2013 LX coolant disappears (34 Viewers)

[bloc]

You can save some time and trouble by removing the four throttle body mount bolts and leaving the unit mostly in place while you lift the manifold. That way you don’t need to loosen the coolant lines that go to it.

 

[LC CT]

Manifold off, coolant spotted in the front section under the manifold, valley plate leak?

 

[bloc]

Manifold off, coolant spotted in the front section under the manifold, valley plate leak?

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Definitely a small valley plate leak, and they are often in that specific corner.

When you clean up the mouse nest inspect the wiring there for any chewing. That is a small, relatively cheap sub-harness for the knock sensors and easily replaced when you have the manifold off again.

 

[LC CT]

Definitely a small valley plate leak, and they are often in that specific corner.

When you clean up the mouse nest inspect the wiring there for any chewing. That is a small, relatively cheap sub-harness for the knock sensors and easily replaced when you have the manifold off again.

Going to pull out the vacuum and assess, now I’m debating put it back together and pay a shop to do it or tackle this myself. Do I really want to torture myself with this job? Lol

 

[94SRUNNER]

Going to pull out the vacuum and assess, now I’m debating put it back together and pay a shop to do it or tackle this myself. Do I really want to torture myself with this job? Lol

You already have it this far apart! Dive in.

 

[LC CT]

You already have it this far apart! Dive in.

I appreciate the support lol I put it back together and am going to see how I feel. The intake manifold removal isn’t terribly bad. So I can get that on and off in like 45 mins. The next part of the job is a little intimidating. It’s also peak summer heat and I don’t have a garage I can work in. Luckily we have a third vehicle. This is my wife’s vehicle. But it does have the front timing oil seeping too. It’s. 13 LX, zero rust. I flew down to FL to get it 3 years ago. I mean zero rust. Only 93,000 miles. I’m just in the predicament of do I want to keep doing these large jobs on this vehicle? I’m at a large loss if I was to trade in the car, somehwre around $20k depreciation in 3 years I bought it in 2022 when things were insanely expensive. That’s on me I suppose. Other vehicle is a 2022 4Runner and then a cheap old Subaru. Do I fox this and then hope the HG issue doesn’t pop up? Or trade this in for a new 4Runner and have a warranty for 5 years. I used to enjoy working on cars and now fixing them just is a chore. There is a dealership locally that does lifetime power train warranty on new vehicles purchased from them. Sounds crazy but I would pull the trigger there and just keep the next vehicle til I die lol. Sorry for the rant just trying to make a plan after fighting the 90 degree sun.

 

[Mingus Dew]

Sorry man. s***ty thing to deal with.

FWIW, this is such a known issue with this engine there are many posts on here detailing cost to have it fixed by a pro. It's a really common job. Seems like it shouldn't be more than $1000 - $2000, which is of course good money but not necessarily "screw this I'm buying a new car" territory (in my opinion, YMMV). Especially for an LX with less than 100,000 miles on it.

Depreciation sucks but nothing you can do about it. My view is that if you enjoy the car then the depreciation doesn't really matter - just a cost of your happiness. Market fluctuates too wildly too often to worry about it much (unless you are financially dependent on the car not depreciating, in which case you shouldn't buy it).

 

[LC CT]

Sorry man. s***ty thing to deal with.

FWIW, this is such a known issue with this engine there are many posts on here detailing cost to have it fixed by a pro. It's a really common job. Seems like it shouldn't be more than $1000 - $2000, which is of course good money but not necessarily "screw this I'm buying a new car" territory (in my opinion, YMMV). Especially for an LX with less than 100,000 miles on it.

Depreciation sucks but nothing you can do about it. My view is that if you enjoy the car then the depreciation doesn't really matter - just a cost of your happiness. Market fluctuates too wildly too often to worry about it much (unless you are financially dependent on the car not depreciating, in which case you shouldn't buy it).

Yea I’m getting quotes of $2000-$2600. I’m also at the f it I’ll just fix it myself too lol.
Yea it just took a much bigger hit then I whould have hoped for. My main concern is fixing this and then having the headgasket issue pop up In a year or so then be really pissed. We do like the vehicle and it suits our needs well with traveling. We have one big dog and 2 small ones so once that’s all packed up in the 4Runner we don’t have much room otherwise. lX is a much nicer car all around. Have a deposit on a new 4Runner to just see it and test drive it. That’s the only way you can see one which is nuts as they just sell immediately around here. I’m sure it’ll be a huge downgrade compared to the LX.

 

[Mingus Dew]

Yea I’m getting quotes of $2000-$2600. I’m also at the f it I’ll just fix it myself too lol.
Yea it just took a much bigger hit then I whould have hoped for. My main concern is fixing this and then having the headgasket issue pop up In a year or so then be really pissed. We do like the vehicle and it suits our needs well with traveling. We have one big dog and 2 small ones so once that’s all packed up in the 4Runner we don’t have much room otherwise. lX is a much nicer car all around. Have a deposit on a new 4Runner to just see it and test drive it. That’s the only way you can see one which is nuts as they just sell immediately around here. I’m sure it’ll be a huge downgrade compared to the LX.

It is such a great platform there's not really much like it in the current car market. Which is why the used ones sell for what they do I guess. If you can fix it yourself then that seems like a slam dunk option (I am jealous). May want to look into this as well:

J2Hundy Valley Guard Package – The Complete Fix for Engine Valley Leaks - https://j2hundy.com/products/j2hundy-valley-guard-package-the-complete-fix-for-engine-valley-leaks

I don't think that valley plate leak = head gasket issue as a matter of course. We'd be seeing way more head gaskets if that were the case given how prevalent the valley plate leak is.

