blown head gasket?

[kezz1]

I have a 93 wide body camry, which has run rough, stalling etc, on and off over the past 18 months. I've blown $1400 in the past week trying to fix it. I'm at my wits end, broke, and would appreciate any help with diagnosing the problem(s).

When the problem first occured, several bottles of injector cleaner over several weeks, and changing to premium, fixed it. The problem reoccured in Aug this year, and 1 bottle of injector cleaner fixed it.

The problem reoccured this month, worse than ever. My mechanic replaced the fuel filter (which was full of black petrol) and it ran fine for about 5ks. The fuel tank was taken off 3 days later and cleaned out, but had very little dirt in it, and the fuel looked clean. The new fuel filter was also replaced as it was full of black fuel. Spark plugs were replaced, injectors flushed, and other work done. Engine ran fine, but the next day I got stranded with a flat battery. Got it jump started, took it home, cleaned the battery terminals and charged it overnight. It started fine, but I had to take a long trip and after about 20ks tried to use the fan, but even on high it barely worked, so switched it off. Also noticed my o/drive light barely glowed. When I stopped again 100ks later, battery was dead and car wouldn't start, so suspected alternator wasn't working. Found that the mechanic had broken the top of the voltage regulator, tied it back on with a cable tie, and clips weren't connecting properly. Replaced voltage regulator (brushes were also worn). Car went fine, but I now was losing coolant from the radiator tank. The next day I got a new radiator, and thermostat (the old one was stuck open) had system flushed and pressure tested. Engine ran perfectly while idling for half an hour at the radiator shop, but started running a little rough after I'd driven 2-3 ks. Over next few days, it slowly got worse, until it was stalling under load (towing a trailer). I also noticed it ran fine while cold, but rough once it warmed up.

Replaced the coolant temperature sensor. Engine still ran rough, and was stalling a lot, so took it to an auto shop. Was told to bring it back later. Kept stalling on way to where I was staying, and nearly didn't make it. Wouldn't start when I tried it an hour later. I couldn't see a spark from a plug. Rang repair shop, and they said coil had probably gone. My son double checked if there was a spark. There wasn't, yet the engine almost started. Reconnected plug lead, and it started. Managed to drive it to repair shop.

The coil was faulty and was replaced, plus the rotor (which I learned my mechanic had also broken and not replaced). The engine ran perfectly. All pressure tests etc were normal. I drove home the next day, and it ran perfectly for 100ks until I accelerated to overtake, and suddenly green coolant sprayed out from under the bonnet. Looked at temp gauge and it was going up so I stopped and the temp gauge immediately dropped back to it's normal position. Started engine again after 5 mins, and it was running like sh*t. Drove the few ks home and twice the temp started to go up, then dropped back. Got home and let it cool down. Checked coolant, and it had lost about 1 1/2 litres. Topped it up, started engine again, and it still ran like sh*t. Noticed white? smoke coming from the exhaust, which has never happened before. Pushing down on the accelerator made the smoke worse. I disconnected each plug in turn, until I found one that didn't alter how the engine idled. Later, my son fiddled with the leads where they connected to the distributor, and the engine wouldn't restart. He fiddled with them again, and it started, but still ran like sh*t.

Started the car this morning and it ran fine for about 2 mins, then started running rough again. Lots of white? exhaust smoke. The smoke has condensation, but smells like petrol.

Have I blown a head gasket? Cracked the head? (No water is running out the tail pipe). Would a faulty spark plug lead or connection to the distributor cause white smoke? Or is the current problem still related to the other problems I've had. The temp gauge has never gone into the red zone (but close), and the temp sender is supposedly working. Would the voltage regular not working on a long trip, or the rotor being broken, have caused the coil to go? I also burned out platinum plugs in under 20,000k.

I'm female, blonde, and don't know a lot about cars.

[Blind Kid Seeks]

if you're car is loosing coolant, theres a fair chance you are pumping it through the engine...

if you get to a mechanic ask them to Gas test your coolant, they should do it for free. The test is to determine if there is any exhaust gases in your engine coolant... if there is... stop driving the car and figure out a way to spend a few hunderd dollars on the HG replacement.

When the head is off the car, get it crack and warp tested. If the car over heated there is a chance the head wont sit flat on the engine block and you will need a new one.

i hope it all works out for you.

[Lozza]

Hi Kezz,

Sounds like a head gasket, but make sure you get your radiator reconditioned or properly cleaned.

If you see my post under overheating Camry V6 you will see have had similar problems .

