Overheating problems 93 Camry XLE - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 05:02 PM

I have a 1993 XLE with the 3.0 V6 engine. I absolutely love the thing, but I'm having a horrible time with overheating. Let me start by saying there is no white smoke at startup, no white gunk in the oil, or any oil in the coolant. I first noticed a small leak a few months back, and it did run hotter than normal for awhile. At this point there was no fluid left in the overflow tank, and I would just add more coolant in. I nursed it along for awhile, adding more coolant and trying a stop-leak additive. I replaced both pressure caps on the system as well. The only issue was that one cap was supposed to be at 1.0 (Not sure how the pressure markings work), but the replacement was 1.1. Eventually I narrowed down the leak to the water pump and had it, the thermostat, and the timing belt replaced. The car ran great for a day or two, but then I started overheating again. I noticed that the coolant reservoir was full regardless of whether the engine was hot or cold. I then emptied the reservoir, cleaned out the remaining stop-leak, added a very small amount of coolant, and marked the level that it should be with the coolant system totally full (I ran the car, added coolant until everything was full and air was out of the system). A couple short trips later, and the level remained exactly the same. A few trips on the freeway later and the coolant reservoir is over the full mark. After letting the engine cool it only lowers by about 20 percent, and is about halfway higher up than it was before. I cannot figure out why the radiator is not drawing the coolant back in. My mechanic pressure tested the system after the water pump replacement and said it was fine. Any ideas?

chronoti · 02-22-2011, 05:28 PM

stop leak clogged your system.

also are the fan running? how is your power steering, that year your fan is driven off your power stearing system

rusty9 · 02-22-2011, 05:56 PM

i wrote a big post about this fan system when i was ready to blow my car up with some dynamite. might have some useful info for you =)

Hydraulic Fan Diagnostic Checklist (3vz-fe)

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chronoti

stop leak clogged your system.

also are the fan running? how is your power steering, that year your fan is driven off your power stearing system

As far as the stop leak where should I look for clogging? I've checked the relief valve to coolant reservoir to radiator line and I can confirm that these are clear.

My fan does run, although I haven't done much looking into as far as how fast it is running. Power steering works fine.

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rusty9

i wrote a big post about this fan system when i was ready to blow my car up with some dynamite. might have some useful info for you =)

Hydraulic Fan Diagnostic Checklist (3vz-fe)

Excellent writeup, thanks!.

71Corolla · 02-22-2011, 07:29 PM

Your mechanic found absolutely no leaks when he pressure tested? When the engine is cold, remove the filler cap and look, is the coolant level right up to the top? What caps do you have? OEM or aftermarket? Sometimes problems like these are as simple as a bad pressure cap. BTW, the filler cap (on the engine) is rated 1.0, the radiator cap is 1.1. It's very important these two parts correct and working.

Also you may have a clogged radiator causing the overheating. Or a blown head gasket.

edit - on my 1993 (same car as yours) I have the overflow level at the top line. When the engine is hot, the coolant is about 2 inches above the line. After a cool down overnight, it goes right back to the line. The level will change slightly depending on temperature. When it is very cold (like -25) the cold engine level will be maybe 1/4" below the line.

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 71Corolla

Your mechanic found absolutely no leaks when he pressure tested? When the engine is cold, remove the filler cap and look, is the coolant level right up to the top? What caps do you have? OEM or aftermarket? Sometimes problems like these are as simple as a bad pressure cap. BTW, the filler cap (on the engine) is rated 1.0, the radiator cap is 1.1. It's very important these two parts correct and working.

Also you may have a clogged radiator causing the overheating. Or a blown head gasket.

edit - on my 1993 (same car as yours) I have the overflow level at the top line. When the engine is hot, the coolant is about 2 inches above the line. After a cool down overnight, it goes right back to the line. The level will change slightly depending on temperature. When it is very cold (like -25) the cold engine level will be maybe 1/4" below the line.

The filler cap the Toyota dealer gave me the parts number for ended up being 1.1, so I'll see if I can dig up the old cap to put back on. I figured something wasn't quite right but I wasn't sure if that small of a difference would effect anything.

Thanks for the info everyone, I'll try these suggestions and get back to you all.

71Corolla · 02-22-2011, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkSideMoon

The filler cap the Toyota dealer gave me the parts number for ended up being 1.1, so I'll see if I can dig up the old cap to put back on.

Because these cars have two caps (why I have no idea) the filler cap is rated at a lightly lower pressure than the radiator cap. I'm 100% sure I have the right ones, I checked online and also at the dealer. But having the wrong rated cap will not cause a car to overheat, well it could in hot weather but normally no.

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 71Corolla

Because these cars have two caps (why I have no idea) the filler cap is rated at a lightly lower pressure than the radiator cap. I'm 100% sure I have the right ones, I checked online and also at the dealer. But having the wrong rated cap will not cause a car to overheat, well it could in hot weather but normally no.

Yeah you're definitely right. Unfortunately that cap was a huge pain to find but I'll try to track the right one down. Right now what really concerns me is that it pushes coolant into the reservoir but never sucks it back in.

71Corolla · 02-22-2011, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkSideMoon

Right now what really concerns me is that it pushes coolant into the reservoir but never sucks it back in.

Two thing that can cause that. A bad cap, or a leak. If there is a leak, the system won't be able to create a vacuum when the coolant in the engine contracts, so no negative pressure to draw the coolant in from the overflow.

A pressure test will reveal the above very quickly, within 30 seconds.

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 09:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 71Corolla

Two thing that can cause that. A bad cap, or a leak. If there is a leak, the system won't be able to create a vacuum when the coolant in the engine contracts, so no negative pressure to draw the coolant in from the overflow.

A pressure test will reveal the above very quickly, within 30 seconds.

Thanks again, I'll do some sleuthing when I find some time.

Also, on an unrelated note, what kind of mileage do you normally get on your Camry? Mine always seemed a bit low but I've never met anyone with the v6 before to ask.

71Corolla · 02-22-2011, 10:18 PM

I'm getting between 20-22 mpg U.S. gallon, which is okay not great. But it is winter stop and go driving. I used to get about 25mpg same conditions with my 5S-FE engine, which is not that much better. Freeway miles don't know have not driven any yet.

I drive conservatively most of the time. BTW, the airflow meter/timing mod did help the mileage a bit

DarkSideMoon · 02-22-2011, 10:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 71Corolla

I'm getting between 20-22 mpg U.S. gallon, which is okay not great. But it is winter stop and go driving. I used to get about 25mpg same conditions with my 5S-FE engine, which is not that much better. Freeway miles don't know have not driven any yet.

I drive conservatively most of the time. BTW, the airflow meter/timing mod did help the mileage a bit

That sounds right on par with mine. Summer I get more like 22, winter more like 20. I don't drive hard on it but I'm not super conservative on it either. Freeway I've actually had up to 28mpg cruising along around 75 mph.

Entrical · 02-23-2011, 01:00 PM

Is the thermostat installed correctly? It should have a jiggle valve on it and pointed in the right direction otherwise you may get some air in. And I would highly discourage using a 'stop-leak'. It doesn't do anything but make things worse. I tried doing that on my camry when I bought it and then did the head gaskets...there was a lot of gunk in alllll of the water passages and it turned out to be the 'stop-leak' stuff all gummed up.

DarkSideMoon · 02-24-2011, 06:10 PM

Well, I tried the old pressure caps and that didn't work. I'm starting to think it might be a head gasket issue. What would be the best way to try to confirm this? There is nothing in the oil, no white smoke in the exhaust. The only thing I can find is bubbles in the filler neck but I'm not positive I've bled all the air out yet.