Pink spray over engine

2002 V6. Does this look like radiator fluid being sprayed? If so, thoughts as to why and how to fix? If not, any idea what it could be from?

UPDATE: I ended up finding what I believe the be the major source of the leak... the upper hose end mating up to the block. The hose itself looked fine, but lots of build up of dried up coolant and gunk that I believe made gaps large enough for coolant to leak through. I ended removing the hose, shaved/cleaned off the dried up coolant off the inlet, and threw on a new hose. So far, so good. We'll see how it goes on my next extended drive. I still plan on replacing the radiator given the very minor seepage in my 2nd photo, but definitely don't think that was the cause of all the pink splatter over the engine.

 

Check the radiator for a leak, looks like its hitting the fan and spraying it all under the hood.

 

Yes, the fan will throw it everywhere and make a dry powder type looking mess.. check the seams where the aluminum meets the plastic tank.. usual place where they fail.

 

First thing I Check is the Radiator Cap with a Pressure tester then pressure test the Radiator which will also pressure test the entire cooling system this can be done with a rather inexpensive pressure test kit (good item to have in the tool box anyways) To test the Radiator with the pressure tester you pump up the pressure of the Radiator to whatever the specs call for then simply take a water with dish soap mix and brush or pour small amount around the top of the radiator where the tank assembles to the core, around the hose connections and I spray it on the core also watching for air Bubbles. Of course the gauge on the pressure tester will drop if there is a leak the Soap water will help locate it. the picture is of the same type I have and works well for the $30 I spent on it.

 

Just ran the engine & AC with the hood open to see if I could spot any leakages. Found a small crack where coolant is very very slowly seeping out (see photo).

I’ve never dealt with a cracked radiator before. With a crack this small would sealant be sufficient? Or should I go ahead and change out the radiator?

Truck has 103,000 miles, hope to drive for at least 100,000 more.

 

Go ahead and replace it, since you will have to sooner or later. Better to do it now then have it blow out on the road somewhere...

 

Sealant is only a band aid, replace it with a good quality brand or preferably a oem radiator.
Sealer can cause other problems like clogging up the heater core too.

 

Will do. Thanks! Hopefully there are good tutorials either within TacomaWorld or Youtube, as I've never done a swap before but it seems pretty straightforward.

 

Also found the bottom row of the condenser hanging off... should this warrant the need to be replaced as well?

 

If your goal is to keep it going for 100,000mi more, the obvious aswer is Yes. Replace all the broken parts with new OEM parts.

 

A Haynes Manual, or the Chilton Manual isn't a bad idea to have either. Especially if you are going to be a do it yourselfer...

 

A/C still work? But if so, I might bandaid that condenser, until it fails. Then when and if it does, do a complete service on the A/C system.

 

Yes, A/C works just fine. Those are kind of my thoughts as well Seagull... I looked up videos for replacing a condenser and it looked much more involved than the radiator so I may need to seek out professional help on that (which isnt something I want to do at this point).

 

just gotta pull the front bumper...nothing special.

 

There is an excellent write up on here for doing the whole A/C system. I used it to do mine last summer, replaced everything except the lines themselves, all for a cost around $600, if memory serves, including buying the vacuum pump and gauges. Wasn't a bad job, all in all.

 

Replaced mine, easy job.. you won't even have to remove the cooling fan.. at least on mine the shroud is a two piece design so you can pull it off without removing the fan... plenty of info here, not a bad job just take your time and make sure you get a quality radiator.

 

Thanks. How long would you say it took you? And yes, I went with

$159 Denso 221-3138 Radiator

Denso 221-3138 Radiator from Amazon.

 

If you have an automatic it's a good idea to inspect the oil cooler hoses going to the bottom of the radiator and replace them too if they have any cracks or look/feel old. But it shouldn't be too hard to replace them later if you want to wait.

 

UPDATE: I just finished swapping out the radiator in my 2002. Filled it with Toyota pink, tried to bleed it with the engine running, no more air bubbles... drove around for 3 mins and the temperature gauage slowly wanted to creep back up to overheat.. fortunately I was still near home before it got into the red... any idea what's happening? Maybe I need to let the engine idle more to cycle the coolant through?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks!

 

could check your thermostat.