What would be involved in dropping a new engine into my '88 Supra?

[The Sauce]

Just wondering, cause the head gasket is definitely blown now for the second time, and the head likely warped. I would like to try to salvage the car if possible (as the body is in great shape and most of it is new parts), but I do not want to throw more money into repairs on a bad engine. Is it like possible to just get a new engine and drop it in?

 

[Anubis]

about $5000

 

[The Sauce]

YACK! If that's true then I'll just ditch it. Thanks for the info.

 

[Spac3d]

I am not sure how much, but I know with those engines you can get some SERIOUS gain with that model of Supras. Don't understimate them once you get a bigggggg turbo, new fuel pump, and a large intercooler.

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: TheEvil1
about $5000

do you make up numbers on a whim?

Regarding an engine swap. If you get the same year same model engine, it is relatively simple. If you get a different year, things may have changed abit. Going to a whole new motor could get hairy, depending on the size, bell housing, etc. You may have to get a new tranny to accompany the new engine.

 

[Scootin159]

Originally posted by: Snatchface
Just wondering, cause the head gasket is definitely blown now for the second time, and the head likely warped. I would like to try to salvage the car if possible (as the body is in great shape and most of it is new parts), but I do not want to throw more money into repairs on a bad engine. Is it like possible to just get a new engine and drop it in?

If the head isn't warped...you could just pull the head yourself & change the gasket. Shouldn't cost ya much at all to do it this way. If the head is warped however I guess ya would be kinda stuck. Only time I've ever seen a head warp though is due to severe overheating....

 

[Anubis]

no i didnt make that up. friend of mine got a new engin is his 89 supra and after it was all said and done he was out about $5K

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: TheEvil1
no i didnt make that up. friend of mine got a new engin is his 89 supra and after it was all said and done he was out about $5K

he didnt install it himself, did he?

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82

Originally posted by: TheEvil1
no i didnt make that up. friend of mine got a new engin is his 89 supra and after it was all said and done he was out about $5K

he didnt install it himself, did he?

no he dosent know how to do that

 

[iamwiz82]

in that case if would cost $5000. A remanned engine would be around $2000. If you can con some buddies to come over with beer you could have it done and the kinks worked out in a weekend.

 

[boyRacer]

Why not just go all out and put the mk4 supra engine in there... hahaha... 2JZ-GTE with tranny and ecu should run you $5k already... :Q

 

[WinkOsmosis]

Originally posted by: boyRacer
Why not just go all out and put the mk4 supra engine in there... hahaha... 2JZ-GTE with tranny and ecu should run you $5k already... :Q

That's alot cheaper than a whole Supra.

 

[SeaSerpent]

Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82
in that case if would cost $5000. A remanned engine would be around $2000. If you can con some buddies to come over with beer you could have it done and the kinks worked out in a weekend.

Yeah, if you and your buddies are mechanics, and you've got a garage full of tools.

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: iamwiz82
in that case if would cost $5000. A remanned engine would be around $2000. If you can con some buddies to come over with beer you could have it done and the kinks worked out in a weekend.

Yeah, if you and your buddies are mechanics, and you've got a garage full of tools.

only need one mechanic and tools.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: love1u0
Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

I can't believe nobody said this in the first place.

Even if you didn't want to do this, new or rebuilt heads(heck, maybe you could even get some performance heads) would be a lot cheaper than a new engine..

How many miles on your current engine?

 

[Antisocial Virge]

Originally posted by: love1u0
Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

This will work depending on how much they have to plane it and the clearances you have.

 

[The Sauce]

Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

That was done once already...put me out $3500. Bought me an extra 10,000K miles and now same story again. Maybe the head is cracked. I don't know. I'm just tired of fusking with it.

 

You can get away paying $2,000 to $2,500 if you scrounge the junk yards, most yards guarantee used engines for several months, who ever did the head gasket job last time around did not know what they were doing, obviously either the head is cracked, the head was improperly machined and/or it was improperly torqued.
Did you flush your cooling system last time the headgasket was replaced ?
Was the thermostat changed ?
Hoses ?

