alrighty... so i have a little drama. i have purchased not a week ago a 1991 TR magna 4 cylinder EFI. it was loosing coolant quite rapidly when i first got it, needing replacement every 2 days or so. i really didn't think much of it, passed it off as a leak in one of the hoses and was going to get it checked out at the car's first service. but literally in a few days i found the car overheating twice daily, then 4-5 times daily, now almost every time i go for a drive. also, the car was blowing steam out of the exhaust, which is usually a sign of either a cracked head or a blown head gasket. the big news? there is water in the third cylinder and that cylinder will no longer fire. this makes the car idle at about 400-500 rpm and will stall if I attempt to pull up. on some days the car wont even kick over.

so my question is, is it worth the repair? I have been quoted $1500 to replace the gasket and/or seal the head... but I only payed $1000 for the car.

if it isnt worth it... i have two options really, buy a new motor or buy a new car.
if the most practical option is to replace the motor, i would be more inclined to switch to a v6 motor. is that possible? and if so how much would it set me back? cheeers

to change to a v6 is not a massive piece of engineering but if you cant do it your self it will cost you more then the rebuild of your 4g54 engine. you can buy v6 2nd gen magnas from 600 bucks on ebay probably 1200 with roady and rego from a car yard. So its up to you. Just dont buy a car with problem with the driveline because they have to be fixed asap because ultimately its what makes you car go.

Another option would be buying a smashed up one from the damaged vechile auctions, and swap the motor out of it.

cheers fellas, i really gotta think about this one... are the mounts the same for a 3l v6? and the bolting positions?
and in terms of sa rego would i have to go through regency once its done?

2nd gens 4-6cyl an engine mount needs to be moved, any engine swap regency has to (is supposed to at least) know about, since 6cyl rego costs more than 4cyl you might be in bigger trouble if your'e caught out as the govt. likes their $$'s.
If you only bought it a week ago and don't have any special attachment to it the best way would probably just get another 2nd gen. If you want to put in a new engine, you could buy rear ended 4cyl for cheap and just take the engine then you have a pile of spare bits to play with that u-pull-it will probably buy for $100 or so, and might only need a change of engine number form rather than an inspection. (I think they can ask for an inspection still even if its exactly the same type of engine)
Check out gumtree, they often have a few banged up old magnas and a few with dead engine or trans, but towing might not be so cheap if its far away and not driveable.

ohkay matey il have a suss cheers :)
the only thing is i cant drive a turboed 4 because i left it so long to get my p's... so i do want a bit of grunt in the car

I think theres very few forced induction 2nd gens around anyway, theres a few supercharged and turbo'd 3rd gens though. Manual v6 if staying TR/TS is probably your best bet, unless you can find a manual 3.5L 3rd gen.

how much mucking around is it to get a 3rd gen in? i know that a 2nd gen 6 arent too bad to get in... but there is that loss of power with that too...

The fact that the engine and gearbox positions are reversed will make it a challenge.

Lol I meant new car not just the engine, but a 3.5L 2nd gen would be interesting if you could sort out all the electronics and fitment issues that are likely to come up.

sounds messy... but it would be cool though... il give it a little thought... but i am pretty content with the idea of putting a second gen 6 into her :)

you have to weld on the passenger side engine mount bracket to the strut tower/top of the rail if y ou want to go the v6. What ever way you go you are unlikely unless you can do it all yourself to get it done less thent he 1500 quoted to rebuild your 4g54. Have a serious look into though but i think you'll be suprised.

ohkay... do you think it would be cheaper to just buy another 4? considering none of the mounts would have to move

im sure you could find a low km engine with soem wqarranty from a wrecker for 500ish for a 4g54 Its your decision. ultimatly buying another car isnt really going to solve the issue as they will all be second hand. 1500 for a rebuild and warranty is good in that the important bits are new again.

I think $1500 sounds a bit much to do a head gasket on that engine.

Head gasket - $100.
Send the head off to get reconditioned - $400. (I see you're in SA, there's a place at Lonsdale that I've used)
Around 6 hours labour - ~$600. (Or whatever they charge these days.)

Maybe get a few more quotes.

Thankyou very much fellas, it was hurting my brain before haha... im gonna go see my cousin and get some quotes on all the possibilities. its just the only thing im worried about is before I bought the car it went through a Mechanical Inspection. the inspection picked up a leak in the shockys and wearing tread on the tyres but nothing major. I drove it probably 40m before I realised that the cv joint was f*cked beyond belief and that it had a coolant leak somewhere (turns out the leak IS the head crack which is really awesome). so i really dont know what else is wrong with that motor... i dont wanna be forking out thousands to fix a motor that i could just replace whole for cheaper... if that makes sense. I reckon judging by what you's are saying i would stick with a 4 instead of a 6 but it would be nice to have that extra oomph tho :(