That said, I'm not sure if there is a fool proof way to determine if you are "at risk" of a head gasket issue down the line. More seasoned vets will need to speak to that.

Do what is best for you and your family. The new 4Runner looks like a very cool car in its own right, it's just gotten so expensive and yes, I think it will be an overall downgrade from the LX. Interested to know how it drives once you get a chance to test one.

 

[rexington14]

Yea I’m getting quotes of $2000-$2600. I’m also at the f it I’ll just fix it myself too lol.
Yea it just took a much bigger hit then I whould have hoped for. My main concern is fixing this and then having the headgasket issue pop up In a year or so then be really pissed.

There is certainly some risk there. But no one can tell you if you are going to have a head gasket issue down the line. If the head gasket does become a problem it will eventually declare itself.

All you know right now is that the valley plate is leaking - and unfortunately that is just par for the course with owning one of these. Get it fixed.

 

[LC CT]

It is such a great platform there's not really much like it in the current car market. Which is why the used ones sell for what they do I guess. If you can fix it yourself then that seems like a slam dunk option (I am jealous). May want to look into this as well:

J2Hundy Valley Guard Package – The Complete Fix for Engine Valley Leaks - https://j2hundy.com/products/j2hundy-valley-guard-package-the-complete-fix-for-engine-valley-leaks

I don't think that valley plate leak = head gasket issue as a matter of course. We'd be seeing way more head gaskets if that were the case given how prevalent the valley plate leak is.

That said, I'm not sure if there is a fool proof way to determine if you are "at risk" of a head gasket issue down the line. More seasoned vets will need to speak to that.

Do what is best for you and your family. The new 4Runner looks like a very cool car in its own right, it's just gotten so expensive and yes, I think it will be an overall downgrade from the LX. Interested to know how it drives once you get a chance to test one.

I have not seen that kit before but that looks way better than the silicone goo you need to use from Toyota. Has anyone used this kit? Wondering how that gasket performs.

 

[Mingus Dew]

I have not seen that kit before but that looks way better than the silicone goo you need to use from Toyota. Has anyone used this kit? Wondering how that gasket performs.

Take a look at this thread.

J2Hundy Valley Plate Leak Guard Seal

This item came up for discussion in one of the FB groups but I know there is a lot of knowledge here in the forum that can chime in on using something like this. The owner seems to be knowledgeable but I wanted to hear a few other opinions before buying something like this...

forum.ih8mud.com

It seems like new tech, but I agree that it's way better than the Toyota sealant (which seems to get mixed reviews). You can message some of the senseis in that thread for info.

I'm probably going to buy one of these and just keep it in the garage until the fateful day comes for my rig.

 

[bloc]

If there is a good thing about a valley plate leak, it's that it shouldn't ever catastrophically fail, unlike the radiator or other cooling system problems. As long as you keep the coolant topped up the risk of damage to the engine is very low. That can buy you a lot of time to come up with a strategy for sorting it out.

 

[LC CT]

If there is a good thing about a valley plate leak, it's that it shouldn't ever catastrophically fail, unlike the radiator or other cooling system problems. As long as you keep the coolant topped up the risk of damage to the engine is very low. That can buy you a lot of time to come up with a strategy for sorting it out.

Yea I was thinking this also. I appreciate the insight confirming this. Any thoughts on the pictures of the pistons? Do they all look quote unquote normal for 93k? My other point of hesitation in the vehicle is whether or not that is normal

 

[bloc]

Yea I was thinking this also. I appreciate the insight confirming this. Any thoughts on the pictures of the pistons? Do they all look quote unquote normal for 93k? My other point of hesitation in the vehicle is whether or not that is normal

I don't really have enough experience with what's healthy to give advice on the pistons. I haven't had the head off an engine in a few years.. for others here it's a weekly thing.

I still think UOA is an affordable and non-invasive way to get a little insight on things, even if it's not the whole story.

 

[LC CT]

I don't really have enough experience with what's healthy to give advice on the pistons. I haven't had the head off an engine in a few years.. for others here it's a weekly thing.

I still think UOA is an affordable and non-invasive way to get a little insight on things, even if it's not the whole story.

I ordered a kit from black stone labs. Going to send one out shortly. Will report back for sure

 

[paulunm]

If you don't have misfires, I don't think you have a blown head gasket. Certainly not one that's causing noticeable coolant loss.

Valley plate leak looks pretty minor to me too. Get that fixed and drive it.

 

[LC CT]

If you don't have misfires, I don't think you have a blown head gasket. Certainly not one that's causing noticeable coolant loss.

Valley plate leak looks pretty minor to me too. Get that fixed and drive it.

Certainly minor compared to ones I’ve seen. I’m super anal with my vehicles. I check fluids a lot and probably too much to drive the wife crazy but I only noticed this a few months back. It’s just the front section of the plate that has any residue so that’s a plus.

 

[KLF]

I'm no economics expert, but it doesn't make sense to me to throw away $20k in resale to avoid a (overpriced) $2k repair.

My experience with coolant entering a cylinder leaves the top of the piston extremely clean, it's essentially being steamed clean on every fire. Those don't look suspect to me.

 

[LC CT]

I'm no economics expert, but it doesn't make sense to me to throw away $20k in resale to avoid a (overpriced) $2k repair.

My experience with coolant entering a cylinder leaves the top of the piston extremely clean, it's essentially being steamed clean on every fire. Those don't look suspect to me.

Very much appreciate the comment. I’m mechanically inclined but have zero experience diagnosing HG issues or internal problems.