Engine Problems... Toyota says its Blown :( Options

[94celigts]

Hey guys i have a 5sfe with 250000km on it. I did an oil change not long ago last week actually and everything went fine untill yesterday... My oil light started coming off and on again, so i checked the dipstick was a tiny bit low so i topped it up. Now my oil light is on constintly and my engine is making a terrible knocking sound like a diesel but only under 1500rmp anything above it runs fine no chug or anything. I was told at toyota that my engine is blown or about to blow and more then likely it is the rod bearings that are out.. but they only said this without checking into anything deeply. They quoted me 2300$ for a 91 5sfe installed and everything. My question is, is it hard to determine what the problem actually is? because if it was something cheap internally in my engine that did not do much damage then could i not just take apart my engine and figure it out? I wouldnt want to pay for a new engine and find out that it was a 100$-500$ repair. Let me know your thoughts or what i might be able to do to figure this out... i really love this car and i do not want to part with it yet.

Thanks for your help.

[Batman722]

a 91 doesn't have a knock sensor IIRC, and the 6 gen 5s is a little more updated than the 5th gens. Get a newer 5s for that amount of $.

[rjbibeau]

change the rod bearings their like 30 bucks or so and they are pretty easy to change out. try this first. its worth it.

[stephen_lee]

yeah. i would just do all thte bearing though. rod && main bearings. but... you MUST correct the oil problem first. since it was just a little low when you said this happened it was more likely a bad oil pump.

$300 to try to fix it compared to $2300 for an older engine..

[99Celica]

repairing my Gf's old laser turned into a money pit. Everytime something got fixed, something else gave out. Ended up costing the same in repairs as a new engine + tons of headaches.
Sometimes it's just time for a new car

I'd get a professional opinion from someone who you aren't paying for the work.

[monkey]

getem to swat a 3s into there.... order teh stuff yourself and cut the cost...

[6G96GT]

The engine oil light doesn't mean low oil, it means low oil pressure and if it was on and you have knock now, then you definitely spun at least one rod bearing. Check out to see what your oil pressure is. The metal used in those rod bearings is a softer metal which pastes up and goes to the bottom of the oil pan, do an oil change and see if you can see a silvery swirl in the oil, believe me it stands out. You might have also scored the cylinder walls if a piston or piston(s) got stuck and roughed around, most of the time they just get stuck up there and you should be ok without any cylinder wall scoring. Also your crank probably got scored and will need to be turned. Sorry dude.

By the way, I was quoted 3000 bucks just for a stock rebuild on my 96 celica gt, I don't need it yet but was curious on the price. That 2300 sounds good to me.

This post has been edited by 6G96GT: Mar 7, 2008 - 3:16 PM

[scothaniel]

$2300 for a 91 5SFE installed is insane (though normal price for motor work at a dealership). You can probably find a decent used 5SFE for $250 or so. Get a couple of friends to help and you can swap it in a day.

The real question is how comfortable are you with doing the engine work? Here are a couple of online how-to's that show whats involved with replacing bearings:

*note, the parts will be different, but the process is basically the same

http://www.boompa.com/guide/main-bearing-r...easy-er-way/114
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mh3B5x-J_E

I personally dont feel comfortable with engine work, so I take another route. I pull the motors, strip it down to the short block, and take it to a reputable shop to do the precision stuff. Parts and labor will usually run between $400 - $700 for bearings, gaskets, and studs, etc - of course this all depends on the amount of damage done to the motor.

This post has been edited by scothaniel: Mar 7, 2008 - 3:22 PM

[Random_Stranger]

Everyone has given good advice. I had that problem with my 240sx and eventually I blew a HUGE hole in the engine. Please get it taken care of asap. $500 or less doesn't seem a bad price (at least to me). Lord knows I have paid more for less things to be repaired (ripped off).

[lagos]

The engine oil light doesn't mean low oil, it means low oil pressure and if it was on and you have knock now, then you definitely spun at least one rod bearing. Check out to see what your oil pressure is. The metal used in those rod bearings is a softer metal which pastes up and goes to the bottom of the oil pan, do an oil change and see if you can see a silvery swirl in the oil, believe me it stands out. You might have also scored the cylinder walls if a piston or piston(s) got stuck and roughed around, most of the time they just get stuck up there and you should be ok without any cylinder wall scoring. Also your crank probably got scored and will need to be turned. Sorry dude.

x2.

[94celigts]

thanks for all the info guys... i do feel comfortable doing a normal 5sfe swap ive done hondas before and i dont think just the engine should be hard... but i was now thinking while i have it out maybe throwing in a 3sge and possibly a 5 speed. but i dunno how hard that would be well basically just mounting the resivior and all the lines and to make sure i get the axels and the proper stuff... and to make sure its all in working order. Basically i only have the long weekend to do all this as well so the tranny might be on hold again...

But what do you guys think about a 3SGE swap, to my auto 5SFE Transmission. Is that difficult or basically plug and play... and is everything from my 5S going to work?

Thanks again for all the info

[scothaniel]

3SGE would be a nearly identical to doing the 3SGTE swap. The only difference is the absence of the turbo and a lower cost. The work is the same.