flushing coolant.

[Whip Cracker]

Yeah mate, if there's a problem, you'd better just fix it... obviously it's getting worse... it'll get so bad that you'll screw the engine from it being too hot.

It could be a water pump problem, who knows... maybe even the heads, which I hope it's not. I'd be getting it to the radiator dude asap or at least your mechanic... sure, you'll probably have to pay a small fee for him to tell you the issue, but at least you'll know what the problem is and your car will keep going.

[Agent001]

Yeah mate, if there's a problem, you'd better just fix it... obviously it's getting worse... it'll get so bad that you'll screw the engine from it being too hot.

It could be a water pump problem, who knows... maybe even the heads, which I hope it's not. I'd be getting it to the radiator dude asap or at least your mechanic... sure, you'll probably have to pay a small fee for him to tell you the issue, but at least you'll know what the problem is and your car will keep going.

well, the verdict is back. i took it to a radiator garage, ran a few tests. came back that there is a small leak in the head gasket . can be fixed with some kind of liquid seal. they charge $150 to fix. or u can DIY by buying the seal for $15, flushing out all the coolant and filling it with water, put the liquid seal in, drive it for a day, flush to radiator and fill it back with coolant. if u dont doo it properly, u end up with all of this gel at the bottom of the radiator.

but he also said its fine not to fix it and to just top it up with coolant every few days.

i'll stick to the no cost option for the time being coz i am reluctant to spend money on an old car. although it is still very reliable (apart from overheating) and cheap transport.

[Whip Cracker]

Might be worth trying the $150 option though... over a period of time, you'll start to use more coolant as it gets worse (or if it gets worse). When you start spending 40 bucks on a bottle of coolant, topping once to twice a week, you might start spending average 20 bucks a month on coolant.

[Guest]

that liquid head sealant is pretty dodgy... i would get it fixed properly if i were you. (replace head gasket)

or, if you dont care too much about the car, just DIY it... its not hard to flush coolant...

[Agent001]

that liquid head sealant is pretty dodgy... i would get it fixed properly if i were you. (replace head gasket)

or, if you dont care too much about the car, just DIY it... its not hard to flush coolant...

its an old car, so dont wanna spend too much money on it. $150 is the cost for the mechanic to use that liquid head sealant, or DIY for about $15.

to get it done properly by replacing the head gasket or something, the quote was $800.

there is still 9 months rego left on the car. maybe i'll drive it around for another 8 more months and then just sell the car and get a new one. its served our family well for 20 years. shame it will have to go due to one problem.

i'll keep on topping up with coolant. i use tectaloy extra cool gold which is $20 for 1 litre, which makes 15 litres once diluted. i'll see how that goes over the near future and will keep u guys posted.

cheers

[Agent001]

that liquid head sealant is pretty dodgy... i would get it fixed properly if i were you. (replace head gasket)

or, if you dont care too much about the car, just DIY it... its not hard to flush coolant...

its an old car, so dont wanna spend too much money on it. $150 is the cost for the mechanic to use that liquid head sealant, or DIY for about $15.

to get it done properly by replacing the head gasket or something, the quote was $800.

there is still 9 months rego left on the car. maybe i'll drive it around for another 8 more months and then just sell the car and get a new one. its served our family well for 20 years. shame it will have to go due to one problem.

i'll keep on topping up with coolant. i use tectaloy extra cool gold which is $20 for 1 litre, which makes 15 litres once diluted. i'll see how that goes over the near future and will keep u guys posted.

cheers

hi guys,

i have been checking my coolant levels more frequently. the coolant level in the radiator is still full over the past 2 weeks. its a different story for the overflow tank. i have topped it up twice too full, and after 1 week, it goes to the midpoint between low and full. anyone have any ideas where the coolant fluid is going. i have been putting a tray under the car where the overflow tank is, however no liquid is collecting in there.

any help appreciated.

cheers

[redracer]

Just a thought are you checking the levels when the car is hot or cold. When the engines warm the level in the overflow rises and when it cools down the level drops...but if you keep topping it off when the engines either warm or cold then I don't have a clue..

[Whip Cracker]

When the engine's COLD, make sure the coolant reservoir is at the full line.

When the engine's at operating temp, it will only be around 1/2 way or thereabouts... don't top it up if this happens... once it starts to cool down, you'll see it overflow.

What I'd do:

Wait til the engine is cold as ice... fill up the reservoir, remove the filler cap where you fill the coolant up and fill that nearly to the brim. Start the car and keep an eye on the coolant level... it'll start to gradually decrease. As it decreases, start topping it up, wait til ALL the bubbles disappear (that goes for even the most minute bubbles) this can take 15-30 mins at idle.

Now, for the head gasket... 800 bucks is actually a good price. I'm guessing this is a 5SFE? I know that getting my 3VZ done I'd be looking over 1k easily... a good 12-15 hours work, plus parts.

[redracer]

When the engine's COLD, make sure the coolant reservoir is at the full line.

When the engine's at operating temp, it will only be around 1/2 way or thereabouts... don't top it up if this happens... once it starts to cool down, you'll see it overflow.

What I'd do:

Wait til the engine is cold as ice... fill up the reservoir, remove the filler cap where you fill the coolant up and fill that nearly to the brim. Start the car and keep an eye on the coolant level... it'll start to gradually decrease. As it decreases, start topping it up, wait til ALL the bubbles disappear (that goes for even the most minute bubbles) this can take 15-30 mins at idle.

