The only weaknesses on these engines are the plastic coolant bypass pipe under the intake manifold, and the piston ring lands can get carboned if low-quality oil is used, or not changed often enough. These really are very solid engines. Mine has 185,000 miles and runs perfect. All my truck has needed replaced are the AC condenser and the water pump at 150k. Thanks for the great video.
Only problem I’ve had on my 2010 JDM Prado with 2TRFE engine is replacing the stock plastic coolant bypass pipe with a metallic one when I begun loosing coolant at approximately 150k kms. Otherwise, a very reliable engine! Thanks Peter for great content.
Great engine. Mine is 16 years old with 210K miles so far. Only engine issues so far were rocker cover seepage and now a leaking plastic coolant bypass line that I need to replace with the OEM stainless steel replacement. In it's old age I am changing oil (5-20 Pennzoil Platinum) at 3000 miles to make sure oil additive package is full strength for best cleaning. Since day 1 have used quart size Mobil 1 oil filters which fit the mounting boss perfectly. Still the original clutch too. Onward to 300K+ miles!
I have a 2006 4x4 that i have owned since new with this engine in manual transmission. Almost hitting 190,000. So far just upgraded that plastic coolant line to the OEM stainless coolant line in winter 2023. I have used Mobil 1 sae 5-20 and Mobil 1 filters every 5,000-7,000. I'm going to try the 0-20 from now on as recommended by Peter. Thanks for your videos Peter, they are exceptionally good 👍!
@@skisquatch shouldn't be going over 5k between oil changes on any Toyota. if anything you should reduce to 4k with age. the longer you leave carbon suspended in the oil, the higher chance of buildup in the ring grooves no matter what oil you use. 0w20 for winter or cooler climates, 5w20 for summer or hot climates
Amen. My 2009 single cab short bed 2TR-FE/A340E Tacoma has been a little slice of heaven. I fix cars for a living so I just wanted something that has about 3 moving parts. It drags our teardrop trailer down the highway no problem. It is a great daily driver.
Nice, my 2022 Tacoma has the 2.7, love it. Traded down from my Tacoma 3.5 engine because I really don't need the power and the service is so much easier, not dealing with removing the skid plate and dealing with that oil filter canister.
Hello. New subscriber. I own a 2014 Toyota Fortuner here in the Philippines. The car has the same 2TR-FE engine. 51k km (metric system here), so far I had to replace the serpentine belt two years ago (started to see freying). Other than preventive maintenance, so far, so good.
2007 Taco and it’s got parts that are on my 2021 4Runner TRD ORP!! Just shows how proven they are!! Most other auto manufacturers only care about the quarterly sales, while Japan auto manufacturers care about making their vehicles better over time. None as good as most 4Runners, but the vast majority of Toyotas and Hondas are bulletproof with JUST the CORRECT and properly timed MAINTENANCE!!! My 4Runner will still be running after I’m no longer running!! Good stuff brother! God bless~
Right- “enthusiast” channels said the 3rd gen Tacomas were “dated” and behind the competition, but those who use them know that’s because their design is proven…it wasn’t broken so they did “fix it” for 20 years!
@@sc3ku yeah they say the same about the 4Runner & basically every Toyota and say there dated and don’t have enough tech while all the other manufacturers overload the tech and have constant com and BCM issues if not outright failures from unproven “upgrades”.
I purposely bought one of the last ever to be made 2Tr-fe Tacomas in 2022 (new 2022 SR). They will no longer be making these going forward. This 4 cylinder engine is so reliable that many mechanics have never been inside of one. The newer 2Tr-fe just have a different dual VVI timing system. They also have a secondary air injection like this older one but it's in a different location. When they finally fail, there is a delete kit to get rid of the secondary air injection. (It's a 2,000 dollar job to replace the secondary air injection if you need it as only Toyota makes it).
I drove an 04 Tacoma Prerunner with the 3RZ-FE engine for 15 years of hard use and 220k miles. Now I’m at 102k on my 2019 Tacoma with 2TR-FE. These engines were made to last. That’s 320k + combined with no engine issues. Had an 01 Dodge Ram that the transmission was going on by 12k miles. I’m a Toyota guy, Honda in a pinch (my brother drives a 2010 Element with 210k on it).
