1995 Toyota 4Runner Limited review from North America

Blown head gasket with internal leak at #6.

1995 Toyota 4Runner Limited 10/95 production date not covered by recall! Upon investigation, this is a common problem in this engine area! Went to a Toyota dealership who indicated that my vehicle was not covered by a service recall, even the SSB V06. They wanted to replace the engine with a short block, rebuilt heads, etc. for $7,500.00! They had my truck for 4 days and never proceeded with any work.

Frustrated I took the vehicle to another independent shop and by the end of the next day they had the engine apart for a rebuild and had determined the root of the problem! Apparently the head deck on the main block had a slight warp near the area of the #6 cylindar right beneath the area where the head gasket had failed. Other research on this site revealed that one mechanic hinted at staples in the gasket that were prone to failure. Also comments have been made about another imperfection in the engine block that lead to an unusual isolated area of heating/cooling that might result in the failure. In addition to this, there are comments about additional failures of the gasket after initial repairs had been undertaken! Given this I am lead to firmly believe that the imperfection, by Toyota, in my engine block is not uncommon and unless detected, it is not properly corrected leading to further failures in the future!

Comments? Do I have the basis for a recall here? What do I need to do to proceed and initiate a recall with Toyota? Are my observations consistent with any others out there?