My wife's 05 Camry has 107k on it now and it still has original (pink) coolant in it. It is a planned neglect on my part. I usually maintain this and other cars per schedule, this time I wanted to see what happens if i don't replace the coolant at all. I don't see nay calcification on the inside of the rad. cap or the inside radiator, it never overheats and we never dropped below 38 F here in So Cal. My question is - how long can I expect the water pump to last on these cars? I've seen lots of corroded water pumps in my life but I assume it's due to the improper use of tap water. On this car I've added some distilled water 3 or 4 times already so coolant is slightly diluted but hopefully not corrosive. What think you? Thanks!

The major reason for changing engine coolant is because the PH and lubricating properties of the coolant have changed or worn out. Diluting it makes it worse.
There are many different views on when it should be serviced, but since you live in a mild climate, I would say to have the system flushed every 100,000 miles.
Now would probably be a good time.

Good luck!

In January I sold an 87 wagon with 240k miles on it. It had the original everything on it including plug wires but, excluding the usual belts/hoses etc. I recently talked to the guy who bought it and it's still running great with 260K miles on it. I noticed metal particles in the oil at around 180K miles. That thing is bullet proof, including the water pump.

I may be wrong but, isn't pink coolant the extended life coolant that's good for 5 years?

thanks, conflicting replies, but I assume this topic is just as controversial or maybe almost as controversial as extended intervals on synthetic engine oil :shakehead
I remember there used to be a little tester where you could test the coolant freezing point, but i am more interested of course with it's lubricating and cooling properties. btw, the replacement coolant i bought from a friend of mine that services euro cars Pentosin has a lifetime of use. That's why i was actually so interested in the waterpump resource - if i change the fluid now and the waterpump clunks - it's a bummer :sly:

people have different experiences, but a water pump does not seem to be a common problem on geration 5. some go at 30,000 and some last the life of the vehicle! i guess it depends on the human assembly factor? mike

I have a coolant tester that I use on a daily basis on the fleet that I service.
I live and work in Colorado so that little tester is a must. I flush the coolant every two years in these cars regardless of mileage. The 50 car fleet I service mainly consists of Corollas, Suzuki Esteems, and one '99 Camry.
None of them have hacked a water pump after a flush (knock on wood).
I did have a water pump shaft break on a GMC one ton pickup in the fleet.
It sent the fan flying breaking other stuff in the process.

The coolant testers only test the freezing point by measuring specific gravity. The deficiency related to old antifreeze is inadequate additives which cannot easily be measured. Once the corrosion inhibitor is used up, your aluminum parts go to hell quickly.

Not that this is very relevant, but to showcase their longevity, I just changed the original water pump in my Gen 3 after 210k miles. The stainless steel impeller was just as shiny as a new one, no shaft looseness and wasn't leaking a drop. The innards looked good too with no buildup. I did it since I had it torn apart replacing the timing belt. I've been using Prestone global extended life antifreeze for years (BTW they're giving $5 rebates on concentrate and $3 on 50/50 ready-mix). Wal-mart sells it for $9 and $8 respectively, so a good deal AR I think.

The shaft in my water pump in my '96 5S-FE was making a lot of noise after 70K. Not leaking though. Changed it since it sounded so bad. I don't like noisy components. Bad karma....

thank you all!
I think what I am going to do is replace the coolant with distilled water and then replace that with 50/50 Pentosin. If the WP goes I can always drain and reuse the Pentosine fluid, can't i?

if your going to take the pink out i would do a flush to get it all out because it will jell upon you. people say it wont but look at your manul.

Though I'll probably catch hell for saying this, I've had no problems with reusing coolant that isn't past it's prime. But I would make sure that it is filtered of dirt other junk falling into the pan while you were draining it.

After draining, let it set to allow the crud to settle out. I used a coffee filter rubberbanded to the pouring neck of my catchpan and decanted (left the dregs in the pan along with a little coolant) into an empty jug. When you're done, just pour it back in. However, if it's been a few years, I'd go ahead and just replace it. Let the criticism begin....

You could use 50/50 to top off but remember that the system will retain some water in the heater core and engine from flushing. But if the dilution is acceptable to your climate then no worries. But if it is too low, then you'll need to get full strength to bring it back up. Personally, buying 50/50 pre-mix is a waste of money...You spend nearly as much for the same volume but half of that is for water...but I see it is very convenient for the home mechanic.