engine eat coolant

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Mar 31, 2002 | 02:45 PM

corvette90

Thread Starter

Burning Brakes

Joined: Nov 2000

Posts: 810

Likes: 4

From: Austria

engine eat coolant

Hi all out there..

i´m posting this question for a friend of mine...

his engine -L98- eats coolant..

the facts..

he have to add coolant every week, about a 1,5 litres
there are no bubbles in the coolant, no smell of coolant at the tailpipes, compression in each cylinder is fine, no coolant in the oil, no visible leaks...

he went to a mechanic, a real good man, they searched and searched, and couldn´t find the issue

what could this be?????

any help would be nice..

thanks

Mar 31, 2002 | 02:49 PM

GlockLT4

Team Owner

Joined: Apr 2001

Posts: 22,267

Likes: 3

From: Dallas TX

Re: engine eat coolant (corvette90)

How hot is the engine getting? Sounds like it might be overheating possibly and overflowing out the overflow tank.

Mar 31, 2002 | 03:46 PM

corvette1990

Burning Brakes

Joined: Nov 2000

Posts: 1,012

Likes: 1

From: Bowie MD

engine eat coolant

My 1990 did the same thing 3 different ways. At 60k miles it was a slow leak on the passenger intake manifold around cylinder number 4. Fix was replacing the intake gaskets. At 65K it was the waterpumps turn, but this was a visible leak dripping onto garage floor from weep hole of pump. The third and final straw at 108k miles was a head gasket leak on cylinder number 7. I was loosing antifreeze and not seeing it go anywhere. I was burnin it. There were no bubbles in top overflow tank. No oil in antifreeze and no antifreeze in oil. only when car was heated up by normal driving did this occur. I drove it like that for a year (10k miles) and finally had a compression check done as it started drinking more and more. WAt that point it was drinkin like a quarter gallon per 100 miles, it showed up on the spark plug real well. The expensive fix could have been just replace the head gasket, or rebuild the motor. I chose to replace the motor and everything else. Let us know what you find.
chris ;)

Mar 31, 2002 | 06:56 PM

lowflyer

Burning Brakes

Joined: Dec 1999

Posts: 765

Likes: 11

Cruise-In I Veteran

Re: engine eat coolant (corvette90)

Have your mechanic put the cooling system under pressure when the motor is at operating temps. That'll tell you where its leaking at. Good luck.

Apr 1, 2002 | 01:08 AM

Ricks1989Roadster

Instructor

Joined: Jul 2001

Posts: 114

Likes: 0

From: Whittier CA

Re: engine eat coolant (corvette90)

Hi Corvette90,
I had a similar problem with mine. It turned out to be the gasket/washer on the overflow tank dipstick and the radiator cap. After I replaced both, no more leakage. Hope this helps...

[Modified by Ricks1989Roadster, 9:09 PM 3/31/2002]

Apr 1, 2002 | 01:31 AM

Alex D

Drifting

Joined: Mar 1999

Posts: 1,250

Likes: 1

From: Greensboro NC

Re: engine eat coolant (Ricks1989Roadster)

I would first try to put 6 Coolant System sealant pellets in the radiator. Crush the pallets in the pack, remove one radiator hose, pre-mix the pellets with coolant/water mix and pour directly into the hose.....they sometimes fix pretty substantial leaks...

Apr 1, 2002 | 04:14 AM

corvette90

Thread Starter

Burning Brakes

Joined: Nov 2000

Posts: 810

Likes: 4

From: Austria

Re: engine eat coolant (lowflyer)

oh yes...

i forget to mention, that the enigine runs very hot in a short time, lets say 10-15minutes..

thanks

Apr 1, 2002 | 07:50 AM

Sharky Guam

Safety Car

Joined: Feb 2002

Posts: 4,286

Likes: 4

From: Guam

Re: engine eat coolant (corvette90)

Sounds like a leaky head gasket. It probably is leaking just enough to burn a sligh amount of coolant in one or more of the cylinders. And also just enough to make the car run hot. :chevy