Scotty- 2007 Mazda 3 5 speed 2.3 engine 260k miles
Started leaking coolant almost daily a few weeks ago. I have to put coolant in every time I drive it now. Overheating but not to steaming over, Just watching the gauge go up as a drive. As soon as I put coolant in it drives normally for a while. Now the heat only works intermittently. I was thinking water pump? Thermostat? Hole in the radiator? Heater core? All of the above? Is it worth taking to a garage for repair?
Hi there, I have the exact same car but with 145000 miles. What tips do you have that have made the car last as long as it had? And along the way, have you had any significant issues?
You loose coolant and it can result in not having heat. If the coolant level is good, most likely your heat issue will be resolved. Regardless of that, you should fix the coolant leak in order to avoid serious issues.
I'd try to fix it ASAP. You don't want to damage other electrical components. Any spots when running hot in the driveway? Check all hoses if you plan on fixing it yourself otherwise just take it into a shop for an estimate ~$80 for diagnosis
A tad of a compounding problem. Those mazdas before the tiny airscoop they put in cause the car had many much overheating issues. If you are looking to fix I think that you can. Firstly I would check out if the coolant is gushing out of anywhere. If you can't find anything obviously the next thing is if you have it in your oil. And then more diag from there. In terms of overheating, follow the leak and it will bring you to your main problem, just throwing parts on won't do no good till you yank out the root issues. 260k miles is impressive already though. If you get the diag and deem it not worth, I would scrap it under lemon law so you can get $1500-1000 and get a new car. It's done good already.
