Is the top of my radiator leaking? (1 Viewer)

[zhloea]

Hi, I found some drips at the bottom of the engine fan outer case and the bottom of the radiator last night. I tracked the leaking and found the gap between the plastic and the aluminum on the top of the radiator is all wet and also the top of the radiator has that famous "brown plastic" sign which points to the radiator failure.

So it is time to change the radiator right?

 

[BullElk]

Definitely. The yellow light brown color of radiator is also a good indicator of last days.

 

[zhloea]

Definitely. The yellow light brown color of radiator is also a good indicator of last days.

Thanks! Another 500 in...

 

[Ayune]

If you’re using Toyota pink coolant it usually leaves a buildup of crusties where the leaks are. This is the top left rearward corner of my radiator. Totally out of sight and only saw it from underneath during a timing belt job. It’s a Gates radiator from the previous owner after 85k miles. I replaced with OEM.

 

[medtro]

Thanks! Another 500 in...

This is expected on a used vehicle.

 

[zhloea]

This is expected on a used vehicle.

Yeah~, but I have a better understanding of why LC is a famous "running forever" car. It definitely not the "running forever" concept I thought before I bought it. That is kind of a "running forever" car that normally doesn't throw you on the road and most of the problems are repairable.

 

[zhloea]

So nowadays they always said the range of a clean LC100 is around 13000-15000 USD, but it will always need a further 5000 USD DIY investment. And time and love....

 

[BullElk]

Hard to argue with a radiator that commonly lasts 15+ years. That IS forever in SUV years.

 

[BullElk]

So nowadays they always said the range of a clean LC100 is around 13000-15000 USD, but it will always need a further 5000 USD DIY investment. And time and love....

I will certainly beg to differ with seven reasons why. You bought the wrong one if you "need" to add 5 Gs.

 

[zhloea]

Hard to argue with a radiator that commonly lasts 15+ years. That IS forever in SUV years.

Totally agree with this, I was talking about the overall feeling of this 8 months ownership... everyday thinking is "what is the next project" or "which project should be first"

 

[zhloea]

I will certainly beg to differ with seven reasons why. You bought the wrong one if you "need" to add 5 Gs.

Well, Fairly, 5gs mostly because my expectation is too high before and I have a little "Obsessive-compulsive", It will work if I only did the minimum repair, Radiator failure is the only thing I have to repair until now, most of the repair is from making it "best to me" but not make it "works for me"~And I am not a really good DIYer also, the I did not do the timing belt by myself, the shop charges me 1500, so 5000 is easily...

 

[zhloea]

I will certainly beg to differ with seven reasons why. You bought the wrong one if you "need" to add 5 Gs.

But you right, I maybe have bought a little wrong one, I have little knowledge of cars~ I just saw my LC is shiny enough from the surface at that time, then I bought it...I feel lucky the the engine and trans has no big issue...

 

[Shortpencils]

Totally agree with this, I was talking about the overall feeling of this 8 months ownership... everyday thinking is "what is the next project" or "which project should be first"

Rims first. Baselining and maintenance are for chumps.

 

[zhloea]

Rims first. Baselining and maintenance are for chumps.

Does "Rims first" means we should take care of the suspension problem?

 

[zhloea]

Rims first. Baselining and maintenance are for chumps.

If you mean the "alloy rim", my lc's rims are good and came with almost new Micheline tires even though the shocks, bushings are suck...

 

[Ayune]

But you right, I maybe have bought a little wrong one, I have little knowledge of cars~ I just saw my LC is shiny enough from the surface at that time, then I bought it...I feel lucky the the engine and trans has no big issue...

Your truck is awesome, enjoy it! Just keep the cooling system fixed so it doesn’t overheat.

 

[molonlabemike]

It appears that tanks are stress cracking as well based on your photos. Probably a great idea to change that radiator out ASAP and maybe a fan clutch while you’re in there

 

[Shortpencils]

If you mean the "alloy rim", my lc's rims are good and came with almost new Micheline tires even though the shocks, bushings are suck...

My rims comment was tongue in cheek. It seems, typically, that the first things most owners do is put new rims on, even before they do required maintenance. Your OEM alloys are superior to most aftermarket rims. Good luck with your radiator. I had to replace mine recently too. Don't forget to check/change hoses and tees as well.

 

[kgrove]

Don't forget to check/change hoses and tees as well.

Agree. This is a very slippery slope toward that $5K baselining cost people throw around.

I replaced my radiator at about 185K miles because it was turning that worn, aged brownish color that indicates the radiator is weakening and might eventually crack. As long as they were in the area, I had them replace the coolant hoses and thermostat plus had them inspect the fan clutch and some of the belt pulleys, which arguably was a good thing since we found metal shavings in the fan clutch and some of the pulleys were intermittently oh so subtly squealing. None of these had failed yet, but I am prepping the car for some cross country camping type trips and I wanted to be confident everything was in working order. If this were purely a daily driver, I probably could have gone months or even years before any of the parts I replaced would have failed. Probably.... and that's where every owner has to make their own decision based on their own comfort level with spending more on preventative maintenance to achieve peace of mind vs milking the 100's reliability for everything they can by only replacing things that are provably bad.

 

[77mustard40]

Just finished up my TB on my99 with 189k and I replaced everything I could including the radiator. Wasn’t leaking but was definitely off color and it was time.