Car was overheating - stalled out today - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Barcs · 11-21-2008, 07:02 AM

I'm really worried about the car right now. I have a 1993 Camry LE V6 with 200,000 miles. Basically I've had an ongoing problem with overheating. I've had to add water to it pretty regularly to keep it from overheating. It seemed like the thermostat was sticking because when it overheated, I would get no heat, but as soon as the temp gauge went back to normal it would work again. I also noticed a couple days ago that there was a new rattling noise coming from the area of the timing belt, but couldn't tell exactly. The last few days, I've had to add a substantial amount of coolant and bleed the system each day to avoid the overheating.

So, I put a new thermostat & gasket in last night, and after finishing up and adding the coolant we ran the car to bleed it and it overheated again. It seemed like the thermostat opened, because I felt pressure on the upper radiator hose, but there was no flow into the radiator, no heat at all, and there was a steady drip of coolant leaking out somewhere near the timing belt. I grabbed the lower radiator hose and it was cold, while the top one was very hot. The overflow tank was bubbling and steam was coming out of the hose that connect to it. I checked the thermostat housing and it definitely was not leaking from there. I suspect it's coming from the weep hole in the water pump, but even on a lift we couldn't even see the water pump. The clickity clacking noise was still there. My room mate, who has a lot of experience with mechanics, suspected that the rattling noise was a timing belt pulley but wasn't sure.

So I decided to drop it off at a mechanic's today before work and ask him how much the water pump is. I barely made it (less than a half mile) before it stalled out and I rolled down the road just into the lot. It was too cold too overheat this morning, and the car hadn't even warmed up yet when it stalled out. I'm really worried that it might be something major, but I'm hoping it might be the timing belt, since it's non interfering, and that strange clicking noise seemed to be coming from there. I'm just about at 200K, so I was planning to do the timing belt and water pump soon anyway. I just find it odd that this would coincide exactly with the water pump going. The engine still cranks and turns over, but it won't actually start. It was 23 degrees this morning and I didn't let the car warm up because of the coolant leak. I pretty much turned it on, let it run a minute and then headed towards the shop. I really don't think it's the head gasket, because the oil looked fine (no coolant or strange color to it)

Any ideas, or suggestions about this? I'm waiting for the mechanic to call me back, because he wasn't there when I dropped off the car, but I don't want to authorize him to do anything (timing belt/water pump) unless it will definitely fix the problem.

Thanks!

***ASG14*** · 11-21-2008, 11:35 AM

This is why you FIX problems before then turn into something big like this. Wait till he calls you back, and see what he says.

Barcs · 11-21-2008, 12:47 PM

Thank you for that very helpful information!

Mike Gerber · 11-21-2008, 02:24 PM

"It was too cold too overheat this morning,"

Cars can overheat in any weather, even below zero temperatures.

I have to agree you need to wait to hear from the mechanic and hope it is just a waterpump. Overheating of today's engines with aluminum cylinder heads can easily blow the head gasket, warp the cylinder heads, or even crack the block. That why ASG14 said "This is why you FIX problems before then turn into something big like this." I don't think he was not trying to be sarcastic, just informative. Aluminum expands and contracts at a lower temperature than the cast iron engine parts of years ago. It's all about saving weight today to increase fuel economy. When your mechanic calls back you might want to ask him to do a test for a blown head gasket. There is a chemical liquid that he can use for a fast and relatively cheap test.

We'll keep our fingers crossed for you.

Mike

Barcs · 11-21-2008, 09:09 PM

Well it turned out to be the timing belt. It snapped right on the way to the mechanic where I was going to get the water pump and timing belt done. What an odd coincidence, eh? Usually when you do one you pretty much gotta do the other, and I was planning on changing both at 200K anyway. Strangely enough they both fail at the same time 100 miles prior to the big 200.

I hadn't had the opportunity to change the thermostat until yesterday, I'm well aware that you should fix these problems asap, but I was being really careful and mindful of the heating gauge and constantly monitoring the coolant level. I had to do the fan blade as well not too long ago, and the radiator less than a year ago so it's been a fun year on my cooling system as a whole. After this it will be practically new minus the hoses. Is it worth it to get new hoses and replace the oil seal while he's down there? Ah well, the engine still runs great. I did notice it acting a little strange lately, so the timing belt could definitely explain that.

Thanks for the advice.

Andrew Liu · 11-21-2008, 09:45 PM

Definitely replace the oil seals after 200k, it'll save you tons of headaches over leaks in the future. Not much extra cost, hugee benefit.

Hoses could be replaced as well, but they're easier to replace, and if they haven't given you any problems, there really isn't much reason to, unless you want extra comfort.

Barcs · 12-05-2008, 09:11 AM

Dang! I had to replace the water pump, timing belt, all of the pulleys (full timing belt kit), 3 oil seals and the tensioner. It all ran me close to $1200. The mechanic showed me the parts and damn it was ugly. He said that it looked like the pulleys were all original and had never been replaced. Apparently one of the pulleys ceased on the way to the shop that day and that caused the belt to snap. That explains the clickity clackity noise.

Overall this is pretty much routine maintenance, so I'm not really angry about having to do it. It's good to know that my baby is still ok! I got the car back and it runs great! I will be hitting the big 2-0-0 in about a week. I need to replace the valve cover gasket, and the rear tires, then I should be golden.

Is there any other post 200K maintenance that you guys recommend? I'm considering doing the oxygen sensors and I've heard that the fuel filters don't last that long anymore because of the lower quality of gas these days. One other weird thing the car does is get "jumpy". I'll be at a stop light with my foot on the brake and the rpms will slightly go up for a second. If my foot's not firmly on the brake it will move forward a little bit. Does anyone know what can cause this?

Thanks!