thanks for clarifying that as well.

40FAF00E-D4B2-4E08-9DB4-4BE06D19D351.jpeg
 
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TonyP said:
What's the cause of these common 2L head cracks? Cooling? Compression? Head design?
Click to expand...

In an indirect injection diesel, the combustion starts in a precombustion chamber in the cylinder head. This works fine for non turbo diesels for the most part. Once they're turboed, there is way more heat in that precombustion chamber. This causes localized coolant boiling in the head around these chambers if the motor is run to hot. If this happens regularly, the metal gets fatigued to the point it cracks. The hottest area is between the valves and precombustion chamber. Many IDI turbo diesels have heat problems. Manufacturers have long since moved to direct injection motors where the combustion chamber is in the piston instead of the cylinder head. Now it's the pistons that fail if things get too hot.
 
@Postoy, I would not buy anything from alibaba group based on their return policy alone. Heavy car parts in particular.

I made the mistake once of buying a nicely tig welded all aluminum radiator that was advertized direct fit that ended up being nothing more than a paper weight. That said, I wouldn’t do it. Caveat Emp... however it’s spelled.
 
Postoy said:
Pulled my old head off.

The number one cylinder was full of water but I think that is because the intake and exhaust manifold were off for a long time and I did not have the engine covered very well.

Visually everything looks good. I am going to drop it off at the machine shop today.
Click to expand...

Nice! That looks like an "All Head" Australia head. I've seen a few of those around. I think they are the major alternative to the Toyota ones. They have a good reputation I believe.
 
GTSSportCoupe said:
Nice! That looks like an "All Head" Australia head. I've seen a few of those around. I think they are the major alternative to the Toyota ones. They have a good reputation I believe.
Click to expand...

Sweet! I tried finding numbers off it but I couldn’t find much of anything. It is also very greasy and I didn’t have a lot of time.

I dropped it off at the machine shop here in chilliwack. They quoted me $650(f@!&@&@$?!). That seems like a lot but I also dont do a lot of machine work.

That’s to pressure test, valve grind, valve adjust and deck the head. I need to get my hands on some valve seals as they do not have them.
 
Postoy said:
Sweet! I tried finding numbers off it but I couldn’t find much of anything. It is also very greasy and I didn’t have a lot of time.

I dropped it off at the machine shop here in chilliwack. They quoted me $650(f@!&@&@$?!). That seems like a lot but I also dont do a lot of machine work.

That’s to pressure test, valve grind, valve adjust and deck the head. I need to get my hands on some valve seals as they do not have them.
Click to expand...

You could probably get away with just a magnaflux crack check, and the valve work. Decking the head is probably not necessary, and might even lead to issues, because the valve to piston clearance is already so close. I think I paid around $250-300 for the valve work.

Buy this gasket set. It comes with everything you need (and more) including the valve seals. Toyota OEM 2LT 2LTE Engine Overhaul Gasket Kit 04111-54104 1990+ (2LT II New) | eBay
 
That guy is a good seller. When the USPS lost my glow plugs I was going to just buy another set. He refunded the money for the second set I paid for and sent them anyway. 2nd day no less. That was very nice of him. It wasn't really his problem. He shipped them, they lost them. But he said he didn't like that and he filed the loss claim. I basically just had to wait 2 extra days. There aren't many sellers like that on eBay any more. Most would just tell you" Not my problem, file a claim with the Post Office."
 
Small update

I am still waiting on the head from the shop, So while I wait I did a few things in prep.

Installed new OE water pump, GMB t-belt idler pulley and tensioner.



Made some block off plates for the egr valve and cleaned my spare intake.





Now I am just waiting on a fitting for my EGT gauge so I can drill and tap the hole needed
 
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