@@4af I quit using 0w-20 around 200K, oil seemed to be burning, so I switched to 5-30 and use half qt lucas oil stabilizer. I also change every 3-4k miles This is my second Tacoma with over 400,00 miles
@@ahchu3256 I think it was a little over 200k, but not sure. I do a lot of city driving though. I had 2004 Tacoma went to 420 000 before I changed the clutch
Excellent video,3 trucks over the years ,all high miles no problem at all oil change every 3kmiles with Walmart oil and Toyota oil filters,323k miles and keep running like new even AC❤
Thoroughly enjoyed the video, even though I no longer have my Tacoma with the 2TR-FE, 5 speed manual 4x4. Truly a great little truck, but as you said, towing a 5000 lb trailer or hauling 800 lbs of payload at Interstate speeds are not its strong point, especially through the mountains. My replacement is an 05 Tundra Access Cab.
Had to do the same. I wanted that truck to be the one I had forever but driving cross country was miserable in it trying to maintain 75mph in wind of hills
this engine are bulletproof on my 2005 Fortuner(aka Hilux SW4 for South American markets), a bit more fuel consumption(though still pretty good considering the weight of the SUV) than its diesel counterpart on the Hilux, but the 2tr more smooth at high speed cruising. love mine, 220000 km and still quiet on idle.
I have that engine in my 08 Prado J120 TX now at 270k mileage and running great never had a problem with it idles smoothly but its not fun to drive if your environment is hilly feels quite underpowered...From kenya
I just recently got a 2009 with 170k miles in white . Mines automatic but I like it and only paid $5000 with clean title . Locking toneou cover and original window sticker etc
No major issues with my 2007 Taco truck. 216,000 miles. I've run Mobil 1 synthetic changed every 5k miles. Yes, I had to replace the plastic water pipe with the Toyota replacement stainless steel pipe. Also, the seal around the valve cover will harden up and need replacement at about 100k miles. The oil pan has a slight leak that I need to address, but, I've been extremely happy with this truck. Thanks for the video.
I have a 2002 Toyota Hilux with a 3RZ-FE here in Australia. It's an excellent vehicle, the engine is pretty good, but I would note the fuel consumption is really not much better than the V6 and the performance is not great. Also with the hot conditions here, the valve clearances close over time and need to be checked every 100k kms, otherwise there is a risk they will burn out. I did mine at 120k kms and they were under specs, lucky no damage. Measuring and changing shims is a horrible job. Good thing with these later engines going to hydraulic lifters.
If your gonna haul a bunch or add big tires and bumpers on this engine make sure to regear the truck to 5.29. And change oil every 3k. Mines worked perfectly for 128k small leaks in rear simmer to this bud but no concern right now
Let me tell you about the timing chain & gears for the 3RZ-FE engine: I bought my 3RZ equipped 2000 Tacoma 4x4 brand new. We kept checking the timing chain, gears, guides, and tensioner about every 100k miles, and all were just fine, there was still plenty of travel left in the tensioner as well. Finally, at about 350,000 miles, my nerves couldn't take it anymore, so I paid my friend who is a Toyota tech going on 30 yrs now, to replace all the timing chain components with the good stuff bought from LC Engineering. When he was finished, he showed me all of the old components: IT WAS ALL STILL GOOD, WITH BARELY ANY WEAR ON THE TIMING GEARS & GUIDES!!! But even so, I was worried about the strength of the old timing chain itself, which is why we replaced everything. For over 21 years, I worked the snot out of my 2000 Tacoma, towing work trailers all through the week and my bass boat on the weekends. Roughly 75% of the first 250,000 miles put on this truck was towing, I kid you not. I always used Castrol conventional 10w30. I finally blew a head gasket at 374,000 miles. ( I blame myself for that, because during that awful recession, I couldn't afford to replace my coolant in order to save our home & feed the family. I believe the old coolant caused the blown head gasket down the road. ) NO COMPLAINTS HERE!!! The rotating assembly still looked great, bearings, journals and all. But I went ahead and had the entire engine rebuilt anyway, to enjoy full compression, including a brand new "Stage 1" genuine Toyota head with all upgraded valves ( Super Tech Inconel