98 Vette Leaking Engine Coolant
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Joined: Mar 2006
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From: Tampa Florida
98 Vette Leaking Engine Coolant
Drove the car to the golf course and back and got the low coolant display in my dic. The car is leaking quite a bit of fluid. I didnt run anything over and today was the first time I ever got the low coolant warning. Any ideas? Also, how should I get it to the shop? Is it safe to drive? Thanks for any help,,,
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Haymarket VA
Originally Posted by red98a4
Drove the car to the golf course and back and got the low coolant display in my dic. The car is leaking quite a bit of fluid. I didnt run anything over and today was the first time I ever got the low coolant warning. Any ideas? Also, how should I get it to the shop? Is it safe to drive? Thanks for any help,,,
First, see if you can find out where it's leaking. Check the front of the water pump. Look around the shaft. Next check over all the hoses, etc.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2005
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From: Notorious Miami sunny south florida
my 98 was also leaking coolent best thing for you to do is locate were its coming from it may be something simple. Mine was leaking from the back of the water pump it wasn't leaking very much at first but as time went on it got worse you don't want to over heat that aluminum block or heads so my advise to you is fix the leak the water pump was pretty easy took me about an hour and a half .
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Originally Posted by red98a4
Drove the car to the golf course and back and got the low coolant display in my dic. The car is leaking quite a bit of fluid. I didnt run anything over and today was the first time I ever got the low coolant warning. Any ideas? Also, how should I get it to the shop? Is it safe to drive? Thanks for any help,,,
If it is spewing anti-freeze out faster than you can fill it, then no, don't drive it, have it towed if you are not going to address it yourself.
If it is a relatively slow leak, it would be fine to top it off and drive it to a service location (again, if you aren't going to deal with it yourself...)
It is likely either a water pump or a hose etc - or even a leak in the radiator -
Just make sure the engine does not overheat - set the dic to coolant temp and make sure it is around 200 or less and you should be fine until you get service.
best regards -
mqqn
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2000
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From: DFW tx
My guess is you are leaking from the water pump. Common for the '98's. Simple change of the water pump and/or gaskets. If you have any experience working on cars, it should be a simple fix. Otherwise, the dealer will charge you somewhere north of $350.
Check out LS1howto.com for tips and torque specs. You may want to change out you belts in the process since you have to remove them anyway.
Check out LS1howto.com for tips and torque specs. You may want to change out you belts in the process since you have to remove them anyway.
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You really need to find out where the fluid is leaking from. You do not want to be driving the car when it is low on coolant - if you can't fix it yourself, get it to a shop that can. That may mean towing the car, but better that than overheating the block.
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Joined: Mar 2006
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From: Tampa Florida
Vette currently has 72,000 miles on it. The leak was not as bad as I thought it was last night. Took it to the dealership this morning, thank godness I have an extended warranty. Thanks for the help fellows.
Best wishes
Best wishes