Used engine = $1000 to $1,500

Labor = $1,000

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Snatchface

Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

That was done once already...put me out $3500. Bought me an extra 10,000K miles and now same story again. Maybe the head is cracked. I don't know. I'm just tired of fusking with it.

They charged you 3500$ to mill the head?!?

Man, I hope they gave you some KY jelly with that.

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: Snatchface

Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

That was done once already...put me out $3500. Bought me an extra 10,000K miles and now same story again. Maybe the head is cracked. I don't know. I'm just tired of fusking with it.

They charged you 3500$ to mill the head?!?

Man, I hope they gave you some KY jelly with that.

i was just going to say that. You would have saved like $3400 had you done it yourself.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: Snatchface

Take the head off, take it to a machine shop and have them test the head for warpage. If it is warped, have them mill the head. It would be a lot cheaper then buying another motor.

That was done once already...put me out $3500. Bought me an extra 10,000K miles and now same story again. Maybe the head is cracked. I don't know. I'm just tired of fusking with it.

They charged you 3500$ to mill the head?!?

Man, I hope they gave you some KY jelly with that.

i was just going to say that. You would have saved like $3400 had you done it yourself.

That's insane. There has to be more to the story than that.

Anyway.. You could almost consider the heads a replacement item. If the engine is in otherwise mechanically sound condition, there is no reason to junk it just because of some blown headgaskets. These things can happen. You just have to get it fixed right.

 

[The Sauce]

Yah, there was a bit more to the story than that. The coolant had been acidified by the exhaust fumes (or so I was told - it was brown and there were chunks floating around in it) and so the majority of the cooling system had corroded (water pump, radiator, all hoses, etc.)and needed to be replaced. I think they also replaced all the valves and pistons and whatever was involved in that. There is no doubt that Toyota fusked up the repair but they are not admitting that the head gasket is blown again... They pressure checked it and said that there was no leak and so it could not be the head gasket. In the meanwhile, the car is overheating, eating through coolant, rough idling, heater not working, etc. That's where I stand. I am hesitant to have the head gasket replaced again. Is this stupid of me?

 

[The Sauce]

Just fired off the following letter to Toyota HQ...no response yet:

Hello, I am the owner of an '88 Supra. My car was serviced at ---- Toyota for a blown head gasket 1 1/2 years ago and the total repair cost, including having the head milled, was $3600 altogether. Since then the car has continued to consume coolant, rough idle, and exhibit white smoke on startup. ---- Toyota has evaluated this problem several times over the past 1 1/2 years and assured me each time that the head gasket was not the problem. It has had less than 10,000 miles put on it since the original problem and the head gasket has (officially) blown again, now for the second time. ----- Toyota is presetly refusing to stand behind their previous repairs and 12 month warranty...even though they recognize that they have failed to diagnose the problem when the car was examined DURING the warrantee period.
I would assume that a $3600 head gasket job should last more than 10,000 miles, and that as such it is safe to assume that the workmanship was faulty in the first place. The only reason I paid this exorbitant price to have a certified dealer do the work was to ensure quality and support, of which I have received neither. I have had the fact that the head gasket is blown confirmed by two independent mechanics. If there is any way that you could intervene in this matter I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you.

We will see what happens.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: Roger
You can get away paying $2,000 to $2,500 if you scrounge the junk yards, most yards guarantee used engines for several months, who ever did the head gasket job last time around did not know what they were doing, obviously either the head is cracked, the head was improperly machined and/or it was improperly torqued.
Did you flush your cooling system last time the headgasket was replaced ?
Was the thermostat changed ?
Hoses ?

Used engine = $1000 to $1,500

Labor = $1,000

Listen to this man. Roger knows what he's talking about. (BTW Roger, whatever happened with that deal for the Transporter you were looking at?)

ZV