If I am having to refill the radiator of my diesel car every 2 weeks (because the water levels become low quickly), what problems with the car could this indicate?
2007-09-07 17:23:59 · 12 answers · asked by sharifjunaid 3 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
leak or blown head gasket. check oil for rising level or foam. check overflow bottle for water blowing out of the tube; might indicate over pressure which is blown head gasket.. good luck
2007-09-07 17:33:54 · answer #1 · answered by cheyenne95129 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Mine does this all the time. We tried everything from heating core, thermostat & including adding a TB of pepper to plug the leaks. You'll never believe the answer.
It was the combo of 2 things. First one was I wasn't making sure the radiator cap was on as snug as possible. That fixed it for awhile. Then it turned out I needed a new radiator cap. It's one of those things in a car that you can't tell anything is wrong just by looking at it. But my mech told me I should replace it every couple of years because of that reason. That if you don't it can cause much worse and expensive problems.
So before going to all the expense I did try that first. Then if not try replacing the thermostat. Both usually run under $10. These 2 are not only cheap but should be done anyway. Also remember to make sure the cap is tight. If it still doesn't act right then you can go for the more expensive solutions.
2007-09-08 01:38:48 · answer #2 · answered by syllylou77 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
All answers give have valid points but the easiest point to start and the cheapest is the pressure cap to the radiator. If this has weakened the operating pressure is more at atmospheric than the 5 PSI it should be. This would mean that the water boils away, just like leaving a kettle on the stove too long. Change the cap and then keep an eye on the water level.
2007-09-08 04:01:41 · answer #3 · answered by ANF 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I'd top it off and drive it around until it's good and hot and then start looking and snifing around for leaks.
If you cannot detect and external leaks, anywhere under the hood or on the ground then you may have a tiny leak in the cylinder head feeding coolant into the combustion cycle. If this is the case you should be able to smell it in the exhaust. The antifreeze smells like burning sugar to some extent when it is coming out of the tailpipe.
Might need a headgasket repair but you can try some of the Bars Leaks cooling system sealants. There is one for Cadillac engines that looks like a big brown horse pill. On two metal engines (like aluminum heads and cast iron block or aluminum block and cast iron heads) it seals the headgasket so that at cold start up the coolant can't leak into the combustion cycle.
Good Luck!
2007-09-08 01:01:26 · answer #4 · answered by CactiJoe 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Run it til it gets close to normal operating temperature then shut if off. check around for leaks as its cooling down. if you don't find any external leaks you could have a blown head gasket. Another way to check for this is to drain the oil and if you get water out before any oil you most likely have a blown headgasket. Also any white smoke in the exhaust could indicate this. Another good way is to run the car with radiator cap off and watch for bubbles in the radiator
2007-09-08 00:34:38 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Leaks or head gasket seepage , place large sheet brown paper overnight underneath the engine compartment if there are no leaks . its most likely the head gasket, when the engine is cold remove the rad cap or header tank cap run engine wait for a few minutes for the water to settle, then watch the water inside were you have remover the cap if you consistantly see bubbles rising ,or it starts to pumping out water then the head gasket has seepage and needs changing
2007-09-08 11:12:17 · answer #6 · answered by ? 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
1. do you have any oil in the water = head gasket.
2. do you have any loose hose clips.
3. has the pressure seal gone on the rad cap.
4. are there any signs of water that has been sprayed under the bonnet.
2007-09-12 15:54:45 · answer #7 · answered by maclaren 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You could have: A water leak
A blown head gasket
A leaking water pump
A radiator leak
A heater coil leak
2007-09-08 00:34:54 · answer #8 · answered by couv2020 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Pin hole in the rad, leaky hose, head gasket leaking, thermostat not kicking in and your boiling of the water, coolant return leaking, engine running too hot.
Any number of things.
2007-09-08 00:37:25 · answer #9 · answered by cheek_of_it_all 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
a car can overheat if the antifreeze is too low. a cracked radiator would leak water and could cost up to a grand to get it repaired.
2007-09-08 02:03:30 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