Realmsteel

Hi all,
I'm new to Lexus ownership and new to the forum.
We picked up a very nice 2012 IS350C with about 74,xxx miles on it.
All the service has been done at the dealership and even had the 80k service done a couple months ago by previous owner.

I noticed a small spot of coolant on the garage floor so I put it up on my lift and started hunting around.
This car looks super clean underneath, but I found the leak.
It looks like the passenger head gasket may be leaking.
I didn't see anything leaking up top.

I did a search here and didn't see much of anything on leaking head gaskets like this.
It seems like the 250's have problems, but not so much for the 350's.

Can anyone point me to some page with a detailed tear down to get the head off?

Since I'll be into the engine, are there other things I should replace while I'm there?

Thanks

Zmon

iTrader: (2)

You'll have coolant in your oil if your head gasket is leaking (chocolate milk appearance). More likely than not the overflow reservoir is leaking (which is fairly common that they leak from the lid a tad bit regardless if they're new or not), or your water pump is leaking from the weep hole. I'd put money on the water pump being the problem though at that mileage.

Mrfix

Before you tear it apart, do yourself a favor and test. See if really is a head gasket.

Realmsteel

You can see the pink line from the leak originating from the middle of the head where it meets the block.
It didn't look like it was running from the front of the engine, but I can take a better look. This leak is so slow, I think most of it dries before dripping.
I should have taken a picture. I'll have to get it back up in the air and snap a pic.
The oil looks fine.
I've had head gaskets on other cars just seeped out the back of the block and not into the cylinder, so if that's the case here, I got lucky.
I have not pulled the plugs yet to look for washing, but if it's not bad enough to get in the oil, I doubt the plug is going to look any different.
Thanks for the feedback so far.

Mike_1GO

iTrader: (2)

if its leaking onto your garage floor, its safe to say its a big leak..I wouldn't drive it until you can confirm exactly what the issue is. last thing you want is for the leak to worsen, which over time i imagine it will and the possibility of coolant mixing with your oil increases.

ive been on this forum for a while and think you're the first BHG on a 350. Makes me wonder what caused it in the first place since so many owners drive their cars hard and nary an overheat let alone a bhg.

Realmsteel

It's really not a bad leak. Here is a picture from under the car.
To me, it looks like it's right under #3. (Middle cylinder passenger side)
I can't tell, but could the water pump leak to where it travels to that point and then drips down?
I didn't have time tonight to pull any of the covers under there to get a view from the front.
https://imgur.com/a/aCk7YOl

2grfan

No, the water pump is in front. However there are heater hoses and transmission coolant lines on the passenger side. I would check those first, and the clamps.

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

I would venture a guess that it is NOT the HG assuming you've tested the oil for any coolant presence. Does it continue to run fine?