Hello Folks -
I'm hoping for some help or ideas before I tackle this project. I have a 95 Camry with 130k miles on it. Enclosed are pictures of the distributor cap and surrounding areas (picture 1) Something is leaking and spraying the surrounding areas but I can't pin point it, oil is even getting as far front as the radiator fans! (see picture 2) I can't see anything when the car is idling and parked so I am assuming this is some sort of leak that is getting wipped around under the hood while the car is moving down the road. Any ideas? This is my wife's car and as I went through the service records I see the valve cover gasket was replaced fairly recently, I noticed oil around the PCV so I replaced that and those cracked hoses but still nothing. Also of interested is that the sprayed material and leak has bits of what look like red brick dust... is this road debris or a clue to the source and cause of this problem? Rust? In picture 3 you can see how the oil is accumulating on the underside of the hose at the top of the pictures, I know which direction the leak is coming form, I just cannot pin point it, oh so frustrating! A side problem, recently the car over heated and I found there to be hardly any coolant in the radiator. The reservoir area was wet with coolant that had come out of the overflow. Am I correct to understand that engine oil also plays a role in heat transfer and that the fact that the car is leaking oil (I am ashamed to say it was well over a quart low at the time of overheating!) then the engine would be running hotter than normal which would cause the coolant to expand and force coolant out of the reservoir? But then how would the coolant level get SO low? I have been unable to see coolant puddles under the car and all the hoses look good, could it be leaking internally? Ideas? Could the engine get so hot that the coolant is evaporating? Any advice or ideas would be greatly appreciated, and thank you to all of those who contribute to this forum, it is an AMAZING resource for the little guy like me!
Sincerely,
Blake
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