Blown head gasket

[young4210]

My car leaks oil very slowly.
The repair shop told me I have a blown head gasket.
However the car is never over heated, the coolant is not milky.
No smell or tar etc.

The repair costs between $750 - $900.

Is there a cheaper way to fix this problem?
How about the stop oil leak fluid?

[csaxon]

Define slowly? How much oil per 1000 miles or less?

[young4210]

It leaks about half a quart per 1000 miles.
It only leaks when I just park the car because the leak is at the top, not at the bottow of the oil tank. This is what I was told.

[csaxon]

You may simply have an oil pan seal leaking. Try cleaning your engine the best you can and then look and feel around for the oil leak. Look at the seal around your oil pan, check the oil drain plug, check the oil filter. Check the area between the head and the crankcase where the head gasket is. You may have to use lights and mirrors to look at places you can't normally see. How long have you had this car and what type of service has been performed on it?

[solidg]

How mant miles do you have? What year?

[AndyM1978]

Common problems on here include valve cover gaskets and the seal for the distributer/rotor. My car leaked a decent amount out of the valve cover, and cost less than $100 to fix. Blown gaskets are rare on Camrys that haven't been beaten or overheated (Not sure about 80's vintage Camrys).

[young4210]

Yes, the engine was cleaned and checked twice by different shops.
Both told me it is the head gasket.

The car is 1988, 140,000 miles.
The oil is changed every 3000 - 5000 miles.

[slantsixness]

Hmm,
Maybe the shop's tech's are getting away with calling a valve cover gasket a head gasket? The pan gasket and seal is almost easier than the head gasket. Did you check the oil pressure switch(top front of motor on the right side as you look at it) for leaking too? it's only $10 and takes 5 minutes to change. It'll leak and run down to the head base and wet the exposed edge of the head gasket. Seen this on 3 camrys an 88 and two '90's. If you have the oil guage, then the sending unit's in the same place. At a half a quart every 1K miles, it isn't leaking much. that's a quart and a half every oil change. You could be worse off. couple of drips on the driveway adds character!

good luck,

Slantsixness

PS: don't use stop leak or any miracle cure on anything. it's worthless and will harm bearing surfaces and make an ugly mess for the next poor slob who has to change your timing belt or tear the motor down! And I don't care what the bottle says it will do or warranty. You don't honestly think a $10 bottle of slick50 is going to pay $1500.00 for your motor do you?