Pls advise cracked cylinder head 2002 3rd Generation what to do?

Two shops have confirmed that my 2002 4Runner has a cracked cylinder head #1 bleeding into #2 cylinder misses. Was planning on driving around locally on flat lands until the inevitable smog check makes the vehicle unregisterable. Then what?

 

Welcome to the forum Brian, i would suggest while your driving around like that, you find a place that has a replacement motor because that is what you will need if you don’t fix it.

 

From what I read in the news, North Carolina will have only 1 county out of 100 to remain with emission testing going into the new year, Mecklenburg County.
Remaining 99 will be a simple safety inspection only for whats it worth.

 

Thinking of a junkyard engine. Rebuilds seem to be dicey. No one locally will touch a rebuild.

 

Or just replace the head now with a junkyard one? Call me crazy but that seems like a straightforward fix and cheaper than a full engine replacement.

 

EPA needs to approve. This time around I don't think that will happen.

Regardless the 3rd gens are all too old (even in Meck) to require emissions testing.

OP is in Cali so it's not much use to him.

 

A little J.B. Weld should take care of that (and maybe some duct tape for good measure).

 

Welcome from Wisconsin! Just get a cyl. head from a salvage yard, if you have the skills and tools to replace it.. do it. If you don't have the skills and tools, ask around, someone is probably able to get the job done.​