CLRH2O

Not sure if this in the right place or not - but it just happened and I'm desperate for input:

My car just moments ago had burning coolant smoke (very sweet smell) rising from all around the hood cracks at a stop light. No overheating, no weird engine performance - nothing. I drive the car directly home and when I looked in the bay, I found water resting in the FRONT of the lower area on top of the cowling that protects the bottom of the radiator, fan and pulleys/belts from road trash that are made out of plastic on the very bottom of the engine bay up front. Also I saw what appeared to be boiled spray that must have been thrown from the fan all across the front of the engine, on the pulleys, on the fronts of both leading edges of each valve covers plastic cover. My SC400 is a 1992 V8, 107K miles with FULL 3k mile service history from original Lexus dealership mech shop for service - the car is BEYOND cherry so this troubles me to no end.

I seems as though coolant maybe spurted out of the radiator's back side in between the radiator wall and the fan? And that's what caused i to be sprayed all across the front of the engine like that?

It's still too hot to check the fluid level and I cant get around the bay either to touch anything yet.... But what's the next step here? I dropped 8250 in cash on this car only 90 days ago - having to spend even more on it already is offensive, not to mention hard to do as I'm still strapped. (just venting there - sorry).

Reaching out for help via info - please.

twizted

iTrader: (2)

Its split at the seal where the top tank on the radiator is attached. Its right were mine aplit and leaked, i went with a koyo after that. Gave me an excuse to upgrade

mkorsu

Did you also check the bottom radiator hose??

CLRH2O

I will check as soon bottom hose as soon as there is light outside again.

How can I check the top of the radiator's mounting seal that holds to black top to the actual cooling portion of the unit - ie, what needs to be removed in order to look at that? By the time I got the car back to the house I couldn't see any coolant coming out, but there was obviously coolant all around either unboiled pooled up on the plastic parts at the bottom of the engine bay up front or boiled and sprayed all across the front of the engine and the belts and everything.

When a radiator fails and the top seal goes I would think water could make it into the fan due to gravity and leak location. I'm guessing this could also explain how the boiled/dried residue I see all over the front end of the engine got there as well. But what about a lower radiator hose.... could this rupturing also get hot coolant into the fan? I don't know the layout of everything yet.

CLRH2O

Ok, I cant find any hoses with splits or damage (although I'd replace them at the same time regardless)... so it must be the radiator it's self. But in order to assure that this is what it is. How do I test the radiator and force it to spray water on command in order to find the leak? Will a shop do this for me for free - or is diagnosing a radiator leak a pay-for-service?

Next up to that is, I'm located in Tampa FL. Where to go to buy a new radiator? Any corner shop? Order online and have shipped? The dealer.... I saw that someone, maybe multiple people, had been getting a 180 dollar replacement one. That would suit me and the 400 just fine because this is a daily driver, not a project car - 500 for a race radiator is far from needed).

Streamline

twizted is correct.

My crack developed along the top tank directly in front of the upper radiator hose joint area. It was really tiny. And when it leaked, coolant pooled up along the radiator support area.

Most shops will pressure test it for free. (But they're also assuming you will have them do a radiator replacement there).

lxsdude

You may want to get your car checked out by a professional to determine where the leak is. If you're not sure how a lower hose can spray coolant/water upward in an engine bay, here's a little experiment you can try. Locate a garden hose with one of those sprayers on the end. Turn the water on. Then point the nozzle upward and spray. Notice how high the water goes? That's because it's under pressure. Just like the coolant in your lines.

You said that you don't see any hoses that are split or damaged, but it wouldn't hurt to have an experienced set of eyes look at it. If it is your radiator, then there are countless places that sell radiators online. I'm sure there's even a radiator company in your area. If not, any autoparts store should be able to order one for you.

My recommendation is to take your car to someone that can install the radiator for you so it will be done right and you won't have to worry about it.

A 15 year old car no matter how "BEYOND cherry" it is, will have some problems. Not sure if you've owned an older car before or not, but be ready. You'll get very intimate with your car. ... Not in a sexy-time explosion way (Or at least I would hope), but you know what I mean.

chuggernot

i agree with lxsdude, you should probably have a mechanic check it out if you're not too sure what it is. i'm sure you are already aware that the cooling system is pressurized, but i did like the hose analogy (i'm going to use that one day when i have to explain something to my hopeless roomate).

does anyone know what actually classifies something as "Cherry"? i know my car is nowhere near that but i figured i'd ask. seems alot of people use that term loosely to describe their cars (this isnt a jab at you clrh2o, i've never seen your car so i wouldnt be able to judge it). is it some sort of objective thing or is their a scale for it? just figured i'd throw that out there while i'm at work and bored.

i hope your car gets fixed so you can get back to enjoying it.

