Okay so I have a 93 toyota paseo about 114,000 miles on it. I dont believe the radiator, water pump, belts, hoses, or fans have ever been changed or replaced. About 4 months ago the car started to overheat…when I removed the radiator cap it was empty looking. after filling it back up with coolant and water it seemed the car would not over heat anymore. then i noticed leaking, maybe from the radiator, maybe from the water pump. either way for four months i just refilled with water all the time sometimes twice a day. now my car is still overheating…should i replace the radiator, hoses,water pump? will that be a solution? thanks a lot
Find and replace the leaking part. If you keep overheating your engine pretty soon you’ll be looking at a head gasket replacement.
At 114k miles the timing belt replacement is overdue. Replace the water pump and tension pulley at the same time to save on labor cost.
Keep overheating the engine and a new one MAY be needed.
Visible leaks are easy to locate by process of elimination. If you find a coolant leak at the end of a rad or heater hose, try tightening the hose clamp first.
Use a flashlight to see better and check BOTH when the engine is hot and when cold. Hoses are flexible and will leak at different temps.
If the vehicle has been neglected for a long time, the hoses may need replacing because they will crack or collapse internally with age.
You’re not helping it either by just adding water. When you do this, the amount of coolant in the system gets less and less and the water gets more and more. Soon you are running on 100% water and no coolant. Water boils sooner by itself and disappears by way of steam. Replace the leaking component/s, check all hoses and fans, flush the cooling system, replace the thermostat, and refill using a 50/50 mixture of coolant/water.
Also, cheap insurance, replace radiator cap.
transman