Adding coolant?

OK, I noticed my coolant light blinking the last time I drove the car. I parked the car, let it cool down and checked the coolant level. Needless to say, it was very low. What should I do now? Do I go to dealer, buy coolant, fill up the reservoir and then take it to my indy mechanic? I'm very new to the whole porsche thing...any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks Anthony

You could top it off with distilled water and take it to you indy, or buy the CORRECT coolant for Porsches, top it off and take it to your indy. You probably have 1) a leaking coolant tank cap or 2) the coolant tank is leaking. Both are known issues with 996 cars. Make sure you post some pics of you car soon, or "some" of these guys will harass you unmercifully until you do.

New cap for $25 is a good suggestion...then check to verify your coolant level is dropping. The plastic tanks are a known weak link.Mine is still ok after 10 years, but I did replace the cap 3 years ago and it solved my problem. Do a search, you don't have to use Porsche's coolant

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http://www.e-partssales.com/miva/mer...96WaterCooling

Thanks for the help....I'll have pics up this afternoon. Will keep you posted.

for topping off I asked my indy what to use... he grabbed a bottle with about 2 cups left in the bottom and I said "can I have that" and he said, "It's yours" Added some water to get the mix right and it was enough to top off.....Pays to show up with beer on Fridays

So, I spoke with my Indy, Protosport in NJ, who comes highly recommended and he suggested having the car flatbedded out to his shop. I mentioned that I was thinking of filling it up with porsche coolant and driving out there and he suggested against doing that, given potential to overheat and a host of other problems. What do you guys think? It would save me about $175 in flatbed fees?

That's incredibly over-cautious for what is 99% likely to be a leaky coolant tank/cap. Put some distilled water in it and drive. Note: Last winter I got a new cap because I believed mine was leaking, the part number was something something .02. I got another a couple of months ago and it was a .04. They went through two revisions in under a year for the cap, and the mech at the dealer said they're just brutally over-complicated for what they do. Too bad it's not the cap, it's just a very small tank leak that rarely crops up. That's going to be fun to replace.

I don't know how cold it is out there right now, but your only issue would be the water freezing. It's my understanding that regular distilled water is a far BETTER coolant than antifreeze. So theoretically as long as it's above freezing, you could fill the whole thing w/ distilled water and drive it to the dealer, no problem. Recently mine was a little low, so I put in a bottle of RedLine Water Wetter, and distilled water. No problems. So really the question would be how low is it? If the reservoir is just dry, add the Water Wetter, and some distilled, and then watch it to see if it drops.

Make sure you don't have coolant in your oil. I'll bet that's what the indy is thinking

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Agreed. While the other posters are probably correct regarding the tank or cap, it's funny how you always think the worst when a coolant problem is mentioned (at least I do).

Thats the first thing I would think of without the evidence of coolant driping out some where.

Good point ^^

The thing is coolant will disappear pretty quickly so unless you see it leaking it can be easy to miss, especially since a tank leak won't really kick in until the car is just sitting there heat soaking (or at least that's what it was in my case). I've only ever seen the coolant leaking after I go back out about 5 minutes after a hot run. It does have a pretty specific smell though, which you will smell. Anyway! I wasn't worried about intermix because if you've gotten to the point where the coolant light is reading low without ever seeing smoke chances are it has just leaked out over the past couple of months. And it's not like we need any more alarmist posts on this forum.

If it were me, the first thing I'd do (after checking the oil) is top up the coolant. The amount of coolant it takes to refill the system would tell me the size of the problem. There is a lot of coolant in that car. An empty expansion tank is in itself not much cause for alarm. I've had that happen just from the cooling system burping after a refill. That warning light comes on a long time before you're in any real trouble.

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Agreed!

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I agree. Good advice. This is the best first step. After topping up the coolant, watch the level on a daily basis. Look for leaks under the car. Hopefully it is just a leaky tank. ...Rickker

So did you check the oil?

A few weeks ago I noticed a small puddle behind my car as well. (Drivers Side BH Wheel.) I topped off my tank and everything was fine for a few days, no lights and temp looked fine. I kept a very close eye on it. However, this afternoon I went out and looked after a brief five mile freeway run, and there was a small puddle back there again. I chkd while I was driving and there was no lights, temp looked fine, everything seemed good. However, about 2 hours or so later......Another puddle? Rickker: You say "hopefully it is just a leaky tank"? Are you talking about the overflow tank? What is involved in replacing the tank? (Or should I say the tank that you are speaking about?) Or is there more to be concerned about here?

