Hi,
I have a 1996 AT 3.4L petrol Prado with 125,000km on the clock - I'm no expert mechanic but I'm based out in Africa and the garages here are pretty unreliable so any help diagnosing the problem would be much appreciated.
When I am stuck in traffic, with the car still in Drive and my pedal on the break, there is a very heavy vibration which reverberates throughout the car (I think it is coming from the engine, and the 4WD stick vibrates heavily). If I put it in Park or Neutral there remains some vibration but it is substantially reduced. I've also noticed that the fuel consumption around town seems to be worse than normal, and it seems to be a bit sluggish when accelerating from a low speed.
I have had some issues with the radiator losing coolant when I take the car on long journeys (it never loses any when taking it around town, only if you drive long distances - over 200km flat out it might lose 1L), but the radiator has been pressure tested and they weren't able to find a leak anywhere. This led me to think it could be a problem with the engine (head gasket/cylinder heads). Is rough vibration a potential symptom of this? None of the other symptoms I've heard of with a gasket (oil in the coolant, milky oil) are present.
Or could the vibration be something to do with the exhaust (there is a slight rattling coming from it)? Or the throttle body?
Thank you very much in advance for your help!
Harry
I have a 1996 AT 3.4L petrol Prado with 125,000km on the clock - I'm no expert mechanic but I'm based out in Africa and the garages here are pretty unreliable so any help diagnosing the problem would be much appreciated.
When I am stuck in traffic, with the car still in Drive and my pedal on the break, there is a very heavy vibration which reverberates throughout the car (I think it is coming from the engine, and the 4WD stick vibrates heavily). If I put it in Park or Neutral there remains some vibration but it is substantially reduced. I've also noticed that the fuel consumption around town seems to be worse than normal, and it seems to be a bit sluggish when accelerating from a low speed.
I have had some issues with the radiator losing coolant when I take the car on long journeys (it never loses any when taking it around town, only if you drive long distances - over 200km flat out it might lose 1L), but the radiator has been pressure tested and they weren't able to find a leak anywhere. This led me to think it could be a problem with the engine (head gasket/cylinder heads). Is rough vibration a potential symptom of this? None of the other symptoms I've heard of with a gasket (oil in the coolant, milky oil) are present.
Or could the vibration be something to do with the exhaust (there is a slight rattling coming from it)? Or the throttle body?
Thank you very much in advance for your help!
Harry
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