i found out from a coworker today that his 2001 (maybe 2002) corolla engine failed due to oil gelation (diagnosed by toyota dealer). the car only had 145,000km on it. out of curiousity, i checked my dad's 99 (140k km) corolla for sludge buildup. to my surprise, the valve train was covered in a film of sludge too. it's not that bad yet but it's definitely a lot dirtier than my 02 civic and my 00 s2000. my hondas are spotless in comparison. even my friend's 95 maxima w/ approx 300,000km had less buildup than the corolla engine. i don't think the sludge was caused by lack of maintenance. my dad changes his oil every 4000-5000km. has anyone else experienced sludge problems?
Last edited by turbo_slug; 01-27-2010 at 04:14 AM.
i found out from a coworker today that his 2001 (maybe 2002) corolla engine failed due to oil gelation (diagnosed by toyota dealer). the car only had 145,000km on it. out of curiousity, i checked my dad's 99 (140k km) corolla for sludge buildup. to my surprise, the valve train was covered in a film of sludge too. it's not that bad yet but it's definitely a lot dirtier than my 02 civic and my 00 s2000. my hondas are spotless in comparison. even my friend's 95 maxima w/ approx 300,000km had less buildup than the corolla engine. i don't think the sludge was caused by lack of maintenance. my dad changes his oil every 4000-5000km. has anyone else experienced sludge problems?
Did your dad buy the vehicle new? It's possible that the previous owner drove the car for years without any oil changes.
Did your dad buy the vehicle new? It's possible that the previous owner drove the car for years without any oil changes.
yup, the car has been in our family since January of 1999. the car still runs fine. it doesn't burn any oil at 140,000km.
have you people looked into the oil filler cap? how dirty is the head?
btw, did anyone notice that Toyota specified a 6000km oil change interval for the earlier 8th gens then changed the interval to every 8000km on the later years?
Last edited by turbo_slug; 01-27-2010 at 12:33 PM.
I've heard that the sludge is a result of the drain holes in the head being too small, making it easy for them to get blocked up which then blocks the oil from draining back into the pan. Unfortunately this is a design flaw
I did a valve cover gasket a few days ago. My engine looked more like the first picture, but it definitely did not have any sludge in it. It has 103k miles.
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2006 Corolla S - sold
2003 Solara SLE - sold
2000 Corolla LE - sold
The first picture there is my car. It started burning oil in the 30-40k mile range. I can't remember exactly when, but it was 1 qt/3000 miles or so. I've always done 3k dino oil changes or just under, and now it burns 1 qt every 600-700--terrible! I just turned over 81,000 miles. Compression on cylinders 3 and 4 is pretty low dry but decent on a wet compression test. Probably bad rings like every other 1zz-fe made before 2003. PCV valve wasn't clogged at 80k but I changed it anyway.
That picture is from when I changed my valve cover gasket and replaced the timing chain tensioner on new year's eve. Because I don't drive this every day, I've done some 600-1000 mile oil changes and on the last one switched to Valvoline MaxLife. We'll see how that goes.
I wasn't surprised at how dirty the engine was, because I used to drive like a maniac, but at least there was no sludging. Took it in for emissions inspection today, and the guy who did it said, "Man, this Chevy runs great for a 2001." HA!
I'd like to give Auto-RX a try, but I drive maybe 20 miles three days a week. It would take forever to get to 3k, much less 6. I'll probably end up swapping in a low mileage 2005-2007 1zz-fe if this one shows signs of real major damage (burning oil isn't so bad IMO). Those and the associated trannies seem cheap at the junkyards in my area.
Last edited by teppista881; 01-27-2010 at 06:03 PM.
Reason: typo
My 2000 Celica GT engine had a sludge problem (Toyota dealer diagnosed this), it started with burning oil, then one day it went dead, stranded me on the side of the road. I was upset and confused because I took care of that baby faithfully, changed the oil every 3k miles, brought to the dealer for any kinds of maintenance. It cost me $4000 to change the engine, but unfortunately the new engine developed the same symptoms. I sold the car then bought a brand new 2009 Honda Accord. My advice to you is: cut your loses, sell it before it breaks or trade it in for a new car that is still under warranty BEFORE you end up like me!
My 2000 Celica GT engine had a sludge problem (Toyota dealer diagnosed this), it started with burning oil, then one day it went dead, stranded me on the side of the road. I was upset and confused because I took care of that baby faithfully, changed the oil every 3k miles, brought to the dealer for any kinds of maintenance. It cost me $4000 to change the engine, but unfortunately the new engine developed the same symptoms. I sold the car then bought a brand new 2009 Honda Accord. My advice to you is: cut your loses, sell it before it breaks or trade it in for a new car that is still under warranty BEFORE you end up like me!
My engine ended up dying on me also. replaced engine and now everything is fine. Only downside to my corolla is now i can't pass emissions because the cat converter. only way to pass is changing it out which would cost another 500$ for an aftermarket one. So now I'm cutting my losses and selling my corolla to get a Subaru. hopefully everything goes smooth and I can get my new car.
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Subaru Impreza 2.5i Premium Satin White
My engine ended up dying on me also. replaced engine and now everything is fine. Only downside to my corolla is now i can't pass emissions because the cat converter. only way to pass is changing it out which would cost another 500$ for an aftermarket one. So now I'm cutting my losses and selling my corolla to get a Subaru. hopefully everything goes smooth and I can get my new car.
aren't there any cheaper aftermarket ones? how much are junkyard ones? used honda ones can often be purchased for almost nothing...
My engine ended up dying on me also. replaced engine and now everything is fine. Only downside to my corolla is now i can't pass emissions because the cat converter. only way to pass is changing it out which would cost another 500$ for an aftermarket one. So now I'm cutting my losses and selling my corolla to get a Subaru. hopefully everything goes smooth and I can get my new car.
You can find a new bolt-on magnaflow catalytic converter for way less than that.
Whoever quoted you $500 just wanted to rip you off.
If you're getting a Subaru, I hope you end up with a WRX at least.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TURBO Das Automagazin
A BRZ, a curvy mountain road makes one liter of happiness hormones.
I wish I could end up with a WRX. Money is the biggest issue with me getting something turbo. even getting a older WRX like a 2004 - 2007 is still around 20K w/80k miles or more. On top of that I don't know how to drive manual which would be less expensive also.
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Subaru Impreza 2.5i Premium Satin White
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