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YOUR RESEARCHIs this a bad coolant cap? or ?
Leading reported evidence
Check fluids
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I told the dealer that sold it to me that either the cap loosened itself on the drive or it may simply have not been installed after they checked all the fluids before I picked it up.
Leading evidence: 'Check fluids' (no explicit attributable resolution; this is a reported action or suggestion). Across 1 matching discussions, The most frequently discussed action is 'Check condition of the oil & belt' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
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You may have over filled the level before the run.
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I told the dealer that sold it to me that either the cap loosened itself on the drive or it may simply have not been installed after they checked all the fluids before I picked it up.
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What's even worse is that it was fitted by a reputable speedshop after my reservoir cracked (beware!).
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I suspect that you see the remaining coolant left from the last time you ran the car to top temperature.
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Suggestion
Put on your new cap, pop the bleeder valve in the up position with the little wire clip and go through several drive cycles (hot/cool/hot/cool) while checking the coolant level after each drive.
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I told the dealer that sold it to me that either the cap loosened itself on the drive or it may simply have not been installed after they checked all the fluids before I picked it up.
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I told the dealer that sold it to me that either the cap loosened itself on the drive or it may simply have not been installed after they checked all the fluids before I picked it up.
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So, I have to travel 3.5 hrs today with my 996 and I opened the trunk to ensure coolant level was ok and check the condition of the oil & belt. I noticed my coolant cap had some coolant around the reservoir and a slight drop of coolant on the upper bleeder valve. I replaced the reservoir and cap like 5 months ago and they where from pelican parts..
Question is, where do you think is leaking, at the cap or at the bleeder valve? See attachments.
Could be the coolant cap - when it does vent coolant, it can do so vigorously enough to wet nearby components. Since the cap was the most recently tinkered-with component, it would be my suspect. I think there's a rebuild kit available for the bleeder...
I'd replace the cap and clean everything up. If it reappears: new bleeder. If it doesn't: done.
The bleeder valve opens up to release over pressure if you over filled the system when cold. I suspect if a bleeder valve sticks in the closed shut position, that could cause the coolant tank to split. In your case the bleeder valve lifted and released the over fill and that's where the green coolant shows in the photos. It's always good policy to manually lift and release that valve when checking oil fills or anything else when you have the engine compartment open.
I suspect that you see the remaining coolant left from the last time you ran the car to top temperature. You may have over filled the level before the run. Clean it off, run it again up to top temps and I think you should be clear.
The o-ring in your bleeder valve has gone bad. You need to purchase the whole bleeder valve to get that o-ring.
Just had the same problem on my '04 Boxster S. New bleeder valve fixed it right up.
Get the correct blue colored coolant cap from Porsche, 996 106 447 04, to be sure that you have the right # pressure relief valve. The pressure relief is in the cap.
The black unit, air bleeder valve?, is not a pressure relief. It is a vacuum break that allows air to equalize tank/atmospheric pressure (burping the system) as the engine cools when the bail is snapped up.
I thought the black cap was the "new" suggested replacement cap.. at least thats what I read on the forums.. The cap is brand new, only 5 months old and so is the tank!. I will monitor it, I did top off recently so thats maybe what happened.
If you topped off recently as you said, then there is nothing wrong with anything. The coolant expanded as it heated up and found a way out of the system via the lift up valve. Don't buy anything.
If it is leaking out of the "lift up valve" you have a problem with the
*cap
. The correct cap has a pressure relief (~18 lbs.) built in. That is why the cap has a trough around/below it with a drain.
The "lift up valve" only leaks if there is something wrong as mentioned by RollingArt in post 5 above
*Edit:
This should have been "valve".
When you "top off" with a cold engine don't fill more then 1/2 way between min & max. Typically the level will be very close to "min" when cold and right at "max" when hot.
Do not fill the F-ing tank to the top! That coolant is not cheap, stinks up the whole car, and scares the hell out of you when you open the trunk lid and see it dripping everywhere! I changed out my old water pump because it failed, and put in a low temp T-stat, flushed out the system many times with water and compressed air to fish out some impeller pieces and then refilled it with the good Petro something coolant... everything went perfect till I went to fill and cycle the cooling system... for a week I would warm up the car and drive her around checking the coolant level and temp with an ODB dongle. And every time I would over fill the tank and every morning I would find the damn coolant dripping down the tank and onto my floor!
Fill it to the top of the low line and leave it alone. If your paranoid like I am just plug in the ODB dongle and keep an eye on the temp and make sure that the cooling system fans come on at the right temp!
