coolant level low

Hi there,

Depending on when you look at the coolant, the level will change. There is a Max & Min level, anywhere in between will be ok. As the engine warms up the coolant will expand and fill the surge tank and when it cools it will be drawn back into the engine. As for the oil level, that will stay fairly constant, if it is a fraction over, that will not be an issue and i feel that the tech has taken the same view and left it alone.

here is a guide to help

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/car-is-leaking-coolant

Mark (mhpautos)

i take it to the garage and have the mechanic pressure test it and we discover no leaks in the engine compartment , but we discover coolant coming threw the tailpipe , plz tell me what is the cost of that problem and how can i fix it .

bad head gasket. thats the only reason for coolant in the exhaust.

it most likely is a result of overheating.

the head will have to be removed, re surfaced, pressure tested.

Roy

ok thank you very much

good luck

The emissioan slight came on in my honda accord the other day. I opened the hood and noticed the coolant level was below the minimum line. I filled the coolant up (a little past the max line on accident) and the light went off. I was really relieved that it seemed to fix the issue. Well I drove around town..made a few stops and noticed the emissions light is BACK ON! Checked the coolant when i got home thinking maybe i had a leak and It had gone back down below min line but no...it is still just above the max line and hasnt moved at all. Hoping someone can point me in the right direction on what might be causing this??

Hi crusher1130,

What you are describing should be the Malfunction Indicator Light ( MIL, a diagram of an engine with the word CHECK).

When this light shows, an error either in the emission or engine control system has been detected and recorded. You would have to retrieve the trouble code to understand what is happening.

Most parts stores provides the service free, get scan done and let me know the exact trouble code.

My car runs out of water in the radiator, and starts to overheat almost weekly. Today, I think I found the leak, I took pictures from my camera phone (low quality). I could get some better pics if needed. The caption on the first pic says "Leak under there" where the arrow is pointing. On the 2nd pick, "Leak under there" , on the 3rd pic, the leak is where the big arrow is pointing, and the arrow at the top is just pointing out the location of the radiator cap.

Hi markdubi,

The radiator top tank is bad causing the leaks. This often happens when coolant level drops and instead of coolant, steam which has a higher temperature than boiling coolant is moving around in the radiator. This would cause the tank to burst over time.

You need to get a new radiator unless you are able to get a replacement top tank.

After replacement of the radiator, pressure test the syatem for possible leaks at other area in the system.

I just got my clutch replaced and flywheel resurfaced. I now have coolant leaking from underneath somewhere behind the right front wheel. Could this be from the clutch repair

Doubtful but remotely possible. There should be what is known as a freeze plug or two on the back of the engine, but the person that did the work would have had to have been extremely ignorant and careless to damage it sufficiently to cause it to leak.

When I bought the car the radiator overflow tank was almost empty; they topped it off. Within a day the coolant had dropped to the “low” level (no extreme weather or driving).
The coolant level continued to drop but at a lower rate. I brought it back to the dealer and they pressure-tested the system for some extended period of time and said, basically, they couldn’t find anything. I’ve never seen any coolant under the car nor smelled any and the oil looks fine. The temperature gage has never gone above half-way, even in summer driving. Nevertheless the car is going through a lot of coolant. What do you think the problem is, and what should I do about it?

Thanks much,

Richard

Hi there,

Thank you for the donation,

If there are no external leaks, it will be an internal one, i would get a head check done first, this is a simple and cheap chemical test to check for Co in the cooling system, if so it will be a head problem.

mark (mhpautos)

My car seems to be leaking antifreeze from some where in the back of the engine. I've been trying to find proper diagram pictures that would pinpoint which of the hoses is causing the problem. I took a picture of where I suspect the leak is. It's right around the EVAP two way valve.

from your pic it looks like the one pointed to with the arrow check all of yoru hoses however for being soft as they will leak if soft soon.

Hi there,

Just found your website and I am thrilled to have found it!!! I'm going to share with the rest of my family and friends - thank you for the site!

Problem my daughter is having with her car, I'm on the phone with her right now!, the car was having problem starting and noticed the water reservoir was completely empty, so they put water in it and it seems to be fine now...(the car is starting okay now). Would there be any connection? Why would the water reservoir be empty?

Thanks for using 2CarPros.com!


This could be caused by a couple of different things. A leak could exist in many components that hold the coolant , i.e. radiator, water hose, thermostat housing, water pump... Check all of these components to ensure there are no cracks, leaks or loose connections. Worst case scenario would be a cracked head and / or head gasket. This would allow coolant to leak into the engine combustion chamber and be burnt out the exhaust (white smoke indicates water / coolant). This condition would normally cause poor performance of the vehicle though.

Although a low coolant level will not normally cause a hard start, it could be that the vehicle was driven with low coolant causing the engine to overheat. Then after parking and trying to restart, it would indeed have a hard time since it had overheated. With more coolant added back to the system, it cooled the engine back to normal operating temperature and allowed engine to crank normally.

a 2000 honda accord with the 2.3l vtech engine radiator hoses have alot of pressure in radiator hoses doesnt overheat or smoke could head gasket be blown? thermostat replaced less than a week ago coolant resivior is full doesnt loose any coolant there but have found radiator needing coolant before the thermostat was replaced

If your vehicle is at operating temperature with the radiator cap on then your hoses should feel stiff with pressure. Your cap should be rated in the area of 16psi. Your cooling system builds pressure because a liquid under pressure raises its boiling point. If this feature did not work then your coolant would boil almost everytime you drove it for more than 10 minutes. Just dont remove the cap EVER when the system is under pressure. As soon as you open it then the liquid immediately turns to boil/steam and shoots out like a bad out of hell.

i checked the fluid levels this morning as i do every morning before i leave and the radiator looks a little low ((i filled it completely yesterday after replacing the thermostat)) but the reservoir hasn't changed and as i said before im not running hot and cant find any leaks i would pressure test the radiator but i dont have the adapter for the pressure tester kit at autozone oil doesnt appear milky but i have been told if it blows to the coolant side it could be pushing exhaust gases into my cooling system but not leaking back into the cylinder

ok, so are you saying you think you have a leak (low coolant) issue or are you concerned with the stiff (pressured) hoses? From what I stated before if your hoses feel stiff at operating temp and the cap on, then that is normal. The cooling system has to build pressure or coolant will boil.

im not sure if i have a leak or not checked fluids again today and no visible coolant in the radiator but the reservoir was full all the way up to the cap with the new coolant i just put in that's whys im slightly concerned about the amount of pressure in the hoses

*UPDATE* well conclusion reached it is a blown head gasket the excess pressure in radiator hoses on cold start were from the failure but no overheating or coolant loss was noticed it wouldn't drain back into the radiator because was being forced into the coolant resivior from all the pressure will be taking the head off this weekend having it milled and pressure checked an reinstalling with new gaskets headbolts water pump etc. etc.

I was afraid of that. Sorry for the bad news and good luck with your future!