air in the coolant lines?

[seanmcr6]

So the dealer just replaced my coolant tank (cracked). No problem for the first week or so.

Then the weather got cold. Down to -22C overnight.

Last night leaving work, start the car, everything is normal. Once the car warms up to the point the thermostat opens, I get a low coolant warming. Once the car warms up to the next "tick" on the gauge...the warning shuts off.

Forgot to check the coolant level this morning before leaving. It's cold and I'm sick...

Anyway, same exact thing. Started fine, warmed a little, drove off...thermostat opened BING BING low coolant. Temp moved up about a couple minutes later. Warning gone.

Got to work, checked the coolant level and it looks fine. Above min, not quite to max.

No leak that I can detect.

So what gives? At first I thought maybe they forgot to "burp" the system when they replaced the tank....sound about right?

Also, I asked them to check the antifreeze level as it gets to -50 here in the dead of winter....and the dealer specifically told me the coolant in the tank was tested to -40. In the TANK. That's great, thanks...I know you just replaced the tank and put fresh coolant in it....my concerns is the other 21 litres of coolant in the system

Any thought would be appreciated...

[Loren]

Yes, likely not fully bleed.

I would just top it up and see if you get a re-occurrence.

[seanmcr6]

Thanks Loren!

[JFP in PA]

By far, the quickest, easiest and most dependable method of eliminating this issue is to have someone with the correct tool pull a vacuum on the system and then top it off while under vacuum..............5 min. and you are done......

[seanmcr6]

SIGH...unfortunately....I am losing coolant somewhere. I'm burped the system...topped it up....burped...topped it up....etc.

After a couple of weeks of this...I've put a full 4 litres into it. There is no way this is just replacing air in the system still is it?

There is no puddle under the car at home or in my designated parking space at work...so it's not leaking while parked.

Since the dealer just did a full oil & filter change...I'm going to assume I'm not having the dreaded intermix as the service tech would have found that out right.

So the only thing I can think of is it only leaks under press (when the car is running)

Does that sound right? Any other common (relatively speaking) issues that I might be able to self diagnose?

Sean

[1schoir]

SIGH...unfortunately....I am losing coolant somewhere. I'm burped the system...topped it up....burped...topped it up....etc.

After a couple of weeks of this...I've put a full 4 litres into it. There is no way this is just replacing air in the system still is it?

There is no puddle under the car at home or in my designated parking space at work...so it's not leaking while parked.

Since the dealer just did a full oil & filter change...I'm going to assume I'm not having the dreaded intermix as the service tech would have found that out right.

So the only thing I can think of is it only leaks under press (when the car is running)

Does that sound right? Any other common (relatively speaking) issues that I might be able to self diagnose?

Sean

Sean:

Adding one whole gallon (approx. 4 liters) if the system has not been properly bled is not out of the realm of possibility, although you will usually get two or three large coolant dumps if the system has not been bled properly.

As JFP in PA said, have the system bled with a vacuum tool and you will eliminate that concern.

You could drive around with the bleed lever in the upright position for a few days as that works to get the air out of the system as well.

As far as the intermix, check your dipstick and check the composition of the coolant in the tank. If both of those are okay, it's unlikely you have a problem there.

Make sure you check your exhaust for excessive white smoke as coolant getting into the combustion chambers will show up that way.

I would also get a coolant tester at a local auto parts store to make sure that you are protected at least to the lowest expected temperatures in your neck of the woods. It's a simple syringe-type device.... You just draw a little of the coolant into the tube and take a reading of either the floating discs, floating little balls, or floating bulb, depending on the design of the particular coolant tester. The testers are very inexpensive and you can verify the reading yourself and decide if you need a higher concentration of coolant. If you do, just add straight coolant until you get the desired protection.

Regards, Maurice.

[seanmcr6]

Unfortunately, I'm 5 hours from the closest "proper" shop that could vacuum bled the system.

I did drive for an afternoon with the valve open..maybe that wasn't long enough.

As for temps...it will hit a low of -50 at some point this winter...so I'll be running almost straight antifreeze ;)

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll try running with the bleeder valve open for a few days instead of a few hours.

Cheers

sean