1990 Toyota 4Runner Engine
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
THIS IS THE 4TH TIME THE GASKET HAS FAILED. GASKET WAS INSTALLED BY A CERTIFIED TOYOTA MECHANIC IN 1996. 3/97 WHITE SMOKE POURED OUT OF THE EXHAUST. TOYOTA REPLACED THE TOP OF THE ENGINE. 11/97 ENGINE FAILED - 600MILES FROM HOME, AFTER 3 MONTHS AT THE DEALERSHIP ON 2/98 THE BOTTOM & TOP OF THE ENGINE WAS REPLACED. NOW 12/99 SAME PROBLEM - GASKET NEEDS TO BE REPLACED -OIL BLEW ALL OVER THE ENGINE, THE REAM MAIN SEAL IS GONE. TOYOTA SAYS ITS OUR PROBLEM NOW. *AK
NO SUMMARY.
WHILE DRIVING AT 35 MPH ENGINE HEAD GASKET FAILED DUE TO THE COOLANT WHICH GOT INSIDE AND RUINED ENGINE. *AK
TOYOTA ISSUES AN "EXTENDED WARRANTY" FOR THE FAULTY HEAD GASKETS IN 1998-1994 4RUNNERS. WHEN THE HEAD GASKETS FAILED THEY WERE REPLACED UNDER THIS WARRANTY. HOWEVER, THE DAMAGE CASUED BY THE FAULTY HEAD GASKETS IS EXTENSIVE. AFTER INITAIL REPLACEMENT--TOYOT ADEALERSHIP CONTINUED TO FIND OIL FOULED PLUGS WHICH LET TO REPLACEMENT OF LOWER ENGINE BLOCK (DECEMBER 1998). ENGINE FAILED AGAIN IN JANUARY 5 1999-- AT WHICH POINT 2 CYLINDER HEADS, CAMSHAFTS, ENGINE GASKET, AND KNOWCK SENSOR WERE REPLACED. ENGINE HAS NOT OPERATED PROPERLY SINCE ORIGINAL HEAD GASKET FAILURE-- SLUGGISH, POOR ACCELERATION, INCONSISTENT IDLING SPEEDS... ENGINE HAS BEEN LOOKED AT AND WORKED ON AT AUTHORIZED TOYOTA DEALERSHIPS 12 TIMES TO DATE FOR HEAD GASKET RELATED ENGINE PROBLEMS. STILL UNRESOLVED, FOR THESE SYMPTOMS OIL GOULED PLUGS
ROD THROWN, ENGINE DESTROYED. WARRANTY HEAD WORK DONE LAST OCTOBER AFTER RECALL POSSIBLY RELATED. MASSIVE OIL LOSS SOMETIME IN LAST WEEK, POSSIBLY AT TIME OF ENGINE FAILURE.
TRUCK BURNS A QUART OF OIL EVERY 15 MILES. CONSUMER RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR NEW ENGINE HEAD GASKETS. TOOK CAR TO THE DEALER, REPAIRED THE HEAD GASKET . THEN DISCOVERED A PROBLEM WITH THE ENGINE BLOCK. DEALER WOULD HAVE TO SEND THAT PART OUT. EVERY SINCEVEHICLE WAS FIXED, TRUCK HAS JUST BEEN BURNING OIL TOO FAST. CONSUMER FEELD IT IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE TRUCK BECAUSE THE FEAR OF BREAKING DOWN DUE TO LACK OF OIL. *AK
PUT 5000 MILES ON USED PURCHASED VEHICLE AND ENGINE BLEW
THE CONSUMER WAS DRIVING TRUCK, AND SHE NOTICED THAT THERE WAS NO PRESSURE WHEN SHE HIT THE GAS PEDAL AND SHE SMELLED FUEL. ALSO SHE HAD A NEW ENGINE PUT IN JULY, THE MILEAGE WAS 75000 ON THE TRUCK. THE SHORT BLOCK WAS REPLACED . THEN THE TRUCK BURST INTO FLAMES. THE CAR WA STOWED TO THE DEALER FOR FURTHER INVESTIGATION. *AK
ENGINE THERMOSTAT FAILED TWICE, ENGINE FAILED DUE TO COLLANT LEAK.
ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE, CONSUMER WAS DRIVING UNDER NORMAL CONDITONS AND NOTICED LCK OF RESISTANCE FROM THE HYDRAULIC CLUCTH AND THE VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS UNABLE TO FIND THE CAUSE OF THE FIRE. *AK
BOLT THAT HOLDS THE HEAD ON THE ENGINE GASKETS IS BROKEN. *AK
REPLACED ENGINE BELTS.
THE ENGINE HEAD IS BAD . TT
Trend Over Time
Complaints by year
Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 1990 Toyota 4Runner has 38 Engine complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.