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I have a 2.2L 2000 Camry with over 210k. Every couple of weeks or so I need to refill the coolant reservoir with antifreeze because it gets completely empty. I've looked at the water pump and did not notice any leeks. I have also never noticed an antifreeze puddle under my car. This leads me to believe that the engine is burning up the coolant.
About a year ago, my car overheated on a hot and sunny day in bumper to bumper traffic on the highway. After a while, we realized that both radiator fan motors were dead (the brushes were nearly gone). And a while after that.. I've gotten one junkyard motor that works, so I've been running on one fan. It’s winter now, and the coolant reservoir is STILL depleting every couple weeks. Could it be that the engine gets too hot from the lack of a second fan and is burning up the coolant, or could there be some other problem? Maybe motors with such high mileage tend to do this? The fan that I do have on, however, is on the driver's side and is the faster of the two.
There are only two places for coolant to go: out on the ground, or out the tailpipe.
The overheating has caused a breach between the "water jacket," the place where the coolant circulates, and the combustion chamber/cylinder somewhere within the motor. Coolant is getting into the combustion chamber and mixing with the combustion gasses and and going out the tailpipe. Possible manners of this process are:
blown head gasket
cracked head
warped head
cracked cylinder
The only way to be 100% certain is to tear it down and make a visual inspection.
This is a good lesson for all in keeping every modern engine form overheating. When I was a kid, everything was cast iron. If you overheated, you waited, refilled, and you were back in business.
Now, with aluminum/iron combinations, there is a much greater chance of permanent damage that leads to a major repair because of shearing forces, poor clamping, thinner cylinder walls, and aluminum heads.
Keep topping up the coolant and plan on fixing this car or getting a new one. At this mileage, if the car is in good shape, I'd drop a used motor in it.
It very well could be something expensive, but if it were me, the first thing I'd do is pop a new (high quality) radiator cap on the radiator and see if that fixes the problem.
Good luck!
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There are only two places for coolant to go: out on the ground, or out the tailpipe.
Not always
I had a leaking radiator, for a couple of months I couldnt locate where the leak was... no puddle on the ground at all... what was happening is the coolant leak was dripping onto my radaitor fan which then dispersed it. I only finally realised where the leak was when it got big enough to leave a puddle on my engine cover, as the fan couldnt disperse enough of it as it did for a good 2 months beforehand
But in saying this, due to overheating, Id say in this case its almost certainly something like a blown head gasket. Since your losing coolant, check your tailpipe for smoke, coolant in oil and visa versa. If you have any of these symptoms, its safe to assume your going to have some expensive repairs coming up.
Id say check what I said above, if you havent got those symptoms.... then start off with the cheaper solutions as mentioned by the above poster, then work your way up
Last edited by Aussie_Camry; 01-01-2007 at 09:17 PM.
I don't think a new radiator cap will accomplish anything. I'm positive the coolant is not escaping through there.
This is more than likely a very expensive fix, which is why I will ride it to the very end. If the problem gets bad enough to the point where a new engine is required, then I will put a new engine in it. I was looking on eBay and found a seller (karking.com) who has a rebuilt 5SFE for only a grand. It looks like they specialize in rebuilding motors.. and that's a damn good price I would say.
But in saying this, due to overheating, Id say in this case its almost certainly something like a blown head gasket. Since your losing coolant, check your tailpipe for smoke, coolant in oil and visa versa. If you have any of these symptoms, its safe to assume your going to have some expensive repairs coming up.
I have started my car a few times and noticed a large amount of smoke. And I only recall noticing this since it overheated last year. I'm trying to recall what color it was.. and I'm leaning towards a very white... white color. Would this be the right color for burning antifreeze?
Something else I was curious about... If this is indeed the problem I am having, is it bad for other components if I continue without repair? Will the 'breach' significantly lower the remaining lifetime of my motor, or may the problem just worsen until the engine stops working completely?
