The radiator maintains a proper level whether or not I fill the reservoir for all four seasons.
2007-12-19 14:09:05 · 7 answers · asked by Georgieanna 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
I'm sixty-five & have had several vehicles & they have all done this same thing. Am I the only one to experience this phenomenon?
2007-12-20 02:48:15 · update #1
The coolant will expand and contract with heat and cooling. The reservoir will catch the overflow and then feed it back to the radiator when it cools.
If you keep losing coolant in the reservoir, then you do have a problem somewhere, maybe a bad radiator cap, maybe a leak in the head gasket, heater core, or intake gasket. It is going somewhere, you need to find out where it is going.
Have a pressure test done on the cooling system
2007-12-19 14:15:42 · answer #1 · answered by Fordman 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The reservoir holds the extra fluid (over flow) when the system is hot. When you start your vehicle the reservoir usually drains down quite low as the pump is pulling fluid and pushing it through the system. As the fluid heats it expands and some comes back up into the reservoir. When you turn off the vehicle the fluid can actually heat up more and so more fluid comes up to the reservoir and does not get wasted and lost. Some fluid will disappear due to the temp in the reservoir and it vapourizes and escapes out the overflow tube over time.
Check the reservoir when the vengine is cold. It should be near the fuill cold level.
2007-12-19 14:18:16 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Overflow Tank Maintains Reserve Fluid in case need and Recovers Coolant that may be pushed out of the Radiator due to heat. Tank is Going empty because it's Cracked.
NOTE; Tank is an EPA Requirement!!
2007-12-19 14:19:39 · answer #3 · answered by sidecar0 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes, there IS a leak. It may be internal, but there is a leak somewhere. Is there any hint of oil in the radiator? Is there a funny shade to the oil in the pan? The coolant is going somewhere and you just haven't noticed where that is yet.
2007-12-19 14:22:51 · answer #4 · answered by Tom 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it's for overflow when fluid gets hot it expands and goes into the over flow. Like it is designed to. When the engine is shut off the fluid cools down, contracts and it all fits back in the radiator. like it's supposed to.
2007-12-19 14:16:33 · answer #5 · answered by colbuck8toes 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Maybe the resovoir leaks. It's just plastic with a rubber hose. After so many years it could be aged brittle or cracked
2007-12-19 14:18:00 · answer #6 · answered by Jeffery H K 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
DONT KNOW WHAT KIND OF VEHICLE.THE OVERFLOW BOTTLE CATCHES COOLANT SHOULD THE ENGINE GET WARM AND RADIATOR CAP RELIEVE SOME PRESSURE.THEN WHEN ENGINE COOLS A BIT THE RADIATOR WILL DRAW BACK IN WHAT IS NEEDED TO KEEP RADIATOR FULL. COOLANT MUST BE GOING SOMEWHERE....CAN YOU SMELL IT WHEN YOU ARE DRIVING?ANY SMOKE OUT TAILPIPE?
2007-12-19 14:17:25 · answer #7 · answered by hurchelfox 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