whosdady

I noticed coolant was leaking from a little bolt just in front of the motor, above that black plastic pipe. It started as a small leak and has since become worse.

Is there a little gasket that goes in there that might have gone bad? Has this happened to anyone else? How do I fix this?

Thanks for the help.

Lex Luthor

I'll take a stab and assume you mean the 14mm water fill bolt at the center top of the SC400 engine. If that's what you mean, yes, there's a thin metal gasket that goes there, looks like a big washer, if it's missing, your local Lexus dealer should stock it if they're decent, and make sure not to over-tighten when you re-install, it's aluminum after all.
- LL

whosdady

Thanks Lex,

I will check it out. To be honest with you I put a little JB weld around it to stop the leak. It worked for about a month but has started to leak again.

The joys of taking off JB weld

Lex Luthor

JB Weld? Duuuude, that's ghetto, come on, do the right thing.....
- LL

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

please take care of this problem A.S.A.P!!!!!
I HAD THE SAME EXACT PROBLEM and it caused my engine to almost overheat!!. let me explain- what happens is that small leak will leak antifreeze and the heat will evaporate the antifreeze before you even notice it still leaks.
sometime after that,the engine (low on antifreeze) will begin to build pressure and the steam will force antifreeze out of the engine,therefore rising your thermostat to overheating levels,so please ignore your coolant levels in your resevoir tank-it will do you no good!! trust me..i caught mine just as the needle started to touch the "hot" mark and my resevoir tank was full!. Have your mechanic replace the thermostat and the gasket around that area!!!.

whosdady

Thanks Next,

I will get on it right away. My car has been running really hot. I figured it was just the hot weather. What you said makes sense. I hope I make it in time.

Lex,

Your right, it is ghetto but I haven't had time to make it to the dealer. It sounds like I better make time now.

whosdady

Thanks guys for your help. I took it to Lexus today.

It was the 17mm water fill screw. There was an AL gasket that had failed. The dealer put a new one on and all is well. They said the thermostat would be fine, so I left it alone.

Now if I can just understand whats happening with my AC...

akmpres

whosdady,

how much did lex charge you for that job? I just want to see what the mark up on a bolt is.