Thank goodness we might have solved mine will know this afternoon , the problem was even though we had the radiator cleaned while the engine was being rebuilt it got blocked again after 200k's because there was still some rubbish that hadn't flushed out from the previous flushing .

Also you might be just losing coolant through the overflow bottle as if the radiator is blocked the the cooling system just pushes it out through the bottle ....Which was happening to me , the car was fine at idle never got hot but after a couple of k's it would overheat.

But its a concern the in your words you have white exhaust smoke , So I would find another mechanic for starters and get them as the previous poster stated a gas test or a block test , also have a look at your oil is it clean or does it show signs of water in it ?

Cheers

Lozza

[Keisari]

If you check the oil dipstick and the oil is creamy or even has traces of white scunge, that's a sure sign of a blown headgasket.

Of course, those indicators not being there does not mean that you do not have one.

As for your white exhaust, is it just when you're starting from cold or is it constant? Ie: still highly visible even after driving around for 20 minutes? If it's just at the start, that's perfectly normal. If it's constant, however, then that does indicate something like a blown headgasket. If the exhaust smells a bit sweet (literally), that is a sure sign that coolant is being burned.

[Whip Cracker]

Quick question...

What engine is it?

[kezz1]

Hi Kezz,

Sounds like a head gasket, but make sure you get your radiator reconditioned or properly cleaned.

If you see my post under overheating Camry V6 you will see have had similar problems .

Thank goodness we might have solved mine will know this afternoon , the problem was even though we had the radiator cleaned while the engine was being rebuilt it got blocked again after 200k's because there was still some rubbish that hadn't flushed out from the previous flushing .

Also you might be just losing coolant through the overflow bottle as if the radiator is blocked the the cooling system just pushes it out through the bottle ....Which was happening to me , the car was fine at idle never got hot but after a couple of k's it would overheat.

But its a concern the in your words you have white exhaust smoke , So I would find another mechanic for starters and get them as the previous poster stated a gas test or a block test , also have a look at your oil is it clean or does it show signs of water in it ?

Cheers

Lozza

Thanks for reply. Didn't have an overheating problem. Just ran rough when it got to normal temp. Had few pin holes in radiator tank, so got new radiator + thermostat and had system flushed 5 days before coolant blew out oveflow. Haven't used car since, and the coolant has now drained into my oil. Two mechanics have said 99% of time head gone, not just gasket. Head coming off today so keeping my fingers crossed.

Hope your car is fixed now.

Ta for advice. Kezz

Edited December 3, 2008 by kezz1

[kezz1]

Quick question...

What engine is it?

A stuffed one!

Sorry, trying to keep a sense of humour. It's a 2.2 litre, other than that I don't know.

[kezz1]

If you check the oil dipstick and the oil is creamy or even has traces of white scunge, that's a sure sign of a blown headgasket.

Of course, those indicators not being there does not mean that you do not have one.

As for your white exhaust, is it just when you're starting from cold or is it constant? Ie: still highly visible even after driving around for 20 minutes? If it's just at the start, that's perfectly normal. If it's constant, however, then that does indicate something like a blown headgasket. If the exhaust smells a bit sweet (literally), that is a sure sign that coolant is being burned.

Haven't used car since, in case I do more damage. Coolant has all drained into oil now, and sump over full. Will find out extent of problem when head comes off today.

[Keisari]

A stuffed one!

Sorry, trying to keep a sense of humour. It's a 2.2 litre, other than that I don't know.

That would mean you have the 5S-FE (found in lots of Camrys and Celicas), generally considered to be a durable motor.

You mentioned that you burnt out some platinum plugs in under 20,000k. As long as you got the right ones, as you probably know they should last a lot longer than that. I'm not an expert but it seems that this might indicate your engine has been overheating for a while now. Head gaskets, no matter what engine it is, are sensitive to overheating. How many k's does it have?

A good mechanic will explain clearly to you your options for getting your car going again and the consequences of each approach. You might be able to score a 5S-FE off someone doing an engine transplant (if not, these go pretty cheaply anyway. Should be WELL under $1000, or a rebuilt one for around $1000, maybe a bit more). This might be a better option than replacing the head gasket, which will be expensive anyway, probably won't solve the cause of the problem and won't necessarily include damage done to even more critical components of the engine, like the bearings. You would, of course, want to make sure the one you're getting is in better condition.

Good luck kezz1, I know that spending large amounts of money with no results is frustrating and heartbreaking!