sanjonmomo

For those of you who have never seen the inside of a gelled/sludged engine.. Here it is !!

P.S This is a 6000.00 repair that i had NO idea i would have to pay in addition to the 9,800.00 i paid for the car a year ago.. "AS IS" meant "AS IS" and boy did i get screwed....

thomas1

Yup seen that on my neighbors 2003 highlander. We ended up rebuilding it ourselves...Another option would have been a used japan crate motor...But the labor is still expensive.

AlexusAnja

$6K repair? Wouldn't it just be cheaper to get a used or rebuilt engine?

sanjonmomo

actually the parts total 2,400 and the labor and tax amount for the rest..

hypervish

It's way cheaper than that... Get a engine from a junkyard, be sure to get it from an RX that's been in an accident (this way you know it was in good/running condition).

You can get an engine from a junkyard for about $1500 with around 75/100k miles.

hypervish

But, to be honest it doesn't look terrible. Im not saying it looks good but you may be able to salvage it. How much oil does it consume? Try some auto-rx, it'll take time but it'll be way cheaper than getting a "new" engine.

I've seen way worse sludge engines, this isn't too bad.

Did you scoop the sludge out by hand while you were in there? That's a good way to get started.
Maybe drop the oil pan, and cleanup the oil pump screen.

sanjonmomo

this is the picture taken from lexus when they diagnosed the problem. when the service writer approached me with the cost to repair it i told him to put it back together and i will be on my way.... it is burning about 2 quarts every two weeks depending on how much i drive, but on average thats about it. i was told to put an additive made by lucas. i am supposed to add it to a tank of gas for up to 5 times and this may help it thin out. it burns off out of the tailpipe for about 30 seconds before going away after it sits for 2 hours or more. whats the cost of your remedy and for how long do i need to add it ?

defo

iTrader: (6)

There is an Auto-RX treatment for heavy sludge (it is a fast treatment, uses 2 bottles at a time).....should only run you about $100 plus oil and filters. I would try that before replacing/rebuilding anything.

sanjonmomo

Members,
Thank you for your positive feedback and i will start the process and hope all goes well.

hypervish

Be sure to replace your PVC valve, at every cycle of AutoRX. (it's only a $4 part)

Also, don't use synthetic oil when running AutoRX, use Pennzoil Yellow Bottle (PYB) or any other conventional oil.

Lexmex

Auto-RX worked phenomenally for my uncle in Mexico. We use to have a 'friend' who would help us get it through the customs gauntlet as sludging was quite common and taking the time to clean them out and fix them was quite prohibitive.

jadu

iTrader: (42)

awww man sorry to see that

sanjonmomo

Damn, and i just changed the oil last week with synthetic... should of posted 2 weeks ago !! Changing it out again would be the least of my problems compared to the 6k repair from the dealer i would have paid before you members giving me great advise..

Appreciate it !!

Lorider680

Dang, is it because of lack of oil changes or sub-standard oil that was used? I noticed that the dealer says every 5000 miles instead of the norm of 3.
F

TriniLex

Ok this is scary, I have always changed my oil around 3k in my hondas and my LS and GS300. with Castrol GTX 10/w 30

I too would like to know what causes this. Am I safe if I continue this routine?