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Hi everyone,
I just purchased this 08 GL450 4Matic with 180,000 miles from a used car dealership. Two day owning it and is leaking antifreeze/coolant and motor oil. I contacted the dealership and said they seek the cars as is, so basically I am on my own. I saved a few months to get this family car and I am stuck with the repairs…
the coolant leak is just under the radiator hose on the driver’s side. Oddly, this hose comes from the power steering reservoir into the radiator and sits just below the radiator hose. Do I just tight it? Or needs a full radiator replacement? If so, can someone IM the instructions? It seems like I have to remove the front panel where the hood latches, and maybe the transmission lines too. To make it worst, there is an oil leak between the transmission fluid pan is and the engine. Is this a DIY job? Any ideas? I am working part time and tight in cash and cannnot afford taking it to the dealer for repairs. I am somewhat handy with tools. Thank you in advance for your help!
2008 GL450 4Matic 180,000 miles.
This is the X166 forum, there are different engines than the X164 GLs. Buying a 15-year-old, 180k mile vehicle is pretty much guaranteeing there will be constant leaks and problems. I know this because I've owned many vehicles that have passed this age and mileage. If you can fix them yourself then you'll be ok. The priority is coolant leaks, they should be fixed right away because small ones often quickly/instantly become large ones and then you only have a very short time to pull over before the engine overheats and you've blown your engine ($$$). Small/slow oil leaks are low priority, they are annoying in that they make a mess in your driveway and garage, smell bad when the oil drips on a hot exhaust, and are bad for the environment. But they don't hurt your car as long as you keep the oil level topped off. Is the oil leak large enough to drip overnight?
For the coolant leak you are showing, it's hard to tell if it's the hose or the plastic fitting. If you post in the X164 forum, hopefully somebody with experience with that problem can help you. Just tightening the clamp usually doesn't do anything. I would replace the hose whether it is split or not (sometimes it's hard to tell), the hoses usually aren't that expensive. When you remove the hose and clean up around the fitting then you maybe can see if the radiator plastic is split. Sometimes the cracks only show when the radiator is hot and pressurized. Can you carefully look at it while the engine is hot? There's a chance that if it's a small crack in the radiator plastic that you can fix it with one of the many plastic radiator repair kits, I've never used them but have owned a vehicle where the previous owner successfully repaired a small crack.
This is the X166 forum, there are different engines than the X164 GLs. Buying a 15-year-old, 180k mile vehicle is pretty much guaranteeing there will be constant leaks and problems. I know this because I've owned many vehicles that have passed this age and mileage. If you can fix them yourself then you'll be ok. The priority is coolant leaks, they should be fixed right away because small ones often quickly/instantly become large ones and then you only have a very short time to pull over before the engine overheats and you've blown your engine ($$$). Small/slow oil leaks are low priority, they are annoying in that they make a mess in your driveway and garage, smell bad when the oil drips on a hot exhaust, and are bad for the environment. But they don't hurt your car as long as you keep the oil level topped off. Is the oil leak large enough to drip overnight?
For the coolant leak you are showing, it's hard to tell if it's the hose or the plastic fitting. If you post in the X164 forum, hopefully somebody with experience with that problem can help you. Just tightening the clamp usually doesn't do anything. I would replace the hose whether it is split or not (sometimes it's hard to tell), the hoses usually aren't that expensive. When you remove the hose and clean up around the fitting then you maybe can see if the radiator plastic is split. Sometimes the cracks only show when the radiator is hot and pressurized. Can you carefully look at it while the engine is hot? There's a chance that if it's a small crack in the radiator plastic that you can fix it with one of the many plastic radiator repair kits, I've never used them but have owned a vehicle where the previous owner successfully repaired a small crack.
Thank you for your valuable input. I will definitely take a closer look upon removal of the hose. Please accept my apologies for posting it here. I mistakenly thought mine was an X 166, my bad. Thank you!
01-16-2023, 09:26 PM
