Coolant!!!

[jacob9582]

when ishut off my car i get about a cup of coolant dripping out of the bottom. it forms a small pool and then stops dripping. Whats Wrong??? What causes this? it wasnt doing it yesterday. please help.
thanks

p.s. temp is still normal so i know the coolant level is still good.

 

[Edmond]

Where is it leaking from?

The system is under pressure so it'll stop leaking when the vehicle cools down.

 

[Crucifix]

when ishut off my car i get about a cup of coolant dripping out of the bottom. it forms a small pool and then stops dripping. Whats Wrong??? What causes this? it wasnt doing it yesterday. please help.
thanks

p.s. temp is still normal so i know the coolant level is still good.

Could be anything. Hose, seal or radiator. Gotta take a look and see where it's coming from. Just hope it's nothing major.

Peter

 

[hAZcAT]

Are you sure it is Coolant? the AC unit drips water if it has been running. just a hopeful thought,

 

[C4Tom]

Are you sure it is Coolant? the AC unit drips water if it has been running. just a hopeful thought,

This is what I was thinking.

Did you run the A/C today and not yesterday? Where is the puddle forming under the car?

 

[jacob9582]

the puddle is comming right out of the front of the car. it appears to be running to the front of the car from somewhere else.

the bottom of the radiator appears dry...i was thinking that it maybe running from the waterpump down a hose toward the front of the car.

its not comming from the overflow res. and the fluid is full in that to the full line and full in the radiator still.

i am stumped. i cant see where it is comming from. any help is appreciated. i am leaning towards it being something other than the radiator.

 

[C4Tom]

You might try to feel around the water pump with a dry hand to see if it comes up wet. There might be tell tale staining on the lower hose if you can get under it with a light to see.

Other than that... I seem to be stumped as well.

 

[wishuwerehere82]

You might have a pinhole in the radiator fins that is spraying onto your A/C condensor and running out the front to the nose. You won't see it unless you look between the rad. and the A/C coils.

 

[Hrtbeat1]

Feel on the underside of the water pump. There is a small vent / weep hole there. If you feel fluid ... even a drop ... its a good sign that its time to replace the water pump.


You might also want to check all the multitide of fittings around the passenger side of the water pump (they go to the resevoir tank, heater, and overflow tank IIRC.) I had a small leak from one of the hoses there. I only got the leak once the system was warm and pressurized. Turned out I didn't have one of the clamps fully secured.

 

[jacob9582]

thanks guys i will check those things and get back to you. i have driven the car 3 times since this leakage happened and no further leak? i will feel around under the water pump and see what i find.

the funny thing is the time it released the coolant was after about a 10 minute drive. i have driven it about 30 mins 3 other times and nothing.

ill post again later with the results of my findings. thanks again!

 

[BlackNBlue95]

thanks guys i will check those things and get back to you. i have driven the car 3 times since this leakage happened and no further leak? i will feel around under the water pump and see what i find.

the funny thing is the time it released the coolant was after about a 10 minute drive. i have driven it about 30 mins 3 other times and nothing.

ill post again later with the results of my findings. thanks again!

Jacob, if you need any help give me a call I'm ~30 miles west of chicago.
-=Rick

 

[WhalePirot]

Was coolant added recently, perhaps overfilling the reservoir? There is a maximum line for cool and hot on the cap.

Check that all hose clamps are tight and check the radiator cap. It may be time for replacement.

 

[jacob9582]

thanks BlackNBlue95! i think i have narrowed the leak to the overflow res. i filled it yesterday to where it should be when the car was hot immediately after i had the engine up to temp. this morning it was still full. pulled up to a curb after about a 3 min drive and coolant was pooring out the bottom front of the car. it leaked a lot and then stopped again. i checked the radiator after the car cooled down. the radiator is still max full of coolant. what i noticed then was that the coolant i had added to the res was all gone again the dipstick came out dry, just a little bit of coolant still in the bottom of the canister.

looking at what i have seen so far i am narrowing in on the canister. the amount that leaked was about the amount that i had added to it. yesterday when i was driving it was about 75 degrees and im guessing that some coolant went from the radiator into the overflow and then began leaking. still not sure but this is the point i am at so far.

 

[Edmond]

What you can also do is take the reservoir, empty it and submerge it under water without letting any water get inside.

If you see it bubbling, it's the reservoir.

 

[Hrtbeat1]

looking at what i have seen so far i am narrowing in on the canister. the amount that leaked was about the amount that i had added to it. yesterday when i was driving it was about 75 degrees and im guessing that some coolant went from the radiator into the overflow and then began leaking. still not sure but this is the point i am at so far.

I bet that's it. I completely forgot about having to replace the overflow canister/cap/hoses. Mine was in bad shape when I bought the car ... had some nasty brown sludge in it. First thing I cleaned and replaced ... all new 'bout $40 IIRC.

Good luck.

 

[jacob9582]

yea i am at school now so the tools are limited, i am going to try and pull the canister later and check it out. i can put some sealer on it or somthing. i come home from college next monday so i have plenty of tools and stuff then. thanks for all the help guys! i really appreciate it. i will keep you all posted on my progress.

thanks

 

[ReggieD]

Had same problem, Fixed it

I had the same problem 3 weeks ago.

I would drive car for about 10 min. Stop then see green stuff leaking from bottom of car. Car never overheated. Added more coolant, added to overflow tank to the correct level. Drive car same problem. Leak appear to be around overflow tank. I could drive for hours, the car never overheated. The only problem was the coolant was always low in the overflow tank. The coolant low level light never came on either.

One day I took out radiator and had it checked. The radiator had a metal core with plastic sides. All connected together with a rubber gasket. My radiator was warpped. Under certain pressure the radiator would leak at the rubber gasket between the plastic housing and metal core. The plastic was bowed outward due to time, excessive heat, who-knows....

The leak would go away once the car cools off, or the pressure is relieved, or the coolant goes down to a certain level within the radiator. Strange problem I never seem before.

I changed radiator, problem is gone, I hope this helps.

 

[jacob9582]

the wierd thing with mine is it has only done it on a really warm day and again after i filled up the res. tank.

ill pull the radiator and look in a week when im home, i dont think i will harm anything by driving it as long as i keep checking the fluid in the actual radiator itself.

 

[ReggieD]

I understand,

I drove mine for 6 months. No problems, Car never overheated. My fear was that if you add too much water to the radiator you have a better chance to activate rust within the heater core. I tried to stay with the right 50/50 coolant/distilled water mixture. I purchased my radiator for $205 from chev dealership. This was the best price I could find.

 

[jacob9582]

thats the same price that i was told... i have been buying premix 50/50 so far.

the wierd thing is that it only leaks when i add fluid to the res. not just when the radiator is full.