Can I fix the blown valve in my '94 Tercel?

Question

I have a '94 (3E-E) Tercel. I seem to have blown a valve in cylinder #3 (zero compression). I'm wondering how much of a bear it is to pull the cylinder head off, get it reconditioned @ the machine shop, and then put it back on, and how much I should expect to pay for this service at the shop. I'm no mechanic, but I used to spend quite a bit of time playing around with air-cooler VW engines and consider myself pretty handy.

Also, if I do decide to tackle this job, are there any other things I ought to do while I have the head off?

Any gotchas I should be aware of, or tips to make the job easier?

Background: The car has ~140K miles on it, the shop wants ~$2000 to do the job, which, considering how much the car is worth at this point, seems like a losing situation, but if I could do the job myself for about half that, plus a weekend's worth of work, it would be worth it to me.

Ray O · Accepted Answer

Before you tackle the job, invest in either on-line access to Toyota's tech site or a factory repair manual.

I'm not sure what you mean by "blown valve." Before you pull the head, pull the valve cover and check valve lash. You may be able to check the valves with a borescope and see if there are deposits on the valve face or valve seat. If so, it may be possible to de-carbon the valves with walnut shells, Toyota dealers may still have the kit to do this work or something like B&G or Motor Vac may work.

Gord Beaman · Answer

Of course...and you might just have a 'stuck valve' OR you might have a bloody great big hole in the piston which might cost you much more than the engine's worth...as Ray says, at least pull the valve cover and at least do a boroscope...

noneyabusiness · Answer

$2000 would get you a whole new (well, rebuilt) engine here in So. Calif. Maybe a transmission as well ;-)

Replacing the head should cost around $800 (with a usable core). (This price may be a bit out of date though.)

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Anthony Aue · Answer

And now on to the next question: Can anyone recommend a good machine shop with experience doing Toyota motors in the Seattle area?

Can I fix the blown valve in my '94 Tercel?

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