ebne0018

I have a 2000 ES200 with 230K miles. It recently started overheating but it doesn't display any signs of leaking coolant even though I am sure it is consuming coolant. I posted a while back and I got many many good suggestions. Here is what I have tried:

1. Get a pressure test kit. I got a loaner kit from an autoparts store and pumped up the car to the right pressure. it did drop a little over 30 minutes, but I am not confident the tester was working properly. it seemed if I touched it wrong while it had pressure on it the pressure would drop.

2. change radiator cap and thermostat. Both of these were done and didn't seem to change anything

3. Do a combustion gas leak test. I bought one of the kits where you put the blue fluid in the tube and pull air from the coolant system into the tester. the problem was I could never get a good test because once the car got to operating temp it was shooting coolant out of the radiator cap like crazy, even after I drained a gallon of coolant out of the system.

4. pull the spark plugs and check for coolant. I did this on the front three and they were clean. the back 3 are pretty hard to get to so I left them alone.



Here is my question, on some cars a gyser of coolant out of the radiator cap is a good sign the head gasket is blown. is this true with lexus?

thanks

LeX2K

It might be as simple as a clogged radiator. Do the radiator fans work? To answer your question, a blown head gasket will produce your symptoms, but so will a cooling system that is not doing the job because the coolant is boiling.

BTW the 1MZ-FE engine is not known for headgasket problems.

BradTank

I hate to say it, but it sounds like a head gasket to me, especially since it's consuming coolant in addition to running hot. Are you sure there are no leaks? Check the water pump and hose connections carefully.

Does white smoke come out of the exhaust even after it's warmed up? Does the exhaust smell "sweet" like maple syrup? Check the oil, does it look like a milk shake?

I would try the head gasket test kit again, otherwise, take it to a trusted mechanic and let them diagnose.

At 230k miles, it wouldn't surprise me in the least though that it's a head gasket.

ebne0018

thanks for the reply guys. it looks like it is the head gasket. I gave the combustion gas test one more try and this time it turned from blue to yellow the moment the car got warm enough for the thermostat to open.

now I just need to decide if it's worth fixing!

thanks