So you are saying that the lift up relief valve only opens at a higher pressure than the blue cap? Or ONLY opens under high water pressure? Can you tell us the exact pressure when each component opens? That's if there is a relief at all on the actual blue cap. To have two pressure relief valves on the same system standing next to each other, makes no logical sense to me what so ever. Does one open under water pressure and the other under steam pressure? I am baffled. I see a green liquid which to me says coolant and not steam pressure which would dissipate on hitting the atmosphere.
Hurdi,
The blue cap, 996 106 447
04
= latest rev #, has the pressure relief built in to it. (take one apart you will see)
The black unit with the bail is a spring loaded diaphragm 'vacuum break' valve, not pressure relief.. When you have the bail up it holds the diaphragm up as the engine cools this forces the valve to open.
When the valve is open the system can vent to the atmosphere allowing air bubbles to escape. On a cold start,with the bail up, as the coolant warms up it pushes out air pockets.
That is why you should start with a cold engine, bail up, when you are using the start it, rev it to various RPMs, method of bleeding the system.
Look at the valve when your engine is hot. The square peg that the bail mounts on is up, hard against the top of the unit without the bail up. With no coolant venting.
Take one apart. You will get a better idea how it works.
Porsche has had 3 different coolant colors. First was green, second yellow and now pink. Coolant is i believe a lifetime fluid so there is no need to change it..
I took delivery of my 1999 Carrera 996 Cabriolet yesterday and drove it 3 hours on the highway without issue. In the last 10 mins, we hit some traffic, and I noticed the water temperature increased from about 190F to maybe 210 at the highest point in the drive. I started noticing white steam in my review mirror. When I pulled into the driveway, white steam was coming out of the engine cover. I opened the hood and saw coolant everywhere. I noticed there was no cap on the coolant reservoir...
I told the dealer that sold it to me that either the cap loosened itself on the drive or it may simply have not been installed after they checked all the fluids before I picked it up.
Could it be possible that I drove the whole time without a cap? I was running at highway speeds the whole time for 3 hours, and outside temps were in the 50s. It was only until we hit bumper to bumper traffic that I noticed the temps creeping up.
I'll get a new cap today, but should I now concern myself with draining the coolant and purging it of air?
Was the coolant reservoir completely empty when you arrived home?
Well, good news is that you drove it during cooler ambient temps and didn't damage the engine. Something like this is not totally uncommon IMHO. The dealer may have had one of the mechanics check all the fluids and either he didn't replace the cap or didn't tighten it properly.
IMHO, I would purchase some OEM Porsche coolant, properly mix with distilled water, and refill the coolant reservoir before flushing the system.
Others here on RL can tell you a better procedure for "burping'" the system.
Hope you enjoy the car!
When the engine has cooled down, check that the coolant level is at least at the minimum level. If not, fill to that point with a 50/50 mix of distilled water and Porsche coolant. Put on your new cap, pop the bleeder valve in the up position with the little wire clip and go through several drive cycles (hot/cool/hot/cool) while checking the coolant level after each drive. You should be okay with that. No need to drain the coolant. With the bleeder valve in the up position it will purge any air in the system.
b3freak and DBJoe996 - Your advice worked. I only ended up adding a liter of fluid (500ml of Porsche coolant and 500ml of distilled water). I ran it through a couple of cycles, no issues. I don't think I lost enough coolant from the reservoir to warrant any flushing, as I don't think there was any air in the system.
By the way, why does this car hold 6 gallons of coolant? My buddy's 13-liter tractor-trailer rig holds 9. Where does all that fluid actually fit? Seems like an excessive amount of coolant, even with hoses going to the front and back.
Yea, that's a lot of fluid ain't it?
The main reason is the distance from the rads to the engine. Basic physics... engine in back - rads in front... you add the length and amount of hoses and you'll eat up 6 gallons easy.
Heck, my water heater is on the other end of the house. I have to bleed about three or four gallons of water each time I want to take a shower and I'm on city water (charge/gallon used). (sniffle)
Because I kept coming back here when troubleshooting my problem (bubbling through bleeder valve / the one that lifts), I wanted to update the forum. Well... in my case it was a non-original, ****ty bleeder valve fitted. It had a tiny hole in the sidewall, and the quality is all round not "just like OEM"... See photo comparison with Porsche original on the left. What's even worse is that it was fitted by a reputable speedshop after my reservoir cracked (beware!). I managed to swap just the bleeder valve with the reservoir still in the car. All my problems are now gone. YMMV.
I had leak on a 95 degree day..no overheating but lost a few quarts of coolant.My tech guy pressure teated...ran and drove the car could not duplicate the ussue.I did get a new Aos installed.I also orderedthe bewest cap...a blue one.Seems to be all ok now..
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