Yup. About half of the engines out there are of the interference type that can develop bent valves when the timing belt breaks, jumps a few teeth, or is replaced and proper procedures aren't followed. It is customary on those to replace the bent valves and install a new timing belt. The only time the entire engine is replaced is when a piston gets damaged from hitting the valve, but that is very rare.
It is also pretty common on all engines with cast iron blocks and aluminum cylinder heads for the head gaskets to leak, either due to corroded gaskets or warped heads. The same repair is involved in replacing a head gasket. The only difference is while your head is off, the valves will be replaced too. As I recall, a typical head gasket job for a four-cylinder engine used to run around $500.00 to $800.00, but that was in the late '90s. It will take a couple of more hours to replace the valves, plus the cost of the valves, then most mechanics are going to want to have the head checked for cracks and warpage. That might involve taking it to an engine machine shop. Don't hold your mechanic to this, but I'm suspicious the entire job should run around $1500.00 to perhaps as much as $2000.00.
Make a note of the mileage. Once you have the car back and the engine is running properly, have the timing belt replaced again in another 75,000 miles unless Toyota has a different recommendation.
Thursday, July 16th, 2015 AT 8:53 PM
