86 951 Driver

Almost 2 months ago I had my top end refreshed along with timing belt and water pump done. About 1 week after I got the car back it started to leak a decent amount of coolant while the car was cooling down. That was found to be the old radiator. For about another week or so the car didn't leak anymore coolant then recently it has started leaking coolant again. I found the bleed screw was a little damp. I could see a little coolant. I decided to replace the washer and tighten back down. I have looked at all the hoses and they are all tight and snug no dampness around them. I do notice that the car isn't leaking just coolant now it washes off some old oil and it makes the car appear to leak oil instead of the normal couple drips. Its more like a small puddle.

Whats wet? Swaybar, timing belt covers, one of the PS or Oil lines is covered in Coolant. not much of it makes it way to the ground. What would have a small but consistent drip to cause this?

audisport

water pump seal? Front timing covers getting wet would make me check that. Maybe time to get a coolant pressure test kit.

Richgreenster

I have also had a small pinhole in the radiator show the exact same simptoms.

lart951

doesn't it have warranty? here in So Cal is 90 days by law.

supes6

have you tried degreasing everything, then letting the engine idle and looking for the leak? or the coolant pressure test?

JohnKoaWood

Coolant pressure test FTW!

jmj951

Based on where it's leaking, it sounds like the heat exchanger. Does your coolant reservoir cap have any oily/milky gunk under it?

Tom M'Guinn

Absolutely. Sears sells a version of the stant tester -- one of the very best tools I've ever bought under $100... It will pinpoint the leak in the blink of an eye...

refresh951

You can also get a loaner from AutoZone. Hands down best way to find a leak.

Chris White

The coolant pressure tester should be a standard tool for a 951 owner!
With somewhere around 14 coolant hoses, head gasket problems, oil cooler seal problems and just plain old radiators and radiator caps it’s a priceless tool to retain your sanity! (BTW – if you do the math you will figure out that 14 hoses means 28 hose clamps – when was the last time that you checked all of your hose clamps?!)

I had a car at the track that would spit up coolant any time it was run hard. I figured the head gasket was starting to let go – turned out to be a ‘lazy’ radiator cap – it was venting at 10psi. Swapped the radiator cap from my tow vehicle and enjoyed the rest of the weekend!

86 951 Driver

I have pressure tested it. No leaks that I can see. I have tried letting it run for 15 minutes revving it up a few times to build some pressure, still nothing. Then after I drive to work. I will pull out and there will be a few spots of coolant. I am taking it back in as I am completely stumped and about to sell this car. I just want to be able to enjoy it. I never had any issues with my good old 300,000 mile 924.

Chris White

Running the engine is not a pressure test.
If your engine / cooling system is in decent shape it will not make any pressure unless you run it under load. Pressure spikes usually occur when you drive the car and then park it – the coolant flow has stopped while the engine is still hot and you will get some localized boiling that will spoke the pressure.

A real pressure test is to get the right tool and pump it up to 18psi and see how long it holds that pressure – it may be leaking internally, you can only see that with a pressure tester.

86 951 Driver

I forgot to mention I replaced the radiator because after my waterpump/front end service was done about 1 week later it started leaking a lot of coolant. I ended up having to replace the radiator. I filled the system after I replaced it. Pressure tested it for about 4 hours at 15 psi with 0 leaks.

Tom M'Guinn

You might try a little more pressure, but generally if it holds 15psi in the driveway but leaks after driving it, then you either have excess pressure in the cooling system when you drive it (e.g. bad head gasket) or the heat or motion of the motor running is making it leak. Might try pressure testing with the motor running. If it overflows after boosting but not after gentle driving, then that is a classic head gasket symptom. If it always leaks when driving but passes the pressure test with the motor off, then you might pop off the timing cover to see if the waterpump is leaking. Also, be sure to pressure test your coolant cap to make sure it is still holding pressure. Also, if your coolant temps are high, you might be getting overflow by design (and need to figure out why it's running hot). If none of that helps, you can put ultraviolet dye in your coolant to help track down the source.

86 951 Driver

I had the headgasket done at the same time as the front end service. But that is an interesting concept. I don't notice any milkshake or rough running. It actually runs pretty good. I'm wondering if the Headgasket isn't sealing correctly. I do notice even with just normal easy driving I still get a drip or 2. I will keep that in mind.

If the headgasket was leaking after having a new one installed, wouldn't I have milkshake or rough running? My old neon went through 3 headgaskets and every time it would run really rough, and had milkshake. My car runs around the second white line on the temp gauge. Sometimes it will go slightly above that, but will normally come back down.