When I was driving home I realized that I smelled coolant in the interior, the car wasnt overheating though. When I got home SURE ENOUGH, I looked under the car and I saw coolant dripping down from the RIGHT front section of the car where the turbo's are. I HOPE its not coming from the turbos, but I also KNOW that I have a cracked waterpump, I HOPE its the waterpump!! anybody know what it might be before I start spending money?? Im gonna have to park the car for a while now.........

 

go to autozone and rent/borrow a coolant system pressure tester with the adaptor for imports. use it and you will find your leak.

Given your description, the hose that is probably leaking is the small turbo coolant hoses. Search for pics or check out the FSM for the location. They are behind the air pump. Since the coolant system will be apart, go ahead and get the full hose kit from Ray at Malloy and replace all of them or else you'll be in store for similar surprises down the line. Also get the factory hose clamps. They work perfectly and make installation so much easier. You'll see what I mean when you receive them and try it.

A 15 year old car needs things like new coolant hoses and replacement of other worn out rubber parts in order to be reliable.

 

I don't know if Ray includes the caps in the kit or not, but be sure to get those and a new thermostat as well. This is also a good time to replace your belts since your going to have to remove them anyway. If your feeling REALLY saucy, you can order the FC thermoswitch for 60 bucks and install that while you are in there. This helps keep the car running much cooler by turning the fans on at a lower temperature.

 

Check the heater core. I had a leak there recently and almost made me rebuild the engine to find an assumed cracked housing since there was bubbles in the filler neck.

thewird

 

where is the heater core located??? here is a picture of the EXACT area where the coolant/smoke was....

If its a coolant hose leaking, I want to replace EVERY single coolant hose in this area... The hoses cant be too expensive its just the backbreaking labor, but I know I can do it!! I guess I can cross out the water pump, since its in a different location... What is it exactly that I should order?, I wanna do this as soon as possible, this car is NOT gonna sit in the garage for months!

 

The heater core is under the dash. If it was leaking, chances are that you would have coolant in the cabin in a big puddle. I would say from your picture that it is one of the turbo coolant hoses instead.


Do a search for Ray Crowe or Malloy Mazda, and give him a call. If you ask for the coolant hose kit, he will know what you are talking about, as he seems to have the damn part numbers memorized!! You should consider the other items I mentioned above as well. Replacing the hoses can be a pain in the ***, so it's worth it do everything else you can while your in there.

 

Actually my coolant leak never showed itself inside the cabin. it was coming from the 2 pipes that go into the car before leaving the engine bay into the dash. I only noticed it after jacking up the car on the right side to pull out a brake pad and water started dripping behind the wheel well.

thewird

 

New clips are a must,mazda ones only

 

SO just ask Ray Crowe for new mazda clips, and Mazda hose clamps for the coolant hoses? Should I ask him what else he recommends to replace while im there? According to the factory manual, almost the entire car must be taken apart to get to these coolant hoses.... 2 air hoses, air pump, serpentine belt, air pump hoses, air box, undertray, front catalytic conveter.. If there is an easier way please let me know, thanks

 

^Nope. That is the way to service most things on this car - and other modern cars with cramped engine bays for that matter.

 

So basically Ray is not there today and will be in tommorow morning. If I describe my situation, he should be able to tell me all the parts I should replace while im fixing this coolant leak too? thanks guys Ill call him tommorow.

 

Good point.


As I said before, the very least you should replace is the hoses, caps, and thermostat. You can replace the hose clamps if the existing ones are worn out, but it's probably not necessary. You will need to remove the airpump, alternator, airbox and hoses, throttle body elbow, UIM (and maybe more stuff underneath the UIM to get the TB hose off of the block), and the undertray. You can safely assume that this we take you several hours, and be fairly frustrating. Having the FSM will be helpful for finding the hose locations.


*Edit* Ask specifically for the coolant hose kit, and make sure it includes the thermostat and caps. I think it is a little under $200 shipped.

 

Ok all the parts were ordered today. I dont have a lot of money and dont get paid very well, but I can sure afford to buy all the parts and install them myself. I mean... I have a LOT of days off, might as well!