Question1999 Toyota Camry LE sedan with automatic transmission, blew it's engine 12-25-03 with 28,000 miles. Toyota replaced the engine on 12-27-03. They didn't give me any new warranty information on the new rebuilt engine?
Don't they have to provide a new warranty coverage information for this 2nd engine?
The car has 20,000 miles and making the same noise (clicking from the engine)just before it blew up the first time. In Jan 07, I took it back to have it check for oil gelling...the Toyota dealer says no gelling. But luckily for me, they forgot to put that information on the invoice back in January! So, I took back in yesterday to have them recheck it...with the agreement that I would be able to watch when they removed the valve cover and see the results myself. They removed the valve cover, I had my camera & camcorder recording the results, (since Monday 3-19-07 my 8 years is up)They knew I was recording the whole thing. The mechanic took the cover off & the 2 spark plugs located on the left...were dry & the 2 on the right were dripping wet with oil! The mechanic just threw the wires aside, an was checking for oil gelling on the inside of the valve cover. I questioned them why 2 were dry & 2 were wet? The service advisor had no idea! And the mechanic was attempting to ignore the question. They went & got the Service manager...He was yelling at me that I can't be back here! I said no problem! But, this was the agreement that I can be back here when you took the valve cover off! So I questioned him on the excessive oil on 2 of the pistons and not on the other. He said that the seal inside is leaking, an must not of sealed correctly! They would just put silicone on the inside to reseal it! Is this a correct procedure to reseal the spark plug tube? If only the #3 tube was leaking? Then why is the #4 spark plug tube wet? I questioned if this oil up in the tubes and valve cover,is a sign that the oil is gelling? Since that part of the valve cover was much darker in color than the other side which was dry. And would that oil being up in the valve cover cause problems in the engine later on? Shouldn't they check the compression on the engine? Oil changes have always been done at 3,000 miles by Firestone with a synthetic blend 5W30 . Now the car is running worst since I took it in! Another problem I've complained about..is the car idling rough and making a noise in the engine. It does stop making the noise when the engine gets really warm but still vibrates rough. They keep telling me the can't seem to duplicate it! The service advisor was the one that drove the car around to the service bay and the car was idling rough. I did bring that to his attention and he acknowledge it by refuses to admit it to the mechanic! Help...My invoices are over 6" thick!(no kidding) Everytime, I took the car to the dealer for an oil change, my estimates would always be a couple of hundred dollars each time. I'm 71 years old lady, on social security and this was my first brand new car purchase! What a mistake! If this keeps up I'll have to use the car as my casket! Any information would be greatly appreciated,
Jeannine
PS If you need to see the photos of the engine, I'll be happy to share them via e-mail! :-)
AnswerTo answer your first question, yes it is customary and sometimes required by law to give a writtern warranty on all parts that are replaced including labor coverage, whether that be a complete engine or a door handle. I understand that the engine was replaced at 28,000 miles but you say that the car noew has 20,000 miles, do you mean that the engine has accumulated 20,000 miles since it was replaced and now is making the noises?
By the way, the oil gelling special policy adjustment doesn't apply to replacement engines, only to the original engine that the car came with. If the spark plugs were wet with oil on the outside of the spark plug then the tube seals are the problem, the correct way to fix this is to replace the seals, this soes not indicate an oil gel problem. It may be a good idea to have the engine compression tested.
