HELP!!! Why am i over heating.

So i was sitting in traffic today and my truck after having been in stop and go traffic for 20 mins the temp gage went to the very hottest it can go on the dail. I was told this means my water pump is prob going out I have 70,000 miles on my truck.....does anyone have any experience with this??? please help i know water pump replacement is gonna cost me around $400 thanks guys

 

Haven't had this problem on my Tacoma (67K miles) but I did have this happen on my old Nissan truck... It was either the water pump or the thermostat I believe and I ended up replacing both myself... I don't remember the cost of parts but on the Nissan was pretty simple and I had no trouble doing it myself (except getting to it was kind of a pia because of the fan). Anyone do this on their Tacoma?

 

thanks man ya does anyone know about our trucks

 

hows your water level?

 

If your coolant level is good I would suspect the water pump. I've seen them where most of the impeller is eaten away, causing the pump to move a lot less coolant. That could explain why the temperature cranked up on traffic.

Do you use the Toyota "red" coolant/antifreeze?

 

if the level is fine i would check your thermostat. better to start with the easy/cheap fixes first

 

If your coolant level is fine, it is most likely the water pump. Toyota hasn't been known to utilize very durable water pumps in the past, especially in the Tacoma's.

 

It could be multiple things.....
The first thing, is to check the fluid. Make sure there's plenty of fluid in the radiator (up to cap - do not open till the truck is cold). And make sure there's plent of fluid in the overflow tank (to the fill line). Does the fluid look normal/clean/clear?

Let the truck run in your driveway for a bit and force it to get hot.

Check to make sure the fan is coming on. There's a certain temperature the fan will come on....but I don't know what it is on these trucks.

Check to make sure the thermostat is working. Again, at a certain temperature the thermostat will open. You should be able to grab the large hose at the top and 'feel' the fluid being circulated. If you can't feel anything, chances are the thermostat isn't opening or the water pump isn't being 'propelled' enough. Or...could be some sort of blockage - it all depends.

Check in & around the engine for signs of fluid leaks, including oil leaks. Check your oil. Is it full? Is the oil look normal?

If there's a blockage in the system, could also cause problems and I'm sure there's many other things it could be.

 

Sorry, I know that you are trying to help but our fan is always on - its belt driven from the motor (unless it's been swapped for a electric one). Anyway the only way it would be your stock fan was if the fans clutch wore out but this isn't the first place I would look. Follow the advice of many of the other posts and check the level of the coolant. If the level is off then as Janster said check for leaks throughly. I myself would check the thermostat by taking it out cold and putting it in water on the stove on heating it up to see if it opens. If this works properly then go on to replacing the water pump. This way you are not chancing doing any damage to the engine in case it is still overheating after a thermostat change that wasn't needed. Good Luck

 

try the thermostat first, i personally would just replace it....if you don't feel like doing that you can take it out...go inside, fill a pot up with water and set it up to boil...throw the thermostat in, when the water reaches the temp of the thermostat (150, 160, 180 degrees, im not sure what ours is stock) it will pop open if it is working. If it never pops open you need a new one.

When the water boils (212 degrees) if the thermostat is not fully open you still have a problem, it will most likely not literally "pop open" but will open a little bit at a time, just make sure it will fully open.

 

Odd question, but is your radiator covered in mud? I suspect it's your water pump but if your radiator is really dirty like that it can impede it's ability to get rid of heat.

 

I say thermostat. I had this same thing happen on a Toyota truck that only had 40k miles on it. The thermostat was all gunked up and couldn't open.

 

with previous toyota's ive had its been both issues, I had a water pump go out in an 03 camry at 50,000, and a thermostat go out twice in an 84 toyota van (yes, the ugliest thing toyota ever made) once around 80,000 and again around 140,000. But if i was betting I would say it's the t-stat

 

you let the gauge ping? It got all the way to the very max? I would be concerned about a warped head at that point.


Start with the basics:

fan clutch engagement
thermostat function
coolant level

ALSO when cool, open up the radiator cap and squeeze the upper and lower hoses, you could have air in the system.

if not those, probably a water pump

 

Did it cool down when you started moving again? If it did, that points to an airflow problem. Most likely a bad fan clutch. There is fluid inside that will get thick when hot and cause the fan clutch to lock up and pull more air. You can always see the fan spin, but you will be able to HEAR it when it's pulling air at slow speeds.

X2 on the fluid checks. And check the belt to see if it's slipping, but I would think you would hear that.

A radiator problem usually shows up while moving with the engine under load, but definitely check that it's not clogged with mud or bugs as others have mentioned.

You should be able to feel for heat on the radiator hoses to check the thermostat and water pump. If the hoses are cold, there is no coolant flow.

 

70,000 miles. You ever do the timing belt in it? Correct me if Im wrong, but your water pump should be timing belt driven. Like everyone else said about a dirty radiator or messed up thermostat I would consider doing a timing belt change while doing the water pump also.

 

4.0 is chain driven, no timing belt. Unless I am mistaken, the water pump is right behind the fan clutch/pulley.

 

Yeah. My bad. I was was thinking of the 3.4

 

of course the coolant level was the first thing i checked looks fine not low or anything.....I do have a guy who does all the work on my truck like brakes, oil changes when i dont wanna do them, and pretty much anything mechanical. He told me he would like to replace the water pump and water tank because from what he could see there was slight slight moisture on the outside tank. but he said it wasnt anything too bad, so i just automatically assumed that this is what he is prob gonna say he wants to replace. this is the first time its done it but my guy's shop isnt open till tomorrow so i am def not gonna be driving around town with it. i guess what i can do is have him first and foremost check the thermostat and than if they is all good have him proceed to relacing the pump

 

good call