coolant level in radiator (not overflow reservoir)
 

For some reason, I took off the radiator cap this morning. At some point in time, perhaps this morning or sometime before, the cap broke.:tomato:

The spring was sitting in the top of the radiator and only the metal part of the cap came off. I was able to fish out the spring and plastic piece that holds the spring in the cap. Stopped by the dealer on the way to breakfast (in my truck) and bought a new cap. I noticed that I could not see any coolant in the radiator itself, but the overflow reservoir appeared normal.

Question is - should I be able to see coolant in the radiator with the cap off when the engine is cold? I searched, but didn't find any threads to help me out.

Manual says fill to the base of filler neck.

yes there should be coolant to bottem of the neck- so when cap is installed its right at the level to seal

ck the res bottle cap- the hose attached inside like to come off and tranfer doesnt happen

do a pressure test on system (parts store loaner tool) make sure no hose is leaking or worse, from the water pump weep hole...that coolant went somewhere!!

oil level not rising,, and its condition is normal?

I added to the radiator and a splash into the reservoir (1/3 gallon total). Oil is fine and has not risen. Reservoir level is between min/max and the tube is connected to the cap. Will try to do a pressure test tomorrow and report back. Water pump was replaced along with timing belt about 50K miles ago. Temp gauge on dash always reads slightly below halfway. No staining on driveway or parking space at the office and no visible leaks on the radiator or engine block. No coolant smells while driving. Any other ideas / suggestions?

set the res bottle to cold full

only guess is a leaky hose

if there was coolant in the oil, it would be milky or foamy, correct?

if there were oil in the coolant, it would be dark or brown, correct?

am I missing anything?

thats right- when you get cross over of fluids from a blown head gasket it will raise the level in one place while lowering the other (90% of the time)
and cause brown foamy yuck to appear in either

it may not show those symptoms immediatly,if a slow head gasket leak
but you are skilled enough to know if the car is running on gas or gas and water right?!

ok - pressure test complete. held 17psi (normal operating per the book is between 14-18psi) for the entire 15 minutes I had the tester in place on a cold open system. also checked on a closed, cold system as well - same results. no leaks, no drop in pressure. I filled the radiator to the neck and added more coolant to the reservoir - just below the max level.

i guess i'll keep an eye on it over the next couple days to see what happens ~ if anything out of the ordinary.

oh, and by the way - the pressure tester at advance auto parts in marietta, ga was $180. you'll get the credit when you return the tool, but i thought i'd let you guys know if you're ever in need.

couldve leaked out when the cap broke. how much was missing\?

'bout a 1/3 gallon - minus a splash to the reservoir. hooked up the tester again - gonna see what happens after another hour or so.

we;; the cap breaking would allow the coolant to steam. notice any?

haven't noticed any steam, but truthfully, can't remember the last time i had the radiator cap off either. this could have been this way for at least a couple months. car has and is running normal temp-wise - was in it for about a 1/2 hour last night - temp was normal then too.

pressure tester has been hooked up for slightly more than an hour now - less than 1/4 pound difference in PSI from start. no visible signs of leakage whatsoever. wonder if there is any air trapped in the system? how would I know or how could i determine this? also, how can i inspect the water pump weep hole? isn't it behind the timing belt? the 2K-page service manual says i need to remove the timing belt to inspect the water pump, which I'm not doing today for obvious reasons.

:what: Just used one from Auto Zone. It was only $75-

Wiggle hoses while you have pressure applied. I had a leak (not a TL) & it turned out the radiator was leaking, where the bottom plastic cap that runs the length of the radiator, right at the point where the lower rad. hose attaches. Faulty crimp. It would hold pressure fine if you didn't move anything but would leak if you moved the lower hose slightly (which moved the plastic cap mentioned above). Don't know if the TL rad. is constructed similarly but it's something to check.

i did - jiggled, wiggled, and squeezed the hoses, clamps, and radiator around. thanks for the suggestions.

at this point, i believe the problem is resolved and am assuming the coolant evaporated due to the broken cap. temp ran fine again this morning. still keeping an eye on it though.

:thumbsup: