84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

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awesomes_middlename
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My tercel:: 1984 Tercel 4WD

84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by awesomes_middlename »

Hey Everyone, I'm said to let her go, but it's time. I was returning from Bend,OR back to Northern California, and my Tercel blew a headcasket. The cars name is Patty Labell (aka the Patty Wagon). She's at a mechanics in Prospect, Oregon. He's willing to do the work or scrap it. I'd hate to scrape her. It'd be great if someone made and offer and got her back on the road. I'm going out of town this weekend, but leave messages and I'll get back on Monday.
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xirdneh
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by xirdneh »

Why rebuild? Just needs headgasket?
Love those Tercell 4x4 wagons but they sure suffer from road noise.
Ridlbox
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My tercel:: 1984 Toyota Tercel SR 5 custom aluminum rims 4 a motor custom rims Bluetooth stereo system
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by Ridlbox »

Two years ago I did the head gasket on my tercel on Christmas eve it doesn't take that long
i will find a tercel in a music video
That's my new goal 8)
mrdance123
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My tercel:: 84 and 85 4wd wagons

Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by mrdance123 »

This car could aptly be named "Crystal" from the "Breaking Bad" series.
Ridlbox, can you take more pictures inside & out?
85 T4 Speedy Blue, SR5, 270-312k, operational R12 A/C, in use.
84 T4 Curmudgeon Copper, 188-294k, my first T4 in 1990, now Dad's daily driver.
RIP - 84 T4 Foxy Blue, 256-288k, engine died 2021, sold to PNP
Sold: 86 T2 Silver, VIN ending 5847, 194k, cherry condition, now in a good home.
RIP - 83 T4 Smokin' Gold, 270k, rusted out body, parted & scrapped
RIP - 84 T4 Quicksilver SR5, 125k, blown engine no oil, had sat 10+ years, parted & scrapped.
RIP - 80 Corolla (purchased new), 0-473k, 358k original engine, rear-ended totaled in 2003.
Ridlbox
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My tercel:: 1984 Toyota Tercel SR 5 custom aluminum rims 4 a motor custom rims Bluetooth stereo system
Location: Plymouth CA

Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by Ridlbox »

mrdance123 wrote:This car could aptly be named "Crystal" from the "Breaking Bad" series.
Ridlbox, can you take more pictures inside & out?
Pictures soon to come there is a small thread on my car as well thread is labeled " RIDLBOX that's the cars name "
i will find a tercel in a music video
That's my new goal 8)
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Petros
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by Petros »

more information on the car would be good. what does it have, how many miles, recent repairs/upgrades, etc.? More pictures, that looks like a nice roof rack, is that included too?

I can replace a Tercel head gasket in under 4 hours, that is an easy fix. I have even done it in the middle of trips several times (on different "rescue" Tercels).

Why send an otherwise good Tercel4wd to the wrecker becasue of a bad head gasket? That would be a shame, and completely unnecessary.

someone needs to save this Tercel.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
awesomes_middlename
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My tercel:: 1984 Tercel 4WD

Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by awesomes_middlename »

The gasket is so bad it won't start, and is blowing smoke/exhaust out the radiator. Oil is leaking. She's in rough shape. Thats why I'm saying complete rebuild or new engine. Anyone want to take a gamble...Like I said, its in Prospect Oregon. Make an offer of a few/several hundred, and its yours. The garage owner has been cool keeping it there, but I want to get it off his hands asap. If an offer don't come in today, I'm releasing the title so he can scrap her:(
mrdance123
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My tercel:: 84 and 85 4wd wagons

Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by mrdance123 »

Hey awesomes..... with all respect, you is unlikely to get the offer you want, without direct communication, more info about the car's history and overall condition, beyond the engine, and post many more pictures showing entire car inside and out. Without that, I offer $200, assuming it rolls freely on all 4 wheels, and no parts have been removed. We are operating almost blind, with only a photo of the hood. And if you sign over the title to the mechanic shop, please tell us who has the car, and ask them to wait for offers before they crush it. Personally, I would send you a bonus directly, if I got the car after you turn it over, and it turns out quite good for the money.
85 T4 Speedy Blue, SR5, 270-312k, operational R12 A/C, in use.
84 T4 Curmudgeon Copper, 188-294k, my first T4 in 1990, now Dad's daily driver.
RIP - 84 T4 Foxy Blue, 256-288k, engine died 2021, sold to PNP
Sold: 86 T2 Silver, VIN ending 5847, 194k, cherry condition, now in a good home.
RIP - 83 T4 Smokin' Gold, 270k, rusted out body, parted & scrapped
RIP - 84 T4 Quicksilver SR5, 125k, blown engine no oil, had sat 10+ years, parted & scrapped.
RIP - 80 Corolla (purchased new), 0-473k, 358k original engine, rear-ended totaled in 2003.
mrdance123
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My tercel:: 84 and 85 4wd wagons

Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by mrdance123 »

To all forum members: This engine was seriously overheated climbing a steep hill, pushed into red heat zone for some time, until it started smoking, then sputtered to a stop.

Mechanic at site says there is still oil in the engine,
and there was no compression in any cylinder,
he believes the rings were ruined.

Your Opinions please:
What are the chances he ruined only the head and head gasket,
is the block recoverable, possibly not damaged?
85 T4 Speedy Blue, SR5, 270-312k, operational R12 A/C, in use.
84 T4 Curmudgeon Copper, 188-294k, my first T4 in 1990, now Dad's daily driver.
RIP - 84 T4 Foxy Blue, 256-288k, engine died 2021, sold to PNP
Sold: 86 T2 Silver, VIN ending 5847, 194k, cherry condition, now in a good home.
RIP - 83 T4 Smokin' Gold, 270k, rusted out body, parted & scrapped
RIP - 84 T4 Quicksilver SR5, 125k, blown engine no oil, had sat 10+ years, parted & scrapped.
RIP - 80 Corolla (purchased new), 0-473k, 358k original engine, rear-ended totaled in 2003.
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NWMO
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by NWMO »

mrdance,

BEST CASE SCENARIO is salvage the block and possibly pistons, which still requires turning the crank, all new bearings, rings, etc. and a rebuilt head. If I didn't have an engine looking for a home, I would consider $500-$600 for purchase & pick-up costs. If I did have a donor engine that was fresh or even ready to be re-built, I would consider the $800 - $1000 range for purchase & pick-up IF I WAS ABLE, HAD THE TIME AND WANTED TO TACKLE the project. Even then, you end up with a $2,500 - $3,000 car that you may have a hard time selling for $2,000. But if you want to drive it and put 100,000 miles on it, you get a bargain.

Chris
Psalm 37:4 "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart"

In remembrance of my friend ARCHINSTL:

T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
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Petros
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by Petros »

mrdance123 wrote:o all forum members: This engine was seriously overheated climbing a steep hill,...sputtered to a stop.
Your Opinions please:
the toyota blocks (and low end in general) are pretty durable, usually those only get damaged if it was run without oil. Even on badly overheated engines, the blocks are still straight. Over Heat will soften and damage the piston rings, so the should be replaced, which will happen if you over bore the engine anyway.

Likely the top of the block will have to be "decked" (machined flat), and than oversized pistons fitted with over boring by .020" or max of .040".

low end is likely okay, though if the owner was that careless it is possible the car was not maintained and run low or with dirty oil. At most it would need a regrind with oversized bearings. I have only had to do this once on a Toyota, usually just replacing with std size bearings is good enough, after a journal polish (I do this by hand) brings it back to within factory spec.

Head might be salvageable with a resurface and than the cam journals have to be align-bored to take the warp out of it. I would also replace at least the exhaust valves (no matter how good they look, they are now heat damaged). Intake valves are probably okay, but you might consider replacing them too, valve stem seals of course, and perhaps valve guilds are worn out of tolerance too. You will also have to check the cam shaft for warp, if the head was badly warped sometimes the cam warps with it. With this much work required you might consider starting out with another head that was not so badly overheated. If you see any signs of heat damage on the head (metal started to melt out around the exhaust ports), it is junk and not salvageable, too far gone. This is really rare, but I have seen it happen when someone keeps driving an overheating engine until it stops running.

You just do not know until you get it all apart, though with a completer overhaul, and a new rebuilt head, likely it will hold up just fine.

Good luck.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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Petros
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by Petros »

one other thing to consider: you can not test drive the car to know if the trans, clutch, suspension or wheel bearings are all okay. So inspect it carefully. sometimes it is all good, but more often than not, these were also neglected, sometimes rather badly, and you do not discover that until you get the engine fixed and you drive it on the road for the first time. It has happened to me more than once, so if you can test drive it, it is of very limited value until you have gone through it very thoroughly, usually only after you get it on the road.

I once bought a car sight unseen, with "only" a bad rear diff. turns out it needed a lot of other stuff too: complete new interior (it was moldly), comletely new brakes, clutch, wheel bearings, battery, radiator...fortunately I got it cheap enough I was able to fix it all, but it was way more work than I thought I was buying.

shop carefully.
'87 Tercel 4wd SR5 (current engine swap project)
'84 Tercel 4wd (daily driver, with on going mods)
'92 Mazda MPV 4wd (wife's daily driver)
'85 Tercel 4wd DLX auto(daughter's daily driver)
'01 Honda Civic (other daughter's daily driver)
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irowiki
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by irowiki »

I would treat that engine as a blown block and just find another engine to put in it.
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87 Corolla FX16, 105k
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rer233
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by rer233 »

+1.
if it aint there, there's a good chance it won't break!
83 SR5 Silver/Blue (Snowmobile/work beater)-totaled but drivable
85 SR5 Blue
88 SR5 White (the 'good' one)-not anymore-totaled
87 fwd silver wagon a/t
87 4wd dx Cream (a/t- not anymore- now m/t)
mrdance123
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Re: 84 SR5 Tercel 4WD 213k , needs rebuild/new engine *make offer (OR)

Post by mrdance123 »

'Speedy Blue' took on the challenge, drove 275 miles to Prospect, Oregon,
hooked up to the Patty Wagon, dragged her back those 275 miles to a new home.
If we ever do that again, Speedy's getting a better radiator first!
Had to pull over to rest him 3 times and cool off, churning along 25 mph in second,
there are seriously steep mountain passes leaving Prospect.
Those first 50 miles were hell, but the rest of the way was a breeze.

Patty's engine looks like toast.
Compression stats are 45,30,40,60,
then raise to between 150-190 with oil injected in cylinders.
A deep metallic screech quieted down after #1 got oil.
Do forum experts agree this is rings, more so than head gasket and valves?

It would not start, nor even pretend to fire even a little bit,
before or after adding the oil into cylinders.
Even if timing got messed up, something would have happened and popped.
I would think the improved compression the oil caused would to it,
if just for a few smoky minutes.
I changed over to clean plugs after the oil injection,
and after cranking with no plugs to eject any excess oil.
Used plenty of ether spray, and tried spraying directly into cylinders.
Spark is good and strong, jumping almost half an inch to a ground.

I badly want it to run, no matter how badly, just to test everything else out!!!
Before going for a new engine.
Ideas ??
85 T4 Speedy Blue, SR5, 270-312k, operational R12 A/C, in use.
84 T4 Curmudgeon Copper, 188-294k, my first T4 in 1990, now Dad's daily driver.
RIP - 84 T4 Foxy Blue, 256-288k, engine died 2021, sold to PNP
Sold: 86 T2 Silver, VIN ending 5847, 194k, cherry condition, now in a good home.
RIP - 83 T4 Smokin' Gold, 270k, rusted out body, parted & scrapped
RIP - 84 T4 Quicksilver SR5, 125k, blown engine no oil, had sat 10+ years, parted & scrapped.
RIP - 80 Corolla (purchased new), 0-473k, 358k original engine, rear-ended totaled in 2003.
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