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Blown Head Gasket?

Tiny
TRISCUIT
  • MEMBER
  • 1986 TOYOTA PICKUP
  • 2.4L
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 124,000 MILES
This is from a previous thread I'd started but had to abandon because the vehicle wouldn't even start and fixing that because the priority. I got it started yesterday. Woo hoo!

Here's some info from the previous thread (after a couple of back-and-forth exchanges with you all):

I've got the truck listed above that has been sitting for nearly two years. Today I went out to begin the process of making it road-ready again and drained the old oil completely, put in fresh oil, removed the valve cover, poured fresh oil in over everything up top, pulled the spark plugs, sprayed some PB blaster in each hole and then slowly turned the crankshaft by hand. Immediately coolant sprayed out.

After some inspection I discovered that it was coming from the 2nd cylinder spark plug hole. Everything in the cylinder head under the valve cover looks completely normal, including the old oil that was still in there AND the old oil that I drained out from the oil pan. The timing chain cover is metal, and the guide is metal backed.

Is it likely that the head gasket shrunk or gave way while the truck was sitting?

I've already had the head rebuilt and the block's cylinders bored when I was rebuilding the engine in 2017.


After reading both articles I'm beginning to wonder if the head had been blown for a while but wasn't obvious well before I stopped driving the truck, because:

-it wouldn't come up to operating temperature at all
-would skip around while idling
-started leaking fluids seemingly from everywhere (not true, but a lot from places that were leaking)
-had poor gas mileage that went from about 12mpg to 14.5mpg after I changed and tested darn near everything (including deep cleaning and sealing the tank with POR-15, buying all new OEM fuel injectors, OEM spark plug wires, a new distributor, 2-stage Thermostat, fuel filter, vacuum lines, motor mounts, etc).


Well, today I did a compression test and here are my results:

DRY:
C1: 155
C2: 155
C3: 155
C4: 153

WET:
C1: 160
C2: 160
C3: 168
C4: 160

The last previous compression test I did was on May 22, 2014, with the following results:

DRY @ C1 - 145, C2 -120, C3 -140, C4 -140
WET @ C1 - 150, C2 - 140, C3 - 145, C4 - 148

I'm attaching a picture of the spark plugs and video of the engine running while preparing for the compression test. The truck never came up to operating temperature (which is a problem that was present previously and another reason I'm suspecting that the head gasket is, in fact, blown) after 5.5 minutes but did move up about a sixteenth of an inch.

I think it's time for a new head gasket. What do you think? Should I do a leak down test first? I'd rather not need to have anything machined again.
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Friday, September 8th, 2023 AT 2:35 PM

28 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
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Hi,

Interestingly, the compression looks great for cylinder 2. There is no variation between it and the others. A leak down may be a good idea. However, you may want to check if there are exhaust gases getting into the cooling system. Take a look through this link.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test

The oddest thing is the idea that it won't warm up. Most times, a faulty head gasket will cause overheating. Also, there will be lower compression in one or more cylinders.

Because of these things, I'm questioning if it is a head gasket. However, that leaves the question of how did the coolant get in there. Is there any chance something may have frozen over winter?

Let me know.

joe
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Friday, September 8th, 2023 AT 8:28 PM
Tiny
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Regarding the strange over-cooling issue, yes, I agree. I ended up replacing the fan clutch with a new Aisin unit shortly before parking the truck and it helped a small bit, but not enough. The gauge used to get up to operating temperature when I first bought the truck, so I know something has changed.

In fact, I repeatedly burped the system using one of those large, special coolant filling tanks, wondering if that was the problem. It never seemed to help much.

There was white smoke coming from the tailpipe during the compression test today and it smelled a bit like coolant, kind of sweet. I also noticed that the radiator and overflow container both look darn near empty despite being at correct levels when I parked the truck years ago. I did mess with the coolant a lot while trying to fix the over-cooling issue, but the radiator was certainly full enough that it didn’t look empty - that’s for sure.

