oil leak 97 camry v6

[hoje00]

I just got my camry back from the dealership. (bought it about a month ago and wanted a good once over to change all the fluids and check everything).

He reported to me that I had an oil leak in the valve seal and/or cam seal inside the timing belt cover. at a cost of $500

First, is this something I can live with until spring? The timing belt was just changed 16,000 miles ago (before I bought it) so would this warrent another change of the timing belt since they have to take it off to replace the seals.

Second, I am an intermediate level for auto repairs, but not afraid to do this on my own, provided it stays at Toyota quality (no cheap parts). Is this something I can accomplish?

Thanks for any advice.

[hoje00]

anybody have any ideas or can help me?

[islandboy57]

Oil leaks aren't all that uncommon with the Camry. My mom's gen 3.5 has an oil leak - she attempted to get it fixed once (it wasn't cheap either) and it got better, but it still leaks. I just watch the oil level and it leaks/burns less than 1/2qt an oil between oil changes.

So - depending on the severity of your oil leak - you might just consider living with it.

[BamZipPow]

Try some Auto-RX...

[hoje00]

does Auto-RX really work?

[BamZipPow]

Originally Posted by hoje00

does Auto-RX really work?

Fer my newly acquired 1998 T-100 with 307,000 miles on it, I didn't want to take any chances. I knew it was used as a work truck in it's previous life, so I did the (all Toyota factory parts) timing belt/water pump, front cam seals, thermostat, hoses. The radiator blew a few thousand miles later so that got replaced. Everything looked clean and I even backflushed the system. Cluster temp gauge showed a normal range which is below the middle mark. SGII was showing the water temp around 207°F to 211°F. The cooling system was clean. Put some Auto-RX in the engine, power steering, and the auto trans.

Power steering got purged after 1000 miles and refilled with ATF. Added some more Auto-RX. The power steering rack did have a leak on top of the steering column shaft input. The leak went away after about 200 miles into the refill. Hopefully that won't be a problem from this point on.

Trans got purged 1000 miles later...the stuff that came out looked like tar even though when I checked the fluid before adding the Auto-RX looked good. Temps still didn't come down. Installed two B&M external trans coolers after the stock cooler. No change...moved them to before the stock cooler. Still no change. Drained the oil after 1500 miles. During the rinse phase, temps came down about 5°F to 10°F. Ambient temps started out around 70°F when I got the truck to over +90°F now. Now at 70mph, my temps will be around 198°F to 204°F. I'm hoping the temps will come down some more after the 2nd cleaning/rinse phase.

Replaced the filter after the first 500 miles of the rinse phase...found bits of "black sand"...carbon bits in the folds of the filter. The first filter I tore apart when I first got the truck didn't show any carbon bits at all. The current rinse phase oil turned into a cola color after about 250 miles. I'll be changing out the filter again before I hit the road to see how the current rinse phase is going.

The previous owner did say it was eating about a quart of oil every 1000 miles. I checked out the PCV valve and it was all clogged up. Replaced that and haven't seen any oil consumption since.

So far in my opinion, Auto-RX seems to be doing a long overdue job. It might help in yer situation and clean up the ring packs and maybe clean up those valve seals and recondition them. Wouldn't hurt to give it a try vs tearing it down. Auto-RX FAQ...