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TOYOTA LAND CRUISER 80'S SERIES TERBO DESIL OVERHEATED 1995
| Date: | March 18, 2012, 2:20 pm |
| Name, Location: | MARK OCONNOR NO FIXED ADDRESS AUSTRALIA |
| Vehicle: | Toyota Land Cruiser Prado |
| Year: | 1995 |
| General comments: | I recently purchased a 1995 80's series Toyota Land Cruiser which had 200 clicks on the clock. While I realized it may encounter some mechanical maintenance I didn�t expect it to over heat after its 200k Toyota scheduled service, which was carried out by a reputable RACV garage. I drove it 1,500k and on a steep hill in humid conditions it over heated. Rather than risk cracking the head I did all the right things allowed it to cool, added water to the radiator while it was running and carefully drove to the NRMA Coonabarabran. First they told me it was the thermostat, �don�t worry we will test drive it AM and you will be on your way.� It overheated. Next they told me it was the radiator cap, it overheated, next they talked me into new radiator, I kept sneaking into the garage behind the principles back and the chief mechanic said the old radiator was OK but the new one would prevent it from overheating. I was becoming suspicious of these people but being NRAM I decided i could trust their judgment even if their stories didn�t quite stack up. �Mister O'Conner� they said: we would like to remove the head and have it stress tested the result will take 2 to 3 days, incase it is the head we will order a new head and if it is visibly cracked we will have it on hand to exchange it. Please give us $3,500.00 in good faith as a deposit on the work that will be carried out �if necessary.� By this stage I was beyond being stressed and spent my days driving around in a hire car complements of RACV Extra Care cover. (The hire car was owned by the garage that was doing all the work on my vehicle, but we wont go there.) Day 5 "Mister O'Connor we have installed the new head and replaced the water pump (incase that was the problem) we have test driven the vehicle and you are right to go." Almost $6,000.00 later I settled the account and was on my way. I knew deep down they hadn't diagnosed the problem but being desperate and having just spent under $6k I convinced my self all was well. They told me to have the hoses checked after 1,500 k which I did in Townsville at Toyota. All seemed good the on the 1.500k drive with the new head new radiator new thermostat and new water pump. The temperature had shot up on 2 occasions but only briefly and it went back down, After a few days in Townsville, we headed for Darwin via Charters Towers. Driving through the ranges and starting to clime to high altitudes the cruiser boiled. We pulled over called RACV and this time we were hauled to RACQ in Charters Towers. The same routine was presented, pressure testing followed by flushing and a $98.00 test drive the following day. Mr O'Connor your vehicle is OK to go... but there could be a problem with the Viscouse Fan. For those of you, including me up until now who didn�t know how a viscose fan works here�s my take; the fan at the front of the radiator spins freely until the vehicle reaches a high temperature. Once this occurs the viscose oil boils, releases a valve which engages a fan drive which locks in and the fan works in a fixed high gear which cools the motor. I gave up on these road side assist garages and had this problem diagnosed over the phone by the Toyota dealer in Townsville who carried out the work at their regional outlet in Charters Towers. Had the vehicle been heated to a high temperature and the fan tested for viscose engagement I would have saved the replacement of the Radiator, the water pump, the head and the thermostat. My advice to all travelers driving a Land Cruiser is to only deal with Toyota Mechanics as they have a network of professional mechanics who trouble shoot with one another in order to diagnose over heating problems. Playing hit and miss with peoples valuable time and money is not what you would expect from Accredited Road Side Assist garages. Always consult another garage preferably one that represents the brand of your vehicle even if you think it may cost you more money because in the long run you will save your holiday and your hard earned cash. Special thanks to RACV for all their help along the way. Mark |
| What things have gone wrong with the car: | I recently purchased a 1995 80's series Toyota Land Cruiser which had 200 clicks on the clock. While I realized it may encounter some mechanical maintenance I didn�t expect it to over heat after its 200k Toyota scheduled service, which was carried out by a reputable RACV garage. I drove it 1,500k and on a steep hill in humid conditions it over heated. Rather than risk cracking the head I did all the right things allowed it to cool, added water to the radiator while it was running and carefully drove to the NRMA Coonabarabran. First they told me it was the thermostat, �don�t worry we will test drive it AM and you will be on your way.� It overheated. Next they told me it was the radiator cap, it overheated, next they talked me into new radiator, I kept sneaking into the garage behind the principles back and the chief mechanic said the old radiator was OK but the new one would prevent it from overheating. I was becoming suspicious of these people but being NRAM I decided i could trust their judgment even if their stories didn�t quite stack up. �Mister O'Conner� they said: we would like to remove the head and have it stress tested the result will take 2 to 3 days, incase it is the head we will order a new head and if it is visibly cracked we will have it on hand to exchange it. Please give us $3,500.00 in good faith as a deposit on the work that will be carried out �if necessary.� By this stage I was beyond being stressed and spent my days driving around in a hire car complements of RACV Extra Care cover. (The hire car was owned by the garage that was doing all the work on my vehicle, but we wont go there.) Day 5 "Mister O'Connor we have installed the new head and replaced the water pump (incase that was the problem) we have test driven the vehicle and you are right to go." Almost $6,000.00 later I settled the account and was on my way. I knew deep down they hadn't diagnosed the problem but being desperate and having just spent under $6k I convinced my self all was well. They told me to have the hoses checked after 1,500 k which I did in Townsville at Toyota. All seemed good the on the 1.500k drive with the new head new radiator new thermostat and new water pump. The temperature had shot up on 2 occasions but only briefly and it went back down, After a few days in Townsville, we headed for Darwin via Charters Towers. Driving through the ranges and starting to clime to high altitudes the cruiser boiled. We pulled over called RACV and this time we were hauled to RACQ in Charters Towers. The same routine was presented, pressure testing followed by flushing and a $98.00 test drive the following day. Mr O'Connor your vehicle is OK to go... but there could be a problem with the Viscouse Fan. For those of you, including me up until now who didn�t know how a viscose fan works here�s my take; the fan at the front of the radiator spins freely until the vehicle reaches a high temperature. Once this occurs the viscose oil boils, releases a valve which engages a fan drive which locks in and the fan works in a fixed high gear which cools the motor. I gave up on these road side assist garages and had this problem diagnosed over the phone by the Toyota dealer in Townsville who carried out the work at their regional outlet in Charters Towers. Had the vehicle been heated to a high temperature and the fan tested for viscose engagement I would have saved the replacement of the Radiator, the water pump, the head and the thermostat. My advice to all travelers driving a Land Cruiser is to only deal with Toyota Mechanics as they have a network of professional mechanics who trouble shoot with one another in order to diagnose over heating problems. Playing hit and miss with peoples valuable time and money is not what you would expect from Accredited Road Side Assist garages. Always consult another garage preferably one that represents the brand of your vehicle even if you think it may cost you more money because in the long run you will save your holiday and your hard earned cash. Special thanks to RACV for all their help along the way. Mark |