My truck has 155,000 miles on it and I don't know if the headgasket has been replaced or not. It doesn't run hot or smoke or anything and it runs just like the day I bought it 7 months ago but recently over the past couple of weeks I've been losing coolant. I've been putting in about 12 oz or so every morning for the past week. I usually only drive about 50 miles round trip a day to school. I can't see any leaks anywhere. I'm hoping it's the water bypass hose, could anyone tell me where the hose is? By the way it's a 3vze Thanks in advance for any responses.

 

Does the oil look like a milkshake? If it does the HG is done...

Thats where my brother missing coolant kept going

 

Start saving for a head gasket. Mine did this for over a year. finally I got so use to feeling every couple days when it came summer time again, I started to over heat. Never in the red just above average temp. Have the coolant to tested for exhaust gases that will tell you right away. I had mine changed at 158,000. It was not covered under the recall either. I had a compression test done and it passed with flying colors. Just keep an eye on the coolant level and start saving because sooner our later it will happen.

edit* my coolant was not leaking into the oil either, this is a quick and easy check. I would do this first, my lealy head gasket was a pin hole into one of the cylinders and burnt it off. durning the summer no smoke. come a humid winter morning or night looked like a smoke screen.

 

There's no milkshake, the temp gauge doesn't move at all but I have a feeling it's the headgasket. Is it okay to drive it like this until it totally goes?

 

not sure if is the best, but I drove mine for a while. It got worse with time finally every other day I was putting in about half a gallon and I was driving about 30 miles a day.

Disclaimer- I was not aware of the Head Gasket issue and I'm not a mechanic. I would have the coolant tested for exhuast gases ASAP and if it is the Head gasket try to get that done ASAP. I think if it completely goes you can bend a rod. I sure someone will chime in on this though.

 

Well I don't have the money for it now anyways so I'm going to drive it as little as possible until I get my student loans in another month or so. I'll keep you guys posted. Luckily, my girlfriends cousin is a toyota tech and he's already told me he'll do any work on it for 25 bucks an hour.

 

sounds like a heater hose on the bypass distubution block on the VERY back of the motor. youll have to almost climb up ontop of the motor and look at the very back almost touching the firewall.

 

I haven't noticed any leaks, is it one of the smaller hoses back there, I climbed up on my engine but I couldn't see it

 

hopefully it is the heater hose, I wish mine would have been

 

With my less than average luck it won't be the heater hose

 

Snap on had told me look for green build up, the hose is almost impossible to see. Hopefully it will be the hose. But tat is not murpheys law. Mine smoked like a chimney before I had the HG redone. But at first start up just a little smoke and and water out of the tail pipe look fo r those signs. Very well could be the heater hose good luck

 

Mine doesn't seem to smoke at all, not more than normal anyways, I'm going to check and see if I can find some green build up, what side of the engine is it on?

 

Good question not sure shoot snap on a PM

 

I couldn't see any green build or any visible leaks. I'm still losing a little coolant, not much though. I'm hoping it might just be the water pump as my engine seems to run pretty well for an old 3vze.