This morning (and I was at the dealership yesterday so you think they would have brought this to my attention) I noticed my coolant reservoir was bone dry. No fluid underneath the car so I assume it was the same way yesterday. Why did my coolant level light not come on? Has anyone had theirs come on?

 

The other night I was leaving Target and all of a sudden the temperature gauge started heading north faster than the spedometer. It got all the way over the H and still no dummy lights or anything. As soon as I got home I checked and the resevoir was way below LOW and bubbling.

 

Thats not good, well mine was low a while ago but I actually had to flush the system and replace coolant anyway. Was real nasty but its all good now, the level has stayed where it should be for a month now. But I do have a small oil leak from the rear of my cylinder head, need new gasket.

 

Is there a even light for coolant level? I know we have oil level and washer fluid level and if the brake fluid is low that brake light comes on, but looking at the dash I don't see what it could be.

It must only be leaking coolant while I drive because there is never any coolant under the car. I am going to replace all three hoses that connect to the heater valve. It has to be one of those. I don't mind leaking oil but leaking coolant makes me nervous.

 

Well, just got back from the mechanic and found out where all my coolant went. Turns out my 6 month old water pump just took a dump. Now I get to shell out a whole lot more money I don't have to replace the water pump... again. Guess that's what I get for not putting in a Toyota factory replacement part.

 

Only worked for 6 months? That sucks. I think I'll get a Toyota water pump when the time comes...

I felt so stupid in the parking garage adding coolant to my Lexus with an umbrella holding the hood up. That's getting fixed next.

 

yo leets, what yr is yr car and how many miles do u have? is this the first timr you're changing the water pump?

 

The car's a 94 with 196K miles on it. I got the car with around 180K on it and did the water pump/ timing belt replacement. I work at Kragen and get a discount so I went with the best brand we carry for both the water pump and the timing belt. The company is Beck/Arnley and most of their stuff is just repackaged OEM parts. I guess their water pumps aren't, though, cuz this one lasted just a lil longer than the regular stuff we carry. So now I've decided to have both the timing belt and water pump replaced, again. I figure if I go cheap again and just replace the water pump I'll end up having to shell out another $300 when the belt goes out prematurely.

 

If the tempature goes pass normal or near high/high, you should pull over immediately and not drive the car. The first thing you should do is let it cool and add water or coolant. If you can't, then you should call for a tow. I have seen a good number of people driving while the car was overheating and as a result damage the motor in their cars.