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Bonjean Newbie
Joined: 08 Dec 2007 Posts: 5 Location: Lancashire UK
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 19:54 Post subject: losing water from a 97 3litre auto diesel colorado |
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Bought my Land Cruiser 5 weeks ago and the dealer told me it had a brand new head, however within a weeks driving heating stopped working and had to top up the Rad with a pint of water.
Its now been back and forth from the dealer/mechanic 4 times, and has had a new thermostat, rad cap, the rad (date stamped 2005) has been taken off and tested, the water pump has been checked, its been chemical tested and now the mechanic is scratching his head. He tells me he thinks the head looks new. he cant find any leaks.
Now, I have just run the engine for about 4 hours and after the engine had cooled, the expansion bottle is full to the brim and theres no water at the top of the rad. I was worried about driving it back in that state so topped up the rad with a pint of water before it started showing at the top of the rad (about the same amount that seems to have found its way into the expansion bottle).
Could it be a blocked expansion bottle? anyone else had a similar problem? |
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 19:54 Post subject: Google Ads keep this community free to join! |
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joinerman *******
Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 2200 Location: Here & there
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 20:42 Post subject: |
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What year is it and is it auto?
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joinerman *******
Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 2200 Location: Here & there
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 20:45 Post subject: |
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Sorry i should learn to read the titles. it's a 97
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joinerman *******
Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 2200 Location: Here & there
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 20:50 Post subject: |
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Check your auto transmission fluid for signs of water, the fluid is cooled in a seperate part of the radiator at the bottom, it's not uncommon for the rad to fail between the two compartments & let water mix in with the tranny fluid & that's big trouble for the box
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Bonjean Newbie
Joined: 08 Dec 2007 Posts: 5 Location: Lancashire UK
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 21:39 Post subject: |
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The rad has been tested, would this probem have shown up? |
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joinerman *******
Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 2200 Location: Here & there
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Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 21:54 Post subject: |
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Do you know how they tested it?, also it should have the toyota red coolant in the system not water.
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Bonjean Newbie
Joined: 08 Dec 2007 Posts: 5 Location: Lancashire UK
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Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 10:02 Post subject: |
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It was sent off to a special radiator testing place, I think they pressure test it, and also immmerse it in a tank of water and look for bubbles, i'm not entirely sure though.
if it was this problem, why would the water build up in the expansion tank? is this water not normally fed back into the rad? |
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joinerman *******
Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 2200 Location: Here & there
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Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 11:08 Post subject: |
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Sounds to me like you have a head gasket gone then.
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regthing Lifetime member
Joined: 24 Dec 2007 Posts: 551 Location: Dunoon, Scotland
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Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2007 14:58 Post subject: |
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Hello.
I'd go for the head gasket as well. I had a similar problem with my Honda Accord.
Exhaust gas was being blown into the coolant system and forcing coolant out if the expansion tank.
Check for leaks around the expansion tank lid, there may not be any depending on how good the fit is. Also give the hoses a squeeze, you should feel a slight pressure when up to temp but they shouldn't be nearly solid.
You can also buy chemical sniffer kits that check for hydrocarbons in the coolant (the garage should be able to run this check!!) |
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DaveB *
Joined: 01 Mar 2005 Posts: 24
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 10:21 Post subject: |
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Yeah cylinder head or head gasket failure written all over it.
The head has to come off and be checked by a specialist for cracks and then it will need skimming and a new head gasket set.
A decent garage will have a sniffer that they can stick in to the expansion tank and it will pick up on carbon monoxide a sure sign of head problems.
I think deep down the dealer will know what the problem is.
good luck |
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slaupster Newbie
Joined: 01 Jun 2007 Posts: 9
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Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2007 12:19 Post subject: |
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I've had a similar issue with my LJ78 and it was down to dodgy rad cap. The one I had orignially was orig toyota and after a drive I would find the overflow full and the rad empty at the top - the rubber seals were quite worn after 17 years! I got a new rad cap from a reputable South African equivalent of Halfords and this made the problem worse - I reckon that the spring was too soft and too much water exited into the overflow and actually overflowed the overflow if that makes sense! When I came back to it, the overflow was empty and the rad was nearly empty, in other words, the seal was working ok and the pressure was sucking water back in to the rad, but as too much was exiting under pressue I was losing coolant.
Anyway, cutting long story short, the 32 pound rad cap from toyota fixed the problem and I've thrown the 5 pound rad cap away... |
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roscoFJ73 *******
Joined: 17 Dec 2003 Posts: 1212 Location: western australia
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Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2008 1:55 Post subject: |
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slaupster wrote: |
I've had a similar issue with my LJ78 and it was down to dodgy rad cap. The one I had orignially was orig toyota and after a drive I would find the overflow full and the rad empty at the top - the rubber seals were quite worn after 17 years! I got a new rad cap from a reputable South African equivalent of Halfords and this made the problem worse - I reckon that the spring was too soft and too much water exited into the overflow and actually overflowed the overflow if that makes sense! When I came back to it, the overflow was empty and the rad was nearly empty, in other words, the seal was working ok and the pressure was sucking water back in to the rad, but as too much was exiting under pressue I was losing coolant.
Anyway, cutting long story short, the 32 pound rad cap from toyota fixed the problem and I've thrown the 5 pound rad cap away... |
x2 The rad cap is always the 1st thing to replace when I have coolant issues Replace it with a good quality type.
It often fixes or improves the situation and takes one (inexpensive) thing out of the equation.
If it has new head ,its had cooling troubles before and therefore the cap may have taken some wear and tear at full pressure _________________ 1995 HZJ75 troop carrier
1988 FJ73 with 1HZ diesel conversion.
1995 HZJ75 cab chassis
Holden Commodore V6
YAMAHA TT600R Belgarda
Triumph Rocket3 08 with Jardines and Tuneboy
Honda XR650L
1988 HJ61 turbo diesel with windas that slide |
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