Toyota Camry 2003 overheated on the highway and won’t start after cooling down

Asked by GuruNSH3S Oct 30, 2019 at 06:43 PM about the 2003 Toyota Camry LE

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

My 2003 Toyota Camry overheated on the highway
and I had drive for a while before I could pull over
safely. Once I did it immediately shut down. I had
no indication the car was overheating from the
dashboard, the temperature gauge in the
dashboard showed the temperature as normal. I
am assuming the thermometer is busted. I only
realized something was wrong after the started
driving weird. I opened the hood and the engine
was smoking. After it cooled down I realized that
there was no coolant left in the container and that
is likely what caused the car to overheat. I let the
car cool down and refilled the coolant and tried
starting and there was no crank or sound from the
engine. Only thing that happened was the belt
started spinning. Is there anything I can do to get
the engine to crank and turn over. I fear the engine
has seized and really hope it hasn’t as I can’t get a
new car right now. Please let me know your
thoughts and if there is anything I can do cheaply
to get the car up and running again.

3 Answers

4,290

You stated the belt started spinning . Does that mean the engine was turning over but not starting?

1 people found this helpful.

No nothing is happening with the engine. There is no cranking or any sound from the engine when I turn the key. Only thing that happens is the belt next to the engine starts spinning.

4,290

Having a hard time understanding " the belt next to the engine starts spinning" What belt that drives what devise ? To check for a seized engine you can try and turn it by hand with the harmonic balancer nut using a socket that fits the nut turning it clockwise. If it does turn the starting problem may be a bad connection to the starter solenoid or the starter has a poor ground to the engine.

Your Answer:

Camry

Looking for a Used Camry in your area?

CarGurus has 944 nationwide Camry listings starting at $2,212.

Postal Code:

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    Reelin68
    Reputation
    34,650
  • #2
    Tony Ciccotelli
    Reputation
    19,700
  • #3
    Tony Ciccotelli
    Reputation
    5,700
View All

Find great deals from top-rated dealers

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used Honda Accord
43 Great Deals out of 914 listings starting at $2,799
Used Toyota Corolla
110 Great Deals out of 1,961 listings starting at $1,995
Used Honda Civic
162 Great Deals out of 3,375 listings starting at $2,230
Used Toyota RAV4
88 Great Deals out of 2,026 listings starting at $3,499
Used Toyota Avalon
24 listings starting at $5,388
Used Lexus IS
24 Great Deals out of 342 listings starting at $5,800
Used Lexus ES
6 Great Deals out of 197 listings starting at $4,500
Used Nissan Altima
25 Great Deals out of 673 listings starting at $2,000
Used Toyota Tacoma
53 Great Deals out of 1,029 listings starting at $8,708
Used Honda CR-V
92 Great Deals out of 3,817 listings starting at $1,995
Used Toyota 4Runner
15 Great Deals out of 341 listings starting at $9,900
Used Toyota Highlander
24 Great Deals out of 719 listings starting at $6,495

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.