I have a leak

Just pulled into the garage and after 20 minutes there was a small pool under the rear driver's side exhaust tip. Its coming from above and dripping onto it but I can't see from where. The fluid is a very light pink almost like a very light colored transmission fluid. It is slick like oil. What is this coming from? Engine is too hot to go searching with my hand. Seems to have slowed down. It is a manual trans.

Coolant.

Search "Replacing coolant tank" and "Water pump replacement"

Wait until the engine is cold and check the level of the coolant tank. Oily pinkish liquid????????? Very strange. My coolant is yellowy greenish. You might want to check the oil on the dip stick for clarity in case the AOS is at fault.

Besides the coolant, check the engine mount - when the engine mounts fail they leak an oily fluid. Smell the fluid. The fluid smelled like rancid/burned cooking oil when mine failed (it was nasty smelling, that is how I knew that it wasn't coolant). This is what my engine mounts looked like after 110,000 miles: https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...ne-mounts.html

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If he has G12 coolant it will be pink.

Agree with other posters, either coolant or motor mount. Check the coolant level in the expansion tank first. I changed out my coolant with the Porsche coolant...it is pink.

I recenly had a similar puddle of light oil dripping onto the exhaust tip and then onto the floor. I traced it to the bumper shock absorber. I have a 993: 996's may be different. Good luck, D.

So I found the crack in the coolant tank and the part is on order. So in adding coolant, do I need to use Porsche coolant or is it the same as a less expensive brand. I only drained as much as I needed so I don't want to mix brands if possible. $46 a gallon is crazy especially when there are only a few antifreeze manufactures in the world.

Porsche uses an OAT antifreeze as original fill. You can use any other OAT type plus most HOAT types. http://www.recycool.net/index.php?op...acts&Itemid=10

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Thank you fbp111, you have once again dispelled a myth that 'only' Porsche coolant can be used. Good info.

I bought my coolant at the local VW dealer and I think it was $22 a gallon.

I know I'm probably going to take some heat for this.... The basis for my thinking - my 19 year old son is "learning" about car ownership, maintenance and so on with his Honda. Back in January/February his car overheated and I asked him about checking his radiator fluid and antifreeze...he said he did, but as it turns out he neglected it (as well as not really checking the oil level). Live and learn, 3 months later his car is running horrible and finally practically gives up. I said let's get it figured out...pulled the spark plugs and ran the starter. You should have seen the water/antifreeze shooting out the cylinders! It was spectacular, but also meant he blew a head gasket and in the end, after removing the cylinder head we discovered it was cracked. He learned a hard and costly lesson in doing the required and recommended checks. In the repair process, I said use the Honda recommended antifreeze and correct ratio and showed him how to figure that out. My reasoning is that Honda, as well as other car manufacturers, test and test again their recommendations and use a basis of determining what is correct on many extensive long term analysis of engine maintenance and life. Porsche does the same. To me, the Porsche recommended coolant, a "lifetime" product, is based on what has been determined to be the best quality and mix for the engine. I don't have the time or inclination to experiment and extensively test other coolants for a lifetime of use in a very expensive engine. I also see no reason to try and game the system and say, well this one is just like the other one blah blah blah just to save a few bucks. Accept it...you have a fantastically engineered car and it costs money to keep it up. Porsche has tested it and it works. Always use the Porsche recommended coolant, buy it, put it in your car and you will never have the question floating around in your mind...did I do the right thing? Sun Coast Porsche Parts $35/gallon http://www.suncoastparts.com/product...96WaterCooling 99 C2, 125,500 miles, all recommended maintenance/fluids, daily driver and no problems

Well spoken, DBJoe. Any respectable VW and Audi dealers recommend/use the same G12 coolant as Porsche. All in the same family, I'm guessing. Lesson learned last fall when my water pump impeller broke off and it started leaking profusely a few hundred meters from my home. I was lucky to coast downhill right into my garage!

AceLucas mine did the exact same thing last Thursday. I smelled the leak before I saw it. Coolant has a sweet scent that is unmistakable if you have experience. The part from my local stealership was $450 so I decided to order and wait. I got one from Sunset for a very good price and it arrived yesterday afternoon. I'm not as good as others on this site at documenting what I do but that might have something to do with previous employment at BMW where speed was the key. I have a C4 and a couple good tricks that I learned on the way doing this job for the first time were: - if it looks like it should come out to get the tank out, it needs to come out. - the fuel filter and the fuel rail vent line need to come out to extract this beast - do yourself a favor and drop the engine off the mounts to get a lot more room to work - buy these!! Hose clamp pliers - zip ties are your friends, use them liberally to get all the hoses out of your was so you can have a straight shot into the hole where the tank goes. - if you don't have an updated cap get one of those while you are at it too. All up it took me 3 hours to get the tank and all the associated parts out. After I knew how to get it apart, it took a total of 45 min to get it all back together and on the road. I also saved about a thousand dollars and learned a bit about my 'new' car at the same time. Good luck with your project

Ok guys I got it back together and I need to bleed the system. How do I go about doing that? I have read other post that say I need a special vacuum for this. True?

