Lost coolant!!

[sp0rky]

Alright - my first problem engine-wise with my car happened yesterday.

I came out, started my car and instantly the windows fogged up. I defrosted them (took about 20 sec) and then i started to drive off and they did it again before i could even get out of the parking lot. However this time , they would not defrost and i had to wipe the windows down with a towel.

So i get to where im going - which is about 2 mi (at MOST) away. i shut the car off and sit in it for about 5 - 10 minutes. After the car has been off for this amount of time, i notice steam pooring out of the hood. I step out and my coolant is about a whole car legnth behind me!!

Im not quite sure what happened here because at no point did my temperature needle ever go more than 1/8" past normal driving temp.

I started the car after it sat for another 10 minutes because i had to get home - I kept my eye on the temp and it was fine, parked it - no steam - ran like a champ. This morning i go outside and theres a small puddle under the car - it looks like water or something but i have yet to find out for sure.

does anybody have any clue as to what might have happened or what i should check for?

Thank you much!

[CBA]

sounds like the heater core might have a hole in it. but why you have collant on the ground im not sure. unless the pipe fitting on the heater core itself snapped and is causing external leakage and internal window condensation. check it out should be on your fire wall in the engine bay fill up the collant and look or feel around it to see if its loose or broken..

thats your best bet for now.

[sp0rky]

ugh i didnt even get around to checking the heater core, i started it up to see how it would run and looked under the car, and it looks like its dripping water front, just behind the radiator on the passenger side.

What is this!?

could this be my problem?


thanks again, very much.

[CBA]

not collant?

maybe AC water from the drain valve?

[sp0rky]

ok - rechecked it
it looked to be the consistancy of water, but it is infact coolant leaking. It starts to drip rather fast after the car has been running for about 1 or 2 minutes. It is dripping from somewhere down onto the bars that connect the two front wheels together and then dripping off of that to the ground. grrr im so confused.
lol.

thanks again

[CBA]

well you first mentioned your windows got foggy check the hoses that connect to the heater core neck fitting i was talkin about.

[sp0rky]

Thanks much for the helpful replys, ill check this first thing tomarrow morning when its still light outside and let ya know whats up

thanks again!

[TECH]

540 or 528?

The BIGGEST problem with 5's is the radiator neck cracking on the 540. A pinhole will develop just below the upper neck, and the neck will eventually break off.

528, I'd look at the expansion tank. Just keep the engine off, and fill the expansion tank, you'll probably see it pour out of the side of the tank, or just under the upper lip. If not, unscrew the bleeder screw(s), fill the systm up until water comes out of the bleeders, tighten the bleeders, and run the car with the heater on, and check for your leak. Don't let it get hot though, as there is likely air trapped in the system, and it needs to bleed out.

I'd wager that your defrost quit working because the coolant level was too low to get adequate flow to the heater core....they rarely have any problems at all.
Keep in mind that if the coolant is too low, the temp guage might not read right.

[sp0rky]

thanks everyone for the replys!

i havent been able to check anything yet because of rain and i dont want to get coolant on my garage floor

While ive been sitting home thinking, ive been tossing around ideas with other people and some came up with possible water pump? ... since the coolant is now leaking only when the car is running... how possible is it that this is the problem?
it has been replcaed at 111k mi, and the car now has 123k...

thanks again - tomarrow should be sunny - ill check out everything and get back to ya.

[TECH]

It's doubtful to be a water pump. They usually don't pour water out all of a sudden. I think your expansion tank ruptured.
Grab hold of the engine fan (engine off of course) and see if you can get any play out of the water pump. If it wobbles badly, replace it.

[sp0rky]

OK, got under the hood today

found out that it was a small hose that went from the throttle body to the block - replaced it, found a second leak on a larger hose but it goes UNDER the intake manifold, does anybody know where the other end of the hose is and is it possible to replace without removing the intake manifold?

Also can someone give me step by step directions on re filling the coolant... i seem to be having problems.

Thanks!!!!

[TECH]

The larger hose is actually a "t" type. It goes from the front, to the rear, I think to the water valves/heater core, or maybe the back of the head.

You can change it without taking the manifold off. Just get the intake boot/airbox out of the way if it'll help.

[sp0rky]

Thank you for all the replys, everybody. They have been very informative and helpful - without them, i would have never found my problem at all

Actually this one isnt the 3 way hose, surprisingly enough.... its just a regular hose with some bends.

I wish i had a picture to describe it - it connect at the back of the throttle body and curves directly under the intake manifold - it doesn't go below it, but it makes a turn back toward the manifold and sneaks out somewhere else...

Unless i can just pull it and have it come out - it looks to me like the intake manifold would have to be completely removed.

Is this going to be a terribly hard job for someone who has never done it before? I really can't afford/dont think its worth it to pay too much to have it fixed for me at the time.

thanks again!!

[sp0rky]

- one more question...

if i can find the other end of this hose.... would it be okay to just get a new one with the same inner and outer diameter (same legnth) and re-rout it say over the intake manifold? theres plenty of space....


thanks again

[CBA]

just make sure you dont burn a hole in it and be sure to use conduit.