2000 Toyota 4Runner - Oil Light On and Valves Tapping

Dear Anonymous Hero,

GA again for you for such good advice.

I have changed my mind on my earlier post agreeing with your excellent first and second posts.....

This person/OP should be advised to buy the wreck for many 1000s of $$$, as with his attitude, he deserves all the shit that can occur, don't you agree......

(I must admit that I did not realise when posting before that the OP was also the rude A******E.....my mistake. I will be more careful in the future.....sorry)

I have to agree with Hero on this one. The advise he gives is sound. If the engine has been run with no oil pressure even for a minute or so after sitting a year, it will need much more than an oil pump.

Right on the money, bwire. Stu.

Good post and a GA from me.

If they can get the truck for $0 then its a OK deal, otherwise I agree with you, leave it alone completely.....there are enough trucks around...

Ignore the other wise Guys.....its the only way......you are right.

you might try removing the oil pan and clean out the oil pickup screen

Rubbish!

The thing is 'kaktus'.

Only one time did I get a result from that strategy, and that was when my mate used a piece of rag for a oil filler cap on his old Datsun. He'd dropped the cap in the engine bay and was too lazy to reach under the engine and retrieve it. Well, the engine pulled all of that rag in and swallowed it and turned into 'cottonwaste', and it filled the pump intake screen, completely. Had the best filtered oil on the planet. Only found the problem when I couldn't get oil pressure after changing the oil and filter.

Stu.

The previous owner(s) did not perform routine maintenance on this vehicle. One of the biggest problems routinely missed by practically everyone, is to replace the PCV valve. This item with not changinging the oil will fail causing the loss off positive crank case ventilation or simply the motor chokes on itself causing oil to not circulate, gunk forms and next the motor will end up with a cracked block. Do not let your son buy this vehicle.

If the owner will agree to this you might try removing all the spark plugs and ground the coil lead. Then drain the oil and refill the oil pan with clean diesel fuel. Spin the engine over for a few minutes and see if the oil pressure comes up ( measure the oil pressure with a gauge attached at the oil filter adapter). If the pressure comes up to a reasonable level (20+ PSI) drain the oil pan, change the oil filter, and refill the oil pan. Re-install the spark plugs and the coil lead and try to crank the car.

this car is fuel injected and if the accident that it was in was a rollover, that the engine may have run for sometime upside down and that would ruin the engine bearings and increase bearing clearance and make it impossible for the oil pump to pump enough oil to give the proper pressure. I hate to ask but are you sure it is really full of oil? other possibilities are that the oil pump bypass valve is stuck open, this would bypass oil back to the oil pan, sometimes the lifters in an engine that has sat idle for sometime may take quite a while for the lifters to "unstick", although that is usually from a motor that did not get oil changes at the proper intervals which alone is a good reason not to use this engine. something esle, was the oil pan damaged in the wreck? possibly the pan is dented and is covering the oil pickup screen, starving the oil pump from getting enough oil to pump in the first place.......good luck

another thing i forgot to add, take some oil from the dipstick and put it on your finger and look at it as it thins out in you finger you should not see any "metalflake", bright sunlight is best to see this if you have never checked oil this way......good luck

Thank you all for your replies. My son wouldn't listen to me and went ahead and bought the car. I went to drain the oil to drop the pan and it was so thick it would hardly drain out of the pan. When I dropped the pan the oil was like molasses. you could scoop it out and there was a lot of condensation the oil was black and brown. so you are all right but you can't get these kids to listen now days, they have to learn lessons on there own. Again Thank you all for your replies.

Well, you can try hand cleaning the gunk that settled into the pan and anything else you can easily spot. I would squirt oil on the lower crank and if you pop the valve cover, pour oil in there, particularly over the cam. Try to get lightweight oil, the lightest and cheapest oil you can get, and fill it back up. I would put in a cheap oil filter, too.

Try to crank it up and see if you get oil pressure. If you can actually start it, just let it idle.

The hydraulic valve lifters are probably collapsed. They have small oil passages and easily clog. They may pump up over time and save you from replacing them, but they may not, too.

Valve tap is one thing but beware of knocking in the lower block. If you get that, the game is probably over and you now have a rebuild on your hands.

