96 camry 2.2 drove with overheated engine

My neighbor asked me to look at his 96 camry 2.2 with 99k.
He told me he drove the car and it was overheating, coolant was sprayed all over the engine compartment and the motor and it looked like it was pretty rusty coolant from a neglected cooling system. He said he pulled over and refilled the radiator with water and continued hoping to make it home before it blew. When he got home, he said it was boiling over and was making all sorts of clanging noises.
He has still been using the car locally and now says it is using water but not leaking it. Now when he starts the car, steam is coming from the exhaust.
Also. there does not seem to be any knocking or clanging sounds when the car is running. The oil does not look like there is any water in the crankcase either.

At the very least the head gasket is gone but my question is, what other damaged could the overheating have caused?
I do not want to replace the head gasket for him only to find out that there are other problems.
I suppose that the head might be warped or damaged also.
We are wondering if the engine should be replaced or just try to replace the head gasket and see what happens.
I Should probably do a compression test also.

Just looking for some advice from some experienced Toyota people before I dive in..

as easy as they are to swap out I would look for a low mileage used engine. They run forever if you keep them cool and lubricated. They don't like to be run hot.

If it were my car, I would first do the compression test with the understanding that at least one cylinder may be bad from the head gasket. Then remove the head and check the head for straightness, and then replace the head gasket. That engine has a relatively easy head to remove and replace.

Thanks for the replies.
I think I will do the comp test and proceed from there.

It's hard to know just how badly it was overheated since I was not there at the time. But if the head is not warped, a head gasket is all it may need.

Will post back what I find.
Thanks again

Take a look under the oil fill cap and see if there's a chocolate-milk-like goo there. If so, there's water in the oil.

A leak down test might tell you more, but the comp test is a quick way of finding out if your neighbor is screwed.

If you do replace the gasket, make sure you do a thorough acid flush after you get it back together. Running the flush before can cause the acid to leak into the cylinders and mix with the oil. Good luck!

Take a look under the oil fill cap and see if there's a chocolate-milk-like goo there. If so, there's water in the oil.

A leak down test might tell you more, but the comp test is a quick way of finding out if your neighbor is screwed.

If you do replace the gasket, make sure you do a thorough acid flush after you get it back together. Running the flush before can cause the acid to leak into the cylinders and mix with the oil. Good luck!


Thanks for the reply.
What brand of acid flush have you used?

I realize I'm a few days late, but I'd definitely consider replacing the timing belt and probably the water pump too. I overheated my 92 because the water pump went while I was driving. It sprayed steam all over to the point where once engine cooled and I restarted it, the belt broke. So with all the expenses and time I'd also consider a used engine like previously suggested.

Timing belt and water pump will be replaced with the head removal procedure. No sense in keeping the old ones.

Good advice on the water pump and timing belt.

Thanks :smokin: