Leaking coolant from car

[Anonymous No.1358992]

My car is leaking coolant/water somewhere. I have to refill it once a week or so, depending on how much I drive. It never seems to get to the point where it completely runs out, as my engine doesn't increase in temperature.

Any tips on how to locate where the leak is? I doubt that it's the head gasket, as it was replaced around 2 years ago. Also, I've had no ignition problems.

As it's a very old car (1995), I suspect it's a hose or maybe the radiator. It's just a PITA to track down, as the leak is so small that I've been unable to find it by looking for obvious spills or the like.

[Anonymous No.1358997]

What car?

Besides the obvious hoses and gaskets, it could also be the water pump, corrosion in the water passages, a hole in the radiator or the thermostat housing, etc.

Gasket failure has many symptoms, sometimes they are slight.

Start by cheching the exhaust to see if there's an oily residue, then look in the coolant reserve tank and see if there is bubbling or vibration.
Inspect the engine oil and oil filler cap for scum.

[Anonymous No.1359001]

>>1358992
95 ain't old :) I drive a 93 Jeep.
Radiator cap old and not holding pressure.
(autozone etc have pressure testers)
overflow bottle cracked
overflow hose cracked
Check hoses for soft spots and buildup form the antifreeze residue.
If you have a belt driven water pump.. run the vehicle till it is warm then stop and check around the pump shaft for leaks. Only fix for that is a new/rebuilt pump.
Stay away from leak-stop shit. It kills the motor.
Another place to check is along the radiator if it has plastic side tanks. Tho that's less likely to happen.

[Anonymous No.1359012]

>>1359001
>Stay away from leak-stop shit. It kills the motor.

It doesn't.

Stop leak can cause blockages if your radiator/block were not flushed properly with an acid before applying.
On the otherhand, flushing a cooling system can uncover hidden defects and mske the problem worse so....

[Anonymous No.1359017]

>>1359012
I'd rather just replace the leakf part. Spares for my model (volvo 940) are in abundant supply for cheap (which is why i'm still driving it)

[Anonymous No.1359052]

>>1359012
>if your radiator/block were not flushed properly with an acid before applying.
That's the problem.
stop leak is used by the backyard mechanic without clue one on how to do prep. I've seen engines where they put so much of that shit in the heater hoses were plugged.....
It's fine if you are trying to get a leaky piece of shit to run for a few more months. But beyond that it's just a dangerous temporary bandage.

[Anonymous No.1359060]

>>1358997
>>1359001
>>1359012
>>1359017
All BULLSHIT
Go to the parts store and borrow a pressure tester. Pump it up to 15 psi and watch for a leak
Head gaskets can leak various ways
1. they can push air / gas mixture into the coolane
2. They can pull in coolant and burn it
3. They can allow coolant into your oil which will make it milky
Most likely problem is heater core, radiator, split hose, water pump seal.. Might even be just the overflow tank that's full is over flowing.
Head gaskets rarely go bad unless you get a motor red hot, and even then that's mostly aluminum engines.

[Anonymous No.1359061]

>>1358997
>>1359001
>>1359012
>>1359017
All BULLSHIT
Go to the parts store and borrow a pressure tester. Pump it up to 15 psi and watch for a leak
Head gaskets can leak various ways
1. they can push air / gas mixture into the coolant
2. They can pull in coolant and burn it
3. They can allow coolant into your oil which will make it milky
Most likely problem is heater core, radiator, split hose, water pump seal.. Might even be just the overflow tank that's full is over flowing.
Head gaskets rarely go bad unless you get a motor red hot, and even then that's mostly aluminum engines

[Anonymous No.1359063]

If the pressure test shows no leaks and doesn't bleed down pressure you have no leak. If it does bleed down and you don't see water then its time to do a compression test on the motor. /thread That'll be $300.00 please

[Anonymous No.1359099]

>>1358992
check for steam coming out of your exhaust pipe

[Anonymous No.1359106]

>>1359061
>these post is the bullshits so I just repeats what was already mostly said.

[Anonymous No.1359154]

>>1358992
do you have an ultraviolet flashlight? most antifreeze contains fluorescein so that leaks can be found and traced easily

[Anonymous No.1359164]

>>1359106
True. Plus the assmonkey goes for the least likely cause. If a motor was sucking that much coolant a day it wold have long since grenaded.

[Anonymous No.1359179]

buy borrow or steal a cooling system pressure testing kit. pump the system up to 15psi and you will know where the leak is real quick.

>really old car
>1995
kek'd

[Anonymous No.1359196]

Water in oil?
Cracked head or head gasket

[Anonymous No.1359217]

>>1359179
>europe
>it's illegal to drive a car that's more than 20 years old

[Anonymous No.1359219]

>>1359179
1995 is still old, and considered a classic in most countries, especially in the wetter parts of Europe where even plastic bumpers rust.

[Anonymous No.1359263]

>>1359179
pajeet detected

[Anonymous No.1359264]

>>1359219
My environment would be considered wet if it wasn't at 64 degrees north, on an island.

[Anonymous No.1359310]

>>1359219
I have a 99 S10 that 5 years ago it didnt look out of the ordinary at all with other cars on the road or in a random parking lot. (same body design until 04)

Just randomly like a month or two ago I realized that its starting to look dated and it kind of stands out in a parking lot.
Pic related, its not mine but looks exactly like mine.

[Anonymous No.1359320]

>>1358992
check the coolant expansion tank (or whatever it's called on your car) they have a tendency to crack especially if it is an older car. It can also be literally any cracked rubber gasket in your cooling system

[Anonymous No.1359390]

Try squeezing the hoses with the engine off. Sometimes you can hear air hissing as it escapes or gets sucked back in.

[Anonymous No.1359393]

>>1359310
That looks like it's from 1992.

[Anonymous No.1360705]

>>1358992
Heater matrix or its hoses might leak. Some repair shops use uv reactive additive in coolant to locate the leak with blacklight. Sry bad engrish. Hope you can fix the leak Anon. Godspeed.

[Anonymous No.1360720]

>>1359393
>That looks like it's from 1992.

Maybe if you dont know shit about cars and their model years
Early 90s is still all box leftover from the decade crossovers models

[Anonymous No.1360915]

>>1359217
No it isn't

[Anonymous No.1361372]

>>1358992
Check overflow tank and related hose for leaks.

Proper operation: Engine gets hot, coolant expands, pushes through release valve in cap and into overflow tank. Engine cools, coolant contracts, resulting vacuum draws coolant back into radiator.

Leaky overflow tank: Coolant expands, pushes into overflow tank and leaks out the bottom (or the connecting hose is cracked). Coolant contracts, but vacuum can't pull coolant back into radiator, so it pulls in air. Over time, this 'pumps' a certain amount of coolant out of the system.

[Anonymous No.1361404]

>>1359063
Except it could be the radiator cap anon. Youre not testing it with the pressure tester.
I've also seen cars that only leak when hot.
I'm curious what type of hose clamps op has though. The spring clamps wear out pretty easily. Some mechanics will reuse them. 2 years ago the engine was stripped down to the block, so they would have been removed. If not replaced, they could be leaking, which would be nice for op since that'd only be the cost of a six pack to fix

[Anonymous No.1361431]

>>1359217
Hahahahhahahahhahahaha
Every day I learn more about how cucked Europe is. You commies literally have no rights anymore. Y'all need to get some guns.

[Anonymous No.1361442]

>>1361431
Terrible bait.

[Anonymous No.1361522]

Can you actually smell coolant in the engine bay or cabin? In my (limited) experience if it's a leak to atmosphere, you're gonna smell it. If you can't then it's an internal leak/bleed.