Hi everyone! I have an E reg Toyota Spacecruiser which I love. Since I've had it, there has been a water problem. I've had the pump & water housing unit replaced, to no avail. The symptoms of my problem are that she will suddenly lose all the water, & the temperature gage shoots up. I have to wait for her to cool down (ages) then fill her up completely. The expansion tank does not lose the water. I have to carry loads of water with me, & Im getting thru it very quickly lately, which can't do the van any good. It has been suggested that maybe there is an air blockage occuring, & if so, the water system needs to be bled. There may be a bleed scew somewhere on the system, but we cant find it. To get a manual for this vehicle has proved impossible so far. Any advice & suggestions of what could be the trouble, & remedy would be extremely appreciated.  Thanks in advance, Chez.

Hi my hubby is a mechanic but he is out with his mates tonight, i will ask him and get back to you,

Heidi

Hi,

I've never had a space cruiser but I'm no stranger to old cars with strange problems ;) 
First of all have you had all the hoses and hose connectors checked for leaks??  You need to do this when the car has been running for long enough for the engine to heat up.  Sometimes a hose that is ok when the car is cold can leak badly when the water has heated up and is under pressure.  It may be a good idea to stop regularly on a journey to check thoroughly for this.  

Secondly, how is your expansion tank (and the water inside) looking?  is it clean and clear or is the water cloudy, or is there a layer of browish grey gunge in the expansion tank.  When doing a hill start is there a smell of rotten eggs?  How often do you have to fill up with oil? Does the oil on the dip-stick look sludgy or clear?

The answers to the above will help to give some indication of the problem :)

Dill - good at diagnosing but cr*p at fixing the problem (its what I pay my mechanic to do :D )

Hi hubby has just got in, he said it is difficult to say without seeing it but it sounds like the head gasket has gone, hope this helps you.

Heidi

Beat me to it Heidi!!

Hi,
Hubby says it's probably your head-gaskit.  Our old Celica had the same problem, and it turned out to be the head-gaskit.  Check your oil filler cap.  If it looks a sludgy colour, then that's your problem.
Good luck.

Sarah.

P.S.  Get your radiator flushed at the same time (they tend to get v. clogged up by that age!!)

Hi hubby said you dont always get sludge when the head gasket goes, depends were head gasket has blown.

Heidi

I agree it does sound head gasket related and all of the above is good advice. :)

Get a garage to have a look they should be able to tell very quickly & if it is the head gasket get it fixed asap because it will just get worse & you can do more damage to your engine by leaving it.

there's a forum for  people who own spacecruisers where you can ask questions about any problems your having.
here
hope this helps,
Linda :-)

Thanks everyone! Will look into all of these diagnoses. I hope its not the head gasket. LINDA- thanks muchly for the link, really pleased to have that. DILL-the hoses seem to be fine. The water in the expansion tank is not clear, it does look cloudy or poss dirty, but stays full. Rarely have to put oil in & the dipstick is not sludgy, there is no sign of water in the oil. Rotten eggs? No, but hubby curious as to what thats all about & what you think it means The heater was running cold, but has become more efficient for some reason,however it blows cold when the temperature gauge shoots up. Done 80 mile round trip tonight & had to stop once each way to fill up with water. Thanks again, Chez.

LOL Chez,

I was pointing in the same direction as the rest of them - head gasket trouble, but didn't want to SAY the actual words :(   Had to replace an engine last year (cheapest option for our make of car ) because of it and wouldn't want to say it was that if it wasn't - if that makes any sense to you ;)

I hope its not anything BIG causing the trouble

Regards
Dill

Hi Chez
If it is the head gasket IMO don't use it! Get it to the garage asap as you will cause more damage not only to the head its self but also Hoses, water pump, heater matrix and anything else that needs water to cool down. I had this very problem with two of my cars so i know what im talking about (lol). The head might need skimming as well so ask this question when you take it in.

Hate to say this, but if your expansion tank does not empty, where's the water going??  Also, when your heater is running cold, you've got no water circulating round the head, this means you are doing damage!!
I've just had to stop using my Transit for similar reasons.  Temp gage was going up, was losing no water at all!!  Has had new thermostat, water-pump, head-gaskit, cylinder head, temp.sender and now another engine!  It turns out that the block itself had a hairline crack in it.  After 13 1/2 hours of taking engine out of one van, my engine out and then new engine in, the new engine is worse than the original (buning heaps of oil, noisy, v. sluggish).  We've just had enough and so van is going to be sold (for a lot less than we paid for it!!).
Hopefully yours isn't as bad as that!!  But please stop using it or you will end up with a cracked head or block!!

Let us know how you get on,
Sarah.

I think the situation is grim! I think Ive done the worst damage. Im very dependent on my van & had to do a journey that was 4 miles each way today. Put 3 litres of water in for the  outbound trip,  temperature gauge went up,  not as far as red, but had to put another 3 litres in to get home, parked up & water was coming out onto the road from somewhere under the van. On top of that, the exhaust has also blown today. Im very gutted. I think we're definately talking major surgery now, aren't we? Not just a filler cap or a blocked radiator. Thanks for all your help chaps & chappesses, dont know where to go with this now in terms of viability, just havent been able to locate anyone locally that is that interested, apart from toyota, who want more cash than I have. Thanks again, Chez

Is it a dohc? I would phone as many garages as possible and say you think your head gasket has gone could they give you an estimate. My ford was dohc and dealer wanted 750 pounds to fix it. I did get it done for 350 pounds after a reccomendation from a friend. Not a specialised job but time comsuming. It sounds alot but this was cheap and he did do a good job.

Hi Sonny, I dont know if its dhoc (!) but I have managed to find a garage who will look at it on Monday. This will at least help me decide where to go from here hopefully. Its difficult when you dont know many people & its been hard to find someone willing to look at it. I understand they're nightmares to work on. Ive been grateful for everyones comments, wether Ive liked them or not ie head gasket!  Dont feel so lonely with it now, & I'll keep everything Ive got crossed for Monday & keep you all posted. Thanks everyone, Chez