Help!! Coolant leak but where?

**jinxeng** · 09-07-2006, 04:24 PM

HI everyone

Yesterday i was driving aroud town and smelled coolant at idle. Didnt think anything of it until I parked my car and it was leaking LOTS and LOTS of coolant. Leaked so much that my coolant reservoir was empty. Popped opened my hood and i heard "bubbly" sounds (like the boiling of water sound) coming from my coolant reservoir. There was white smoke coming out under the battery (assuming the coolant was splashing everything on the engine; hence the white smoke) White smoke also came from inside the reservoir after i opened it. There was also splashes of coolant on top of my battery as well. My temp gauge went up about 5 degrees, not passing the 200 mark. I turned up the heater, went down to its normal temp, alittle under 200.
Looked under the battery, the hoses and reservoir seems to be intact. Any ideas of what could be wrong ? My buddy says it can be an internal fan that stopped working.
Thanks in advance for any advice.

**2001NBMZ28** · 09-07-2006, 04:38 PM

Sounds like your just overeating - could be lots of things, bad radiator cap not holding pressure, thermostat bad/sticking, air in the system, fans, etc. Smelling coolant from outside the car probably since you noticed it at ldle. Search for "overheating" and do the simple checks first. 5 degree increase or just over 210 with the 99 and up gauges isn't bad, haven't hurt anything.

**jinxeng** · 09-07-2006, 06:04 PM

Originally Posted by 2001NBMZ28

Sounds like your just overeating - could be lots of things, bad radiator cap not holding pressure, thermostat bad/sticking, air in the system, fans, etc. Smelling coolant from outside the car probably since you noticed it at ldle. Search for "overheating" and do the simple checks first. 5 degree increase or just over 210 with the 99 and up gauges isn't bad, haven't hurt anything.

thanks for your reply. do you know why my engine was leaking and splashing coolant ?it was everywhere including the top of my battery. i tried searching for that but couldnt find it. thanks again

**sunsetorangess** · 09-07-2006, 07:11 PM

Check Your cap, make sure its tight and pressure test it or i would even invest in a new one.
J

**Redphoenix1998** · 09-07-2006, 07:45 PM

if you're leaking, might be a bad hose as well. Do you have any coolant spots when you're at a stop? Definately check the cap and remove the battery and tray to access the coolant reservoir and check it for cracks

**jinxeng** · 09-07-2006, 08:06 PM

Originally Posted by Redphoenix1998

if you're leaking, might be a bad hose as well. Do you have any coolant spots when you're at a stop? Definately check the cap and remove the battery and tray to access the coolant reservoir and check it for cracks

Right after it leaked, i put some water into it. it was leaking mostly at idle and street driving. i got onto the highway, drove at about 70mhp for 30 mins or so, got home, still heard the boiling water sound in the reservoir but didnt leak any water out. checked it this morning, couldnt find any damage hose or cracks on the reservoir. the reservoir showed full of water. the radiator showed it was full of coolant. i will change out the cap.
would it be possible for the coolant to sputter out when the radiator is at its max temp ? do u guys think its my fans since i didnt smell any coolant while driving on the highway? (fans turn off after 60mph right?) are there two fans in the ls1 motor ? one seemed to be working. is there another fan ? thanks