Coolant Leak - help diagnose

Last night I saw some drips under the left side of my engine. Looks like coolant seemed to be dripping down from above somewhere. It hadn't been dripping that I've noticed before that, so I took note of it but wasn't too concerned, but planned on taking it in in the next few days. Today at work I drove to lunch and after I parked I saw white smoke coming from my engine compartment. I popped the hood and hoped to see if it was spraying or leaking heavily from a certain spot but I couldn't see where from. It dripped for a little while, and the smoke disappated after less than a minute. I called and set up an appointment with All German Auto on Monday morning. Does this sound familiar? Is my engine about to explode, or is the symptom of a cracked coolant expansion tank or some common hose issue? Of course immediately I get scared it is something huge- should I be concerned?

Coolant tank is a very high probability on your 99 - it splits and leaks under pressure Replacement will be in the region of $500-$600 AGA will be able to diagnose/fix with no issues I'm sure Just watch your levels on your way there!

+1

Very possible it is the tank, but my 02 just had the water pump go out. I saw a leak, etc...same type of scenario...needless to say, it was a grand to have it fixed

Where should I check to see if it is the water pump? I'm not familiar with where many things are on my engine. Is it easy to see if it was something more serious like this? I'll be able to inspect my engine more closely tonight, and I would like to put my mind at ease hopefully.

Coolant tank

You're looking for this: Still have my $$$ on the tank - it's soooooo common

Is it dripping on the driver's side of the car down on to or next to the exhaust? If so, 99% it's the expansion tank. Unfortunately the tank goes so far back in the engine compartment you can only see a small part of it. Anyone know why all the original tanks crack?

The water pump usually fails due to the water pump shaft seal leaking. Simply locate the waterpump, and take your finger, slide it behind the water pump pulley and see if the water pump is wet. If it is, you will need to replace the water pump immediately. Just follow the timing belt to the pump pulley.

The tank material is not up to the heat expansion and then cooling contraction cycles in the enclosed engine bay. They split and slowly leak under pressure until either you notice, or it fails in a big way and you notice. Not sure if new tanks have the same issues, or are just too new to have failed yet!

I think the tanks cracking is a problem on many cars... they all look somewhat similar. It leaked on my NSX and my old Jeep When the 996 one leaked i couldnt see where it was coming from at all It cracked way at the backside and as others have said drips onto the exhaust manifold. I did the DIY replacement with a $76 dollar tank from Sunset (01's are much cheaper than 99-00's??)

Every since I brought my car home from the dealer(60k service) I've been smelling antifreeze. I'm really getting tired of these repetitive problems.

It's just extended mileage issues - **** happens I guess get it checked/fixed before it goes all the way

Following is a link to a DIY for replacing the coolant tank. I wish I found this before forking out $900 to replace mine! In my case the cracked tank leaked down onto the left exhaust tip. http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=8024 Good luck,

I don't have enough light to look at my engine, but when I got home it was REALLY starting to leak. It was smoking for a good 10minutes after I parked, and pretty fast dripping on on the ground. I looked underneath and the coolant didn't seem isolated to any one part. There was coolant on the left-rear header pipe, and there was also a couple hoses right around there that were wet with coolant, and the drips came from a few different places. I popped the hood and I could see a couple spots where coolant was on top of the engine- perhaps splashed or sprayed there (?). The leak put coolant on the left side of the engine, but I can't be certain where it was from. If the water pump is on the left side, also- it seems like it could be just as likely a candidate. I thought I located the water pump, but it was dark - is it toward the bottom of the engine on the left? Now I don't think I make it to AGA safely, considering how much it was leaking tonight. I don't want to risk it, so I may just take it to the dealer or A1 auto (they sell and fix porsches and other imports- can't remember their exact name, but it's right up the street on Mira Mesa).

This scenario has just been gone thru....do a search under the caption of "coolant leak" and you'll see how I fixed it for $168 for the tank...and another $16.00 for an extra coolant sensor in case you break yours getting the tank out. As it turns out I didn't break the sensor. It took about 3 hours for me being careful...but I'm not very adept at DIY's...but you can do it if you look for the DIY and follow it....believe me, I didn't think I could do it , but I did. These forums are worth their weight in gold. You'll feel a sense of satisfaction after you successfully do it yourself............Chuck

You need to check your coolant level when cold, and top it back up before you go anywhere. Or get AAA to tow you to AGA perhaps?

leaking fast is never the coolant tank. either the cap failed or the water pump failed or you damaged a hose

I agree. Usually, when there are large amounts of coolant escaping and there is evidence of coolant up in the engine bay and on the heat shields, the cap has failed. Water pump failures seem to be less frequent. The cap has been redesigned, and costs less than $20. You might want to change this first. If you replace the tank, you'll want to upgrade to the newer cap anyway.

So the cap is a quick check: New and old caps side by side here: The new version (right) has been revised and will last many more years without dumping the coolant. New part number should be 996 106 447 01 and lists for around $15.00

Well it turns out it's "just" a hose. That's cool and all, but boy what an annoyance. It's my only car, so I'm out of commision for now until I can replace this cheap part. The name of the place up my street that I thought was "a-1" is actually AJ USA, which I guess has a nice facility up there, so I think I'll just have it towed (like 2 miles) and have them just do it for me. I'm just annoyed so I'll pay for the labor and have them take care of it. Here is the culprit: It's just resting against the engine, and actually isn't attached securly. There is a small diameter tube that comes out of that part of the engine that the hose clamps to, but that seems to have cracked and come off. Didn't realize it was so blurry, but inside the hose is the part that it is supposed to be attached to. I was hoping to temp attach it to something, but there really isn't anything I can secure the hose to now.

Yeah, I just hope it isn't the colant tank which I just had replaced less than 2 years ago.

AJ USA are good - nice that they are so local to you. How much coolant did you loose - any signs of overheating when you were driving?

I lost about a gallon from the day driving about 10miles total. It started smoking when I reached operating temp, but never went above between the "8" and "0". I live only a few miles from work luckily. I believe that it was a crack in the fitting that the hose was attached to, and when I saw where it was leaking from and jiggled the hose, it broke the rest of the way (it just came right off with no effort). Now obviously I would lose a heck of a lot more fluid, since it's all the way off now. I thought I could just jury-rig it to get to the shop, but the bracket the fitting was on has a metal piece coming from the side that is flush with the top of it, so I can't get the hose securely on it. I drive by AJ USA everyday almost, can't believe I forgot about them and don't use them. They often have a nice Porsche or two for sale on display outside. I think I'm going to kill two birds with one stone and have them install an exhaust while they're at it. I would be happy with either Fabspeed or GHL, and for some reason it seems like I remember someone around here talking about having had a GHL installed at AJ USA. I looked on their site and don't see GHL listed, and they closed today at 1:00 so I can't call, but I think I'm going to pull the trigger on one if they have it.