The reality of the Landcruiser Head Gasket Issue

[LINUS]

While I like the overall intent here, stats you gather will be slightly biased as lots of people for who the 80 in the driveway is a DD, not a cult following vehicle - find this forum when a HG blows or some other issue arises.

Just my initial thought, so I expect some 80 owners who live in the sunbelt, aren't enthusiasts, and may not experience a HG issue - so I'd bet there's at least some unreported, no HG issue 80's.

I also would buy into Rick's idea that sunbelt 80's don't have the issue as much as Northern USA / AK 80's, my 40th is a good example (more below).

That said I have been owner to 3) 1FZ-FE's :
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1) Black 80 bought in Dec '01 - I'm 2nd owner, flew to CA & drove home w/ ~75K on it. Blew HG @ ~100K.

2) The LX450 - no idea how many prev owners, but came to WA from NV where it had 205K on it, the WA owner prior to me had the HG blow quite quick, so he had a HG job done prior to me buying. I sold it hiccup free w/ ~235K on it.

3) 40th Ann Ed 80 - I'm 3rd owner. 1st owner was FedEx pilot in TN & did just over 275K freeway miles, sold to owner #2, a Catholic priest. He did 50K more on it in TN before moving to CO for a new church post, the HG blew @ 330K according to the receipt from Slee where a new HG was done (so 5K into living / driving in CO).
His most recent post put him in Bellingham, WA where he sold it to me with 360K on it, and it drives as tight as my black 80 with about 1/3 the miles.
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So it's 3/3 for headgaskets in these, but all happened after being moved to colder regions - nowhere even close in miles for when any of these failed (100K, 205K, 330K).

So you can see where I back Rick's / @landtank -idea that the severe/more severe climate FZJ's are going to see a failure rate higher/sooner than say @Aloha Jen driving around in Hawaii (for example, since even night temps there are always above freezing).

 

[Cruiserdrew]

Replace the damn thing. Just do it. If you wait until it goes, you risk major damage. If you do it before you need it...no drama.

Your head gasket will go bad. Accept that. If you do the repair before you need to, everything is fine. If you do it after you need to, you have to worry about a ruined motor that gets the HG replaced.

All of these trucks are old. Really old. If you like the truck and plan to keep it, replace the head gasket now.

 

[landtank]

the truck coming in on Tuesday blew the gasket while out on Martha's Vineyard. Just need to coordinate a flat bed transport over the ferry.

 

[AJP]

Would be interested in what you find if you 'mic' the headbolts ....particularly the variance between the bolts adjacent to the location of the HG. failure and the other bolts.

 

[mod5csi]

I'm joining the headgasket club. Not sure what cylinder yet. But it's coolant leaking into a cylinder. Hard to start, idles steady, but feels rough, accelerates and runs smooth off idle.

235,000 miles. 96 LX

 

[AJP]

If you have an engine with a leaking headgasket that produces smoke..shut it down until it is repaired...the antifreeze is not a friend to your rings or the cylinder walls. Nore does it play nice with bearing surfaces. These are pretty tough engines and seem to shrug off some exposure to coolant where it shouldnt be but dont press your luck.

 

[mod5csi]

Yeah. It's going to be a couple weeks before I get to this project. It's parked. I pulled the plugs and verified, typical #6. I drained the coolant already. I also dropped some ATF down the holes and cranked the starter to lubricate and displace any water along the cylinder walls.

 

[BILT4ME]

Yeah. It's going to be a couple weeks before I get to this project. It's parked. I pulled the plugs and verified, typical #6. I drained the coolant already. I also dropped some ATF down the holes and cranked the starter to lubricate and displace any water along the cylinder walls.

Did you run a compression test?
Did you run an exhaust gases test on the radiator?
Did you see antifreeze dripping from the spark plug in #6?

Because what I see in your pics are moisture in the exhaust and it's winter time in Colorado. It will burn off the vapor until up to temperature.

If you are showing the bottom of the oil fill cap to look for "milky substances", all that you are seeing is the condensation inside the oil cap due to the engine cooling overnight and the moisture condensing on the cool surface of the interior of the cap. This is a totally POINTLESS observation. All it shows is that you have not driven your cruiser enough to flash off the moisture in the engine. The engine is open to atmosphere, so any moisture in the outside air can condense on the inside.

Now, if you're driving down the road, and you can't see ANYTHING behind you except white smoke.....THEN you may have a head gasket issue.

