leaking Radiator (or hose). Please help

[master4g]

Hello. New to the Prius here. I bought a salvaged 2005 prius with 45,000 miles on it. Before I bought it, I had it inspected by AAA with their "80 point pre-purchase inspection" to see if it was worth buying. The reason it was salvaged was because there was a front end collision and the front bumper and left headlight was replaced (thats it). The only non-consmetic thing that AAA pointed out to me was that the oil needed to be changed and that the Radiator hose was seeping and they recommended that I have the hose changed or maybe even fix it by just replacing the hose clamp.

Now it has been about 1000 miles since I purchased it and there has been no problem in terms of engine over heating or anything. I received a coupon for a $20 oil change at the toyota dealership and they also had a coupon for a free multi point inspection of the car. So i took it in for an oil change and inspection and knowing that it was a free inspection (especially by the dealership) I was expecting them to come back to me and exaggerate a problem and quote me a inflated price to fix it.

And they did, and they said the radiator is leaking (possibly cracked) but they didn't tell me for sure, they said that they would have to remove the whole radiator to see and would have to do some test on it, etc.... and then if it was bad they would replace it and it would cost me over $500. They would also charge me several hundred $ just to take the radiator out and check if its leaking.

I told them that I would like to hold off on that, because I remembered that the AAA inspector said just the hose was just seeping and they didn't mention anything about the radiator being cracked.

I have taken some photos and would like you guys opinion on who I should believe: Money hungry toyota dealership, or AAA ?

Also, do you guys think its safe to drive while i'm figuring this out? I have already driven over 1000 miles like this. The coolant fluids seem to be filled enough.

The rest of the radiator has no signs of leak or any damage. One thing to point out (not sure if its just me being paranoid) is that whenever i drive the car and then park and turn the car off, there is a buzzing sound from the driver side of the engine (around the fuse box area) for several seconds. It happens every time I drive and someone suggested it had to do with some radiator fluid reserve filling up or something. Does this nose happing on on prius's?

Thanks a lot.

[jayman]

Thank you for the clear photos, they really help

The buzzing may be the coolant pump running, to transfer coolant to the thermos.

The upper hose does look like it was put on cockeyed. The radiator header, like on almost all new vehicles, is plastic.

First step, get a new upper rad hose, and new hose clamps of the proper spring design, same as was from the factory. Drain the rad. Once you have that new hose, use a pair of pliers to compress the clamp and slide it down the hose a few inches.

Use a new and very sharp utility knife or razor blade to slit the upper hose where it hooks up to the rad. You must peel the upper hose off once it is slit. Do NOT attempt to twist the hose off the radiator, you'll probably crack the outlet at the header tank. I learned that the hard way around 8 years ago with a Honda

With the hose off, slide the new hose clamps onto the new hose. Put the engine end on first, then carefully put the rad end on, taking care not to twist it too much. It helps to smear a bit of Vaseline on the outlet so the hose slips on easier

Use the pliers to compress the new clamps, and put them where they belong. Now comes the fun part

You're going to have to be VERY careful how you bleed the cooling system, as you also have to deal with the thermos. It's very important to get this right, or you could ruin some pretty pricey parts.

I'd recommend subscribing to either the Toyota techinfo site, or All Data DIY, to get the factory-correct refill and bleed procedure

It could be the plastic rad outlet is cracked right at the header. But it does look like the hose is very cockeyed, and leaking. Resist the urge to put on worm-gear hose clamps, you could overtighten and crack the plastic outlet

[master4g]

Thanks for the detailed reply. Just a follow-up. If the actual plastic radiator head is cracked, do I have to replace the radiator, or is that a separate part. Also, do you think its ok to drive the car in this condition?

Also, anyone else with opinions out there? Thanks

Oh Yeah. I did some reading into bleeding the coolant and there are two things someone can do. One is just to remove the air from the existing cooling system, and the second is to completely drain the old fluid and then replace with new fluid. In my case of changing the hose, which would you think is appropriate.

