Engine Reconditioning

Ok heres the dillio, i will in the near future require an engine rebuild, on my '82 toyota runnign a 2 litre 4 banger. it will break the magic 300 thousand km mark soon and still hasent started smoking or having major problems. My question is what is the difference detween a long block rebuild and a short block rebuild. Also what are some minor things i can do without removing the engine from the bay?
regards. Chris.

I believe that year runner to have the 22RE motor? (Which are damn near indestructible) Basically a short block is the actual engine block, pistons, crankshaft, connecting rods, and everything in between (bearings and seals and what not) A long block is a short block + the valve train (heads, (or head in your case) lifters, valves, rocker arms) With a motor with those amount of miles, I would do the whole thing. Yes, it will be slightly more expensive, but with that many miles, it would be a shame to do the short block option (also reffered to as the bottom end of a motor) and have something go wrong on the top end. Just my suggestion. By minor things? Define minor? Theres a product called 'engine restore' that can be found at most auto stores. It does wonders. Besides a basic tuneup (plugs, oil, air filter, plug wires) not much else can be done. You could have the head re-worked, but I wouldn't consider this minor.

ok,yeah its not the 22re, its the 21R-C if im correct the 22re is the 2.4 litre one but the 21r-c is the 2 litre. yeah once i can pay for it ill get the long block.

It may be cheaper to get a rebuild kit and just have your current parts machined. Have you thought about this route?