On Sun, 19 Feb 2006 18:37:14 -0500, "J. Clarke"
wrote:

clare at snyder.on.ca wrote:

On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 17:21:48 -0500, "J. Clarke"
wrote:

clare at snyder.on.ca wrote:

On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 10:33:41 -0500, "J. Clarke"
wrote:


ROF,L. I got a Toyota once. It only needed one scheduled maintenance
item--every 10,000 miles you replaced the engine. First time the
(Toyota OEM) oil filter blew up and it wiped the bearings before I could
get it
stopped. Second time it threw a rod driving down the road at 35 mph.
Third time I didn't even look, just donated the remains to the local
high school shop and got an ironblock Chevy that never gave me any grief
at all.

Never gonna sucker _me_ with that "Toyotas are reliable" crap again.

Year and model please? Which engine?

Actually, there were 2, the 4M and 4Mge

'83 Supra, only engine it came with.

Never saw a Toyota OEM filter blow up - but I have seen mechanics and
DIYers leave the gasket from the old filter on and put on a new
filter.

Filter was split wide open. Gasket was fine.

Did the double-gasket thing on a Volvo once when I was 19--when I realized
what had happened I pulled the filter, pulled the excess gasket, put the
filter back it back, drove to the nearest gas station, topped up the oil,
80,000 miles later when I sold it it was still running fine.

Guaranteed to let go -(even on a Ford or GM).
The second and third failures were in all likelihood due to improper
repairs from the first one. Can't blame Toyota for that!!

When a Toyota-provided short block throws a rod it's kind of hard to blame
anybody but Toyota for it.
Or the mechanic who installed it. In 10 years as Toyota dealer Service
Manager I NEVER saw a Toyota filter split,

Lucky you. If it's that easy to screw up installing an oil filter the
engine is crap.

and never saw a 4M throw a
rod.

Well, then perhaps you can explain to me why there was a hole in the side of
the block with a connecting rod sticking out of it. Maybe The Flash and
Superman were playing a joke on me?

I saw one or 2 camshaft problems on 4MGEs (using 5W30 oil) and
timing chains (ditto). Never saw ANY Toyota engine throw a rod except
from lack of oil. (filter gasket problem at lub shop, hole in oil pan
from road debris and "terminal neglect")

Sounds kind of fragile to me.
I serviced over 600 Toyotas a year for 10 years - average 4 visits
per year (oil changes) plus the required repairs - the only weakness I
would fault them for was their brakes - but ALL manufacturers have had
that problem, thanks to DOE mandates.

Toyota USA may have used a different "locally supplied" OEM
replacement filter than Canada did (Dana/Wix).

Still Toyota's problem.

Damned things are unbelievably fragile.

Actually, from my experience, EXTREMELY durable. When you can get over
400,000km out of the low end tercel with no mechanical failures, one
clutch change, 2 timing belts and a set of axle joints, I have no
complaints. Or 600,000 on a '91 Civic VX with only a pair of front
axle bearings, a distributor, and an alternator bearing. AC still
works, and still has the original belt on it. Can't call that fragile,
the way that car gets driven.

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