[Patrick Wong]

Originally Posted by master4g

Thanks for the detailed reply. Just a follow-up. If the actual plastic radiator head is cracked, do I have to replace the radiator, or is that a separate part. Also, do you think its ok to drive the car in this condition?

Also, anyone else with opinions out there? Thanks

Oh Yeah. I did some reading into bleeding the coolant and there are two things someone can do. One is just to remove the air from the existing cooling system, and the second is to completely drain the old fluid and then replace with new fluid. In my case of changing the hose, which would you think is appropriate.

If the plastic radiator tank is cracked then the entire radiator must be replaced. I do not recommend continuing to drive the car indefinitely while in this condition (especially on a long freeway trip in hot summer weather.)

Considering you have 45K miles logged, when changing the radiator hose it is not necessary to completely drain the old fluid. Attach a vinyl hose to the radiator drain, open the drain and let out a couple of quarts of coolant into a clean drain container, then close the drain. That should be sufficient so that when you remove the old radiator hose you won't have a big flood of coolant everywhere.

If the drained coolant is clear pink without sediment then you can reuse. Otherwise buy a gallon of Toyota Super Long Life Coolant (around $20 or so) and use that to replenish. Check the radiator and overflow container a few times after the engine has been run and then cooled down, replenish coolant level as needed.

When buying a new hose and clamps I suggest you buy from the Toyota dealer's parts dept, resist buying some cheap aftermarket alternative.

[master4g]

Hey. I have used some brake cleaner and cleaned up the coolant rust to see if it makes things clearer.... (refer to photos attached).

As you can see, the actual radiator part is metal so no worries about plastic cracking. Also, this area seemed like the only area which had the coolant leak and when i cleaned it off and examined the area, I couldn't see any damage on the actual radiator part, so most probably it was just that hose being on loosely. The Hose also looks like it has no damage on it and looks in very good condition

Do you guys think i can save some money and time and avoid buying new coolant, new hose, new clamp and all that time to drain it and bleed it..... by just trying to stuff the hose more into the radiator head? or even just slightly loosen the clamp and push the hose in all the way and tighten it again?

Thanks for the help

[JimN]

Originally Posted by master4g

I bought a salvaged 2005 prius with 45,000 miles on it. The reason it was salvaged was because there was a front end collision and the front bumper and left headlight was replaced (thats it).

There had to be more damage than a headlight & bumper for the car to be totalled & branded with a salvage title. Hope you didn't pay much for the car.

[master4g]

Originally Posted by JimN

There had to be more damage than a headlight & bumper for the car to be totalled & branded with a salvage title. Hope you didn't pay much for the car.

Thats off topic... but yes, that was all that happened, both side fenders, hood, and all other parts have origional vin on them, plus I looked into it deeper and thats all that happened. I wouldn't have bought it if it had serious damage on it.

[jayman]

Originally Posted by master4g

As you can see, the actual radiator part is metal so no worries about plastic cracking.

Huh, it IS metal! The header outlet on my FJ is plastic. Go figure

Looks like a fairly easy repair after all. You may be able to ditch that clamp, it may have weakened. Should be safe to use a worm gear clamp, but don't go crazy tightening it

Just square up the hose on the outlet and that should stop the leak

[2009Prius]

Nice cleaning job! Which brand cleaner did you use?

If possible I would try to pull the hose out some but not completely off, clean the metal surface, apply high grade grease, and then push the hose fully in and finish with a worm gear clamp as jayman suggested. The grease should help sealing.

[Patrick Wong]

I'd be cautious about applying either grease or brake parts cleaner on the rubber hose. Both substances may cause the rubber to deteriorate.

Rather, I would have used water to clean off the antifreeze deposits since that is water-soluble.

In any event, I hope that replacing the hose clamp and moving the hose to the correct position will take care of the seepage; if not then try replacing the hose with a new one.

If the sheet metal at the front of the car has the original VIN stickers and those stickers are undisturbed, then my guess is that the drivetrain was impacted by the accident. I'm wondering whether the engine, transaxle and/or inverter may have been replaced.