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Discussion summary
YOUR RESEARCHI'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Reported or suspected cause
tank
Suggestion or failed attempt
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I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
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Leading evidence: 'tank' (no explicit attributable resolution; this is a reported action or suggestion). Across 1 matching discussions, the most frequently mentioned possible cause is 'tank' (1 discussions; 0 report identifying it and 1 suggest it). The most frequently discussed action is 'Check around the neck beneath the cap' (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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Suggestion
You can check around the neck beneath the cap for signs of coolant deposits from "loose" cap.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Recommend porsche brand tank is going
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Suggestion
Just be aware that since you have an MK-I car, the highly recommended Porsche brand tank is going to cost around $600 just for the part, excluding the cap.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Repair i reinstalled the engine
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Suggestion
I had intermix, so after dropping the engine for the head repair, I reinstalled the engine but left the old reservoir in as I cycled Shout detergent mix thru the cooling system, didn't want any residual intermix in my new reservoir.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Replace coolant reservoir
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No successful repair reported for this finding.
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Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
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Suggestion
Replacing the coolant reservoir with the engine in the car is a tough job but doable, and certainly worth the trouble if you consider the consequences of not doing it.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Recommend porsche brand tank is going
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
Discussions that contain suggestions
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
Just be aware that since you have an MK-I car, the highly recommended Porsche brand tank is going to cost around $600 just for the part, excluding the cap.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Repair i reinstalled the engine
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
Discussions that contain suggestions
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
I had intermix, so after dropping the engine for the head repair, I reinstalled the engine but left the old reservoir in as I cycled Shout detergent mix thru the cooling system, didn't want any residual intermix in my new reservoir.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
Replace coolant reservoir
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
Discussions that contain suggestions
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
Replacing the coolant reservoir with the engine in the car is a tough job but doable, and certainly worth the trouble if you consider the consequences of not doing it.
I'm smelling the faint odor of coolant by the left rear tire....
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Counts describe captured discussions, not unique people or a diagnosis. Author identities are not reliably stored. Exact duplicate evidence is counted once across matching discussions; one discussion counts at most once per action/state. Multiple repairs reported together remain a combination. Suggestions and failed attempts do not establish a fix. Matches cover whole discussions and can include related faults, model variants and incomplete threads.
11 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
Rennlist: 1 discussions
0 evidence records excluded for query context · 0 excluded by outcome qualification · 0 adjusted by outcome qualification.
0 acknowledgements have no verified action link; they do not establish a repair result.
Generation: 20261026T105141Z · outcome-qualification-6. Deterministic extraction; no AI model inference. How we use sources
After having driven my 1999 996 Carrera 131k miles, I smell the faint odor of coolant, when the car is parked in the garage. I'm not seeing liquid in exhaust, overheating or 'fudge' in my oil.
The coolant overflow tank is above and behind left rear wheel and it is common that they crack with age. If replacing, do the cap as well, there is an updated one with a 997 part number. An unpleasant job with engine in the car I believe, it is on my list of upgrades for mine when I pull the engine.
Yes. Anything related to the cooling system should be addressed urgently.
Even if it's not the coolant tank, you should consider replacing it sooner than later. They are brittle at this point in time.
I'll have to round up the bits, so hopefully the mechanic doesn't have my car torn apart for the rest of the summer. Thanks again, I value your opinion...
At the left rear there is a coolant hose that run close to the exhaust. The T-junction(which is plastic) get's heated by the exhaust and cracks eventually. Easy to check.
It maybe also be the coolant tank as mentioned. If it's yellow in color it's time to replace it. If it's more white it may already have been replaced.
Coolant system is very important for these cars, running too hot or overheating leads to a broken engine. If you haven't already done it you should also clean out the radiators in the front ASAP, search the forum for the correct procedure. Ask your mechanic to pressure test the system also.
Good advice from the posters above, DO NOT wait on this, fix it now as failure to do so can result in severe pain in the wallet. This is exactly how my cracked head debacle started, faint smell of coolant which was actually a cracked coolant reservoir that I kept topping up. Ended up overheating the engine and cracking a head. Replacing the coolant reservoir with the engine in the car is a tough job but doable, and certainly worth the trouble if you consider the consequences of not doing it. I had intermix, so after dropping the engine for the head repair, I reinstalled the engine but left the old reservoir in as I cycled Shout detergent mix thru the cooling system, didn't want any residual intermix in my new reservoir. I then lowered the engine and even wedged it over sideways to get the new reservoir in. Anyway, for these cars anything to do with the cooling system merits IMMEDIATE attention.
In addition to the above(s) make sure your cap is on good and tight(read TIGHT") plus that it is the latest and greatest "04" cap which is blue. You can check around the neck beneath the cap for signs of coolant deposits from "loose" cap. The drain hose for this area comes out near the exhaust. Probably the tank, though. It cracks in the back so hard/impossible to see. Mine did the same thing...just smells no drips on garage floor. Fix it soon.
I recently had my coolant tank replaced when my mechanic noticed it was cracked while doing a coolant flush. The tank is readily available and was shipped to my mechanic overnight and I live in a small town in Canada. Might as well do the fuel filter at the same time since it is right there, especially if you don't know the last time it was changed. My mechanic charged 3 hours for the coolant tank and fuel filter as a combined job.
Just be aware that since you have an MK-I car, the highly recommended Porsche brand tank is going to cost around $600 just for the part, excluding the cap. Cheaper non-OEM tanks are not recommended.