When the exhaust pipe bellows the white emissions, smell them. You should be able to tell if it is water vapor. White smoke at cold start up can also be caused by worn exhaust valve seals (not uncommon on this engine).
It is possible the coolant is leaking out without leaving a puddle. Check for a cracked overflow tank body, radiator top or bottom (also made of plastic), head gasket leak (check the back of the engine), coolant hoses, heater core leakage, etc.
Pulling and checking the spark plugs may find one or two that have electrodes that seem cleaner then they should be. Cranking the engine when cold with plugs removed may show signs of water in one or more cylinders.
One concern is the water vapor over time may not be good for the cylinder walls and cause them to score making a engine block rebuilt more difficult. Keep an eye on the engine oil, make sure it does not turn a white/gray color and appear like a milkshake. This would be due to water.
Do an engine oil analysis. Higher than normal sodium and potassium count will indicate coolant leaks into the oil Some oils, ie Mobil 5000 and 7500, have high sodium content and can mask these leaks in an oil analysis.
Yes, coolant that does not make a puddle still qualifies as being "on the ground."
If you had no vapor at the tailpipe, and no overheating event, I'd say pressurize the system with a tester and look for leaks. I don't believe you would find any external leaks with this car.
The radiator cap isn't an issue here, because a weak cap would be allowing coolant in the engine to be depleted while filling the coolant reservoir. Eventually, the reservoir would overflow.
White clouds from the tailpipe will generally confirm a combustion chamber breach in this kind of situation, one with an overheating event and loss of coolant. I have a CO2 fluid tester I use to confirm these faults, where the fluid changes color from blue to green and then yellow when CO2 is found in the radiator or coolant reservoir. It only gets in there one way, as a by-product of combustion.
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.
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Last edited by timebuilder; 01-01-2007 at 10:31 PM.
Do an engine oil analysis. Higher than normal sodium and potassium count will indicate coolant leaks into the oil Some oils, ie Mobil 5000 and 7500, have high sodium content and can mask these leaks in an oil analysis.
I use Castrol GTX (5W-30). Thank you all very much for your suggestions. Taking out the motor and inspecting it was really not an option for me. So, now I have a few more things I can look into.
Yeah white smoke out of the tailpipe is a dead giveaway... just have a smell though to be 100% sure, alot of people sometimes confuse normal water vapour with a coolant leak
I use Castrol GTX (5W-30). Thank you all very much for your suggestions. Taking out the motor and inspecting it was really not an option for me. So, now I have a few more things I can look into.
Where does one go to get an engine oil analysis?
Skip that wasted money. You have an internal engine problem. The only reason for the teardown is to pinpoint what is already obvious.
White clouds from the tailpipe will generally confirm a combustion chamber breach in this kind of situation, one with an overheating event and loss of coolant.
When you say white coulds.. do you mean constantly, or at any moment during operation?
Skip that wasted money. You have an internal engine problem. The only reason for the teardown is to pinpoint what is already obvious.
If this is indeed an internal engine problem, then I really just need to know one thing.. a question (two-part question) I asked earlier in this thread but was not answered. Is it bad for other components if I continue without repair? Will the 'breach' significantly lower the remaining lifetime of my motor, or may the problem just worsen until the engine stops working completely?
A motor rebuild/swap isn't an option for me at the moment, as I will be in and out of town for the next several months. But my aforementioned question is important because of the 10's of thousands of miles I'll be racking up throughout this period.
I have seen several examples from continuous fluffy billows to barely visible and intermittent vapor. The tailpipe will have more water dripping from it than normal, as will the "weep hole" designed into many mufflers.
Anyone with a device or machine that can detect CO2 can sniff the coolant reservoir or the upper tank of the radiator, BUT, many a machine has been damaged by accidentally allowing the sniffer probe to become submerged in coolant.
Also, a cylinder leakdown test can often reveal such an internal leak, unless it is in the cylinder wall (a crack) below the piston when the test is made, which is typically done at TDC at the finish of the compression stroke. The result is a rise in the coolant level in the radiator, and bubbles if you continue.
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