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Coolant loss help please

From the video I'd say that was normal for a car that you are just randomly revving. How hot did you let the engine get when you checked the expansion tank? Buy a new cap from Toyotas for a start and check the expansion pipe actually sits in water in the bottom of the expansion bottle and check the pipe doesn't have any holes in it. Also when you fill it up with water let the engine heat up with no rad cap on and run like this for a while to get all the air out and make sure the rad is always full to the top of the neck until you put the cap back on.

I ran the engine for a good 20-30 minutes with plenty of revving in between. I could only get the temp gauge to read just below half. There was an amber light on dash 'oil can with wiggly line under it' (very technical I am! haha). Definitely needs a good service and new oil, filter, air filter etc as well as wiping off all the rotting plums all over the body (was stuck under a plum tree!)

Sound promising and will def give it a go. Rad definitely new as far too shiny to be old! Rad cap has Japanese-esque writing on in but supposed could be a copy. It's been sat for months so not really reasonable to expect a clean exhaust pre-service I suppose.

I really do think this could be one of those simple cheap Eureka issues and throwing cash at it could be unnecessary. I'm tempted to rip the coolant system apart at the weekend. The fact that the heaters are blowing cold could mean something.....i hope!
 
Diesel engines, unlike petrol engines, generate relatively little heat when ticking over or even free revving without any load. Just letting it tick over it will never reach full operating temp which requires normal driving with some load on the engine. I had a similar heater issue a few years back with a V6 Sierra, engine at full operating temp but a cold heater. Turned out the cooling system was full of some leak stopping compound that blocked the heater pipes and matrix with a brown gelatinous crud. Had to disconnect the heater inlet pipe and flush it though with a garden hose to clear it out. After that the heater worked great but that's when the crack in one of the heads made itself known! Hope you don't have the same head problem but if someone has used leak stopper in the system it could have partially solidified in the heater matrix effectively blocking it.
 
Hi mate!

Plenty to get your teeth in to.

Heater is interesting, wonder if the stat has been removed?

Pete
 
Hey Pete, yup plenty! If you're ever passing my way don't be afraid to pop by. I'll be the one under the bonnet scratching my head surrounded by engine parts...haha.Tempted to tow it to the Team N pub meet tomorrow to see what they all say!
 
The fact that the heaters are blowing cold could mean something.....i hope!

I have a small embankment between my ground and the rest of the farm. When bleeding the heater I run the front of the truck up the banking, put the heater on full and then warm the engine up with the radiator cap off.

Keep topping up the rad as the level drops.

Check that the 'push-me-pull-you' wire from the heater control actually moves the arm on the simple plastic valve in the heater pipes on the bulkhead - its the shut-off valve :icon-wink:.


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As mentioned, the Rad Sealant the PO put in may have blocked the pipework.

I wouldn't be too frightened about removing the head (I've done three), its quite straightforward if you take your time and are very careful. Take loads of digital pics and always use new head bolts as they are 'stretch bolts'. There is a strict tightening procedure that is detailed in the manual, you will need a 14mm, long, six-point socket and a Power Bar.

Tighten the 18 head bolts in sequence to 29 ft/lbs.
Mark the bolt heads and tighten in sequence 90 degrees.
Tighten in sequence a second 90 degrees (this is where you will need the power bar!).

When replacing the head, put a new timing belt on, They last forever and have a 60,000 mile Service Interval but at £20(ish) its not worth taking a risk.

Haynes don't do a manual for this car, the nearest thing is the Max Ellery manual (available from the club shop?) which is Australian. Their Landcruisers are subtly different to ours so use with care.

Toyota Workshop Manual chapters can be downloaded from this site as well.

Keep digging away . . We are all behind you :lol:.

Bob.
 
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Haynes don't do a manual for this car, the nearest thing is the Max Ellery manual (available from the club shop?) which is Australian. Their Landcruisers are subtly different to ours so use with care.

They are upside down you mean? :lol:
 
Ok so quick update. Workshop manual, toyota red, oil, filters, genuine stat and a few other bits ordered from Roughtrax. I'm sure they should do a 95% first time order discount!

Got hold of a coolant system pressure testing kit. Pumped it up and held pressure. Also tested rad cap but got intermittent results but that could be me.

Checked heater matrix shut off valve moved when twiddling the dial. It did.

Disconnected a few coolant hoses and used pressure tester to prove no blockages through matrix itself. All seemed ok after some rusty looking coolant came out.

Ran engine with rad cap off. Looked like a pint of beer! Very frothy. Ran engine for a good while and most froth disappeared and got a few air bubbles out. Heater now blowing hot. Any ideas on the froth? Just small gaseous bubbles but could this be from an airlock, a product someone has chucked in earlier or a passing head gasket?

Turned engine off and popped head under bonnet and rad cap had hissing sound. Not sure if this is expansion in to expansion tank or no sealing properly. I would assume if system was under pressure and cap leaking then if leaking some coolant would be evident leaking out? Did sound air esque though. Maybe I should purchase a genuine rad cap as suggested by a previous helpful poster?

Didn't take the truck for a spin as out of tax and no insurance. Temp gauge however reached and did not pass just under 50%ish. Gave it some good revs and also held throttle at higher than idle. Appreciate this is not a pure test as it would under driving load but best I could do.

One interesting thing after today though was that the orange dash warning light with wiggly underlined oil can that was present yesterday and initially on first start up has now gone out. Not sure if this is a result of anything today and whether it is a step forward?

