about ot buy an MR2

[tipota]

i went to check out a 91 MR2 N/A today and the car was extremley clean inside and out. the only problem was when it started white smoke came out of the exhaust for about 20-30 seconds, and the coolant was a bit low. someone told me it was a blown head gasket, but i called up the dealer again and he told me that the car is old and since it hasnt been run for 10 days a little bit of oil leaks down and it happens on all toyotas. the car has 135k miles on it, adn he was selling it for 4k. any advice?

[Brian R.]

If it was white smoke, then there's a good chance you have a bad head gasket. White smoke comes from coolant.

Giving him the benefit of the doubt, the dealer probably thought you meant normal-colored smoke which could be from oil getting past the valve seals.

The level of coolant means nothing unless you are monitoring it over time.

[tipota]

well wat does regular smoke look like as opposed to white smoke? and if it is a bad head gasket, woudl it be constantly emitting white smoke or only for the first 20-30 seconds after the car was started?

[ac427cpe]

$4,000 is a bit steep for a N/A with problems... I would suggest waiting for one that is more mechanically sound. If a dealership hasn't put the time into making sure it is as close to mechanically 100% as they can before they sell it, who knows what else is wrong with it.

[tipota]

well the guy is telling me that the car is fine. he says two months ago it passed inspection which it wouldnt have it had a blown head gasket. he used to be a mechanic. now i dont know if hes lying to me, but is there any way to determine if he is or not? what if i tell him i want to bring the car out on the highway for about 30 minutes to an hour, and travel up to 90. would there be any definite signs then? im not going to be stupid and buy it for 4k if it has problems(he definatley wont go down on the price), but these cars are so extremley damn hard to find(the only one ive ever seen for sale for the past 9 months is for 2k and has 245k miles on it) and i swear it looks completley brand new, inside and out. whoever traded it in treated it like a baby.

[PJF220]

Dunno if it's the same, but mine chucks out some smoke/steam when cold like you see with most cars. When I bought mine it had not been used for a whiloe and did appear worse than you'd think normal. The coolant was difficult to read and there was mayonaise on the oil filler cap, suggesting head gasket. It was just the time of year and the lack of regular use and the car turned out to be a real jem

[drazhartd]

Originally Posted by tipota

i went to check out a 91 MR2 N/A today and the car was extremley clean inside and out. the only problem was when it started white smoke came out of the exhaust for about 20-30 seconds, and the coolant was a bit low. someone told me it was a blown head gasket, but i called up the dealer again and he told me that the car is old and since it hasnt been run for 10 days a little bit of oil leaks down and it happens on all toyotas.

It's common for the 5sfe at old age to puff a bit of smoke upon startup.

It comes from the common problem of a leaky valve seal, where a bit of oil drips where it shouldn't.

If the smoke stops after a moment, you should be just fine.

This happens on my car (137k miles NA) and the worst that happens is topping off the oil a little every once in a while.