Stick with the 7mgte or swap for 1jz?

[Turbo Habanero]

ROD KNOCK SOLUTION =DRAIN fluid Clean Motor and then REPEAT basically just keep flushing the shit out of it to get all of the coolant out. I never got rod knock... But i also drained my oil right away both times and caught my head gaskets pretty early on.

 

[Doat]

Yea my head gasket isn't too bad from what I can tell, I'll get some cheap oil and flush it a few times with that then use something good. Now when you flush it did you drain, fill, start the motor for awhile, then repeat or did you just drain, fill, drain, fill?

 

[Turbo Habanero]

Personally i would't start my motor with if i had any thought of coolant still lurking where it is not suppose to be

 

[Doat]

I figured I shouldn't start it until I flushed it a few times at least. One more thing, do I need any like silicone sealant for the head gasket or is just replace the gasket and put the block back on?

 

[Supra0089]

Cheapest and a very reliable answer is to just maintain the 7m. When you get any other motor...from anywhere...you better got through it (even a 2jz) because you could be dealing with a lemon. And the last thing you want is to have a new motor in your car and blow it up because of a spun bearing or something.

I sat on this very decision a year ago. First it was 7m or 1jz. Then I heard from a lot of people that the 1jz is terrible for daily driving and not to mention the market to support it for parts is all but deminished. At least you can still get parts for the 7m from dealers or after market places (and junk yards). Not so for the 1jz. So that makes maintaining the 7m cheaper and easier in the long run.

Then I was deciding between 2jz and 7m. To rebuild the 7m was about 3k with upgraded internals and machining. Buying a 2jzge was like 1200 and a 2jzgte was like 2400. Then all the Supra guy experts here locally said, "if you get a 2jz from anywhere...you better go through it." Which now you're probably talking about rebuilding or upgrading at least some things...which puts you right back to where you are with the 7m...but now you're out 2k for the new motor you just bought.

So my thought process was...take what I would've spent on a 2jz swap and invest that in the 7m...now I have a motor with built internals...capable of mid 400's on pump and a lot more on meth/c16 etc etc...that is reliable...and I got a aem standalone with the extra I would've spent on the 2jz motor. In the end I was happy staying with the 7m...although only time will tell if it's the right decision.

I stuck with the 7m

 

[Dan_Gyoba]

You need a dab of sealant for the front of the block when you do the head gasket. It's mentioned in the TSRM.

Many people seem to think that a JZ swap is an "easy" cure-all for "all of the problems" that come with a 7M. There's no doubt that the JZ is an awesome block, and both the 1JZ and 2JZ have their strengths. The power goals that I have are well within the range of what the 7M can do, and so I'm perfectly content to get the 7M to deliver.

I'm doing my 7M. It's at the machine shop now. When it's done it'll be better than brand new, and have cost me about what I could expect to pick up a 1JZ and the various parts to get it installed for -- if I got a good deal on it, and got everything including turbos, ancillary electronics and ECU with it, and then it wouldn't be as capable as my 7M with the aftermarket goodies that I already own for it. I'd also have to cross my fingers and hope that it's still in great shape, unless I wanted to double my investment and rebuild the 1JZ as well.

 

[super51fan]

im confused with your logic
$1500 for someone else to do a HG job makes sense, but i dont know where you came up with 2k for a 1JZ swap.

 

[Doat]

I didn't mean 2k for the swap I meant 2k for the motor but even that was over estimating. I was just trying to look at all of my options to see what would be the best move and I am going to stick with the 7M but now the question is let my guy machine the head or do I do it myself? If I decide to let him do it then I would have to wait quite some time to get the money for it and sometimes my mk3 is the only car I can use.

 

[A. Jay]

I didn't mean 2k for the swap I meant 2k for the motor but even that was over estimating. I was just trying to look at all of my options to see what would be the best move and I am going to stick with the 7M but now the question is let my guy machine the head or do I do it myself? If I decide to let him do it then I would have to wait quite some time to get the money for it and sometimes my mk3 is the only car I can use.

wat? Take the head off, disassemble it, have it machined, take it back home, adjust the valve shim clearance, reassemble engine with all new gaskets (some from Toyota, make sure you click on the link I previously gave you). I over-simplified, but anyways the whole thing shouldn't cost you more than a few hundred.

 

[Doat]

wat? Take the head off, disassemble it, have it machined, take it back home, adjust the valve shim clearance, reassemble engine with all new gaskets (some from Toyota, make sure you click on the link I previously gave you). I over-simplified, but anyways the whole thing shouldn't cost you more than a few hundred.

lol I said that completely wrong I didn't mean to machine the head myself I mean let my guy replace the gasket and machine the head or do I just replace the gasket and bolts myself. Sorry about that I was typing that post in a hurry.

 

[A. Jay]

lol I said that completely wrong I didn't mean to machine the head myself I mean let my guy replace the gasket and machine the head or do I just replace the gasket and bolts myself. Sorry about that I was typing that post in a hurry.

Oh, lol! But yea, using the TSRM, I'm sure you can do the job yourself no problem.

 

[xzeror]

::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::::dead horse::

 

[Doat]

Lol, yes as I said earlier it is beating a dead horse but I rather tailor the answer to my specific issue.

I really appreciate you guys not being jerks about me asking this beaten question and the helpful advice and links, I have bookmarked them by the way, it would be awesome if I could find a picture step by step guide on this process.

 

[Doat]

What do you guys think of that head gasket copper spray? I saw a guide someone made for a boosted honda motor and he sprayed his new head gasket with a head gasket copper spray to help it seal because he is boosting his motor.

 

[Devin LeBlanc]

Copper spray = no no in my books. I've built 30+ motors with various types of head gaskets, from basic rebuilds to 1000HP builds and never used anything on the HG weather it be metal or composite. If the block is straight and not pitted, and the head has a fresh deck with a high RA then you will be fine.

 

[Doat]

Thanks Devin, I will just use sealant in the certain places like it says in the TSRM.
Any tips for cleaning the head and block from the old gasket and such? Also should I clean the top of the pistons?

 

[Dan_Gyoba]

Copper spray is a no. It is useful in the specific circumstance that you re re-using a metal head gasket. In that case, you clean it down to remove the sealant that the metal head gasket came with, and apply the copper spray to seal the layers together and to the block and head.

 

[Doat]

Thanks Dan,

I will be sure to take pics once I get the head off and see what you guys think of the motor but first I need to get the gaskets, belts, lots of oil and some coolant.

 

[Doat]

Another question came to mind when I was looking at head gaskets, is the price difference from OEM ($85) vs. Fel-pro ($65) worth the price difference? I've seen some guys on here using Fel-pro gaskets without issues but is OEM better than Fel-pro or the same? By the time I am done with this car I'd like to be at 400-450HP tops and keep it a street car with occasional track use.

 

[bioskyline]

you will need more than just the headgasket, you will need a headgasket kit, which will include everything from the HG up (intake, exaust, tb gaskets and new cam cover gaskets, most also include cam seals and valve seals) ive used fel-pro with no problems to date.

as for cleaning the top of the pistons, you can, but unless theres alot of carbon on them, its not a huge issuse if you dont, they will be black within a few hundread miles again anyways