rp95se

Dont really know what to do. Max has always been good to me. today on way home it overheated, babied it for about 4 miles till I got home (turned car off about 4 times to let it cool down, never took it over 30 mph).

anyways not sure what to do, waterpump, radiator, other, any guesses, any ideas of cost to redo coolant system, IDEAS please!!!!!

Aristo

Do you have any coolant in the anti-freeze reservoir (the white bottle on the passenger side)?

I ask this since I kept on losing a small amount coolant without any signs of external leaks. Finally bit the bullet and took the car in when I took a 300 mile trip down to Atlanta and found my reservoir to be completely empty (no overheats though). After replacing the water pump, oil pan, and a timing cover (the mechanic broke a few parts in the process), the car stopped losing coolant.

rp95se

yes it did have coolant in the reservoir when i first stopped the car, by the time i got home the reservoir was empty

Hurd

iTrader: (1)

i over heated at 118k on my 95 max from not refilling my leaking coolant. my water pump had a leak and all my hoses were old. after replacing the pump and hoses it works like new, i never overheated again. since then i check my fluid levels more often.

Deagle

iTrader: (1)

Well, that doesn't make me feel anymore confident about my Max which is currently at 154K. I guess I need to go check all of the coolant things this weekend.

rp95se

is this going to cost me to get repaired, anyone know?

Hectic

iTrader: (20)

a few bucks in tools + the price of the water pump and new hoses.

edit:since it already seems to be in the shop, i can't tell you cause i'm a 3rd genner. few hundred i'm guessing.

adithius

What about just puting in more coolant and see what happens. Put the coolant in the radiator cap and the expansion bottle. If there is a leak then fix the leak.

Black Maxima

Man, I just put some coolant in mine yesterday. It was getting pretty low. I better not have any problems.

maximaintheface

iTrader: (1)

is it ur pump or just the gasket. my friends 5.0 gasket was leaking and it only took liek 30 minetes to change out the gasket and it was like new. but i dont think ours are as easy but im not sure havent ever looked into it.

Guinader

iTrader: (1)

for the water pump A mechanic quoted me at $400+- it takes a few hours.
but there are how to's if you feel like doing it yourself...but it is not very easy on our cars...

rp95se

thanks for the info, i am embarassed about what happened now. So far this is the deal: when i first stopped the car last night i had noticed steam coming out of the front of the car doing about 50 mph, about a minute later looked at the temperature gauge and it read hot (for the first time in 130,000 miles since I owned the car). NO lights came on. I pulled off and opened the hood. The first thing I noticed was the cap was ajar about 20 degrees from normal (that aint much). So i tightened it and noticed coolant in the reservoir. I look into the engine and notice no spattering, but some large drips at the bottom plastic cowel. No other evidence of leaks. I'm thinking I blew something major. I limped home 4 miles, turning the car off every now and then, plus when the needle pinned out at high, the car would start self shut down.

Made it home thank god. This morning added water to the max, about a minute to fill out of a hose. Carefully tested the engine driving around the neighborhood. Then out onto more main roads as the engine warmed, 15 minutes later the car was warm, i had even let it rev to 5000 rpms in 2nd gear for like 30 seconds or so. Drove it back to my garage, No leakage? What. Drove to work 30 miles and home 30, no leakage. ****ing 20 degree cap off-center put me in a tizzy. Final lesson, havent had a car payment since 2001, **** i've had the car 120,000 miles and 7years. This scared the hell out of me.

Morale of the Story: Max's are the Queen *****, you can spank em pretty hard and they come back to life and say here's some more. Owner 2 max's 150,000miles plus!!!

Supermax95

iTrader: (2)

sure your fan is working?

oops just read how the resevior was empty.....

DR-Max

iTrader: (3)

Thermostat might be out! The way to check is to let the car cool down for while. Then start her up with the radiator cap open........yes open! Watch the fluid inside. It will be still until the car has warmed up again. Once this happens, the fluid should start to move around. If not, your thermostat needs replacing. Also, check the radiator hoses. With that many miles, its not a bad idea to replace them anyway.

Also having a car that old with that many miles, its not a bad idea to routinely check under that hood every week. I do! That's how you catch things that could surprise you later on. Look under the car too for leaks and stuff, or split boots. Don't just start checking things when your car is breaking down on your. Preventative maintenance will keep your max going for a looooong time.

killcrap

iTrader: (3)

yea my water pump is leaking right now, very slowly. dont feel like fixing it. things for you to check for.

bad Radiator Cap (wrong PSI)
leaking water pump
brokeass thermostat.
hoses leaking cts leaking.
electric fan broke ***