Now, for the head gasket... 800 bucks is actually a good price. I'm guessing this is a 5SFE? I know that getting my 3VZ done I'd be looking over 1k easily... a good 12-15 hours work, plus parts.

ok now I'm slightly confused. Before I set off this arvo I checked the coolant levels and it sat just above the half way line and when I got home checked again and it was right at the full mark. When a car overhears doesn't the coolant expand that much that it flows out of the overflow. And if that's so if you were 2 fill the coolant to full when cool wouldn't it expand so much that it'd flow out once it warmed up....maybe I've stuffed up somehow and if so my bad.. :P

[Whip Cracker]

That's true, it does expand when it takes the extra heat from the car's cooling system... but I can't say that this is the same for my car! It'll spit the coolant out if there's no pressure on any of the caps though... and yup, burns too :P lol

[mbruce]

Yeah your right redracer, as the engine warms up the coolant expands, consequently it flows into the overflow tank, then once the engines is turned off and starts to cool it will start to pull coolant back into the radiator. Hence the full line on the overflow is only about half.

[Agent001]

When the engine's COLD, make sure the coolant reservoir is at the full line.

When the engine's at operating temp, it will only be around 1/2 way or thereabouts... don't top it up if this happens... once it starts to cool down, you'll see it overflow.

What I'd do:

Wait til the engine is cold as ice... fill up the reservoir, remove the filler cap where you fill the coolant up and fill that nearly to the brim. Start the car and keep an eye on the coolant level... it'll start to gradually decrease. As it decreases, start topping it up, wait til ALL the bubbles disappear (that goes for even the most minute bubbles) this can take 15-30 mins at idle.

Now, for the head gasket... 800 bucks is actually a good price. I'm guessing this is a 5SFE? I know that getting my 3VZ done I'd be looking over 1k easily... a good 12-15 hours work, plus parts.

hi all,

i have been checking the levels in the morning b4 i go to work, so the engine is cold and the the overflow tank levels are dropping noticibly weekly. the only leak i know of is in the engine which the radiator garage told me, said its leaking into the head gasket.

the engine i have is the 2 litre efi engine in the camry sv21 with 225000km on the clock. but $800 to repair is not economically viable for a 20 year old car. but still cheaper than buying a new car, although u never know what problems the car will throw up next

[Whip Cracker]

225k on the clock is only half it's lifetime. I seen these engines with over 500k on the clock and working without any problems. As long as you service it when it should and fix problems as they arise, there's no reason not to fix the HG. If I blew my HG, then I'd be mega ****** off... much more costly than just $800.

[Agent001]

225k on the clock is only half it's lifetime. I seen these engines with over 500k on the clock and working without any problems. As long as you service it when it should and fix problems as they arise, there's no reason not to fix the HG. If I blew my HG, then I'd be mega ****** off... much more costly than just $800.

yeah, the engine still runs pretty good for a 20 year old car. whenever i drive ppl in it, they always comment on how smooth and quiet the engine is, esp for an old car. they say' ur cars pretty old, but still runs pretty good'

sometimes i hear the engine of other 20 year old camrys, but they are a lot rougher sounding.

i'm still impressed that the car is still running. we never thought we would keep it this long

[Whip Cracker]

Ok... for starters, it's a Camry. The 5SFEs are said to be one of the most sophisticated engines of it's time. They're one of the most reliable too...

If you look after it, it'll look after you. If I had that car, I'd be fixing the HG without any further questions. It's either that or replace the engine. I mean, you can sell it off, it just means you're handing the burden over to someone else.

[Agent001]

Ok... for starters, it's a Camry. The 5SFEs are said to be one of the most sophisticated engines of it's time. They're one of the most reliable too...

If you look after it, it'll look after you. If I had that car, I'd be fixing the HG without any further questions. It's either that or replace the engine. I mean, you can sell it off, it just means you're handing the burden over to someone else.

to update u all on my 1988 sv21 camry, i had a nose to tail accident in peak hour traffic on the freeway last week. they just resufaced the road and it was still a bit wet, car in front stopped, couldnt stop in time so i hit the back of the car.

so i got a few quotes, cost nearly as much to repair as the insurance value was, so it was written off as a repairable write off. they said i could keep the car and have a smaller payout which i chose. coz if they keep the car, i dont get the balance of rego or insurance back, and there is 6 months of rego still left. i was hoping to do some basic repairs myself and reinsure the car and keep on driving it as cheap transport. turns out, i couldnt and to reinsure it, i have to get it repaired, then get a RWC, and the get QLD transport to certify its ok , so overall its not viable. so now if i want to keep it and drive it, it will be uninsured which i am not willing to do. so i am going to cash in the rego, and put it up for sale. the car is in pretty good nick except for a few things here and there, eg leaking coolant. but the seats inside are as new since they have had seat covers on it all its life, and the engine is still quiet. its sad to see it go since it has been in our family since new.

anyone have any ideas what the car would be worth if i sell it. any suggestions on how i should sell it eg carsales.com.au at a cost of $50. or should i send it to auction, or sell it to wreckers, or a panel beater or mechanic.

above is the pic of the damage done to it. nothing major and the car is still drivable. would like to keep the car if i could. if u have any suggestions on how i could keep it but still have it insured, that would be great