After it has warmed up, shut it down and drain all the oil. I would replace the filter again and see what the oil looks like so you have a reference.

Add new oil again and repeat. If things actually quite down, you can drive it, but don't stress it. Just remember the brakes may not work!!! You want to keep flushing lightweight oil around to dissolve the gunk.

Once the vehicle is up to temperature and you have oil pressure, repeat the oil change procedure, but use the recommended oil and weight. Replace the filter. If you are still getting a lot of gunk in the oil, repeat another oil fill and change cycle.

It would not hurt, once it is sorted out, to do another oil change early, maybe in 500 to 1,000 miles.

I avoid oil additives. If they really were any good the oil companies would put it in the can to begin with.

Lastly, for any vehicle that sits for any time and gets returned to service: think Fluids, Fluids, Fluids! That means replace the brake fluid, antifreeze, and fuel filters. However, determining the health of the engine is first before pouring any more money into the truck.

The engine is likely to leak oil, too. Seals dry out and any gunk in the engine now acts as a sealant. Best of luck!!!

Your post was great, most of it I completely agree with except for one small (but very important) point, don't let the engine run!! Remove the spark plugs and run it on the starter motor (not all at one time otherwise it will overheat!) for for several minutes.

Once the new oil is in, run it again for several minutes on the starter (not all at one time otherwise it will overheat!)

Otherwise he should follow your post completely.....

Please excuse my rudeness, but running the motor at this point could damage it further.....

Fair enough point.

Typically, cold cranking yields about 250 RPM. Pull the plugs that will go up about another 100 - 200 RPM, which is still better than 1,000 RPM idle.

If you can pre lube the cam and crank, it should not be such a concern, but it is still safer with the plugs out. So, I'd go for that.

Pour a little Marvel Mystery Oil in each cylinder when you spin it over. This will provide lubrication to the cylinder walls as well as begin the loosening process of the rings. DON'T use kerosene anywhere inside the engine. Yes, it will loosen the rings but it is more of a cutting fluid as the rings slide on the cylinder walls and will badly scratch the walls and hurt compression.

This would be a good time to take compression readings. With the plugs out and a little oil on the rings, spinning it a couple of turns for each cylinder reading accomplishes two things at one time.

Its unfortunate that your son went ahead and bought the vehicle but thats what sons do , right .? Its also unfortunate that the previous owner was an asshole who drove it into the ground with no oil changes ! Now that you and your son are stuck with it , try the procedures sent to you to at least get the thing running . Then install a tee fitting where the oil sender unit is and attach a oil pressure gauge to see what kind of oil pressure you actually have . If it looks ok and you have no smoke or engine noise , then you can breath a sigh of relief before you kick your kids ass around the garage a few times .

When your foot feels better , take the time to teach him what he needs to know about vehicle maintenance etc.

Best of luck .

it is sometimes the sudden impact that causes the oil siphon/strainer in the oil pan to swing forward and bend upwards or break off. The distributor shaft on some earlier motors also turns a rod that turns the oil pump. if the distributor is not damaged on the end of the shaft where it mates to the rod, i would check the oil pan for a damaged strainer.

By running the engine with (presumably) no oil pressure -AFTER it had been sitting for over a year, it is HIGHLY PROBABLE all the bearings on the camshafts and crankshaft have been ruined. The engine will require a complete tear-down, inspect, replace/repair rebuild in order for it to last more than a few miles.

IF the vehicle is FREE, you should expect to spend at least $1500 in PARTS for the engine repairs plus a lot of time doing the work---or figure on buying a 'used' engine ($2000?). A 'rebuilt' engine will probably be $4000 or so.

There is no magic 'mouse milk' than can restore the damaged engine to decent condition. Be wise, good to yourself, and tell your son to find another vehicle. Sometimes even 'free' is not a good buy.

I think reply#7 is totally wrong and I would discount it out of hand.

At this late date, I'd try what #8 suggests.

Then, when all else fails go back to suqare #1 and re-read the advice of AH who in my experience never gives bad input.

And finally, just thank your lucky stars that Vader didn't see this and jump on you. You'd still be smoking.