Do I have a coolant leak?
#1
Do I have a coolant leak?
My 07 TSX is one year old with 16K miles. Coolant level has already gone down from MAX to MIN level. Is this normal? I've had hondas which have never lost that much coolant in a year.
BTW, I live in SF bay area.
BTW, I live in SF bay area.
#2
Originally Posted by celticdude69
My 07 TSX is one year old with 16K miles. Coolant level has already gone down from MAX to MIN level. Is this normal? I've had hondas which have never lost that much coolant in a year.
BTW, I live in SF bay area.
BTW, I live in SF bay area.
#3
Check to see that this isn't happening.
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=42288
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=42288
#4
I believe that is normal. I also have an 07' and when the engine is warmed up it will be at the max level. When cold it will be on min. If you ask me why, I wouldn't know how to answere that. Just don't fill it to the max level whn cold b/c it will than leak droplets all over the engine bay.
#5
Originally Posted by slickrab
I believe that is normal. I also have an 07' and when the engine is warmed up it will be at the max level. When cold it will be on min. If you ask me why, I wouldn't know how to answere that. Just don't fill it to the max level whn cold b/c it will than leak droplets all over the engine bay.
#6
Originally Posted by slickrab
I believe that is normal. I also have an 07' and when the engine is warmed up it will be at the max level. When cold it will be on min. If you ask me why, I wouldn't know how to answere that. Just don't fill it to the max level whn cold b/c it will than leak droplets all over the engine bay.
When the engine gets hot, the reservoir fills up. When it cools back down, the shrinking fluid gets sucked back into the engine (this makes me think of the shrinkage episode of Seinfeld). If you didn't have the reservoir, the fluid would just spill out on the road, then when your car cooled down, it would suck air back in. Air in the coolant is best avoided.
Celticdude, as long as it's over the low line, you don't have anything to worry about. If you top it off when the engine is cold, some fluid will just get pushed out of the reservoir when the engine heats up and when it cools down, the level will be right back to where it started.
#7
Originally Posted by LukeaTron
This is how it's supposed to work. The engine heats up and coolant goes with it. Things get bigger when they're warm so the fluid expands. The volume of fluid the engine, radiator and hoses can hold is a fixed amount so now not all the fluid can fit in the system. Enter the reservoir. The reservoir is just a temporary container to hold the difference in fluid volume from cold to hot.
When the engine gets hot, the reservoir fills up. When it cools back down, the shrinking fluid gets sucked back into the engine (this makes me think of the shrinkage episode of Seinfeld). If you didn't have the reservoir, the fluid would just spill out on the road, then when your car cooled down, it would suck air back in. Air in the coolant is best avoided.
Celticdude, as long as it's over the low line, you don't have anything to worry about. If you top it off when the engine is cold, some fluid will just get pushed out of the reservoir when the engine heats up and when it cools down, the level will be right back to where it started.
When the engine gets hot, the reservoir fills up. When it cools back down, the shrinking fluid gets sucked back into the engine (this makes me think of the shrinkage episode of Seinfeld). If you didn't have the reservoir, the fluid would just spill out on the road, then when your car cooled down, it would suck air back in. Air in the coolant is best avoided.
Celticdude, as long as it's over the low line, you don't have anything to worry about. If you top it off when the engine is cold, some fluid will just get pushed out of the reservoir when the engine heats up and when it cools down, the level will be right back to where it started.
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#8
Originally Posted by LukeaTron
This is how it's supposed to work. The engine heats up and coolant goes with it. Things get bigger when they're warm so the fluid expands. The volume of fluid the engine, radiator and hoses can hold is a fixed amount so now not all the fluid can fit in the system. Enter the reservoir. The reservoir is just a temporary container to hold the difference in fluid volume from cold to hot.
When the engine gets hot, the reservoir fills up. When it cools back down, the shrinking fluid gets sucked back into the engine (this makes me think of the shrinkage episode of Seinfeld). If you didn't have the reservoir, the fluid would just spill out on the road, then when your car cooled down, it would suck air back in. Air in the coolant is best avoided.
Celticdude, as long as it's over the low line, you don't have anything to worry about. If you top it off when the engine is cold, some fluid will just get pushed out of the reservoir when the engine heats up and when it cools down, the level will be right back to where it started.
When the engine gets hot, the reservoir fills up. When it cools back down, the shrinking fluid gets sucked back into the engine (this makes me think of the shrinkage episode of Seinfeld). If you didn't have the reservoir, the fluid would just spill out on the road, then when your car cooled down, it would suck air back in. Air in the coolant is best avoided.
Celticdude, as long as it's over the low line, you don't have anything to worry about. If you top it off when the engine is cold, some fluid will just get pushed out of the reservoir when the engine heats up and when it cools down, the level will be right back to where it started.
Slickrab, thanks for the advice, too.
#10
I can provide a conclusive report re. how the coolant level in the reservoir (overflow tank) changes as the engine warms up and cools down.
I had my ’04’s coolant changed at the dealership (along with the MT fluid and brake fluid) late last year. I’m one of those people who checks things under the hood every week or two, and, before the coolant was changed, the level in the reservoir was essentially constant from check to check, with the engine cold. The coolant was probably about 2 inches below the MAX line week after week, month after month.
