6G Celicas Forums

If you were over the fill line and blowing white smoke sounds like the head gasket is blown. Or at least the most likely scenario. Did the oil look milky, or have a different color/consistency? Usually the easiest way to know. Might be hard to tell on the dipstick though. If you drain the oil and its muddy brown it's most definitely the head gasket.

my guess would be bad rings or head gasket. Can't think of a scenario where the distributor would cause something like that. Were you checking he oil level each time before adding more to it? That's a ton of oil to go through in a matter of days, granted it sounds like you're burning it. Just curious. How does it sound when it's running at temperature?

Thanks for that insight Vav, I'll try to get under the car again tomorrow and take a closer more in depth look at things. Just to be sure something isn't missing, maybe somethin is loose or bent. Didn't get a chance to get the wheel off the other day before it rained, I was only able to mess with the wheels to check wheel bearings condition. I need to check the control arm bushings as well. So top mounts and wheel bearings right now are on my priority list.

No I didn't replace the strut mounts, they looked like they were in decent shape along with the bump stops. I replaced the dust boots though. One thing I forgot to mention in my original post, I'm on 17" alloys with 215/45 Kuhmos. I'll probably replace the mounts then once I pull the hubs to have the bearings pressed in.

My GSR wore like this but not until after I lowered the car. Once I installed a camber kit all was good. But my Celica is on stock suspension. Outer tie rods look to be ok so what else could it be? Ball joints a brand new. Maybe a bent strut?! It's weird bc the treads on both sides were about the same on the inside of the tires and then within a couple weeks the driver side was slick.

It's wheel bearings. Jacked her up today once I got home from work before it started raining again and the driver side is real bad. Pass side is bad also, but not near the extent of the drivers. Since I've already gotten outer tie rods, how big of a PITA would it be to do inners as well?

Also tracked down a clunking noise I've been hearing for a while now. Appears to be the universal joint in the steering shaft. Is it possible to fix that with engine in the car? Looks pretty tight

That's good to know, thanks for the info. Here's where I have an issue. From what I've gathered, the front alignement can't be adjusted on the Celica WITHOUT a camber kit. It's said if there's misalignment then there's part failure or improper equipment. Is this true? Only adjustment I could see would be toe with the tie rods.

What's up fellas, hopefully y'all can help me get this straight.

'94 GT manual. Did a lot of front end work last spring, right before mounting a new set of Kuhmos. Ball joints, axles, struts all the way around. All factory replacements. Should've done the wheel bearings also but had no evidence of play or grinding/roaring prior to replacing parts. After new parts had alignment done, shop said all is good. Noticed the tires roared pretty bad, checked wheel play and nil. Read reviews about the tires bc they were pretty cheap but were a few complaints about tire noise, but overall a nice tire. Few thousand miles in I notice slight inner tire wear. Still not feeling play in the wheel bearings. Parked the car a few weeks ago bc now the inner side of the drivers front tire is bald. Only the very inner tread is gone. From the side the tires still look brand new. The pass front shows some inner wear but not nearly as harsh. I can now physically see the negative camber at the front wheels.

So I guess I'm wondering is there a chance the axles are incorrect length? Think I read somewhere that people had problems gettin wrong axles for a '94 bc they're listed part number is for a 5th gen or something along those lines. I've got a set of outer tie rods tht I'll get around too wen it's not 99+ degrees outside, and considering a camber kit if that's what it comes to. I'll check bearing play again this week sometime and verify their condition. She had sat for a while before I got her road worthy, on bad struts no less. Anyone know the factory height for the stock springs? And/or know of a worthy camber kit? I've seen camber bolt kits, anything else out there?

Any advice will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Absolutely stunning. I know you think there may not be much demand for this swap, but let the next successor to the 2gr come along and prices on it dwindle and this I believe will be as feasible as the 1mz/3mz is to us now. You're just ahead of the game, lol. Mad props on all your hard, custom work. Looks sweet in the bay.

Nice work Lamont. Glad you were able to get her running.

