Head Gasket?

[Gandalf]

My daughter has a '92 Camry, 5SFe engine (2.2L). I think it's in the process of letting the head gasket go. Two months ago I added two quarts of coolant. I've convinced her to keep records.

Yesterday she complained about the exhaust. "I think I'm getting too much exhaust on a cold start."

I looked just before dusk last night, using a flashlight to verify color. I think she's right. The exhaust was between light gray and whitish, and had a slightly sweet smell. I think the head gasket is going. The top of the plates in the radiator were dry, actually sort of dampish, with no visible coolant.

That's the color on a cold start. She stopped by this morning to pick up a gallon of mixed coolant to add when she gets off work tonight, add to a cold engine. I checked the exhaust this morning, hot engine, and it seems normal. there was no visible color, and it smelled the way I expect exhaust to smell.

It seems almost as though coolant is leaking into a cylinder while the engine is shut down, and burning off at startup.

So, I'm asking for the collective wisdom of the group. Is this a head gasket in the early stages of blowing? What other possibilities?

[95PimpingCamry]

Check for other symptoms too.

Does the oil have coolant in it? (looks like a milky substance, and most common)
Does the coolant have oil in it?
Does the car feel like it has lost power? (lower compression)

Usually when a head gasket goes it will show many symptoms, not just one.

[davemac2]

It might be, but it may also be a slow leak in the rad or some other place like a weeping hose. Check the hoses to see if they appear soft or have weak spots. Does she do any long highway driving for at least 45 min? A good 1 hr highway driving at 65+mph with some uphill is a good stress test for a head gasket issue. Maybe take the car out yourself to try this. Bring some extra coolant with you though and watch the temp gage carefully. If it does not overheat on you, I'd say you are either in a VERY early gasket failure stage, or you have a leak somewhere.

dave mc

[new echo owner]

Does the engine run rough when it first start up cold?

Pull the plugs out when it is cold after the car has sit overnight, see if they are wet might give you some idea if it is leaking internally or not.

N.E.O.

[Gandalf]

Answers to questions and/or comments.

I haven't seen any evidence yet of or oil and water mixing, in either direction. I'll watch more closely, as our schedules permit. I probably won't see the car again until the weekend.

My daughter has commented that she thought the car had lost a bit of power. That was a month or so ago.

She has also said that she thinks the engine is a bit rough on startup. I've seen it start only when warm, and, of course, there was no apparent roughness.

She's still driving the car daily. I'll watch the fluid levels as best I can, and wait for a phone call.

[davemac2]

An initial rough cold start could be a sign of gasket failure with coolant accumulating in one or more of the cylinders over an extended period, but of course it could be related to other problems. I think the extended highway test is your best bet.

dave mc