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Car started making a funny noise under the passenger side.

Car: Toyota, Camry, 2001     -    Back to Fix-It    -    Toyota Repair Manuals

Q.2001 Toyota Camry - started making a funny noise under the passenger side of the engine, within a few minutes I could smell coolant and the car started to over heat. Now when I pour water back into radiator it leaks out from somewhere under the passenger side, and the car still sounds funny. It will stall after a few seconds and wont go when i push the gas. Is this just cause of a leak in radiator or something worse?

I already checked/done: I have removed a few hoses to check for leaks and put back on but found nothing.

More Info required Does the fluid leak seem to be coming from just under the radiator, or perhaps a foot or so further back on the passenger side?
Does the engine noise sound clanky/rattly, or like a knocking sound from outside?

Addition Its further back, prob more like a foot or so, and yes sounds clanky/rattly. By the sound, at first I thouht that it was like a stick or something caught in the belts or something. Or like there was something knocking around in the wheel well, but the car wasnt moving.

Answer What it sounds like has happened is the bearing on oyur water pump has failed.
The water pump is located on the passenger side, on the front of the engine behind the timing cover. When the bearing fails, the pulley begins wobbling, creating the noises you describe. Very shortly thereafter the shaft seal on the pump will fail from the wobbling, and will result in a profuse coolant leak.
To verify this, look underneath the vehicle and confirmt he coolant is coming out from the front of the engine area.
Unfortunately in order to replace this part, you must remove the timing belt which is a rather complex job. The timing belt itself should be replaced, as the coolant it has been subjected to will compromise its integrity. The tensioner pulley as well should be checked for damage or better yet just replaced.
If you caught this soon enough, which it sounds like you have since it does still run (technically), that should be the extent of your damage, provided it was not driven extensively while overheating.
Continued use like this can result in engine damage (from overheating) and front timing cover damage (from pulley and belt walking into the plastic).
I am presuming you have a 4 cylinder (these are the most common for this issue); the labor to replace the pump it $310, plus $100 for the pump. V6 is a few dollars more.
The timing belt and bearing would add an additional approximate $100 in parts.

Addition I poured more water in and it appears to me to be leaking more from the back of the engine I think, I was able to get a picture of where it appears the water is comming from. Is this what you were discribing in your answer or something else?
Thanks!!!

Answer The moisture higher up on the black cover (appears just below the power steering pump in the picture and works its way down the black plastic cover) appears to be small amounts of oil, typical from the cam seal on these engines.
See if you can see anything on the opposite side (towards the right as looking through the wheel well), and also from straight below while adding coolant, to see if you can see it exiting between the block and plastic front cover.
There does appear to be some coolant further back from the plastic panel, which is a might bit worrysome. Potential for leaks higher up the engine are pretty slim. External headgasket leaks are not very common, and further they would not create the trademark water pump noise you are hearing.
If you can not see any fluid from above, the next step is going to be disassembly of that front end to verify coolant source. If you have access to and can rent a coolant pressure tester, that would be ideal. It hooks to the top of the radiator and pressurizes the system; wherever the leak is it will spray out like a fountain.
All that being said, I still have all my chips riding on that pump; if you did not have the associated noises I would hesitate a little, but in this situation I think the wise decision would be front end cover removal for inspection of the pump.

Addition I dont see it leaking from anywhere else, but I did remove a hose from up top earlier that spilled water/coolant so that could be where some of the other is comming from. Based on what you have said and orther things I have read, I do beleive you are absolutly right in your diagnoses so I thank you and will work on getting this fixed.

More Info required You're very welcome. It sounds like a slam dunk for the water pump, so go ahead and take it apart to verify and you should be good to go.
If you have any related questions or concerns regarding what you find once you are in there (or if pump appears OK, etc), feel free to post here and I will be notified by email to further assist you if necessary.

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