Celica Big End Failure

[NUMBER69]

hi all,

new to this great site, couple of years ago i bought a H reg celica, gt4, twin entry turbo and within a few days the bid ends let go, didnt think anything of it, sold it cheap to a mate who got a recon engine and all was fine.

just last weekend i bought a celica, 2.0 non turbo, again H reg, drove from Edinburgh to Aberdeen and back to Lanark, not hanging aroung but not killing (wrong word maybe ) it either when not far from home i heard the dreaded death rattle of big ends!

looking around for either an engine or donor car has dug up a few surprises, the amount of celicas for sale with 'big ends rattling' 'engine replaced due to big ends failing', 'car has now produced a rattle from the bottom end' etc,etc,

does the celica have a common problem of a weak bottom end and if so is there a cure to stop it happening again?

looking forward to any light being shed on this, vince.

ps, how much to buy big end shells and can i buy better than toyota parts, if so where?

[chris202]

i think the problem is more to do with the celica not having a low oil warning light than anything else . When the big ends went on mine , i had just bought it and was trying to impress a mate - about 90mph then thudd......:(

New engine shouldnt be more than a few hundred mate , and anyone that knows what they're doing will swap it over the weekend ;)

[glen_neilson]

your in the same boat as me mate,my big ends went last week.im now waiting for a good engine

[NUMBER69]

your in the same boat as me mate,my big ends went last week.im now waiting for a good engine

as i suspected, but nobody seems to know why, asked in a toyota dealers and got the usual 'never heard of that mate' reply haha

antway, checked everything conditionwise, clearances (amazing stuff plastiguage) and im putting in new shells, 48quid for a set from toyota and fresh (quality) oil and will see how it goes

thanks for the replys but if anybody has a definite answer id still like to hear it

cheers all, vince

[TCGT]

hi,

don't know if this is in the ballpark of a definite answer but,

Are modern oils responsible, as I feel the oil needs changing more frequently, than we would like, to maintain adequate protection.

In the past engine oil seemed to be left a lot longer between changes with no damage to bearing shells.

[glen_neilson]

your in the same boat as me mate,my big ends went last week.im now waiting for a good engine

as i suspected, but nobody seems to know why, asked in a toyota dealers and got the usual 'never heard of that mate' reply haha

antway, checked everything conditionwise, clearances (amazing stuff plastiguage) and im putting in new shells, 48quid for a set from toyota and fresh (quality) oil and will see how it goes

thanks for the replys but if anybody has a definite answer id still like to hear it

cheers all, vince

id be really interested to hear how much it costs to repair ur car,as if i could repair my engine id rather do that than buy my 3rd. does the engine have to come out to do the shells?

[NUMBER69]

your in the same boat as me mate,my big ends went last week.im now waiting for a good engine

as i suspected, but nobody seems to know why, asked in a toyota dealers and got the usual 'never heard of that mate' reply haha

antway, checked everything conditionwise, clearances (amazing stuff plastiguage) and im putting in new shells, 48quid for a set from toyota and fresh (quality) oil and will see how it goes

thanks for the replys but if anybody has a definite answer id still like to hear it

cheers all, vince

id be really interested to hear how much it costs to repair ur car,as if i could repair my engine id rather do that than buy my 3rd. does the engine have to come out to do the shells?

hi there,

nope, dead easy mate, as long as the crankshaft isnt damaged on the journals its an easy job.

jack the car up to a decent hight to work under,

remove plastic guards,

remove two cross members, one across and one front to back,

remove exhaust though i just undid at the manifold and held with a jack,

drain oil,

remove sump,

remove oil pick up and bracket,

all big ends now accesable,

17mm socket on the end of the crank to rotate the engine and undo one at a time, just make sure you keep each cap seperate and install to its mating rod on assembly!!

unless the crank has been reground its a case of looking at the caps you removed, there is a number on each and this is the size Shell to order!

easy eh!

i reckon, total time is a couple of hours and 48+vat for shells and whatever for good oil and filter and im no car mechanic :D

hope this helps and as i said it all depends on the state of the crankshaft, i was lucky as it happened just as i got near home and the no.4 bearing had spun rather than totaly siezed or picked up,

will keep u posted how i get on, shells be with me wednesday morn so get stuck into it when i get in from work,

cheers, vince

[NUMBER69]

your in the same boat as me mate,my big ends went last week.im now waiting for a good engine

as i suspected, but nobody seems to know why, asked in a toyota dealers and got the usual 'never heard of that mate' reply haha

antway, checked everything conditionwise, clearances (amazing stuff plastiguage) and im putting in new shells, 48quid for a set from toyota and fresh (quality) oil and will see how it goes

thanks for the replys but if anybody has a definite answer id still like to hear it

cheers all, vince

id be really interested to hear how much it costs to repair ur car,as if i could repair my engine id rather do that than buy my 3rd. does the engine have to come out to do the shells?

hi all again,

sorry for the delay but toyota sent the wrong shells 1st time :(

anyway, all up and running sweet as a nut, decided to do the mains as well while i was in there, total cost, 160quid and around 3 hours work

cheaper than even a 2nd hand engine that you dont know wont do the same in a couple of weeks and peace of mind you know its done right.

cheers folks, im away to finish running in :D

[glen_neilson]

i decided it wasnt worth doing the shells in my car,if the crank is damaged it woukd have been best to renew the engine anyway. as it is my top ends damaged aswell so its getting binned.

[Cubic Incubi]

hi. oil pick up pipe is often offender. Also when ragged to high temps **** collects in sump (blocking oil pick up pipe) oil starts to get thick and bits block journals starving them, not enough oil during the squeeze causes friction and ending result is failure.

IMHO if you have a 10 year + Celica, get the engine internals cleaned professionally (oil drain and chemical flush under pressure) will save ££££'s in the long term and you can drive them hard without worrying.

I had it happen to me 3 times on 3 different celicas.