UView 550000 makes the job much easier. UView 550000 Airlift Cooling System Leak Checker and Airlock Purge Tool Kit : Amazon.com : Automotive UView 550000 Airlift Cooling System Leak Checker and Airlock Purge Tool Kit : Amazon.com : Automotive You can also bleed the system by running it with the bleed bale snapped up and obsessive monitoring of the coolant level. There is a procedure that calls for something like: warm the car up with cap off. rev to 4000 multiple times let it drop to idle and settle down & add fluid each time. carry a bucket of coolant while you drive with the bale up, watching the temp gauge like a hungry hawk on a rabbit hole checking and topping up obsessively etc... Or just bite the bullet and get a vacuum system. You need access to an air compressor to use it.

Good write-up from Renntech.org by KrazyK you should join, if you aren't a member you will not be able to access it and see the pics.. "I did not see a 996 coolant flush with pics so heres my contribution. My car is a 2003 C4S 6 speed and should be similar to all NA 996's as far as coolant flush is concerned (Tips have 3rd radiator). I decided to replace the coolant because I had no idea how long it had been in my nine year old car. It was the yellow color so I assume it was the correct type for the time but who knows. For refill I chose Pentosin Pentofrost even though its a little pricey at @$45 per gallon. Make sure you buy the G12 version for Porsche not the A1 version. The color is called purple/violet but it is really pink. I was only able to get about 5 gallons out of my coolant system but not sure why. I suppose you could disconnect more of the system but since mine wasnt contaminated by anything I figured 5 was enough. To do the job right you will need to remove the drain plug, pull the underbody panels, front fender liners, and disconnect several coolant hoses while catching 5+ gallons of old coolant. Its not a hard DIY but if your not familiar or comfortable dealing with this type of job defer it to a pro. You will also need some type of coolant flush / refill kit capable of pulling at least 20-25HG. Im sure the critics are going to say you dont need to do it this way and you can just lift the rear of the car, burp the system 10 times, refill, etc. but I wanted to do it using the vacuum fill method. To complete the job you may need: Uview 550000 Airlift 3 gallons Pentosin Pentofrost G12 3 gallons Distilled Water 5MM allen wrench for drain plug torx and other tools to remove panels hose clamp pliers @5 gallon bucket or a few smaller ones Air Compressor for Airlift Extra panel clips and plastic nuts (optional) Worm Screw clamps (optional) airlift.pentofrost.JPG Before you begin its a good idea to turn the temp to HI but I dont know if this really makes a difference since your draining the entire system and using vacuum refill method. You can measure the amount removed if you want to be sure you get as much as possible out. Safely raise and support car to a comfortable work height. Remove drain plug with 5MM allen wrench and allow to drain into bucket. You will probably get 2 or 3 gallons from here. Loosen plastic coolant tank cap to aid draining. drain.JPG While the engine is draining, begin removing underbody panels and front wheel liners to better access radiators. Dont worry. The rear capacity will not over flow a 4 or 5 gallon bucket. Once your satisfied, replace drain plug. While under the car it is also a good time to inspect the rubber coolant hoses, etc. for wear and replace anything you need. With underbody panels removed, you should be able to see the 2 larger coolant lines near the center but towards each side of the car and the 2 smaller lines. Look for the clamped junctions at the lowest points of each line. One at a time I disconnected the lowest large and small lines on each side. I allowed each to drain as much as possible before reconnecting. You may need a hose pick or small screwdriver to "break" the seal between the inside of the hose and the pipe. If you believe the factory clamps are fine you may choose to reuse them. You can also replace them with good quality "worm screw" clamps. I then moved to the front and disconnected the bottom rad hose at upper clamped junction. You can easily maneuver the disconnected hose to below the bottom of the rad to drain it. After draining reconnect hoses. large.hose.JPG small.lines.JPG Measure how much total coolant you drained to get a general idea of how well its going so far. If your satisfied, make sure drain plug is in and all hoses are connected. Remove plastic coolant tank cap and very carefully attach the Airlift to the opening using the appropriate adapter. Its a tight fit but is possible without removing the engine hatch. Check valve positions, connect fittings and compressor air line per instructions. You should see @25HG vacuum pulled on system. You will see collapsed rubber rad hoses which is normal. After close valve and disconnect air, watch vacuum gauge for at least 20 or 30 seconds. airlift.JPG collapsed.hose.JPG I mixed my Pentosin and water 50/50 in a large container and made sure the container was higher than the coolant tank refill neck. I used my rolling work tool tray to rest the bucket on and had it next to car ready to connect to refill device. Try and get refill hose full of coolant by submerging it before you connect it. You want to prevent as little air as possible from being pulled into the system. Connect suction hose to Airlift valve, and ensure that end of suction hose remains submerged during refill. You will see the system filling as air pressure equalizes. If needed, add more coolant to bucket to keep suction end submerged. After you are satisfied you have replaced the drained coolant, remove Airlift and top off if necessary. mixed.pentofrost.JPG This is the point I tried the service manual procedure to ensure no air remained in system during refill. I tried the raise the rear of the car method, varying RPM's, and constant checking of coolant level, burp valve, etc. I could find no indication of any air remaining in the system so I think the vacuum fill worked. I will of course keep a very close eye on the new pretty pink coolant in the tank for awhile. I hope most of this makes sense. Im sure others may have better ways or methods than what I used. Feel free to say so. I wont be offended. Note: The mess you see under the car is from the old coolant splashing, not leaks. "