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D-4d Head Gasket


bigcog
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Hello, can anyone help, as per a couple of other entries on this forum I have a Yaris D-4D 2002 which is quite high mileage and has a head gasket on the way out definitely confirmed as the problem. The trouble is a garage and separate mechanic I use both cannot do it or find out what needs to be done as this is specific information which seems to be held by Toyota. So this seems to lock you in to using a Toyota dealer to fix the problem, and I will be kissing goodbye to £1000 if I have to do that. Any advice from anyone, I am in Yorkshire in the UK.

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That's my next step tomorrow although from what my mechanic has said I'm not very hopeful, as Toyota seem to hang on to the info you need, hoping someone on this forum has any tips?

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Hi and welcome!

Its possible the problem is that the 1ND-TV engine is/was one of the first diesels to have an alloy block rather than a steel one.

Hope you find a solution - let us know how you get on :thumbsup:

:thumbsup:

Alan

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Hello again, I am struggling to find a garage that will touch the car except a dealership. The upshot seems to be the complexity of taking apart and putting back together this d4-d engine is such that unless you happen to have a manual (a Haynes one does not exist) or technical CD's then you are forced to go to a dealer which for this job is going to be in excess of £500 labour before you even look at parts. So if anyone can help a desperate person from Yorkshire please do...

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How old's your car and what's its mileage?

I also recommend shopping around between dealers. Many of us have found that parts and labour costs (not to mention quality of service) vary significantly between dealers. Remember, you don't have to use your nearest Mr. T!

I really wish I could do more to help. Have you tried Toyota UK - it doesn't sound like a common fault at all so they may be interested enough to help or make a "goodwill gesture". If you don't ask then you won't receive...

:unsure:

Alan

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Im guessing that there are not many toyota specialists around as there are Toyota Garages. just try Yell.com or another search engine

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It turns out the dealer who serviced this car (I bought it recently second hand) already replaced the head gasket in June and a leaky water pump in October. So the plot thickens but now it seems its a better idea to take it to a dealer as if the previous work is guaranteed and the issue is still the head gasket then in theory this work is guaranteed, even though ownership of the car has changed since. Anyone got experience of this type of thing.

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It turns out the dealer who serviced this car (I bought it recently second hand) already replaced the head gasket in June and a leaky water pump in October. So the plot thickens but now it seems its a better idea to take it to a dealer as if the previous work is guaranteed and the issue is still the head gasket then in theory this work is guaranteed, even though ownership of the car has changed since. Anyone got experience of this type of thing.

And it needs replacing again?? How many miles has it done since June/since you've had it? Doesn't sound quite right to me, as suggested might be worth giving Toyota Head office a try?

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the upshot now from the dealer is if they find that the work done is defective I'll have nothing to pay but if it is the cylinder which was not replaced ( and incidentally he has found Toyota have acknowledged this has a known fault) then I will have to pay but he thought Toyota might accommodate some sort of part payment. We'll find out tomorrow I hope when I drop it in. In the meantime I'm signing up for a Gold account, this website is cool.

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I guess that's "a bit of a result" - good luck!

A

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well its been a wait over Christmas to get the news but the upshot is the same part had failed again which was replaced in June 05 before I bought the car. It was the head gasket again, the whole thing is under warranty from the work done before, the part is now updated they tell me. Anyway all resolved with nothing to pay which is a good outcome. Thanks for those who chipped in especially AllanBradley.

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Good! That's the kind of thing we like to hear. Shame it happened in the first place though :(

I guess that as its warranty work you'll be getting a courtesy car and stuff (nudge nudge...)

:thumbsup:

A

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Glad it's worked out without you having to pay anything, any idea how long it'll be before they do the work?

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I've had a courtesy car for two weeks from them now, a 55 reg 1ltr vvti, not bad but lacks the kick of the diesel, it does seem to have better suspension though, u don't feel the bumps as much. They'll hopefully be finished today or tomorrow. I've been pretty happy with the way this dealer (RMB Northallerton) have dealt with me and this problem. And there was no quibble about providing the courtesy car either which I could not have lived without.

