1988 Toyota PU, 22R head advice

[brushogger]

My son's 1988 4wd pickup was getting warm and when he pulled over there was a small amount of coolant in the oil. We pulled the head, and saw no cracks, but the gasket area between the two inside cylinders didn't seem quite kosher. It is warped .008" and a couple of the exhaust manifold stud holes will need to be helicoiled. I did some research and found these guys,

http://www.johnsons-quality-machine...2re-head.php?gclid=CPyJyfyPtKICFQPJsgodyG4t6A

This seems to be a pretty good deal as the head is new, includes a new cam, is $260 with $20 shipping. Has anyone had any experience with them. I want to get a good deal, but it's more important for me to repair it right. Thanks for any input.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I would call them and ask who makes the head. The major aftermarket supplier is Topline, which is what Engnbldr (http://engnbldr.com/head_shop.htm) uses and I have one of his RV heads. The casting is reasonably good but it is not Toyota OE quality, so it should be expected that some work needs to be done on them. I had to chase and chamfer one of the mounting holes, the one for the forward dowel. This was after Ted had done his work to port and polish, so who knows how much work he had to do. IOW, QC is pretty lax on them (they are made in Brazil).

 

[corax]

why not take your head to a local machinist and have him rebuild it? ask around some of the local shops for recommendations first - there are alot of sub-par machinists out there

 

[bryson]

If you do rebuild the stock head, have it checked for cracks (magnafluxed?) because they are notorious for cracking on the valve seats. I know you checked it, but it isn't uncommon for the cracks to be invisible to the eyeballs.

I had my stock 22RE head rebuilt (I was lucky enough that mine wasn't cracked,) put a set of ARP studs on it to help prevent future head gasket issues, and dropped in a mild Crane cam. I like it.:bike_rider:

Good luck.

 

[BlueBomber]

My dad bought a 89 2wd pickup for cheap with a cracked head. When he asked around about changing the head, he was told by a very reputable engine builder that putting a new head on an old block may cause it to smoke because the head is straight and the deck is slightly warped. I would get the stock head checked out first and go from there.

 

[brushogger]

I took the head to a machinist and he said this head had been worked before at least once because it had a heat tab on it that showed it hadn't been overheated badly. The reason I'm looking at replacement is there are no obvious leak points and he said since it is over 20 years old there could be pin holing in the coolant passages that allow the coolant into the oil. The deck on the block is still straight. I hate thought of putting that much money into the existing head and still having problems. Thanks for the heads up on the manufacturer. I'll definitely check on that. I really appreciate the advice.

 

[austintaco]

I went through this same process a few months ago. What started as a shop cross threading my spark plugs ended up costing me a new head. I thought I could just get the spark plug holes helicoiled, but even though it wasn't losing pressure, it had a slight crack. With all the money I was going to put into it, I decided to search for a head that didn't have any flaws.

4 heads later, we had a winner.

I couldn't use one of engbldr's heads because I have the early style 22r, but if you have the later style, then look at his products and prices. It is the best way to go in my opinion.

 

[brushogger]

After speaking with Mike at Johnsons Quality Machine, I think I'll try one of his heads. He was very helpful. He said he has personally soold almost 50 of these and the warehouse in Pa. he gets them from has sold almost 500 and they haven't had one come back. He also had a lot of good advice for assembly etc. After it is complete and has a few miles on it, I'll repost here with the results. Thanks again for all the advice guys

 

[Jrally]

And you are SURE, the timing cover isn't the cross contamination problem. a crack or a worn though timing cover from a loose timing chain is common with these engines. If you've ever rebuilt one of the Toyota 4 cylinders, you'll see just how easy it could be to get a gasket leak or worn timing cover to leak water into the oil.

-Jon

 

[brushogger]

And you are SURE, the timing cover isn't the cross contamination problem. a crack or a worn though timing cover from a loose timing chain is common with these engines. If you've ever rebuilt one of the Toyota 4 cylinders, you'll see just how easy it could be to get a gasket leak or worn timing cover to leak water into the oil.

-Jon

I'll be sure to check that. I didn't pull the timing cover, but I will now. Thanks so much for the info.