Tomorrow I'm going to get an Engine Combustion Leak Detector and will let you know the results.
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Friday, September 8th, 2023 AT 11:00 PM
Tiny
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Hi,

If you smell something sweet, it could be coolant. Also, the idea of the coolant being low is somewhat of a concern as well. What's tricking me is the great compression and it is running cool. I wouldn't have expected either of those.

Regardless, let me know what you find.

Take care,

Joe
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Saturday, September 9th, 2023 AT 8:14 PM
Tiny
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Hi Joe,

I changed the level of the truck and opened the radiator and the coolant level looked completely normal this time around. I must have looked at it incorrectly before, so that's good news.

I did the Combustion Leak Detection test multiple times and the fluid never changed color. I tried with my breath just to be sure and that worked, but nothing from the radiator (except when I accidentally sucked up coolant. Ha) in the way of color change by the detector fluid.

I let the truck run for several minutes before trying the first test, so the engine was warm, albeit questionable about it being up to operating temperature. So, it doesn't seem that combustion gases are leaking into the coolant. I'm not sure what's going on here. Could it be that the head gasket is allowing coolant leaking, but is not fully blown so I don't have the tell-tale milky oil, combustion gas leak, etc?
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Thursday, September 14th, 2023 AT 11:04 AM
Tiny
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Hi,

In most cases, the gasket is either good or bad. Since you smelled something sweet at the exhaust, chances are it is getting burned in the combustion chamber. Is there any white smoke from the exhaust?

Joe
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Thursday, September 14th, 2023 AT 6:35 PM
Tiny
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Yes, there’s some. Not constantly, but yes, and moisture coming from the tail pipe. I’m including a video, and a photo of the spark plugs in order from L-R.
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Thursday, September 14th, 2023 AT 7:39 PM
Tiny
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Hi,

are you sure there isn't a vacuum issue? Is the PCV hose off or the power brake booster? If not, then I'm going to suggest checking engine compression.

First, here is a link that explains how to check for a vacuum leak:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-use-an-engine-vacuum-gauge

Here is a link that explains how to check engine compression:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-test-engine-compression

As far as the exhaust, is that the worst it gets?

Let me know.

Joe
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Thursday, September 14th, 2023 AT 8:51 PM
Tiny
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I don’t believe there is a vacuum issue, I’ve checked previously but will check again and get back. Still, how would that cause coolant to be ejected from the number two spark plug location when hand-cranking the engine?

I also already did the compression check and the results are a few posts up.

Yep, that’s the worst the exhaust gets.
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Thursday, September 14th, 2023 AT 9:40 PM
Tiny
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Hi,

Yep, you are right. Somehow coolant got there. Other than a gasket issue, something could be cracked into a water jacket. The only way to know is to remove the head.

Joe
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Friday, September 15th, 2023 AT 7:39 PM
Tiny
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Alright, thanks. I’ll begin the process.
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Friday, September 15th, 2023 AT 7:47 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
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Let me know which engine you have. See pic below. I feel like I already asked, but I'm not seeing it above.

Let me know so I can get you information.

Take care,

Joe

See pic below.
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Friday, September 15th, 2023 AT 8:18 PM
Tiny
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I’ve got the first option, the 22RE. No worries though, I’ve done the head gasket a couple of times before. Hopefully this is the last time for at least 15 years. Fingers crossed.
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Friday, September 15th, 2023 AT 10:08 PM
Tiny
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Should I post update pictures here or start a new thread?
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Wednesday, March 13th, 2024 AT 7:01 PM
Tiny
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Hi,

Absolutely, I would love to have them uploaded here. How far have you gotten in the process?

Joe
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Wednesday, March 13th, 2024 AT 7:09 PM
Tiny
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Great! Hi, Joe. This has taken awhile due to school, a busy work schedule and just plain ol’ stress and anxiety around working on the truck because there always seems to be another problem.

