Been a while since I've posted on here, as I've been fixing Toyota's ::)
So in the fleet there is now a 2002 grand vitara, with low ks, but a dubious service history. It goes well but has ALL of the leaks this motor is known for. Suspected rear main, leaky front main, blows smoke at start up, and the worst of all the oil gallery seal between the two halves (top and bottom) of the block...
Have spent some time working out whether its worth fixing, and it probably around $600 to repair the known problems.
With the tops off the cause of the problem is obvious, very dirty with old oil residue everywhere. No sludge, all crusty deposits.
This may take some time..
For an idea of what I'm in for... :'( .
Change your oil regularly in these, they aren't like the old g13's that ran forever on the same oil..
Impressive dedication mate. Will this be a keeper?
Hard to tell. If we get another three years service out of it for a few weeks of me mucking around, I'd be happy with that.
But seriously, the people that don't do their own oil changes need to look at this engine. We got invoices that showed it was serviced, semi regularly, but looking at this my pick is they paid for work that wasn't being done.
All too common a story, other ploys is the garage changes the oil but likely with a type that's so inferior to the spec for the engine, might as well have not changed it at all