So long for now…..

[ryanCA]

Now we're excusing the radiator situation? There is nothing even semi-normal about the 200 radiators. There's a known manufacturing defect, making them prone to crack, leak, and eventually explode. It took 10+ years to be redesigned.

You also have folks blaming the head gasket failures on (unnoticeable) overheating events, and/or cooling systems that may have encountered an "unhealthy" state at some point. With the radiator situation affecting the majority of units produced, the valley plate leaks and water pump leaks which are also common, and long coolant change intervals there's a non-insignificant chance that any older higher mileage 200 on the used market may have previously encountered one or more or all of these cooling system issues. So the cherry on top of all of this is waiting to see if a head gasket failure may haunt you down the road as a result.

preach!

 

[ryanCA]

The cam tower seepage is a non-issue for nearly every 3UR vehicle that has it. It doesn’t drip on the driveway or change the dipstick oil reading between changes. People are annoyed because they expect perfection, especially from the platform that has multiple million mile specimens.

Both sides are wet on my 570. And my Tundra is dry. Granted I have a lot more miles on my 570…

The issue that I see all over this forum and hardly anyone dealing with in a Tundra or Sequoia is the coolant valley leak. I think the 200s just run hotter. Tundras and Sequoias also don’t vent boiling fuel…

I don’t expect a radiator to last forever, but I would’ve expected Toyota to immediately correct a known and obvious design flaw instead of running it for 10 years on their top platform.

I love both of our rigs, but I’d be lying if I said the LX voltage issue wasn’t frustrating.

my tundras at the farm both smoke after drive
have to add oil

cam tower leak is a bitch

all over tundra forum for years

its embarrassing after a drive when your new mistress says “why is car smoking by headlights and snell like its on fire “

next time i will tell her “its fine, it doesnt drip on ground”

valley plate - ISF, land cruisers - annoying

 

[LX Cruiser]

my tundras at the farm both smoke after drive
have to add oil

cam tower leak is a bitch

all over tundra forum for years

its embarrassing after a drive when your new mistress says “why is car smoking by headlights and snell like its on fire “

next time i will tell her “its fine, it doesnt drip on ground”

valley plate - ISF, land cruisers - annoying

Sounds like yours is the very very rare case where it leaks enough to burn off the block. Again, 99%+ of all Tundras, Sequoias, 200s, 570s with this issue do not burn, drip, or require adding oil between changes.

My 570’s 3UR is wet on both sides. No burning or dripping. I switched to 5w30 the second I bought it. There are many reports on the Tundra forum that this noticeably slows seepage. You might try running 5w30 if you haven’t.

I asked a local cruiser repair guy about my 570’s random voltage spikes. He said the alternator’s voltage regulator is going out. After asking me about my mileage, he said get ready for the coolant valley repair “you will have to fix that in the near future, no question.”

 

[coleAK]

To expect a radiator to last forever is unrealistic and a consistent failure point of every vehicle out there.
In other brands they fail much earlier. In my 60, the radiator lasted almost 200k miles even with hard use on corrugated roads. My 100’s radiator lasted to almost 300k. My 200 has almost 160k - zero issues.

I think the life of a Land Cruiser radiator is directly related to how often the coolant is changed (note - change often) and the amount of harsh vibration or impacts the vehicle has experienced.

My wife’s

My 2003 MB e320 radiator finally got replaced at 21 years and 234k miles. When my daughter ran the front end into a parking block, the radiator didn’t brake or leak, it was just bent to …. The OEM one was 100% aluminum, the one I replaced it with has plastic like the one on my LX570. Makes me wonder why modern ones (like on the 200) are not all Aluminum?

 

[manofthewoods]

Sounds like yours is the very very rare case where it leaks enough to burn off the block. Again, 99%+ of all Tundras, Sequoias, 200s, 570s with this issue do not burn, drip, or require adding oil between changes.

My 570’s 3UR is wet on both sides. No burning or dripping. I switched to 5w30 the second I bought it. There are many reports on the Tundra forum that this noticeably slows seepage. You might try running 5w30 if you haven’t.

I asked a local cruiser repair guy about my 570’s random voltage spikes. He said the alternator’s voltage regulator is going out. After asking me about my mileage, he said get ready for the coolant valley repair “you will have to fix that in the near future, no question.”

If memory serves; Ryan is already running heavier oil (practically, equivalent to road tar).
Mine has a funny smell sometimes, I've chalked it up to grease from the drive shafts hitting the exhaust. Zero smoke, and not a burning oil smell

 

[ryanCA]

If memory serves; Ryan is already running heavier oil (practically, equivalent to road tar).
Mine has a funny smell sometimes, I've chalked it up to grease from the drive shafts hitting the exhaust. Zero smoke, and not a burning oil smell

That is corrrect.

One of our 200s also has the cam tower leak.

If you drive it to dinner, and turn it off, you will see smoke coming out from under the hood, exactly like the Tundra. Not a drip on the floor. Typical cam tower leak, that you can see form the wheel wells and it falls on the heatshield.

Funny people are saying it is "rare" for Tundras. If you go on the forum, you can find 50 threads+ in one click.

Oh well, people will worship the 5.7L more than they will worship their Gods I guess.

Its a great motor, but not without its faults

 

[LX Cruiser]

That is corrrect.

One of our 200s also has the cam tower leak.

If you drive it to dinner, and turn it off, you will see smoke coming out from under the hood, exactly like the Tundra. Not a drip on the floor. Typical cam tower leak, that you can see form the wheel wells and it falls on the heatshield.

Funny people are saying it is "rare" for Tundras. If you go on the forum, you can find 50 threads+ in one click.

Oh well, people will worship the 5.7L more than they will worship their Gods I guess.

Its a great motor, but not without its faults

It’s not rare on Tundras. No one said cam tower leaks are rare on Tundras. But I did say coolant valley leaks are apparently less common on Tundras and Sequoias than 200s/570s.

It’s rare that it drips on the ground, burns off and creates a smell, and/or requires adding oil between changes. If your leaky Tundra and 200 both burn/smell, that sucks. THAT is rare.

Both sides are wet on my 570 but no burning, dripping, or adding oil between changes. This is the case for the vast majority of cam tower leakers.

Some people do worship the 5.7 I guess. I am not one of them. I do think overall it is a pretty solid motor. I mean, I do have two of them lol