I recently noticed my 99 4runner ran rough on start up after sitting for a day. It now seems to run rough for a short period on start up daily. I opened the hood and found I lost coolant. What more my cam seals seems to have leaked.
Did I overheat it or blow something to loose the coolant? I have not lost coolant before and had my waterpump fixed at 107K (I am now at 155K)

I had sparkplug changed a year ago. Oil changes 2K back. She did start to get hot on a recent drive back home from a trip to Yosemite but she recovered as I slowed down.

What should I look for to fix it?

 

you may want to check the coolant lines and your thermostat...

 

I had both upper and lower rad hose replaced last year as i burst one of them. What other lines are you talking about?

I cleaned out the MAF, AIC and TB and filled up the over flow coolant tank with 1L of coolant. Still started rough. Of course the idle went quite high till the cleaning solvents were burned off.

edit: Not being that mechanically inclined it might be the valve cover gaskets and not cam seals that are leaking (w/e you can see on either sided of the engine)

 

yes- i was referring to those lines...
i have suggested for the thermostat as I have assumed from your post that you had a high temp at yosemite then it recovered when you slowed down....same thig happened to mine - weird high temps and I found out that my thermostat was worn already.

what i would suggest is for you to check the thermostat for wear and also for leaks around the area including the water pump.

 

Any white smoke coming out of the exhaust after start up? That would seal the deal on it being a blown head gasket. Most of the time they'll only blow if over heated but sometimes corrosion can cause them to fail even without the over heating. The 3.0 3VZE is notorious for doing so.

 

I had the waterpump replaced with the timing belt at 107K. It have not had coolant leaks up till recently. It started overheated going up grapevine on I-5 in 100F weather. I think I simply pushed it too hard or it had already lost a big of coolant. I could smell it getting hot and I shut off the AC and slowed down till she recovered to normal temps. I guess the thermostat could be dying and causing this also and I can replace that.

Could anything else slow circulation, leak or cause it to build pressure? Heater core to passenger compartment, PCV, old hoses on rest of engine?

I started go look for evidence of white smoke today but I didn't see any on startup (I really hope it isn't a blown HG). It still seems to run a bit rough after adding more coolant. I didn't drive that much today but the upper rad hose definitely felt hot when I stopped. This could be normal as the Temp guage read normal (just under the half way mark)

Update: Adding more coolant has made it run fine on startup. Now I have to monitor if coolant keeps dropping

 

Head is cracked! She is done

 

Sorry to hear that. How did you determine the head to be cracked? What ya gonna do with it?

 

It started drinking coolant rapidly and blowing white smoke at startup and the first part of drive.
Mechanic looked at it and just called me back.

I am going to sell it and get a new vehicle. I need a more reliable DD

 

So it is not a HG? How did he determine the head was cracked? Did he pull it off and check or just look at it hear your symptoms and guess?

I would get a second opinion... Even if your gonna sell it... Cracked head is worse then a HG.

 

It was their estimate from looking at it, the amount of white smoke, the smell and the fact they hardly ever see a 3rd gen blow the HG. It is a small toyota and lexus specific shop I have used for years. They estimate it would coast $2000 to fix.

I addition she is getting old and has needed various repairs the last year . I had hoped she would last another two so I could pick up a new model 4runner used for a decent price.

(btw, one of their mechanics is interested in buying it)