A couple of days after the fluid changes were done, I opened the hood to check the fluid levels and was shocked to find that the coolant reservoir was empty. Needless to say, I returned to the dealership ASAP. They added coolant to the MAX line and sent me on my way.
Twenty-four hours later the coolant level was below the MIN line. Back to the dealer. This time they declared that there must be some air in the system. After about a one-hour wait, I was assured that the air problem had been taken care of. As I recall, I had to go back one more time just to have the coolant topped off, but since then, no problems, and constancy has returned.
When the engine is warm, the coolant level is right on the MAX line. When it’s cold, the level is about half an inch below the MAX line. (Maybe it’s three-quarters of an inch, but absolutely no more than that; I’m trying to avoid going outside to take a precise measurement.) Bottom line: From my experience, the notion that the coolant level moves way up and down as the engine heats up and cools down is incorrect.
I had my ’04’s coolant changed at the dealership (along with the MT fluid and brake fluid) late last year. I’m one of those people who checks things under the hood every week or two, and, before the coolant was changed, the level in the reservoir was essentially constant from check to check, with the engine cold. The coolant was probably about 2 inches below the MAX line week after week, month after month.
A couple of days after the fluid changes were done, I opened the hood to check the fluid levels and was shocked to find that the coolant reservoir was empty. Needless to say, I returned to the dealership ASAP. They added coolant to the MAX line and sent me on my way.
Twenty-four hours later the coolant level was below the MIN line. Back to the dealer. This time they declared that there must be some air in the system. After about a one-hour wait, I was assured that the air problem had been taken care of. As I recall, I had to go back one more time just to have the coolant topped off, but since then, no problems, and constancy has returned.
When the engine is warm, the coolant level is right on the MAX line. When it’s cold, the level is about half an inch below the MAX line. (Maybe it’s three-quarters of an inch, but absolutely no more than that; I’m trying to avoid going outside to take a precise measurement.) Bottom line: From my experience, the notion that the coolant level moves way up and down as the engine heats up and cools down is incorrect.
#11
Originally Posted by rx280
I can provide a conclusive report re. how the coolant level in the reservoir (overflow tank) changes as the engine warms up and cools down.
I had my ’04’s coolant changed at the dealership (along with the MT fluid and brake fluid) late last year. I’m one of those people who checks things under the hood every week or two, and, before the coolant was changed, the level in the reservoir was essentially constant from check to check, with the engine cold. The coolant was probably about 2 inches below the MAX line week after week, month after month.
A couple of days after the fluid changes were done, I opened the hood to check the fluid levels and was shocked to find that the coolant reservoir was empty. Needless to say, I returned to the dealership ASAP. They added coolant to the MAX line and sent me on my way.
Twenty-four hours later the coolant level was below the MIN line. Back to the dealer. This time they declared that there must be some air in the system. After about a one-hour wait, I was assured that the air problem had been taken care of. As I recall, I had to go back one more time just to have the coolant topped off, but since then, no problems, and constancy has returned.
When the engine is warm, the coolant level is right on the MAX line. When it’s cold, the level is about half an inch below the MAX line. (Maybe it’s three-quarters of an inch, but absolutely no more than that; I’m trying to avoid going outside to take a precise measurement.) Bottom line: From my experience, the notion that the coolant level moves way up and down as the engine heats up and cools down is incorrect.
I had my ’04’s coolant changed at the dealership (along with the MT fluid and brake fluid) late last year. I’m one of those people who checks things under the hood every week or two, and, before the coolant was changed, the level in the reservoir was essentially constant from check to check, with the engine cold. The coolant was probably about 2 inches below the MAX line week after week, month after month.
A couple of days after the fluid changes were done, I opened the hood to check the fluid levels and was shocked to find that the coolant reservoir was empty. Needless to say, I returned to the dealership ASAP. They added coolant to the MAX line and sent me on my way.
Twenty-four hours later the coolant level was below the MIN line. Back to the dealer. This time they declared that there must be some air in the system. After about a one-hour wait, I was assured that the air problem had been taken care of. As I recall, I had to go back one more time just to have the coolant topped off, but since then, no problems, and constancy has returned.
When the engine is warm, the coolant level is right on the MAX line. When it’s cold, the level is about half an inch below the MAX line. (Maybe it’s three-quarters of an inch, but absolutely no more than that; I’m trying to avoid going outside to take a precise measurement.) Bottom line: From my experience, the notion that the coolant level moves way up and down as the engine heats up and cools down is incorrect.
So, again, in my experience, at least, the difference between the cold and warm levels is pretty small.
#12
Originally Posted by rx280
For the sake of maximum accuracy, I just went out and measured how far below the MAX line the coolant is when the engine is cold. (It's at the MAX line when the engine is warm.) The estimate I gave in my previous post -- half to three-quarters of an inch -- was a little high. The actual figure is just three-eighths of an inch.
So, again, in my experience, at least, the difference between the cold and warm levels is pretty small.
So, again, in my experience, at least, the difference between the cold and warm levels is pretty small.
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