I had a local guy that was trying to be a Cruiser guy and was not qualified to do his own work. He was CONVINCED he had a head gasket issue, so he started taking it all apart. Turns out it was his AFM on his 94. He ended up giving up on it because he kept buying parts to put on it because he was guessing what was wrong with it.

 

[utahisrad]

Any tips to check if your HG has been replaced without taking the engine apart? Just bought mine, 270k '93. The radiator is pretty new. Been reading and it sounds like a few people had radiators blowing up causing HG issues. Motor runs great, so I'm thinking it's possible they did it but not sure how to check.

Unfortunately I didn't get a single piece of maintenance records with the vehicle, really drives me crazy how people don't keep it all in a folder. I am anal about records, every single dime is tracked.

 

[Shickalee]

How many folks will not answer for fear of jinxing it?

I think it is a non issue bunch of hype and probably just due to improper pm.

 

[BILT4ME]

Any tips to check if your HG has been replaced without taking the engine apart? Just bought mine, 270k '93. The radiator is pretty new. Been reading and it sounds like a few people had radiators blowing up causing HG issues. Motor runs great, so I'm thinking it's possible they did it but not sure how to check.

Unfortunately I didn't get a single piece of maintenance records with the vehicle, really drives me crazy how people don't keep it all in a folder. I am anal about records, every single dime is tracked.

You can go to the Toyota or Lexus website and plug in your VIN number and get any service records done at the dealership.

My 96 had the HG done by the PO at 145K. I bought it at 196K and the PO never did maintenance on the truck and they had various people work on it. Someone that did the work mixed the green/red coolant and I had brown sludge in it that contributed to an exploding radiator (not to mention the aftermarket cogged Gates belts) My radiator exploded (blew the top tank open lengthwise) because the radiator cap wouldn't relieve due to the sludge and the AC kicked on at WOT and broke the belts and seized the water pump, temp skyrocketed, pressure went way up.

 

[utahisrad]

You can go to the Toyota or Lexus website and plug in your VIN number and get any service records done at the dealership.

Just signed up for Toyotas portal to get service records. Not a single thing listed. Guessing it's not retroactive & available to anyone & everyone. I emailed them asking for the info.

 

[BILT4ME]

Just signed up for Toyotas portal to get service records. Not a single thing listed. Guessing it's not retroactive & available to anyone & everyone. I emailed them asking for the info.

I bought my truck 4 years ago and it had everything that was done at the dealership.

There won't be any more records after that because I have done it all, unless I decide to go enter it myself into their website.

It will only have something on your VIN IF it was done at the dealership AND that dealership logged in the info regularly.

If you didn't find it listed, then your truck maybe didn't get services at a dealership or the dealer didn't participate yet.

 

[SmokingRocks]

Threads like this seem to spread the fear of failure among those who haven't had to experience it yet.

Here are the facts of owning older vehicles:

1. You really shouldn't own it if you can't afford to maintain it
2. PM maintenance needs to be done regularly to keep older vehicles running properly
3. Things break, bearings go bad, hoses dry rot, seals leak. There should be no surprise about any of this to anyone driving anything over 10 years old.
4. Do your best to prevent it from overheating... ever....

Not to be to blunt but I'm dead serious, these rigs and any old car takes funds and elbow grease to stay chugging along. Many of us here are enthusiast that don't mind a challenge. If you can't afford to play then you should think about getting a kia and selling your 80 to someone that can afford it. I'm not going to powder coat it, that's how I feel.

I will not live my life behind the wheel of my 80 in fear of mechanical failure. I will maintain and drive it until it blows up, I will not baby it just as much as I won't abuse it. It will be used in a fashion that it was meant to be used and it will have a good life. On my drive back from Moab this year I lost the head gasket 2 hours from home. Yes it was inconvenient, costly and unfortunate but after all was said and done it made me a better skilled more experienced weekend mechanic. And if I had a magic wand that could take me back to a time before the HG blew all while magically fixing it... Would I do it? Nope. I wouldn't change a thing.

Point is that none of you should drive around afraid of mechanical failure. If you suspect there is an issue address it right away, as stated above it's much cheaper to replace the HG before it blows. Live free and drive happily along knowing that you are in a completely awesome rig.

 

[dubyahard]

'97 with the original HG and about 178k. Has a rear main leak and I have to add about 3 quarts between regular changes. The exhaust is white and funky smelling when it first starts. Not sweet but just bad. Then as it warms up it goes away. I assume all this is normal. Maybe a bad cat? Either way, I'm not worrying about it. When/if it blows then it'll be time for an LS1

 

[mod5csi]

Did you run a compression test?
Did you run an exhaust gases test on the radiator?
Did you see antifreeze dripping from the spark plug in #6?