steel, nitride coated ), stiffer valve springs, bronze valve guides, hardened keepers, and Viton valve seals. Bored 0.020" over, Hastings moly rings, and balance shafts removed. Totally deleted the EGR valve & related components and installed a "double armor coated" Pace Setter long-tube header and LC Engineering's 2.5" Pro Flow exhaust system with straight-through Magna Flow muffler, including new Denso 02 sensors, a new free-flowing catalytic converter, and K&N cold air intake, but with a permanent dry air filter made by INJEN Technologies, because I hate air filters that need to be oiled, they can gum up your MAFS. Nearly everything was bought from LC Engineering. My 3RZ-FE runs much stronger than ever before. I am almost finished restoring the entire truck: all new Schaeffler/FAG bearings/seals/etc, a Tom Woods custom HD drive shaft, even BILSTEIN 4200 series shocks. THESE SHOCKS ARE AMAZING!!! They removed ALL of the body roll when making turns. Drives like a sports car now, seriously, with a much better ride both on and off-road. Many other things, far too much to list here. Since my engine rebuild last year, I use Amsoil full synthetic. All I need now is my seats recovered and a new paint job. I intend to drive my 3RZ powered Tacoma 4x4 until I'm dead. I tell everyone: I couldn't afford to buy a new truck, so I BUILT ONE........for literally half the price of a new Tacoma.
See my other comment about the comparison between the 3RZ-FE and this 2TR version. I'm pretty sure the 3RZ is also a square engine with 3.74" bore and 3.74" stroke. The 3RZ's smaller sister, the 2RZ is the exact same engine as the 3RZ, same block, even the head and pistons........but the 2RZ has a slightly shorter stroke, bringing the displacement down to 2.4 liters, instead of 2.7 liters shared by the 3RZ and 2TR.
If you use 2trfe in the cold regions, check your oil strainer gasket every two year. Cause this strainer made from plastic and gasket deforming and demolished when cold temperature outside.
Hey, that's what me and my friends have been calling my 1st gen Tacoma 4x4 with 4 cyl 3RZ engine for years: the little work donkey. Heck yeah man. I bought it brand new back in 2000, and it's still more dependable than every vehicle I've ever owned put together.........and I'm 61 yrs old, so I've owned a lot of cars & trucks over the years. I wouldn't get rid of it for anything.
I have a 2014 Toyota Hilux with the same 2.7 and I need to get change the head gasket but the guys at the shop don't know how to do the timing I don't know if they can use the Tacoma 4 cyl as a reference since both trucks have pretty much the same engine
I bought my 2022 2.7L Tacoma new and it now has 11k miles. Ever since I got it I've noticed a ticking sound that comes from the engine when it idles for more than a few minutes. I usually notice at fast food drive thrus. I always turn it off when I hear it and it goes away once I apply the throttle again. Always wonder what could be causing this?
I just had to change the head gasket on my 2TRFE at 130k miles. Very disappointed. But, I still have faith in it. Should be good to go now for a long time.
@@alibabaschultz352 I think I just went too hard on it. Towing too heavy, driving too fast, hauling too much. But it seemed like it never had any problems until I started using Lucas fuel injector cleaner. Not sure if that's what did it, but before I put that stuff in the gas tank, it never had a problem.
@@alibabaschultz352 it seemed like after the first dose is when it started going downhill. But I'm really not sure if that's correlation or causation. But I also think that my head gasket should've lasted much longer. Also, I'll never trust a lube joint. I had them flush my radiator once and I just don't know if they did it right based on what I've seen them do to oil drain plugs and filters. Damn grease monkeys 🐒
The climate I live in we have hot humid summers and cold winters. Toyota recommends 0w-20 or 5w-30 oil for the 2TR-FE. Would it be better to run the 5w-30 in the summer months and the 0W-20 in the winter?
Hi, I have one problem because I own a 2011 tacoma prerunner 2.7L. It has fail the coolant bypass line at 100k. Toyota uses a plastic coolant bypass line and it last to 100k miles. I replaced a with a metal bypass water line and now 147k miles. Everything else is awesome
I found out that when that emissions control secondary air system has a problem, the computer will cripple the engine so the vehicle goes slow. Forces you to fix it.
