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Wow ... lots of solutions without even knowing the root cause
ASE, would you consider replacing all these parts @ 100k miles overkill? I tend to be on the proactive side, since being stranded leads me to "blow a head gasket" 😅
ASE, would you consider replacing all these parts @ 100k miles overkill? I tend to be on the proactive side, since being stranded leads me to "blow a head gasket" 😅
If you have the money and motivation ... and this vehicle is a long term keeper, then yes ... my inclination would be to replace everything relative to the cooling system. These radiators do tend to weep at the seal between the plastic end tank and the radiator core. My only point was that the root cause could very well be the hose-radiator interface or even the radiator cap ... not that hard to verify. As others have suggested ... the domino effect ... not replacing the water pump ... etc. given access with the radiator removed would be foolish given the labor / effort is the bigger consideration ... and for the same reason, I always go with LEXUS OEM parts ... and order from an out-of-state discount Lexus dealership that offers free shipping and no sales tax.
The leak was at the radiator. Got all that out of the way EXCEPT, the idler/tensioner which slipped through the cracks. I have some duplicate OEM parts that I purchased to do a portion of this work at an off-road shop (who are currently away in the West at an activity) that will be listing in the For Sale section.
Wow...$3500?. Man, I'm gonna have coupe of sleepless nights. I'm glad you have it sorted out.
Thanks. The work would've been cheaper if the vehicle didn't shut down after a car wash AND the shop that was going to do it wasn't out in the Wild West offroading and having fun without me 😅
Now you don't have to worry about these for another 100k miles. I'm surprised that they charged over $500 of labor for the fan clutch. Don't they already remove everything when pulling out the radiator?
Now you don't have to worry about these for another 100k miles. I'm surprised that they charged over $500 of labor for the fan clutch. Don't they already remove everything when pulling out the radiator?
The tech advisor spread 12 hours of labor across the tasks in no particular order. No charge for fan clutch labor (like you mentioned, everything is apart), just the new parts.
The pulley/tensioner slipped through the cracks, and the serpentine belt replacement does not appear on the service history. Should I message the service advisor to add it?
Just discovered this flaw in my GX, just under the top hose, I was driving and suddenly noticed the temp gauge rise, stopped immediately and checked the reservoir, found it empty, filled it with coolant then turned on and it was below half reading, now I need to fix the thing, do I really need to REPLACE the whole radiator assembly ? This is really ridiculous coming from Lexus.
I noticed this on my 2010 model with about 125k on it. It’s leaking from the same spot. I’m waiting on a new upper hose and clamp to see if that fixes it. If not I guess it’s the adjacent crimp and time for a new radiator.
So in replacing the upper hose to possibly remedy the leak I noticed a hairline crack around the inlet neck of the radiator. Also in the process of removing the old hose with a screwdriver as a pry I actually broke off part of the neck as it has apparently become very brittle.
I suppose it’s time for a new radiator. My question is would it be wise to replace anything else at the time? I’m going to check with my local Toyota dealer next week for the work. I recently had the coolant valley issue fixed there a few months ago and they were extremely fair priced.
Just completed radiator changeout due to the leak by Hose #1 (by the radiator cap). My GX is 2011 since then Lexus has changed the part number twice. There is no quick fix for this design issue and you don’t want to take chances with engine cooling system. It is a major job and requires quite a bit of disassembly , but it can be done if you follow the instructions from the service manual. Not complex, but tedious. If I can do it than any one can. Use zip locks or other methods to keep track of nuts and bolts, there is literally more than 50 nuts and bolts.
Few lessons learned I wanted to share with future DIYers.
1. Do yourself and favor and don’t try to do this without removing the front bumper I tried it and it is impossible to get to the bottom bolts as the air dams are covering the bolts. I managed to get the driver side air dam out without damage but you simply cannot get the passenger side out without damaging the dam, lines or other things. Juts remove the bumper and life will be very easy. Taking off bumper is not hard, quite easy. Don’t get intimidated, it goes back in very easy as well. You only have to disconnect one harness plug located on the driver side which connects to all parking sensors and fogs. Don’t need to disconnect any other wire, whole bumper with every sensor and light etc. comes out as one assembly.
2. You must have a Milwaukee M12 fuel or similar, there is a lot of wrenching at 90 degree angle and this will make life thoroughly easier. You must also have long needle nose plier, both straight and angled (harbor freight).
3. Fan shroud and fan will come out using open end 12mm wrench, just jam a long screwdriver in between bolts, for last bolts , put back a loose nut on one of the stud and use that for leverage (or just loosen all the bolts first)
5. Remove the radiator, following instructions from FSM , it is tempting to remove hose #2 (bottom hose), but it is best leave it. Remember, you may need two hands to remove the bottom two bolts, one to hold the nut and other to remove the bolts ( I think its 13 mm). Again if you don't use Milwaukee M12 or similar, you will be in a heap of wrenching pain. This M12 fuel will pay itself off in just this one job.
6. NOW WOULD BE THE TIME TO REPLACE WATERPUMP and Thermostat also. While the belt is still under tension , loosen the water pump pulley bolts. This is important because after the belt is loose , it is difficult to remove these, so take advantage of the belt tension. Replacing water pump while the radiator is out give you plenty of room.
7. When installing back radiator and water pump and thermostat housing, it would be wise to make sure to orient the hose clamps is generally as it was before to prevent interference.
8. Installing back bumper is fairly easy, it looks very intimidating but its not bad at all (hopefully you would have remembered which bolts goes where).
9. Use Lisle funnel(yellow funnel) from advanced auto or other places to refill the radiator and take out all air bubble, (good $20 that will also pay itself off just by this job). Using this funnel will prevent a lot of mess.
10. I used about 2 gallons of coolant (Aisin from Rock Auto was cheap), I did not bother to drain engine block.
11. Rock auto hose #2 is not to correct length, it will be going back. I had to reuse hose#2 (bottom hose). I used new hose clamps for radiator hoses to eliminate loose clamp failure mode. Also replaced belt. Rad was Denso, and water pump and thermostat was Aisin (Toyota was scraped off, so it was OEM) from RockAuto.
12. If you break the nub on the styrofoam from front bumper, just wrap the foam on the front beam with packing tap and it will hold fine.
Main message: you can do it with patience and planning. Not too bad.
09-29-20, 04:16 PM