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My diesel Yaris had the head gasket go too (at 80K miles). Unfortunately it gave no warning other than the car heater not working (would you guess this was serious!). The water level in the expansion tank remained full, the high temperature warning light didn't show, and no steam or water leaks were observed, and the engine seemed to run normally. However the damage was phenominal: besides the head gasket, the cylinder head was eroded / warped and needed replacement. All 4 fuel injectors were damaged through overheating and also had to be replaced. The final bill was almost 3 grand.

The reason the high temperature warning light does not warn of the overheating is because once air gets into the cylinder head and blocks water circulation, the water temperature gauge fails to register any water temperature. The absence of a temperature gauge leaves you completely blind to any developing problem.

I am seriously disappointed with my first Toyota - having run Fords before without anything serious ever going wrong. I believe Toyota may have a developing problem with these engines - which they should acknowledge - and help those of us affected by what I consider to be an inherent design flaw - whereby any sort of water loss (my problem was diagnosed as a slowly leaking water pump) can lead to such monumental failure. So far, Toyota have responded negatively to this argument: so much for wanting to maintain their reputation for reliability!

I'd really like to hear from anyone else who has had a similar failure - and to know what sypmtoms (if any) they had. Collectively we might get somewhere.

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There is a known problem with early D4D head gaskets, go to www.honestjohn.co.uk and look in the car by car breakdown section. Is your D4D an 02 reg tconw45?

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Thanks jimtwo for this link! Yes ours is an 02 reg D-4D. I was unaware till now that this was a known problem. I must admit I was a bit suspicious as to why the Toyota dealer was making such a play that the water pump failure was the start of the problem. I expect they were hoping to put me off the scent, because it now appears more likely that the gasket failure was the start of the problem, and the water pump leak was as a result of it's pressure relief function activating.

Does anyone know if I stand much of a chance claiming against Toyota? Is there any record of compensation being paid to anyone with such a failure out of warranty?

Does anyone know of any more detailed references to this problem that might help: any notifications from Toyota, records of numbers affected, etc?

Cheers!

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I can tell you what I know, the dealer who sorted this out for me said they recently got a communication from Toyota acknowledging there is a gasket problem with certain diesel Yaris models, presumably the 02 which has been the issue for anyone posting in the subject in this forum. Added to that they told me the gasket they have just put on as a warranty piece of work (since it was already replaced last June) is a new part. So the gasket he fitted this time I am assuming is a part that has fixed this inherent problem. That said they have not said this is a recall. I can only suggest you gather all this information and approach Toyota directly, seeing as the dealer you have used have not been very good. Hope this helps.

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Back in the 1980's Citroen had an alloy block diesel too, with cast iron liners, use to do 95 flat out, 68mpg, oh and a new head gasket and get the head skimmed at least every 40,000miles. They gave up after a while and brought out a cast iron block. My mate had one in a 106, never gave any bother, no power steering either lol, did n't need gyms then :lol: You think Toyota would get it right, or is the diesel one a total western production? :unsure: Good luck :thumbsup:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Finally got the car back after 6 weeks at the dealers. The last 3 of these have been spent pursueing matters with Toyota, using evidence gained on this site to bolster my case that the original head gasket was not of merchantable quality, with a known failure pattern, etc. By this week it appeared to have reached the point where we could go no further. Their final offer amounted to an extra 600 off the parts (on top of 200 voluntarily given earlier). So the bill for this head gasket failure is now 2300. I've paid this 'without prejudice' just to get the damn car back. Wife's not happy - not sure she'll want to drive it again - may need to sell for another thumping loss. :crybaby:

I do not regard this as an honourable settlement and intend to give Toyota cause to regret leaving underserving motorists funding the lions share of repairs that should never be necessary had they done their manufacturing research properly. Early Yaris D4-D vehicles were released with a serious Gasket problem waiting to bite at any unfortunate owner. Fortunately for Toyata, but not the punter, these faults seem to occur after the 3 year warranty is up. Recalls would be too expensive (say 1000 per car), but letting failures happen is cheaper: they clearly don't worry about the few grand the punter has to pick up. After all this is all profitable business.

2002 Diesel Yaris purchasers beware - Don't be fooled by the talk of Toyota Reliability and customer care - think: has the head gasket been replaced with the latest model. If not, walk away.

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