GS3TROOPA

well i was driving home from my girls house and all of a sudden i started smelling the sweet scent of burning fluids. and 10 seconds later the engine, oil, vcs lights turn on and my temp gage goes all the way cold and i started losing acceleration. I made it to the gas station and immediately turned it off. i can see that it was loosing fluid from under the radiator but could not exactly find the source.

i ended sitting for 45min and put like a gallon of water and it drove it home. it worked good the for the rest of the night. but after that it did the same thing with the smell and lights but the temp went past hot and then fell to cold.

what would be causing this and where do start to try and fix it?

BDSL

Find the source of the leak first and replace the part.
Then fill the coolant and make sure there is no air in the system.

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

I concur....

it is obviously leaking from somewhere - find that somewhere, fix it, then you should be ok...

ILOVEGIRLS

iTrader: (3)

Follow the hose in and out to see where the leak may be. It could be a leak in one of those fat hoses or smaller hoses that pass through the throttle body. If I recall that's all there is.

Unless there is a small leak in the radiator itself... Look for water residue built up on the top of the radiator.

GS4_Fiend

iTrader: (22)

get the system pressurized, most effective way to find leak. bad radiator cap causes overheating also.

GS3TROOPA

It looks like its coming from the bottom portion of the radiator. I think i gotta remove the fan assembly to see better.

GS3TROOPA

How much does that cost. My moving expenses are killin me right now

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

$20 or so most shops... you can also buy a pressure tester for $60

GS3TROOPA

I pulled the radiator and fan out. Decided to self test it for leaks. Covered all the outlets from radiator and filled with water and waited. Nothing was happening so i decided to lean it to one side and it started leaking from the top and bottom. So it looks like the o-rings need to be replaced.

GS3TROOPA

i pulled the radiator and noticed there was a crack which i think caused the radiator appear to leak from the top and bottom. i ended up doing a self seal.

how long do those types of seals usually last?

GS4_Fiend

iTrader: (22)

you never fix a radiator. dont be cheap. buy another one, and go for aftermarket if you cant afford OEM.

BDSL

Those seals are just temporary fix. No one knows how long they will last. It can give any second.
You should replace the rad soon.

GS3TROOPA

alright then. going to be ordering one when i get paid and it should be here by the middle of next week. hope this seal can last till then.

youngs3oo

iTrader: (1)

My coolant started leaking recently also. Got home and checked to see if I can see where it was leaking from. There's water spots on the engine cover so I'm guessing it is happening on the top of the radiator. Looked under the car but cant really trace where it is actually coming from.

Should I go ahead and replace the radiator?

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

No, find where it is leaking from... Could be a pinhole leak in a hose spraying it, or the water pump and its getting flung around by the belt...