Hi all went out for a nice drive today when i got back i noticed my car started leaking on the passenger side at the front under the bumper, the temp remained normal while i was driving, not started her since, as i want to top her up & find the leak not alot came out i'd say a pint by the looks of it any suggestions thanks, Dom

Hi all went out for a nice drive today when i got back i noticed my car started leaking on the passenger side at the front under the bumper, the temp remained normal while i was driving, not started her since, as i want to top her up & find the leak not alot came out i'd say a pint by the looks of it any suggestions thanks, Dom

 

That'll most likely be the radiator overrun or aircon, both produce a bit of a puddle and are nothing to worry about.

 

Check fluid levels if you're worried, should be fine

Expansion tank over flow maybe there is a hole near where the filler neck is maybe too much water in there or dodgey rad cap.:):)

1 pint sounds alot for air con.

what should i check, like i say the car was running fine, what and were shall i top up or check, seen it & nearly fainted lol.

Check the rad cap and rad for coolant level, if it's a bit low top up with distilled water.

I would change the rad cap anyway only a few quid and make sure the coolant in the expansion bottle is not too full there is a dip stick but its rubbish .Take arch linner out and check level on expansion bottle theres a high and low mark.

also the lower rad pipe connection is there, make sure it`s tight and not split etc.

Also you might have an overfilled expansion tank any way and the excess just overflows if the rad cap allows a bit more into it. Check top hose goes hard by giving it a squeeze (carefully) when its hot. Otherwise the rad cap is leaking the pressure away.

the expansion bottle will leak, its in two parts with no water tight seal.

 

if you pull back the arch liner you can see the bottle and its min/max lines.

 

its possible that the bottle was filled to high when cold causing it to spill out.

 

just check the rad when cold and top it up from there.

Hi all checked rad today and it is right to the top, the water is very dirty brown colour, went out for a drive today taking it easy and it was fine, temp stayed normal as always, i did give it some yesterday so proberly got hot and bubbled out somewhere as its not leaked a drop since, but damn i was shitting it, damn car if its not scary enough to drive, not alone getting probs after lol, thanks all the fluids are all ok now.

does your air con work now? (sounds similar to the problem I've just had)

If your water is a brown colour then it has very little anti freeze in which also has anti corrosion agents, I would flush and replace with the correct amount of anti freeze, it also helps to lower the boiling point of the water.

 

Paul

yes i'll replace fluids as they dirty, my air con don't work, i have a reley missing for it under the bonnet, but i have a red button on the side of the steering colum which activates a fan, my fan still kicks in when it needs to so not sure what the button is for.

My coolant needs changing also what a good brand of antifreeze to put it, or does it not matter as long as its ethelyne glycol.

I would buy a branded name, as long as it states that it has anti corrosion agents. But you need to find what % of anti freeze to water you need.

 

Paul

yeah don;t do what i accidently did yesterday!

 

i filled up 1 litre of antifreeze before realising it needs water to dilute it :-(

 

luckily it required a load of water aswell (around a litre).

 

luckily i already have a rad flush planed for this week so it wont be in their long

Damien, that should not be a problem, better to much anti freeze, most modern cars run about 50/50.

 

Paul

whats more worrying is.........How the hell did it all disappear in a few days? There are no leaks as far as I can see…………………………… Please don’t tell me the engine is burning it off 

 

Anyway regarding the official original post I just used one that I got from Texaco… I went BP first and they had the same brand.. £5.00.

 

I would of gone further to somewhere like Halfords but as I had none I just accepted what ever I could find to be safe.

 

Just so the poster and I are aware in future what can be the effects of having too much antifreeze compared to water? Is it too thick to circulate properly?

It should be no problem, it's more of a problem not having enough.

 

Paul