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Fixed my coolant leak but I have a few questions

F

Fahrenheit

New member
Was driving around my 03 GT without a problem. I start to notice a sweat smell and then white smoke. Didn't over heat as I drove it home. When I got it home I looked under it and sure enough some coolant was dripping. Checked all my hoses and they were all intact. Even the plastic elbows coming off the water pump. Start to think I blew a head gasket but It doesn't seem to be coming from the block/head joint plus when its head gaskets its usually leaking internally. While reeving the engine I notice the upper rad hose collapse when the RPMs go up. Also seems like the thermostat doesn't open up. So I got a new thermostat/Rap cap and bam no more leaks. I bleed the system with that little screw. I Drive it around for a bit and all seems well except now I don't have heat. The top heater hose gets hot but the lower one stays cold, clogged core right? Makes sense cause I had a lot of mud in my coolant system which i'm thinking is from my LMG job I did last spring. Also changed the oil while I was at it and no signs of water where in it. So here is what i'm thinking...

Broken radiator cap and or thermostat caused abnormal pressure in the system
Due to the pressure someplace somewhere caused a leak
Also due to the pressure it forced some of that gunk up into the heater core clogging it

Does that sound like a reasonable series of events? Heater core job doesn't look to bad based on wright up. Gonna try some coolant flush first, any recommendations?


Also why does crap always bust when my driveway has snow on it.
 


ericspecullaas said:
you shouldnt ever smell anything sweet if you do thats coolant beening burned in the engine
Click to expand...

Totally false. The coolant is hot and if there is a decent leak you are going to smell a sweet smell. If you don't believe me go poke a hole in your radiator hose next time its reached operating temp.
 
Like dsmuts said just flush your heater core. Back flush first. Then forward flush. Heater cores in gp's plug up alot if the coolant has been low and it has dexcool in it still. Dexcool turns to sludge whem their is air i the cooling system. I would recommend flushing out the dexcool and use a gold colored universal coolant.

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Yep. Take off both the heater hoses at the tensioner bracket (engine side) let one dangle and hook the garden hose to the other

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how to flush the coolant.

remove the t stat, put the t stat housing back on, take the upper hose off the radiator, then push it down to the ground to a bucket or let it fly.

get your garden hose out, put it in the rad turn it on, then fire up the car, let it run till clear water pumps out the top hose.

then turn the hose off, run the car till no more water comes out the upper hose. then turn it off.

put your t stat back in, with new gasket, the upper hose back on.

now take 1 gallon of full strength green antifreeze, not the 50/50 crap. ( parts store cheap green is fine to use) dump the whole gallon in the radiator, fire up the car, fill the rad with hose water till its full. top as needed till its ready to be bled of air. it will burp and take coolant as the water in the block warms up the t stat opens up for a few seconds till cold coolant hits it and it shuts again.

now to bleed the air out, let it idle rad cap off till the fans turn on, (when the fans are on the temp is over 195 deg, the t stat is wide open) then open the bleeder screw on top the t stat housing a few turns till a steady stream of coolant comes out the hole, shut the screw, top off the rad. cap it.

done.


the heater core , take both hoses off the alt bracket, then butt a garden hose to one hose till a full stream flows out the other hose.
 




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