For the past couple days my car has been over heating quickly and there ha been some leaking underneath my car. well I went to start my car today to run to the store and the heating gauge was going up and down from overheating to perfectly fine within seconds...I popped the hood and there was antifreeze spraying on the engine. So my friend that I called said that meant there was a leak in my water pump. The autoshop in town is busy with over cars all day, I already called, and there isn't another shop within 15 miles. I work in 3 hours, and the drive is 30 minutes away. I have no other way to get to work, is it safe to drive my car or should I call in and let my manager know I can't make it? I have been working there almost 2 months and have never been late or called in.
The simple answer is five minutes. you may consider a taxi. It's a lot cheaper than replacing an engine for one day.
Usually the water pump doesn't spray all over the engine. You might just need to re-hook up one of the hoses and fill it up with coolant mix. You have to look and see where the leak is. I would try to find out what it is but I wouldn't drive 30 minutes away.
for someone that has spare hose laying around, it could have been repaired in less than 15 minutes with a piece of hose with an inside diameter the same size as the outside diameter of the original pump hose. 2 hose clamps and your good to go. fill her up and drive to work then get a new hose and replace it yourself or get it to a shop. This answer is more for anyone visiting this question now rather than the original poster.
The water pump will not spray coolant over the engine bay area. This is a sign of a heater hose split, which is far easier and less expensive to repair. But, call your manager and tell you you wont be in until the car is repaired. Driving it this way will overheat the engine and cause even more potential and expensive problems. See if any neighbor can help until you can get to the repair shop or just tow the car, this will save your engine to last many more useful years. good luck.......
if you are planning on keeping your car you, better get it fix. call your employer and tell him what is wrong. i am sure he would not want you to take a chance.