The 2TR replaced the now legendary 3RZ. They share the same engine block, and for good reason: This engine block is about as bullet proof as you can get. Another big reason why everything is so easy to reach & work on with this engine/engine bay, is because it's the 2nd gen Tacoma, yet with the 2TR 2.7 liter 4 cylinder engine. This truck appears to have a good bit more room, especially the width, when compared to the engine bay of the 1st gen Tacoma. I still much prefer my 3RZ engine over the 2TR.
@@BrockOBauma Dunno. I've heard two different stories. 1) Never burns valves if owner never overheats engine and never clogs the catalytic converter via ignoring spark plug and oxygen sensor changes 2) that Toyota had two different suppliers of exhaust valves and one of them produced inferior quality valves.
I like the 3rz better than 2trfe.. I didn't have oil consumption issues with my 3rz. ... Both having nearly 300k when I both had it.. it's previous life before I had them, no idea.. but research shows toyota motors of the 2trfe years and generation 4cyl motors ALL burned heavy oil. Hate that. Cat killers
@@mryang3644 Yeah, I bought my 2000 Tacoma 4x4 with 3RZ-FE and automatic transmission brand new. During that awful recession of '08 that hit Florida a year earlier, harder, and lasted longer than anywhere else in the nation, I nearly lost our house. My coolant was due to be changed & I literally couldn't afford to do that while trying to keep food on the table, the lights on, etc. January of 2022, I finally blew a head gasket. Of course I had changed my coolant several times by then, but I truly believe that old, acidic coolant from years before damaged my head gasket & finally gave way years later. I rebuilt the entire engine including a brand new genuine Toyota head. The whole motor & head has many upgrades from original, including a stainless header & 2.5" all stainless exhaust, plus a free-flowing CAT. Deleted the balance shafts and entire EGR system. When we tore down the bottom end, all of the bearings & journals looked fine, but we rebuilt it anyway. Bored 0.020" over with Hastings moly rings. Runs better than ever before now. Love my 3RZ.
Petr, With the upcoming redesign of the Tacoma, we are probably about to say goodbye to this stalwart 2TR-FE engine in our market.😮💨It has served us faithfully for 20 years. On the bright side, it may live on overseas in the Hilux, Fortuner and possibly, the Prado. 🤩
I have hevy rattling sound only while driving in uphill or make the accilator while driving, i change fuel filter, new plug, coil, clean fuel injector, no carbon, still sound, let me know sounds will come while driving, is it cause by timing chain
The Tacoma has a reputation for reliability and long life, but my opinion is that Toyota is nearing the cliff with the trend of putting smaller engines in Tacomas that have progressively gotten heavier. They can put superchargers on some of these models to squeeze extra power, but the price you pay for that is extra wear and tear on your engine and shorter life. They are doing this because the "all-knowing" government and its obsession on emissions is requiring automakers to adhere to increasingly difficult (to impossible) regulations and requirements. My fear is the long-running Tacoma powered by the reliable V6 will soon be nothing but a good memory.
Hello I have owned my 2007 2.7 liter manual since it was new from Longo Toyota. Running great at 75, 000 miles. At what mileage should I have throttle body, mass air flow sensor cleaned and spark plugs changed? 16 years old but low mileage is why I ask. Thanks
Does anyone know if this truck has a separate clutch fluid reservoir? I know there’s the break fluid reservoir on the driver’s side fire wall. I have the same year truck with 2.7 liter manual transmission. Thanks
0w20 can only come in synthetic oil form, 5w20 can be found in conventional, blend and synthetic. To keep things simple, synthetic cleans and protects better than conventional or blend so to avoid confusion, just use oil labeled as 0w20. 0w20 protects better on cold starts during winter aswell.
Toyota built these motors stupidly. Bad piston rings with no tensions against the cylinder walls.. that's why u need a thinner oil, and change it often. Older the oil or thicker the oil, the rings does not wipe it down cleanly. Plus tighter tolerances needs thinner oil... Notice all these new motors now are all Zero weight.