I'm assuming that no pressure loss on pressure test today means no leaks and could help rule out coolant loss through turbo? Cracked turbo housing or failed seals would have meant a pressure loss? Does this make sense?

I have access to a compression test kit in the next 3 or 4 days so my next check. I assume this will give a damn good indication of a gasket failure or cracked head? Ant tips on the process/test procedure?

Feedback appreciated on todays little test and the next move forward.

Cheers
 
Rad caps don't cost much, so worth trying
 
Be funny if it was all down to a £9 cap.....

Would be hilarious and I would gladly paste his response after I texted him and told him! Karma I think it's called!

Don't see how it would explain such a massive coolant loss though unless someone can enlighten me. May be he is just a compulsive liar and was never losing that much in the first place.

Compression check next is the way forward I think.
 
Sorry just read through the posts. its worth getting a genuine rad cap, i dont recall hearing any hissing from my cap. also the orange light coming up is the diesel filter telling you it has some water in the bottom you can drain it off but i would just change the filter when giving it a service after you have worked through the water loss. i hope it is an easy fix for you.
 
The orange light coming up is the diesel filter telling you it has some water in the bottom you can drain it off but i would just change the filter when giving it a service after you have worked through the water loss.

I was about to post that the orange oil can light is the motor telling you that the sump oil level is low. I have had that come on once :)oops:) but now I'm confused as I can't remember exactly what the low oil light symbol is (and I don't have the Toyota User Guide).

For completeness, would someone confirm what these two warning lights look like please? :thumbup:

Thanks.

Bob.
 
Reading the posts I too thought it was the oil level warning light.
 
One interesting thing after today though was that the orange dash warning light with wiggly underlined oil can that was present yesterday and initially on first start up has now gone out. Not sure if this is a result of anything today and whether it is a step forward?

So, your engine oil level was low.

You topped-up the radiator and bled the heater.

And now the engine oil isn't low any more . . . . . .

Oooo-Errr Missus :shock:.

I hope you haven't got water in the sump :oops:.

(Just joking - I hope :icon-wink: ).

Bob.
 
Would be hilarious and I would gladly paste his response after I texted him and told him! Karma I think it's called!

Don't see how it would explain such a massive coolant loss though unless someone can enlighten me. May be he is just a compulsive liar and was never losing that much in the first place.

Compression check next is the way forward I think.
I'd forget what it lost with the other bloke and concentrate on how much fluid it loses with you. If the oil level was low then you're not losing the water into the oil. Is there any white gunge in the neck of the rad which May indicate head gasket problems. You need to drive the thing and check yourself before chucking money at a problem that may not be there.
 
I'd forget what it lost with the other bloke and concentrate on how much fluid it loses with you. If the oil level was low then you're not losing the water into the oil. Is there any white gunge in the neck of the rad which May indicate head gasket problems. You need to drive the thing and check yourself before chucking money at a problem that may not be there.

Thanks Tim. I think that is a valid point. I put a new genuine rad cap on today as others have suggested. Might just give it a good service and put in some proper fluids and see I how I go.

I got the cap from a main dealer but the one they gave me against the reg number didn't actually fit as it was too big. It's obviously an aftermarket replacement rad and cap. I took it back and the one that fitted in the end was for an Avensis D4D. Looking at the rad that is installed at the moment, it looks the business but looking closer at it the cooling coils and fins only fill about 75-80% of the metal frame. The plastic cowling behind the frame has the ability to go back towards the block quite a bit without fouling anything and the fan blades have stacks of room before they even get close to the cooling fins. Are these cheap rads so cheap because they are inferior quality workmanship wise of that they are scrimping on the coils/fins? I'm going to try and find out the actual dimensions of a genuine part and compare it with the one installed.

Would a smaller cap indicate a smaller rad or is it a possibility that the previous guy ordered a rad for an auto and not a manual? Again I may have made this up or read it somewhere but I think the rads for the auto and manual are different?

I was hoping to do a few more bits this evening but today I watched my order from Roughtrax arrive and then swiftly leave as the DPD courier thought he could get away with pulling up outside, sitting there for a bit, taking a photo of the building then leaving. I got an undeliverable text 2 minutes later. Trouble is I work in a building with more high res CCTV cameras than Fort Knoxx and I watched it all play out as I was awaiting his arrival! It was raining though so attempting to actually make the delivery vs staying dry is perfectly understandable I suppose!
 
Can you show us a picture or two of the rad? It may be too small for the car, an Avensis wont weigh as much as an LC so that may be part of the problem.
After checking a few sites the D4D rad is totally different to the 1kze so I'm surprised it even fits properly.
 
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When I put a new radiator (from Milners) into my '95', the cap from the old Toyota rad wouldn't fit the pattern one from Milners - although the two radiators looked the same.

However, as I hinted in my first post on this topic, there are 'Radiators' and 'good Radiators' :icon-rolleyes:.

I don't believe that the problem is in the radiator as that usually results in obvious overheating and a hot bath for the engine bay. You are not getting that, just an enigmatic fluid loss with no sign of where it went.

When the car is back on the road and everything has been checked with all cooling /heating systems bled I suggest you take it out for a good run (with 10 litres of spare coolant in the back) and see if you can get it to overheat or lose its coolant in any other way.

If it really is losing it, it has to be going somewhere :?.

Bob.
 
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