i took my car in for an oil change at the toyota dealership and they said i have a leaking water pump. i elected to not have it changes bc they said it wasnt a bad leak and i havent seen any water anywhere on the ground and my car is running cool and not losing coolant...


but i checked my coolant today and it is about .5cm to a cm below the line. how and should i fill it back up, and is it time to replace the pump.

 

I would top it back up to the full mark and then keep a close eye on it after that so you can determine how long it takes for the level to drop again. That will give you a better idea of how soon you will need to replace the pump.

 

It's designed to leak to warn you of impending failure of the seal. It may last another 10 years or fail today. Which is cheaper to replace, water pump or seized engine?

 

well if it were just a seal im pretty sure the dealership wouldnt have said that it was a leaking water pump, and also knowing them, who want the money, wouldve said to replace it right away if there was actually danger.

 

or they could not and charge $2500 for a new 1mz-fe, no labor included.


you do the math


change the timing belt and pump

 

well... most of DH's best customers were either overmaintainers or undermaintainers. they each paid him a lot of money to do stuff to their cars.

so.... what pheonix said.