[turboedpickup]

a couple of days ago i opened up my overflow tank to find that it was empty. so i filled it up with some water...to about halfway between min and max. a day ago... it's down to the min mark. both times have been in the morning before the car ever went for a drive. the radiator...still seems full. my car's not overheating. but it seems that my car still smokes white smoke (not a lot) but it still slightly smokes after the car warms up---BUT this is mainly when it's cold at night. but yeah. what could be happening? there's no oil in the coolant...

 

[88_rex_si]

i think it could be a blown head gasket, do a compression test to be certaint

 

[turboedpickup]

wouldn't a blown head gasket cause oil to be in the coolant? (i don't know if a compression test would solve it...) on a lighter note, my car made it on a 60 mile trip... :TU:... but yeah... anyone else?

 

[bassist1088]

you cant always see the oil and coolant mixing, i couldnt even tell by looking at my oil. pop your valve cover off and in there lies the truth of whether it really is mixing or not

 

[transzex]

sometimes they never mix, coolant could be sucked into the cylinders.....which is bad, you can hydro lock the motor that way.

 

[leftbraned]

I'd say, check the coolant level in both the rad and overflow when the car is cool. Dont add anything for a couple of days and check again (obviously when cold unless you like 3rd degree burns...)

the overflow will go back into the rad if the rad is low. Have you done any work lately? If you are losing coolant I'd check hoses and the rad before anything else. I had a leak like this once and it was a pin hole in a hose that sprayed out to the ground without hitting anything else. I only caught it by accident when I was pulling the oil filter out.

You never know...

 

[SpoolinSol]

is you car turbo (water cooled)? Maybe coolant is gettin burned up in the turbo...

 

[areskzc]

It's normal that the overflow tank get a little empty when the car is cold... also should be a little filled when it's warmed up. The radiator cap is actually a realease valve for water pressure (when hot or cold press changes)

Unless you overheat your car or runned it like hell don't rush on HG thoughts.

Check carefully your water hoses when the car is warming up
Look carefully at these particular hoses
RAD hoses upper and lower,
Heater hose (come under the ignition and go to the heater valve at firewall)
IM hoses IN and OUt hoses.

Touch them and check for leaks. Also your radiator may have some starting cracks on plastic ends inspect those.

Hope it helps

 

[turboedpickup]

update: i checked for leaks, and sure enough i found one. except - i don't know what it's leaking from. it seems to be coming from the block... it's the area of the block on the back - nearest the alternator... and it's dripping slightly to the area right behind the rear most pulley. it's not coming from one of the pipes etc. - but from the block? anyone know what problem this is?

 

[SpoolinSol]

update: i checked for leaks, and sure enough i found one. except - i don't know what it's leaking from. it seems to be coming from the block... it's the area of the block on the back - nearest the alternator... and it's dripping slightly to the area right behind the rear most pulley. it's not coming from one of the pipes etc. - but from the block? anyone know what problem this is?

theres another thread w/ a leak that sounds like its from the same palce... i dk tho...

 

[turboedpickup]

^^^^ thanks - and yeah. checked around h-t also... seems to be my water pump. now... if it IS coming out of the weephole... but it's not TOO much... will it only get worse? or should i change it immediately. i mean - i'm strapped for cash... how "long" do i have to fix this... can i just keep refilling the overflow tank? will my car start to overheat? - it's only a little bit. but yeah.

 

[bassist1088]

it will eventually get worse but a waterpump isnt but like 30 bucks, its worth paying 30 now instead of 3-400 later for a new engine cuz you let this one overheat and crack the head or block

 

[turboedpickup]

sounds good. thanks.