It looks like mine is toast, advice would be helpful, please

I've had mine for nearly 10 years now, and done a fair amount of touring around Oz
I've always loved the convenience of having a half bus/half van
So I can carry friends
But I can also go off road & camp in the van
I've been very surprised at some of the spots I've managed to get this van into/out of!

But Sadly, it looks like it's time to cut my losses!

I've had leaky radiator boil dry drama's a few times,
Which has caused 'slack & leaky' rings (according to one mechanic)
it does need an oil top-up on a regular basis, so He's probably right.

It's had a head replaced since,
but I've had other radiator events since, so ??? Maybe another one required..

I'd assumed the extra oil use was a consequence of the slack/leaky rings.

Anyway, after having a whole bunch of fun health drama's this year,
where I just couldn't lose the van long enough to get it serviced,
It went in last week for a checkup

My local mechanic has now informed me it's currently running on 3 cylinders,
So it's possibly got a cracked head (again - For some reason they can't do a compression test on an imported 1kzte engine)
The diesel pump's knackered & leaky
And the engine needs a complete rebuild!

It blows a considerable amount of smoke
Particularly when cold
And also runs pretty rough till it warms up.
I must say that if it's running on 3 cylinders,
It's doing it well, as I can still cruize on 120km with no drama's, when it's warm
But it get's pretty smokey when Idleing

It also has some minor electrical issues with the back sun-roofs, so they're disconnected, as I don't care.
And the heater/aircon has been disconnected due to a worn plastic gear that just wasn't worth worrying about
As long as I had a warm jacket.

I'll be damn sad to lose it, as It's been a fun machine

So I'm asking for advice

Is is worth fixing a 1994 1kzte with these problems at this point?
I'm an A/V tech, not mechanic, and don't have the equipment to DIY.

What would someone in the know think?

Can I bring it over for an independant asessment

A/V stuff I know, deisels, car's, not so much!

I'd appreciate some advice,

Thanks!

The 1KZ-te is a bit sensitive to overheating so it does indeed sound like it's had it.

Head + Pump + Rings/bores = replace the engine if possible IMO.

If you decide to fix it you may need to find a garage who will take a good engine from a crashed Hilux etc and swap it into your van. Then you'd have a good 1KZ again.

Another option is to see if a garage will put a more modern engine/box in - perhaps a D4D one, but this would require a special garage used to that type of thing.

It all depends what you want, anything is saveable, it just depends how much it's worth it to you. Chopping it in for a low miles version may be cheaper in the end, it's always difficult to know when to make the leap to a new vehicle.

That’s almost exactly the same state mine was in about five years ago. I opted to get the engine rebuilt on the basis that if I got another van it’d cost about the same but at least I know what else is wrong with this one, no surprises. Reconditioned engine and new radiator plus some odd bobs cost me just over 2 grand but i’ve had another five years out of it (well, barring the time I left the radiator cap off and blew the head gasket all over again) and the engine looks set to outlast the rest of it. I’d say if you love it, do it.

redcore4 wrote:

That’s almost exactly the same state mine was in about five years ago. I opted to get the engine rebuilt.

In my view a 2.4 manual is more worth saving than a 1kz-te auto, and that's from someone with a 1kz-te LOL.

The 1kz is an extremely good strong engine below the head, but the heads are a known weakness and the cooling system is very a poor design, e.g:
https://hiace-super-custom.forumotion.com/t3430-cooling-the-1kz-te-in-the-hiace-super-custom

It's also quite a big lump so access is not great for the back of the head etc without taking lots of stuff out of the way. As Toyota has since got some far better rear-wheel-drive engine+transmission combos since I'd be very temped to identify a suitable one, get a good used example in a truck/car that drives well and get a garage to swap it over. Modern engines are smaller, more powerful and more economical - pick a solid type and a good example and do a transplant! Maybe even a petrol one.

The key here however is finding a good enough garage.

An alternate is that if you get the 1kz rebuilt (which in some ways is more straightforward) you can get them to modify the cooling system for you at the time.

Let us know what you do, it's very interesting to see the ways of keeping these ticking