@Mr Yang No, it's not the rings. The 0w20-5w20 oils are used due to CAFE standards for fuel efficiency. The engine can still take 5w30-10w30 oil with no problem. My 2016 Corolla (2zrfe) also says 0w20 on the oil cap, but the same engine can use 5w30-10w30 oil. There has been zero evidence that shows 0w20 oil will wear an engine out faster than a 5w30 oil during normal use but has proven it increases fuel economy. Also, it's always good practice to change your oil often, even with synthetic oils
@Mr Yang so what exactly is the problem with rings having less tension? The only two issues you mentioned were using thinner oil (which is readily available) and changing it often (you should be changing it every 5k miles for any engine).
Im daly drive a 2018 toyota hilux 2tr-fe and it have 85 k miles im never have a proble whit it yet ,only thing im said its fuel eficientsy suck other than that nothing .. im use 5w40 oil from diler ship the batery of the truck im just change it last week ir last 5 yeras and an im change air filter ones a year and te trasmision fluid whit is 5 speed manual out of 3 years and the diferensial fluid 3 yeras olso oil and filter evry 8 k that all abut it im not touch yeat idem the sparkplogs
I know what you are talking about with the blown head gasket. Stupid guy in Chicago area blew his and you know why? Snowplow. And with the unavailability of vehicles he decided to fix it. And what happened? He kept running it and adding coolant and it washed down the cylinder walls. Very bad scoring. Eventually needed a lot of oil every time it was used. In the end he needed a short block. Lucky for him Toyo quality meant he could reuse most parts including pistons.
The 2tr-fe was sold across 2 generations of 3 toyota cars & still being sold. Yet this engine is very rare to find in India (compared to the kd series & gd series). This boy is a gas guzzler. No one bought this engine even though it was 2-3k $ cheaper than the 1kd 2kd or 1gd 2gd. 6km/lr is the best you can get in city. It drinks fuel like a v8😂 And when sold with a gd or kd series it made no sense for anyone to buy the petrol. Those diesels are on par or even better in terms of reliability, almost double the torque number and 40hp more from 1gd-ftv !! The replacement for this engine right now atleast for the Indian market is m15 m20 m25 series dynamic force engines. Toyota tried to discontinue the diesel and only make the m20 & front wheel drive , ruber band transmission but the public outrage got so serious that they frantically reintroduced the 2gd and the previous version innova with rear wheel drive manual transmission 2 months after they announced they will discontinue that 2nd gen innova and only make 3rd gen innova with fwd or awd hybrid and only cvt with m20 petrol engine. The engine in my car is even more reliable. It is a 2nr-fe with no vvti , exclusive to the indian market only and it is absolutely phenomenal. I am yet to replace anything except fluids filters and sparkplugs in my car. And it is 11year old with 160k on odo.. it was a 10k $ car brand new and that was for the top trim.
The 2TR is really slow by contemporary standards. It wouldn't feel so slow if it didn't have such lazy throttle response, probably due in part to the heavy rotating assembly. The mid-range is okay, but it's weak off idle and poops out approaching the 5,500 rpm redline.
I truly believe that anyone who has blown a head gasket on the 2TR or the 3RZ engines, are not admitting that they failed to replace the coolant like they were supposed to. See my lengthy comment below, where I admit the 1 mistake I made with my 3RZ. When coolant gets old, it becomes acidic, and it WILL eat away at the head gasket. Ask me how I know. ( or perhaps they were using THE WRONG coolant )
The one thing I didn't mention when I said I was guilty of not changing my coolant often enough, was only during that God awful recession that hit us here in Florida a full year sooner than most anywhere else in the nation, hit us harder, and lasted far longer ( because the main market in Florida is real estate, not to mention all of the other markets that rely on real estate changing hands )..........I was barely able to save our house, keep the power on, and feed my family as the sole bread winner. I couldn't afford to flush & change my coolant......or even the oil for that matter. But before and after that span of several horrible years, I always do proper maintenance. But sometimes we've got to do what we've got to do. And anyone who claims "your coolant is good for 5 years" is dead wrong. In my opinion, coolant should be flushed & replaced every 2 years........AND a new radiator cap. Even the so-called "good" Stant radiator caps are built cheaply these days. @@jamesp6283