QuestionHello, I have spent a bit of time reading over all of the toyota questions but havent found much on my issue,:
The truck that Im working on is a 1987 22R 2.1 L(?). I havent driven the truck very much before it quit on me. When It stopped It basically did just that, I had a tune up performed on it less than two days prior(oil,filters,plugs), And I was headed to work one night and after about 20mins it just
shut-off While I was driving down the freeway and would not start. I pushed it(almost half a mile)to the exit and to a nearby parking lot and found that the radiator was empty. I proceeded to fill the radiator back up with water and after almost five minutes of cranking the engine, it finally came to a slow start(kinda raa-ra-r-r-rrrrr) It idled just fine after that, but there was lots of white smoke out the tail-pipe. I towed It home and it has sat until now.
The Truck been sitting for at least four months, After a few turns, it started right up. It drove out of my backyard(which has a slight incline) into my garage. It ran smoothly, It died a few times as if I were "dumping" the clutch, or not giving it enough gas, Indicating a slight loss in power. I pulled it into my garage and drove it onto ramps, and removed the hood and air cleaner.
I assumed that it had to be the head gasket. So, first off, I checked the oil, It was milky. Next, I tried Compression Testing it. I didnt want to let it run for too long, but the block was warm. I started out with "Dry" testing it, The results were:
Cylinder #1: 120psi
Cylinder #2: 115psi
Cylinder #3: 115psi
Cylinder #4: 125psi
That indicates the problem being the Head Gasket?
The pressure was low but it had good consistency.
Next, I wanted to "wet" compression test it. I Drained the oil(very well mixed with water)before I did this and replaced the oil with an engine degreaser solvent, Then proceeded with the test.:
Wet Compression Test:
Cylinder #1: 180psi
Cylinder #2: 150psi
Cylinder #3: 150psi
Cylinder #4: 145psi
From What I understand, Thats Bad News. I retested #1 Twice to make sure that it was accurate because for supposedly having a blown head gasket that seemed really high. For Retest #1 I didnt add anymore oil, it read 165psi, for Retest #2 I added more oil, It read 195psi!!!.
Thats Where I called it a night.
What I wanted to ask you was, What do those readings tell you? 120psi dry, 150psi wet with the exception of #1. Does that indicate worn rings or pistons? or possibly a blown head gasket with a miss-aligned valve on #1? and is 150psi on a wet reading closer to what it would be with a good head gasket, or if you were to wet test a good head would it be significantly higher? also if the problem did lie in the valves for cylinder #1 why was there no difference in the pressure during the dry test?
I am definatly losing coolant, both into the oil and out the overflow resivour after the truck shuts off.
Im hoping that the problem is with the head gasket. I got the kit, the thermostat, the water pump gasket, and quite a few other things as well, hoping that I will find the cause of the problem on the way to fixing the head. I have a shop nearby that hopefully will adjust the valves for me and do the valve guide seals, I plan to have it pressure tested and resurfaced along with having the valves grinded. Do you think that if the head checks out good that Replacing the head Gasket and thremostat, and possibly the water pump if neccecary and if i find nothing else wrong, the radiatior, That will fix the problem?
Sorry for such a long question,
Any advice will be greatly appreciated
Thank You,
Nathan C, Olympia, Wa
AnswerThe dry compression readings are somewhat low which indicate that there may be a piston ring problem, the readings should be around 160-180 psi, when the head is removed check the cylinder walls for any scoring if there is none it may still be a good idea to have the piston rings replaced because if they are not replaced there may be an oil consumption problem after the valve job and headgasket replacement.