chuggernot out

CLRH2O

There is actually a scale for how well kept items are. Comic book collectors have a scale that is very precise, and many other groups have similar scales. I used the term loosely of course, but on a subjective level it's accurate for my SC400. chuggernot - no offense taken what so ever. The car came from a 62 year old single owner as their 3rd car bought new and used mostly by the wife for groceries from 1993 until 2006 when it was sold to the Mercedes dealership in Tampa. Before that time it was garage kept, washed and detailed weekly and serviced as a "Preferred Customer" (sticker in the windshield) with stamps to prove it in the service manual @ the Lexus dealership it was purchased at for every stage up to 103,000 of the 106K miles it had on it when I purchased it. The leather is silky and soft, the paint is sparkling and nearly defect free around the entire car roof to skirts and the mechanical elements of the car it's self seem perfect..... As well they should all be for the price I paid.

But, back on topic... Yes I understand pressure and direction so it's entirely possible to have coolant spray upward.

I believe in the mean time I have found the location of the leak.... the plastics cowling that surrounds the cooling fan on the back side (inner engine bay side) of the radiator.... or more specifically the foam that sits between it and the mounting surface at the back edge of the radiator revealed the likely leak spot.

While examining everything closely with my shop light I noticed that the very top edge on the passenger side just to the left (this is standing in front of the car looking toward the engine bay) of the overflow reservoir where you can see all three radiator, foam layer and plastic cowling - that there was moisture where the foam in the middle was. When I used my hand to squeeze the plastic cowling against the foam into the backside of the radiator it's self - viola, coolant squished out. This leads me to believe that the leak is at the top passenger side of the radiator due to the seal having failed at that spot on the radiator it's self.

As for my experience with cars - I can go all the way down to the block with no worry on just about any engine. Past that point, I go to a pro though. I've replaced my own Clutch in a 1995 Cavalier 5-Speed, Completely removed and replaced the main return coolant line that lives beneith the intake within the valley of the V-6 on my Mazda MX-6 LS (that difficult process with photos is here: http://www.mx6.com/forums/showthread...=142750&page=2 ) Lowered my cars, done Valve and Head gasket replacements, changed out water pumps and starters on just about every car I've owned (which is 8 at this point from 1993 to now), I do my own brakes - both disc and drum - and many other simpler things like replace windows and window motors, stereo installs, replace seats, replace in dash components such the heater core in my fist (horrible I might add) mustang.

Anyway, the point of all that is I'm confident that I can replace the radiator in the Lexus myself - I just ask a lot of questions about ANY process I haven't done before in order to be as entirely prepared as possible

lxsdude

Sorry, clrh20. Your questions are not those that would come from someone with experience working on cars. I understand the need to ask questions on things, but your questions are all over the place from beginner stuff to more advanced topics. That's why I suggested you take it to a mechanic. If you think you can do it yourself, then go for it. It will save you money in labor. You might want to post a write up in here with pictures like that mx6.com post in case another owner comes along and has the same problem.

Good luck.

CLRH2O

Absolutely I will. It's one of the best ways we are all able to give back and contribute to these communities. In preperation for any new thing I do myself I appreciate the info in advance I find on these boards about each process. Of particular usefulness in this case was the Koyo after market install that XxSC400xX put on the board here:https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=225485

Anyway - yes, you can count on a write up with pictures from me once done.

chuggernot

just checking up to see how it's going with the radiator.

CLRH2O

Still looking for the right radiator locally for the price I want it to be... Getting the right flush liquids together and so forth.

As it happens, I've run up against conflicting information regarding Warm flush with chemicals vs cold flush without chemicals methods. And I'm taking a moment to learn every upside and downside to each before really getting serious about the work process its self. Apparently a cold flush simply wont evacuate all the old coolant and in a case like mine where I'm removing the green glycerin type to go back to the stock Toyota red type that's an issue as I don't want to mix the two. Problem is, a warm flush which would do the job is generally suggested to use not only Steam Distilled water for the flush (seems a minimum of two full flushes to be safe) but also a chemical cleaning agent. What some people say happens is that you get the chemical soaked into the clumped up trash in the cooling system's corners and valleys and no amount of *at the time* flushing will remove that. So when your done with your flush, and you've removed your old radiator / replaced it with the new one and refilled the whole system..... in a few days time as the chemical agent that's soaked into the crud around your cooling system breaks apart more and more of that stuff you end up with a totally useless brand new radiator; The result of it being clogged by what could be called a "time release" mechanical artery clog.

Anyway - lots more to think about when doing this process than it might at first seem, so I'm being careful and thorough.

I'll probably do it this weekend at the earliest, But I'm in a very lucky position in that I work for myself from a home studio so the normal pressure associated with rush fixes generally does not apply to me. I'm able to take my time with everything and plan on doing so if that's what appears to be the right course of action.

Don't worry though, I'll post it all when it's done.