V6 Cooling system

[Beaver]

I have a blown head gasket (I hope) and my car looks like a stam engine from behind. I discovered the gasket problem when I overheated. I opened the rad and figured a bit of coolant was in order so I started pouring it in. It only took a about a quart and was full. I thought WTF!?!?! I then noticed another rad cap towards the back of the motor (V6) so I opened it. when I did the coolant from the rad started slowly going into the block in little gulps (best description I can think of) I filled the block through the upper rad cap like thing and away I went with the temp back to normal. I watched the temp gauge for a long time and it stayed normal for a long time then after about 400km I overheated again. Pulled over and it was the same thing again.

Why does the block empty and not refill from the rad when the block is blazing hot. Does the block fill from the top of the rad so when it gets down a little it stops circulating?

Does anyone know approx what it cost to change the head gaskets. I'm going to assume the heads are good.

[Toysrme]

Why does the block empty and not refill from the rad when the block is blazing hot.

It does, it just can't do it quick enough. What you're forgetting is that you're dumping coolant into the cylinders and into the oil. You're also keeping coolant from flowing where it needs to go. Which causes the overheating. The thermostat can be wide open and still not circulate enough coolant to keep the engine cool. (i.e. the radiator is blocked)

Does the block fill from the top of the rad so when it gets down a little it stops circulating?

Yep.

Does anyone know approx what it cost to change the head gaskets.

Extremely expencive. Belts + waterpump + every seal on the upper part of the engine must be changed. Labor is the real bitch...

What probably happened (especially if you've ever mixed toyota red A/F with any typical green formula) is the radiator is clogged. Causing the overheating, which blew the head gasket. Since the radiator has reduced flow, it can't circulate enough of the coolant to keep the engine cool.



Just an educated guess.

[Beaver]

I just talked to my local Toyota stealership. 11 hours labour $820cad, $671cad for the gasket set, oil, coolant, another half hour to do the timing belt, plus the timing belt, plus tax. Total close to $2000cad. OOOOFFFFFFF there's a kick in the nuts.

[95camguy]

Originally Posted by Beaver

I just talked to my local Toyota stealership. 11 hours labour $820cad, $671cad for the gasket set, oil, coolant, another half hour to do the timing belt, plus the timing belt, plus tax. Total close to $2000cad. OOOOFFFFFFF there's a kick in the nuts.

you can get a good used motor for half that

[Beaver]

Originally Posted by 95camguy

you can get a good used motor for half that

I think I can get that price a bit lower. I found a gasket set for $120usd on the interweb and I know a good mechanic who works for $55/hr as opposed to the Toyota stealer's $75/hr.


If my rad is the cause due to mix & mismatch coolant can it be flushed to a reasonable cleanliness or will it need to be replaced too?

[Toysrme]

^Yeah, I rebult mine with the $120 set off Ebay. Same quality gaskets as OEM...
If it's clogged because of mismatched fluid, no you an't flush it. it turns into a very hard gel. (think chisel and hammer to get it out)

There have been a few threads about timing belt replacements as of late. You need everything listed in one of those threads, oil & cooling plus about an extra 2-3 hours of labor.

[Beaver]

Is there a reason why Toyota runs red coolant? When I install my new rad and flush the system can I use green coolant?

[Toysrme]

Because they think it's better! What year v6 is it? (IMHO if it's a 1mz-fe 94+, go a head and use Toyota red, if it's an iron block, definately never use that stuff. Either way flush it with water and cleaner first)

[Beaver]

It's a '93 wagon. If the rad get pluggged with hard gel is there going to be any hard gel in the block?

[ekim55121]

hmm i have a 96 I4 what kinda coolant should i be using? green or red? 5sfe