Because what I see in your pics are moisture in the exhaust and it's winter time in Colorado. It will burn off the vapor until up to temperature.

If you are showing the bottom of the oil fill cap to look for "milky substances", all that you are seeing is the condensation inside the oil cap due to the engine cooling overnight and the moisture condensing on the cool surface of the interior of the cap. This is a totally POINTLESS observation. All it shows is that you have not driven your cruiser enough to flash off the moisture in the engine. The engine is open to atmosphere, so any moisture in the outside air can condense on the inside.

Now, if you're driving down the road, and you can't see ANYTHING behind you except white smoke.....THEN you may have a head gasket issue.

I had a local guy that was trying to be a Cruiser guy and was not qualified to do his own work. He was CONVINCED he had a head gasket issue, so he started taking it all apart. Turns out it was his AFM on his 94. He ended up giving up on it because he kept buying parts to put on it because he was guessing what was wrong with it.

Yeah, thanks for all that. While not discounting your advice, hopefully someone finds it useful. I've lived in Colorado and been thru enough Winters in the Cruiser to recognize the difference. I've also seen failed headgaskets on other vehicles.

But since you brought it up;
The pics were taken after a 20 minute drive. Starting the engine on the return trip provided a lumpy idle, and billowing white smoke on a 50* day.
Compression averaged to: 150,150,150,120,150,40
The blue gas analyzer did not show combustion gases in the radiator.
What little coolant was still in the radiator was nice and red. I got about a gallon from the radiator and block drain. Maybe more since some spilled.
The oil drained a nice milky brown. I still have it, for fun I will send it to Blackstone.

Either way. I am losing coolant, and finding milky brown oil. And I have low compression in two cylinders. When I pull the head in a couple weeks... It will at the very least fail then.

 

[AMX390]

So, I have a pretty minty 96 with 109k on the ticker. Maintained well and I have personally done a thorough baseline. I have never seen temps on my Scangauge above 200 in mid summer and it runs at about 180 in 40' weather. Some of you are saying that I should just go ahead and do a $2000 head gasket just for the hell of it? I'm in to classic cars that are much older than this and have never heard of anyone in the hobby changing head gaskets as general or preventive maintenance. I'm not buying this HG thing. Maybe I'll learn the hard way...

 

[bugsnbikes]

Theres 2 ways to look at the whole HG issue:

1- do you venture far enough off the beaten path solo with your cruiser that with HG failure- extraction of you/ your family and your vehicle would pose an exponentially larger cost than p.m. ing your HG? ( "cost" can be financial as well as personal health and safety of your family)

2.- and are you planning to keep your cruiser post hg, for the second 150-300k miles? If yes- you might as well do it preemptively in the comfort of your driveway or at the mechanic of your choice or at a time thats good for you vs. a potentially aweful time because you let the inevitable job go?

If NO to both of the above.........then hold off and drive it and roll the dice.

 

[BILT4ME]

ought my

Yeah, thanks for all that. While not discounting your advice, hopefully someone finds it useful. I've lived in Colorado and been thru enough Winters in the Cruiser to recognize the difference. I've also seen failed headgaskets on other vehicles.

But since you brought it up;
The pics were taken after a 20 minute drive. Starting the engine on the return trip provided a lumpy idle, and billowing white smoke on a 50* day.
Compression averaged to: 150,150,150,120,150,40
The blue gas analyzer did not show combustion gases in the radiator.
What little coolant was still in the radiator was nice and red. I got about a gallon from the radiator and block drain. Maybe more since some spilled.
The oil drained a nice milky brown. I still have it, for fun I will send it to Blackstone.

Either way. I am losing coolant, and finding milky brown oil. And I have low compression in two cylinders. When I pull the head in a couple weeks... It will at the very least fail then.

Oh. Well in that case........ Never Mind!!!!!!

Carry on!

 

[SmokingRocks]

So, I have a pretty minty 96 with 109k on the ticker. Maintained well and I have personally done a thorough baseline. I have never seen temps on my Scangauge above 200 in mid summer and it runs at about 180 in 40' weather. Some of you are saying that I should just go ahead and do a $2000 head gasket just for the hell of it? I'm in to classic cars that are much older than this and have never heard of anyone in the hobby changing head gaskets as general or preventive maintenance. I'm not buying this HG thing. Maybe I'll learn the hard way...

If you do it yourself and just replace the gasket you can be in and out for under 500