2.4L blown head gasket

Found out that our '03 Camry XLE with 109,000 miles has a blown head gasket. It is on the intake side of the motor between the 3rd and 4th cylinders.

I have read a lot about stripped head bolts causing blown head gaskets and there is even a Service bulletin 01507 NHTSA#10021542 documenting this.

What I would like to ask the Forum is this; has anyone else had this problem and if so where they able to get Toyota to cover the cost (either the whole thing or partial) of the repair? My local mechanic found that a number of head bolt threads where either stripped or loose. I have documented everything and am trying to find a way to get reimbursed for this.

Thanks for the help,
Terry

A 2003 Toyota with over 100k miles!
All new cars have stretch head bolts, they are thrown away during during a Head gasket repair.

This car might be a good candidate for www.steelseal.com (http://www.steelseal.com) .

A 2003 Toyota with over 100k miles!
All new cars have stretch head bolts, they are thrown away during during a Head gasket repair.

This car might be a good candidate for www.steelseal.com (http://www.steelseal.com) .
Unfortunately they are not stretched. They are STRIPPED!!! Actually block threads are stripped.

What people do, they buy very expensive thread inserts and repair the block. If you do it yourself it will cost you around 700 dollars.

toyotanation is full of that kind of threads. If interested I can provide you with URLs.


Sam

I haven't heard of this problem on this forum, but I would send a letter (Certified letter, with Read receipt) with your documentation and a copy of the Service bulletin and your request for evaluation to Toyota headquarters and see if they give you feedback. Give them a couple of months and if they haven't responded, then get back to them by phone or letter asking for an update. Keep in their face until you are satisfied.

(I don't think steelseal is going to help)

How about a seal product + trade it for a new Toyota + 0% fin!

I haven't heard of this problem on this forum, but I would send a letter (Certified letter, with Read receipt) with your documentation and a copy of the Service bulletin and your request for evaluation to Toyota headquarters and see if they give you feedback. Give them a couple of months and if they haven't responded, then get back to them by phone or letter asking for an update. Keep in their face until you are satisfied.

(I don't think steelseal is going to help)
Brian, what kind of evaluation should I ask for? (I am one of those who lose coolant, HG is still intact)

Couple of weeks ago I went to sea dealer, but they said since the vehicle is over 60,000 miles (I have 60,090) the warranty is over.

Sam

I think all you can do is request reimbursement for the repair cost. If this is a known assembly problem from the factory and beyond 60k miles, then it is not a warranty issue, but one they may choose to take responsibility for. Right now, they can use all the good will they can generate. If the problem is just a leaky head gasket with no real documentation of a systematic problem in the engine, I doubt you can get satisfaction from Toyota. Shit happens.

With my recommendation, I was only addressing the OP with the stripped thread problem.

I plan on pursuing this until I either get satisfaction or they tell me to drop dead and not to contact them about it anymore.

What I would like to know more about is this (SB) service bulletin stuff. What is it really and what does it mean? Did toyota issue a SB about the stripped head bolts that went out to the dealers because it maybe a problem but not one that they will stand behind. I just don't understand the whole thing. Maybe someone can explain the SB thing better.

Here it is again:
Make : TOYOTAModel : CAMRYYear : 2003Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATIONService Bulletin Number : 01507Date of Bulletin : APR 06, 2007NHTSA Item Number : 10021542Component : ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINESummary :
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/images/spacer.gif 2AZ-FE ENGINE BLOCK. *KB

What I would like to know more about is this (SB) service bulletin stuff. What is it really and what does it mean? Did toyota issue a SB about the stripped head bolts that went out to the dealers because it maybe a problem but not one that they will stand behind. I just don't understand the whole thing. Maybe someone can explain the SB thing better.

See the article here (http://www.edmunds.com/ownership/maintenance/articles/44745/article.html).

Thanks it really explains alot. Now I have a better understanding. Now I just need to figure out how to get Toyota to pay for the bill.