Tips on Cylinder block removal and engine rebuild.

[FirstMidship]

Good afternoon all,

I'm in the process of getting to the bottom of my low compression figures - I was getting 90,90,90 and 95PSI which are 69-74 PSI below spec for the 3SGE (UK, NA). I looked for previous threads but there weren't which applied to everything I'm going to post here. No oil or coolant was being burnt, I have a replacement new timing belt tensioner as I think it was worn.

Bores have no physical scoring on it but there is slight oil loss in 1 or 2 pistons after leaving oil on overnight.

I've already dropped my head off to a local engine rebuilder who is going to sort out the head for me, it did look like pressure was much lower on #3 and #4 exhaust and #1 and #2 inlet sides.

So now it's time to remove the bottom end (which is still in situ). I don't have any specialist tools, just a trolley jack and 2 sets of axle stands and very little space in my garage.

Could a dolly rated for say 100-200kg be suitable for dropping the subframe, gearbox and block on? Anything else worth thinking about?

I'm also planning to do the following when it's all out, have I missed anything?

New Piston Rings (I can't find any on eBay that are suitable for my vehicle, where should I go?)
New Small bearings (again, eBay keeps saying that they're not suitable for my vehicle, any recommendations?)
Honing the bores (I have a portable drill already, so I'll need to get the honing tool)
New oil pump (My car has done 178k, so might be advisable)
New injector to head o-rings
New head gasket set and bolts (goes without saying I suppose)
New water pump (due to age/mileage)
New FIBL gunk for the sump as it's leaking
New oil seals all round
New vacuum hoses (anywhere that stock 3SGE ones? Everyone seems to have 3SGTE ones)
New timing belt (followers were changed a year ago)

The other option is to get a rebuilt block, but I'll still have to remove my one and replace the external bits on it.

Sorry this is all a bit long, I will welcome any help or advice anyone has, especially if anyone has first hand experience in this

Best regards

[jimi]

I've got an MR2 MK2 currently undergoing an engine rebuild, 1999 NA UK spec.

[m122794]

Firstly, to safely remove the engine you should use a crane but it can be done with a jack and axle stands: I definitely wouldn't like to do it in a garage in case things went wrong - you wouldn't have anywhere to go if the car decided to fall sideways! If you have the head off already, you won't need to jack the car up quite so scarily high as normal (although you will if you put the engine back in one piece)

Get a trolley base capable of supporting 200-ish kilos. Securely chock the front wheels. Remove the exhaust and front pipe. Drain all the fluids (oils and water). Remove the driveshafts (you'll need a 30mm deep socket and a breaker bar for the end nut or remove the hubs complete with the driveshafts attached.) Remove front and rear engine mounts and rear subframe. Unplug the wiring harness from the fuse box and the ECU in the boot and leave it on the engine. Drop the rear end of the car down until the sump/gearbox sit on the trolley. Carefully remove the gearbox and front engine mounts and the engine will be free. Jack up and support the rear of the car until you have just enough space under the boot floor to pull the engine out.

Once you have the engine out, you need to carefully inspect the bores - at 178k they're likely to be worn even if they aren't scratched and new rings might not be enough to compensate. Rings are scarce atm - all the suppliers mention covid and brexit - but I got rings and bearings from Hurley racing. If there is ANY ridge at the top, you really need to get the block bored. Just a heads-up I've just done all of this on a '94 na and it was not cheap so if you need any info pls let me know. Personally, having spent more than I wish to think about on my rebuild, I think I might look for a good low-mileage block next time. Oversize pistons are like hen's teeth atm, but you can still get original (now discontinued) Toyota ones from gt4-play for about £400 a set compared to Wossner racing sets at £700-ish. Block work would be about £200 on top.

Only other things to suggest is clutch and gearbox oil seals - if you've gone to all the trouble and expense of stripping and rebuilding the engine, a new clutch is an obvious item to replace. Driveshaft seals are easy to replace when you have the gearbox on the bench.

Any more info pls ask...

Cheers,
Graham

[jimi]

KY2 is your friend
This article is a step by step guide, with pictures, to engine removal and refit.
https://www.mr2oc.co.uk/know-your2/mk2/ ... hange.html

[benckj]

Just my 0.2cents worth;
Oil pump most likely fine but replace outer O ring seal and shaft seal.
Consider front & rear main seal replacement while engine out.
Use old carpet to drop engine onto. Makes working on easier, allows more room and strong enough to pull engine/ trans from undercarriage.

As others have said this is not a cheap exercise and easily take several weeks if not months to complete. If I did again I’d buy second hand engine to rebuild then simply transplant when ready. Then there is the debate about upgrading to V6 or turbo which requires another mortgage.

Good luck and take plenty of pics.

[FirstMidship]

Thanks for the help all, I got the engine back together, but the compression figures are now even worse, something like 55 psi/cylinder and 95 psi if I drop oil in, so it wasn't the head unfortunately.

I am now considering replacing for a lower mileage engine (keeping the head as I spent all that money sorting it) or just selling the mr2 as a non running vehicle but I'm not sure how much I should expect for it, or is it now just good for breaking?

Any advice welcomed, I'm at a loss at the best next step - room and getting help are problems for me because my garage is on the small side and I'm on a 4day/4off/4nights pattern which none of my friends are on.

Thanks very much

[martin42006]

sounds like your rings are wrong, did you gap them when fitting and clock the gaps in thirds.
As it is with a bust engine then your not likely to get much for it and it would likely end up at a breaker. If its a good shell then it would be a shame for it to be scrapped and would be a good base for someone with a good engine or someone wanting to do a engine swap.
a reasonable rev5 3sge shouldnt run much more than £500 you just might have to wait for one to come up.

[mr2-man]

Re your list, I've just finished doing a rebuild on my rev 2 T - bottom and top end, never having attempted it before. The BGB is really useful as you can imagine. I fitted a later spec HG and had the head and deck skimmed/decked, and cylinders honed by a machine shop. All in all, this has been an extremely expensive (yet enjoyable) process. I do think, if you can find a decent engine with some proof of it running well/being comp tested, that might be a better way to go and will undoubtedly be cheaper and easier. Or just buy another cheap donor 2 (if there is such a thing). Because, even if you do it all yourself, it'll be expensive to rebuild it properly.

New Piston Rings - I went with NPR from GT4 play (apparently they make rings for OEM cars). You can still get rev3+ T rings, not sure about the 3sge, but I would've gone Toyota if I was able to get them
New Small bearings - managed to get Toyota rod bearings from Hurley. you'll need to check the block/caps for the specific sizes as per BGB. And Clevite main bearings from TCB, with King thrust washers.
New oil pump - TCB were about £100 odd for a new genuine pump and housing.
New injector to head o-rings - mine were OK.
New head gasket set and bolts - TCB supplied Payan bolts and a rev3 metal HG for less than £100 if i remember right.
New water pump (due to age/mileage) - again TCB - for £100 odd
New FIBL gunk for the sump as it's leaking - used Permatex the right stuff - which is really good.
New oil seals all round - TCB - £200 odd.
New vacuum hoses (anywhere that stock 3SGE ones? Everyone seems to have 3SGTE ones) - I replaced the ones which needed replacing...including the HFH etc. I regret not changing more of them but then again some of the silicone pipes I've since bought from Stoney Racing really aren't great fitment.
New timing belt (followers were changed a year ago) - again TCB - OEM. bought the tensioners/idlers