I finally got the cylinder head off and am going to find a machine shop to take it to have them:

1. Check to make sure it’s within the required height range.
2. Check for cracks.

It’s still pretty clean from when I had the block bored and the head worked on. I’d say the truck has acquired about 10,000 miles since then, but I’d have to verify. So, few miles because the truck has had so many problems.

Anyway, here are photos of the block (gasket still attached) and cylinder head. The gasket materials seem to have expanded and narrowed some of the passageways. 6 of the 10 head bolts were oily, 3 were dry and 1 had what looked like oil and a small bit of coolant on it. When I removed the EGR pipe from the head before separating the head from the block, each bolt was oily.

Also, I’d previously removed the EGR to clean it 3 separate times, put on a new gasket, checked each EGR vacuum hose to ensure they don’t have holes and applied vacuum to the valve listening for the closing sound once pressure is released. It also loses very little pressure when vacuum is applied. Despite all of this, when I test the EGR with the engine running the truck does not stumble then shut off. I didn’t think it could be a dirty passageway on the head because it’s been cleaned. It’s still a mystery. But one thing at a time.

Blown head gasket? Does this explain why I had coolant come out of the no. 2 plug hole?
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Wednesday, March 13th, 2024 AT 9:43 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
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Hi,

Good to hear from you. As far as what I'm seeing in the pics, it does appear the head gasket failed. You can see where it was making its way into cylinder 2 via a water jacket. I attached the pic below.

I think it is a good idea to make sure the head isn't warped or cracked.

Let me know what you find out.

Take care,

Joe

See pic below (your pic).
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Thursday, March 14th, 2024 AT 7:43 PM
Tiny
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Hi Joe,

The cylinder pointed to is actually cylinder 3 so that head gasket failed badly it seems. It really is strange that it wasn’t overheating at all, but rather wasn’t coming up to operating temperature.

I looked at other photos of failed gaskets in conjunction with what you pointed out and it seems like mine may have failed between cylinders 2 and 3, 3 and 4, as well as on the intake side of cylinder 1.

I’ll take the head in to be checked again.

Should I buy a tap to chase the block’s head bolt holes? Do you have any recommendations for cleaning them out well, so they retain proper torque? And should I use that easy-to-loosen goop (the opposite of Loctite) on the intake side bolts when reinstalling the manifold to reduce the probability of stripping if I need to remove it again?

Thanks!
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Friday, March 15th, 2024 AT 12:59 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
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Hi,

When it comes to cleaning oil, brake cleaner works great. It evaporates fast as well. You could try that.

As far as the threads are concerned, if they are still in good condition, they will be fine. If you have luck like mine, they'll be worse after you clean them up with a thread chaser.

The anti-seize is a good idea, but I wouldn't use it on the head bolts. It can change the torque specifications.

Let me know.

Joe
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Friday, March 15th, 2024 AT 6:49 PM
Tiny
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Hi Joe,

Thank you. I dropped the head off on Saturday and the machinist said he thinks it’s fine to put it back on as opposed to some low-quality alternative. He’s going to pressure test it, redo the valves and clean it up. He said the valves were too dark indicating exhaust fumes leaking or something to that effect; that they should be white/lighter in color. When I went over the previous receipts for head work, I noticed the head wasn’t decked and the valves weren’t done. It’ll be $320, which doesn’t sound bad.

Question about the timing: when I put the chain on, I put a tooth between the “Top” links but in looking at the chain and crankshaft timing indicator it seems off a bit. The engine is at TDC correctly. Pictures attached. Do you think I should re-do the chain and align it better with the dot on the timing chain?
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Tuesday, March 19th, 2024 AT 1:14 PM
Tiny
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Hi,

It's hard to visualize the position of the cam sprocket. It appears that it could be a tooth out of time, but I'm struggling to make that determination.

I attached what I have as far as alignment. Let me know if it helps.

Take care,

Joe

See pics below.
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Tuesday, March 19th, 2024 AT 7:23 PM

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