Doing rings and bearings on a 3L engine

[high n mighty]

On pulling my stuffed turbo off I was surprises to see a great volume of oil inside the pipe leading from the filter box to the turbo. This being the pipe which intersects with the blow-by relief hose from the tappet cover I am 100% certain that massive amounts of blow-by have been atleast a factor if no the complete cause of my turbo blowing seals and blowing liquid oil out the exhaust. Oil was also present in great volume between the turbo and inlet manifold also.

So basically I am up for rings and bearings and want to do the job myelf both for the massive difference in price and also for my own knowledge.

I understand that I have to mark the timing belt in numerous places to ensure it is replaced in perfect unison between the cam shaft, crank and injector pump....

Top dead centre is the first cylinder sitting in its raise position is it not? Is this the position that the head will rest at with no tension on it and thus the only position to mark it in?

How will I accurately find this? I am under the impression that I can do the whole job with the head still on the engine. This would save me a little drama so I would like to do it this way.


Is the 2.8ltr engine similar to the old 2.2 diesel from years ago? Hoping to use an old manual as a guide.


Any tips are greatly appreciated and I will be pulling it down in the next couple of days and hope fully get the engine back together on the weekend ready for the new turbo.

I was quoted $325 for rings, this seems bloody expensive. Where can I buy cheaper than repco?

[spazbot]

you can get a full engine rebuild kit for about $680, you may aswell pull the whole thing and do it properly if your going to do it at all

[high n mighty]

I was going to do rings and bearings, I'm not cashed up enough for a full rebuild.


How much more work would that be though? Doing the head up and honing the bores?

[juscruisin]

Doing rings? Head will have to come off. It can be done in chassis. You will also need to hone the bores as they will be glazed (new rings will not bed in otherwise and you will have to do it all over again).

As far as TDC goes, you should find a TDC mark on the timing cover - when the mark on the crank pulley or harmonic balance lines up with this, number 1 should be at TDC. I'm not familiar with the motor you're asking about, but this is pretty usual. Suggest you get hold of thr manual for the motor before you start - may save expensive mistakes.

$325 does sound expensive - I paid $150 for a set to suit a 2H just recently. Look for diesel spares parts suppliers in your area & you should do better.

[high n mighty]

I intitially thought of going through the head as thats just the way I have seen it done, with top and bottom both accessible. It was also my understanding that it would need a hone, though the fella at a 4WD shop suggested doing it from the bottom.

Definately going from both ends now then.

What else should I look out for?

[high n mighty]

Also the bearings and rings are ordered. Frontie ended up getting the rings for $251 through his work, didn't get a quote on bearings as they should be cheaper too.

And that is all genuine toyota parts

[Shadow]

I intitially thought of going through the head as thats just the way I have seen it done, with top and bottom both accessible. It was also my understanding that it would need a hone, though the fella at a 4WD shop suggested doing it from the bottom.

Definately going from both ends now then.

What else should I look out for?

It would be a major pitta to do it from the bottom. Im pretty sure you would have to drop the crank completely if you were going to do it from the bottom aswell, which would mean the gearbox has to come off, which would be much much more work than just taking the head off. Should be able to do your mains without dropping it altogether? if not maybe it is worthwhile pulling the engine. About 2hours extra work out and in, but will make working on it much much easier.


The head will cost about $1k foir a full rebuild, maybe $300 for a freshen up, depending on what needs replacing. (if a few valves are junked it will be $500+) Might be worth doing this aswell.

[+dj_hansen+]

. Should be able to do your mains without dropping it altogether? if not maybe it is worthwhile pulling the engine. About 2hours extra work out and in, but will make working on it much much easier.

It is possible to mains 1 at a time so you dont have to drop the crank... just have to be carefull not to scratch the journals/crank and re-tension the caps properly.

[high n mighty]

Im stuck atm.

Have the radiator out and all belts off, have the water pump pulley off plus the front two on the crank. The rear pulley is stuck there, I can't undo the front bolt on the crank to remove it. How do you lock it off in TDC position so I can crack the bolt!!!!????

[Guy]

Put it in a highish gear and put the brakes on, if the wheels cant move the engine should not be able to turn over either (if it's in gear)

There is most likely some special tool for doing this properly though ..

[high n mighty]

Fricken great mate, ya got me though. I owe ya a beer

[high n mighty]

So now that I have the final pulley off and the timing cover, have it set at TDC(of number one piston) I see marks 180 degrees from where I would have put them, looks like when Bernie done the timing belt he marked it off number 4 piston.

Should I be marking number one's TDC or number four's?

[Guy]

Sounds like you could be on TDC for the exhaust stroke

[high n mighty]

Sounds like you could be on TDC for the exhaust stroke

I marked it at TDC on number one cylinder and right on where the mark indicates. Marked the timing belt, cam, crank and diesel pump. If everything goes back in exactly the same position it should be sweet

Ran out of usable light though. Un-done the fuel lines from the injectors and then pondered whether I could actually remove them from the pump instead and leave the inlet manifold attached to the head. Didn't have enough light to see correctly and packed up for the night.

[fnqcairns]

Good luck with your endevour, sounds exactly what I did years ago but with a petrol engine just jumped in and went for it, it worked with only a persistant tappet cover oil leak as a reminder.

Just a few things that may or maynot help sooner or later, those f-ing rings can be fragile to fit so be very carefull best to use a tool. Also be gentle when you clean the ring lands back to spotless ready for the new rings, its tempting to reach for a file or sand paper - but dont!

Would suspect on the surface most of your problem is actually coked ring lands and stuck rings unless it has overheated some time in it's life, also be sure to check the ring end gaps with a file at the ready dont skip this bit can catch a person out.
Even if your bores are out of spec for just a hone a re ring job can still work for quite a while, just ask any second hand car dealership.

Would recommend getting someone who is experienced in honing to do the hone, anyone can do it but no-one can do it well the first time around and it is a fairly critical part of the re ring, can make or break it IMO.

best of luck hope you nail it.

cheers fnq

[AndrewPatrol]

on TDC both Valves rockers should be loose, if one is tight them you should turn it 180.

[high n mighty]

on TDC both Valves rockers should be loose, if one is tight them you should turn it 180.

Doesn't have rockers, but thanks.


Christ this is a tedious job with the engine in the vehicle.

Now I have the inlet manifold and all accesories bolted to it off or hanging and have undone the head, gotta love using the rattle gun

Looks like I have taken the weight off the head as water is seeping out the side. Dad is coming over tomorrow to help me lift it out, I have downed tools for the night.

As far as over heating goes. Guts can answer that one for ya, hasn't overheated on me though.