Losing Coolant

2005 Dodge caravan, losing coolant but I don't see any leaks, and it is not
getting into the oil. Any ideas where I can look?

TIA,

-Tom Rogers

 

Tailpipe? Is it burning coolant? Have you seen white smoke coming out the
back?

Larry
Behold Beware Believe

 

No white smoke at all...

 

If what you are saying is excess coolant,(adding and adding and adding) and
not seeing where it is going, more then likely it is seeping at the intake
manifold and possibly getting sucked into the engine and out the tailpipe.
Look very closely to the corners of the intake manifold and see if you see
any signs of orange buildup.

Glenn Beasley
Chrysler Tech

 

I have had to refill the coolant plastic tank 2 times in the last 2 months,
that is where I am noticing it. I'll look at the intake manifold area too.

If it is seeping at the intake manifold and possibly getting sucked into the
engine and out the tailpipe - how would this cause the car to act? It seems
to be running fine.

-Tom

 

I had a small leak in the radiator. You couldn't see the leak at all
really. I was having those issues as well, lot's of refilling. It
would basically heat up and then boil over because the radiator wasn't
fully pressurized. Because there was pressure loss during driving the
boil over would occur.

The leak was a pinhole near one of the intakes. It would leak slowly
and evaporate immediately. I only noticed it by a faint white trail
down the radiator over time.

It would go away with the radiator stop leak stuff for a while, but
return after several months. I finally changed the radiator and have
not added fluid since. This was a 96 T&C with 120k miles on it. Runs
great now.

 

If what you are saying is excess coolant,(adding and adding and adding) and
not seeing where it is going, more then likely it is seeping at the intake
manifold and possibly getting sucked into the engine and out the tailpipe.
Look very closely to the corners of the intake manifold and see if you see
any signs of orange buildup.

Glenn Beasley
Chrysler Tech

 

You wouldn't even notice it except the fact that you have to add coolant. I
have seen this before and that's probably where yours is going. If you are
still under warranty I would have it looked at.

Glenn

 

If still under manufacturer warranty, take it in to the dealer. If not, then
try the simple things first, like replacing the radiator pressure cap. If
still losing fluid, then check the obvious like hose connections, your water
pump (may leak occasionally and not all the time when initially going bad),
head gasket, etc.

Post what you learn to benefit others and good luck. We had this problem
with our 1999 3.8L T&C Limited at 40K miles a few years back and replacing
the radiator cap solved that problem. We had the same problem on a 1990
3.3L Grand Caravan and it was the water pump that had gone south at about
85K miles. It only dripped every 10th time it was parked in the garage, but
we eventually saw the small puddle of antifreeze.

Bob

 

Thanx - I will take it in as it is under warranty.

-Tom

 

the simple thing to do afgter verifing the issue is pressure testing the coolant
system

 

You say this is a 2005. How many miles on it? If it's under warranty,
take it in and let the techs figure it out!

 

which part of not seeing any leaks dont you understand dirty?

 

what part of were do i start to look? in the first post you don't get?