I have a coolant leak( minor about a ten tablespoons) coming from driver side engine in front of the headers and even with the center of the left rear wheel. It dripping off of a small bolt, but comming from some where above. I refilled the tank( two cups) and will drive it to work today. What could this be on the front of the engine? Pictures to come! Thanks Sam

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The shop is probably looking at the liability issues if they suggested that driving the Porsche was ok, then something happened to the engine. Tow fees???????? AAA Plus is aroung $90.00 a year and your insurance may also have towing cover.

So, I took the car to my indy and at first he thought it was just the cap, but after replacing that, flushing the system and making sure it was pressurized another leak developed in the plastic reservoir tank. So now that needs to be replaced. I'm very new to this whole thing, but from I've read on the forum and from what the indy told me, its a fairly common problems on these cars. The early 996 reservoir tanks had plastic "nipples" at the bottom of the reservoir that never served a purpose, but was prone to cracking. Anyway, he's replacing with new tank and, hopefully, my problems will go away. Other than that, I had him do the 30K major service and he looked over everything. Car came back with a great bill of health...pretty pysched! Will post pics once I get it back on Monday. Lastly, major props to the guys at Protosport. They're great guys, reasonable pricing and extremely knowledgeable. SamK - My problem sounded very similar to yours. It was a very slow leak from the rear drivers side (where the coolant tank is located). Eventually, the light came on, but the car never rode hot.

Thanks. My leak is coming from the front of the engine and not near the tank. Any thoughts anybody?

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I am talking about the plastic tank in the engine compartment, on the left side. This is where you add coolant, if needed. It has a blue cap. According to what I have read on this forum, some tanks develop a crack and start leaking. I personally have not changed a tank, but I believe there is a DIY procedure on Renntech.org. What I meant to say, that hopefully a cracked tank is the reason for the loss of coolant, rather than an intermix situation. ....Rickker

Near the front may be water pump. Coolant leaks (loss)are usually. Cap/tank/cracked head/water pump

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From my past experience with various cars, and from what I can gather here, it does indeed sound as if it is "Just a cracked" Tank, and the fluid that comes out is very clean. My Younger brother is a Mechanic, I will have him look at it and he will know with in two minutes. He has worked on American Cars his whole life, but I have always owned European Autos, so he has developed the skill set to work on pretty much any vehicle. When ever I ask him if he can do a particular job he just looks at me and says, "It's just a car, it doesn't matter who makes it!" And so far, I have not seen him stumble on one car yet!! I just wish he would listen to me and open his own shop, but I know how he is, and he likes the security of a "Chunky" paycheck from the dealerships! (This of course is why I have never taken my cars to the Dealership, unless everything is covered.) When I ask him about the stuff some places do, I am just amazed that some business can get away with what they do. Tire places seem to be on my sore side right now.. Thnx for sharing the info!!

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Yesterday I found my coolant (authorized) was also below min, about 1/5". I put in half a bottle of Water Wetter with 50/50 mix of distilled water to refill it (didn't top it off, but almost), and drove my 02' C4S for dinner. That night I kept smelling the Water Wetter. This morning I noticed the coolant level is back to where it was. But I didn't see any puddle and the tank cap seemed to be clean. Was I wrong about the mix, or it's actually something leaking that can only be seen when I rack my baby up?