Thanks for the input fellas. If I don't find any factory fenders locally by Xmas I may just try my luck with them. I'm wanting to at least have her in a prime coat by spring.

I've messed with fiberglass body kits some as well, my brother has had a car or two with a kit installed. And I will say fiberglass holds up fairly well unless of course, like you said, you smash something. I'm considering it seeing as I want to shave the side marker lights too. Just didn't know if anyone in the forums had installed or seen any first hand to know just how much fab is needed and if they looked "right". There's only one type I've seen that I like.

Just curious if any member have had any experiences with aftermarket fenders? I need a pair in the future before beginning body work and paint. I could get a pair of aftrmarkets cheaper than one OEM fender runs unless I can finally find a 6gc in the local yards with fenders worth a damn. Fitment is one concern and obviously fiberglass isn't the most durable material. Just wanted to get some opinions.

Glad to help you get back on the road

Haynes or Chilton manuals are a good place to start. Always a good thing to have and I keep mine in the car just in case I need it. If you're ever stumped though this site is the best. The members here are very knowledgeable and can be very helpful.

Drove the car some Sunday since replacing the ECU, felt comfortable enough to drive it to work today (35 miles one way). So a little over 100 miles on the ECU from Lamont and I can CONFIRM the ECU was at fault. Car is performing as it should and without any issues whatsoever. Thanks Vav and Smaay for the help and advice. And thanks again Lamont for QUICKLY shipped, well boxed ECU that looks to be in great shape.

^ I second that. It'll save you money later to go ahead to change the timing belt and tensioner while they're there.

Happy to help.Glad you were able to find the leak, stinks that it's the water pump though!

Received the ECU today, hooked it up and all seems to be well! Let the car run for a solid 30 minutes and it's ran like a champ. No sputtering whatsoever. I'll give it test drive tomorrow and see what happens. But right now she's looking good. Thanks again Lamont!

Not sure how much you're looking to spend, but try car-parts.com, nationwide database of auto recyclers and salvage that will list any in your area, some even have mileage listed and are graded by condition. And some places will ship

Yeah some pics might help me help you. If it looks like the leak is behind the manifold, it could be the heater hose. On my GT, the top radiator hose runs to the transmission side of the motor to the outlet, and then the 2 heater hoses run from that outlet to the firewall, behind and kind of under the intake manifold. If you had nothing but water in the radiator that's why you can't smell it. Lol but I don't blame you if it's got a spewing leak.

If the smoke appears to be coming from that side of the engine I would definitely pay attention to the belts. Trying cranking it up again and let it run for the 15-20 minutes you said it took to die, and see if it does it again. Keep the hood up and look, listen, and smell for anything unusual. Just keep an eye on the temp gauge every couple of minutes just to be safe.

I don't know of any components that would leak water on that side besides the water pump and A/C lines. The A/C lines will sweat at times but are hard pipes, not rubber. Not sure how water is getting on the power steering resevoir. Weird

I dont think a belt issue would cause a water leak. How bad is the leak? And can you smell anything when it does leak? Antifreeze has a distinct smell.

Post a few more pics of the engine bay if you can.

Thanks for the tracking info Lamont, ECU is expected to arrive tomorrow, so I may just have an update for you guys this weekend.

Is the check engine light staying on?

If water is leaking on the passenger side of the block it could be at the thermostat housing, but I'm speaking as if it were a GT. I'm not familiar with the ST. Or could be the water pump, but if it's not overheating I doubt that's the case.

If it's cranking back up that rules out battery and/or alternator. Does the ST have a tensioner pulley for the serpentine belts? My old Acura died on me once going down the road and I could smell something like rubber burning and saw a little smoke rise when I popped the hood. It turned out to be the bearing in the tensioner pulley had gave out and seized up.

What kind of problem did you have with the power steering?

Will it crank back up?

So I got a message from another member on the site who's able to sell me his ECU for $40 shipped, priority. Funds have already been transferred so I should have it in my hands in the next couple days. I f'n love this site. Thanks in advance Lamont