Vvtli Engine Tech Help! Desperately Needed

[Dainton]

(car is a Corolla 51 plate T-Sport)

I was doing 70 on the motorway and engine power died.

I could with only slight pressure on the throttle keep the engine going but any more than slight pressure and a sort of ticking clicking noise came from the engine.

The car's been taken to Toyota and they told me there was no coolant in the engine and no compression.

Diagnosed as a blown head gasket and a full engine replacement was the only answer.

THE QUOTE!!! £6705 new engine fitted!!

This was abviously NOT an option.

Luckily my dad runs a rally school and has someone that can look at the engine.

He's opened the engine to find No blown head gasket, No scored/scratched bores or pistons, No damage to the valves.

No water in the oil, Basically NO visible damage.

We were expecting to find the engine would be shot and i'd have to find a 2nd hand replacement.

But now, we're not sure where to go with it!!

Any help would be MASSIVELY appreciated!!

[Johndcfc]

I know nothing about engines but see if anyone on the lotus message boards have had the problem (as the t-sport has the same engine as some models).

£6705 is criminal - you could get a whole new car for that!

[Leeky]

Sounds like whoever has quoted you for a new engine is trying to pull a fast one.

What did the mechanic say the head looked like when he took it off? All the Cams as should be?

Did he check the engine for error codes? He should have really done this first before pulling it apart...

BTW there is an engine on eBay for £1345 inc delivery.... item number 170144613357

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...em=170144613357

[Dainton]

Toyota have said they pressure tested all 4 cylinders and each had no compression. The engine had no coolant.

They diagnosed a blown head gasket and said a new engine was required. Do you think Toyota would have checked for error codes?

Before buying another engine I had the current engine stripped to confirm it was blown but found no signs of damage.

No signs of damage to valves. On the advice of Toyota we're going to pour petrol on the valves/pistons to see if there are any leaks.

The most confusing thing is that all of the cylinders had no compression?? So whatever the problem it is affecting the whole engine.

Is there any way the valve timing could go so badly wrong that all cylinders would have no compreesion?

!Removed! mystery this!! Toyota dealership have no idea what it could be which isn't particularly re-assuring!

[Karma Supra]

If it has seriously over heated and you said you heard a ticking /banging noise its fubar. Surely you should have noticed the Temp guage was too high??? You'll need to take the head off and see if its craked or warped, check the bores for scoring of blueing, if that all proves of you could try a new headgasket.. I would personally get another engine from a scrappy and fit that.....

[Dainton]

If it has seriously over heated and you said you heard a ticking /banging noise its fubar. Surely you should have noticed the Temp guage was too high??? You'll need to take the head off and see if its craked or warped, check the bores for scoring of blueing, if that all proves of you could try a new headgasket.. I would personally get another engine from a scrappy and fit that.....

The temp gauge kept going up and down really quickly. I tried to put water in but it didn't take hardly any.

I thought it had an electrical fault but seems it had lost coolant from somewhere.

Taken the head off, no cracking, scoring, discolouration, burn marks, nothing!!

With no compression in any cylinders I think you'd expect it to be majorly damaged and quite visible!

I don't really want to pay £1000 for a replacement engine if it's something much smaller.

I was hoping someone might have come across a simlar situation but it's looking like I might have to just put a new engine in. :(

[Dainton]

Turns out the head is warped!!

Still seems strange that there's no physical signs of this but I've been told that 12 thou needs skimming to get it right again!!

Does anyone how much can be skimmed before it will cause issues with vavles hitting pistons etc??

[Karma Supra]

12 thou is about a 1/3rd of a mm, I'd have assumed that would be ok, You'll need to refer to an engine service/repair manual at machining tollerances.

The question is what caused it to over heat in the first place. I'd replace the water pump, thermostat and rad cap, and check everything else (Rad, oil pump all rubber hoses gaskets and fittings)

I am personally not a fan of skimmed heads as a fix for warpage as although the headgasket mating surface should be ok, the cam journels will not be 100% in line, - although this is more of an issue on the longer 6 cylinders that I work on.