A bit of an update to my scenario involving my coolant leak and my Engine light that just recently came on. I topped off my tank and drove it for a day or two with no issues. Then one day I noticed a bit of a leak again. So I will be ordering the new cap as well as taking it to my local guy to repair the overflow tank as that looks like more work then I would want to subject my brother to. One article I read said that you may have to lower the engine a few inches, and if I am going to have that done, for record purposes I would rather have my local independent guy do that job. So the leak has been marginal and the overflow tank still appears to be full, so I am only losing a few table spoons give or take, Well, since it is winter I haven’t been driving it too much, but we had a nice day here the other day and I went to the Gas station for some gas and suddenly the Engine light came on, (Or I should say I noticed it suddenly, it may have been on for 10 or 15 minutes.?) Well of course the severe panic entered my head and I started thinking the worse. So the next morning I called him at work and gave him the lowdown on things and he basically said, (I am not saying anyone else should or could do this I am just saying what I did. And if you find the other post I posted on this there is much more detail. Regarding this entire issue which is why I was fine doing what I did.) Anyways, with the engine light on I drove to my brothers house, about 10 miles. I get there we check the OBD I & OBD II and we come up with some minor issues, nothing serious. As you will see in my other post, I was having a slight issue with Rodents (Chipmunks) had gotten into the underside of my car and chewed thru some lines. Which is basically what the OBD I & OBD II told us. So the engine was running a bit rich, and I would have to replace those lines asap. Ironically as I was driving away, I did notice that the engine light was off. I did only drive the car home while watching the temp like it was my money at a casino. Everything was fine, however as I pulled in my driveway, I had to get out carry a few things into the house before I could come out and double check to see if I was still leaking and if so, to what degree? When I got back out after about ten minutes or so of being in the house I walk out and see a small puddle about the size of a CD? Under where the overflow cap would basically be. Sooooo, obviously I now know what I have to do, asap. I will take it and have the overflow tank replaced as well as the temp gauge. (These were the two things that came up on the OBD's.) Here is another bit of info that I will say is just a FYI, if he wasn't my brother and worked on every car I have had since I was 16, and he has never been wrong. (I am not sure how the Mechanic ratings go, but I do know that he can basically walk into any dealership and get a job.) Which is why I didn’t question him, he has never been wrong on any car I have owned or which includes Porsches, BMW’s, Land Rovers, Jaguars, at least on Lexus and anything supposedly made in America or Japan. I have been lucky, and I am only sharing this story to share my experience, because we all know what that internal Panic button is like when or favorite thing has something not going right, especially in the motor area. One last comment, because I really freaked out when I saw the Engine light come on in the Porsche. (If you own a land Rover, you pretty much worry when you do not see the light come on…lol) My brother offered this piece of advice to me, I am not saying that everyone should follow this advice, but as I said, he has never been wrong when it came to me or my cars. He told me this bit of information, when the engine light is on, it means that it is a very good idea to have your engine checked asap, however it is usually not a life threatening issue that some would have you believe, (ie…an extra $175 for a flat, but remember they also have your interest in mind as well. So they are doing what they think is correct for you as well!) However he did say that if your light starts to blink, (No matter which kind of vehicle.) pull over, stop the car and call a tow or have a flat bed come to get it as you as it is very likely at this point you have a potentially serious issue. And it would be wise to minimize your risk as soon as you can! As I said, this is just my 2 cents, and I have been very lucky when it came to having a brother like this, because I do know some things about working on my cars, but I would prefer to have a professional taking care of it for me. It never hurts to be friends with a good Mechanic, a Good Attorney, and a good Financial Advisor, oh and a good CPA, because they will always do the job better then you, and in the long run they will save you more money then you think. (Briefly; I love it when people complain about paying a CPA $300-400 , because these are the people that almost never get any money back on their taxes, the other people know the truth. I was a CFP for 14 years, and I would always chuckle at my coworkers who would insist that they could do their taxes better then any CPA….) Sorry for the length, this had been a potentially scary issue for me, so I don't think I was alone on this?

Only add water in an emergency. Use the Porsche recommended coolant. Porsche part #000-043-301-05 (1 gallon) & should be around $33.00 depending on where you buy. We pay higher in Canada. I think this is the 'pink' one - factory fill is a greenish color and I have been told cannot or shouldn't be mixed. Porsche specifically recommends the use of this coolant - not water. Sure a 'small' amount of distilled water will not hurt, but that doesn't mean you fill up the whole plasic overflow bottle either. Reading Adrian's book last night I recall he said that the use of water in the coolant system of a 996 over time has led to the death of many oil/water separator units. Something to due with a chemical reaction and the alum tubes. I'll find the page numbers tonight when I get home.

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This is an interesting point, especially since there are so many people that seem to be having issues with their radiator systems! I appreciate the advice on that. I will look into it, and make it a point to only use P - Coolant. Hmmmm, I wonder if maybe you know this? When I bought the car it had Green coolant in the tank, I understand I will have to do a full swap, but I am curious as to the potential long term damage from not using the P-car coolant? If so is there anything one can do to correct the "problem?"

It appears its my tank or the cap. The leak is minor so I ordered a cap and tank; furthermore, my cap no. ends in 01 and the new one is 04. Sometime it leaks and most times it dosen't. Thanks for the advice and I will keep you all informed of my progress.

Page 183 - 996 Essential Companion: "Unfortunately all engines with intermixing problems are shipped back to Porsche AG for rebuilding. A few hints fed back suggest that the problem was often corroded engine oil-to-coolant heat exchangers with internally rotted pipes which allowed oil and coolant to mix. What caused this corrosion? The most common is the use of tap or mineral water to top up the coolant. Once contaminated water enters the coolant system, and it's heated up, a chain reaction of corrosive events begin inside of everything made from aluminum alloy. Heat exchanger pipes start to break, eventually collapsing and allowing oil and coolant to mix, resulting in an engine replacement warranty claim being denied." With thanks to Adrian Streather for using this quote from his book.

This caused the head to crack?