96 SE was leaking radiator fluid, mechanic said radiator was bad and showed my nephew it was leaking at a the top of the radiator along the seal when engine got warm only. Charged $240 to replace radiator which I know was a ripoff since it's an easy job. Nephew finds leak is still there days later and now mechanic wants $650 to change bad water pump. Is this too high? Maxima runs great otherwise and is in excellent condition.

 

$650 to replace the water pump doesn't sound too bad. Water pump replacement is difficult on these cars.

However, if the engine coolant is leaking from the top of the radiator where the black plastic tank meets the cooling fins, the water pump has nothing to do with this. I think you should go to another mechanic.

 

If the water pump is bad then I'd assume an engine would overheat rather quickly. From the sound of your post your engine is not overheating. I don't think it's the water pump but then again I don't have experience with a faulty water pump.

 

Thanks for both your replies, Dennis and Bumpy. I'm guessing I had two leaks. One along the top flat surface of the radiator which is why the radiator was changed and the other leak somewhere near the pump/alternator area where I saw a large puddle once the car was started and moved. I'm guessing that's signifying the pump is leaking unless there's some hose there that not on properly or just deteriorated with age over 21 yrs. The mechanic said bad pump so I took his word again.

 

trust me when i tell you that there is a dozen or more hoses that carry anti-freeze all over you engine. i replaced about every one of them when i had a problem a few weeks back and kept losing coolant. drove me nuts, i just replaced about all of them, new clamps and all.

 

I paid about $215 for a halfway decent Napa radiator back in the end of 2014... I think that $240 for a radiator replacement isn't too bad... Did they replace all your hoses / clamps too? Parts alone can easily run $240 depending upon what kind of radiator your buy.

 

A lot of times, the water pump isn't bad.... its the seal around the water pump. But if you have to replace the seal, then it is good to do the pump too. You can drive the car with a bad WP seal as long as the leak isn't too bad, just keep your coolant up to level. Eventually the job will have to be done.


I bought a radiator at a local shop for $125.00 and installed it in about one hour. Its been in 4 years with no problems.

 

I paid about 110 bucks for a koyorad radiator a few years ago. Quite high quality. They are available on their website.

I have replaced all my hoses. The Gates website lists the part numbers of all the hoses. Then I bought them all on Amazon for around 80 bucks.

I have replaced the waterpump. Aisen brand. Aisen is an oem supplier to toyota. Again, high quality. Cost me around 50 bucks.

I'd say replace the hoses around that area first. Or tighten the clamps. If the leak stops, you win.

Keep in mind that the cooling system on a 20 year old car is quite likely to fail at the worst possible time.

It is far more convenient and less expensive if you do preventative maintenance than it would be to have it towed to a shop .

The waterpump is indeed difficult, and a pita.

 

I replaced the pump for $650 and the leak went away so that's good. I did not have any hoses replaced and hopefully they last another few years.

 

Hoping won't fix your car when the hoses pop on a hot day. Which they are quite likely to do. Replace them. Start with the top radiator hose. It is usually the first one to go.

Preventative maintenance prevents a lot of headaches from occurring in the first place.

 

I will try to do as you recommended and change the hoses asap. Thanks all.

 

check the transmission cooler lines on the bottom of the radiator, the tend to leak as well.

 

I hate to be a pain sometimes. I like to go on long drives with my old, dependable cars. I travel in mountain and desert regions sometimes.

I see cars pulled over in the middle of nowhere, with either steam or water coming out of them. Their owner, or their family are having a very bad, expensive day.

Old cars can be reasonably dependable. But it does take some time and money to maintain them.

Some of our members keep the car around as a beater, or don't plan on having them long. I do understand wanting to spend as little as possible in some situations.

 

if your keepin your max as old as it is, you might as well keep her running right. these engines are bulletproof, and sometimes it takes a bit of $$$ to keep it so. had my max for 12 years next month and plan on keeping her as long as possible.