Quick Coolant Question

[03Kodiak]

Hey Guys,

This is basically my first time posting but I have been using your site for a while and find it as an awesome resource... Onto the question...

I replaced my coolant in my driveway yesterday thanks to a rare warm day in February... I used Prestone's Radiator Flush or something like that, ran it, refilled with all water, ran it, and refilled with +/-60% Antifreeze / 40% Water... Truck runs great, much smoother, nice and hot heater, HOWEVER, I have been checking it often since and realize the level in the reservoir drops, not quickly, but it does drop... I'm thinking and hoping it's just an air pocket but worried it may be something more severe...

The truck is a 93 Sport OHV (duh) 5spd with AC (which doesn't work) 185,000mi... The oil looks nice and... well... oily and clean... Also, according to the manual, it takes just over 8.5 quarts, I'm not sure exactly how much I added, probably in the neighborhood of 6-7 quarts, but since it wasn't a full, machine flush and I just used the petcock, I was giving it some leeway...

That's basically all of the info and I'm pretty sure it's not a big deal, but with my luck, the engine is probably trash now lol... Thanks guys and again, you've got a great site here!!!

Rob

 

[Critter92X]

You may have an air pocket it's easy to check.With your engine cool remove your radiator cap. fill with coolant up to the bottom of neck on radiator leave cap off,fill reservoir to proper level start engine and let it idle till the thermostat opens.You'll see the level drop and coolant start to move then top it back off put your cap back on and you should be good to go.

 

[Critter92X]

And welcome to the forum. Meant to say that in the first post.

 

[walterd140]

Welcome to the world of posting. One 'quick question' will lead to a ton of postings (that's how I started too).

Anyway, if it is not going on the ground, then it is still in the system. You must have an air pocket. Did you fill on level ground?

The only other place it might go is in the tranny (very bad) through the transmission cooler in the radiator. Pull the tranny dipstick in a day or so. If the fluid is not red / rust / brown then it might be going there. My wife lost the tranny cooler in her car & the antifreeze had oil in it (only way we found it)

But it sounds like a pocket to me.
Walter

 

[03Kodiak]

Critter,

Thanks for your reply(s), I will try that...

Walter,

Thanks, there's none on the ground and the truck is a Five Speed, so there isn't a cooler to go into, but I'll keep that in mind with some of my other trucks...

It does really sound like an air pocket... It didn't change the level too much on my trip today that I went on (70 miles, mixed highway) I did open the hood a few times, just to make sure all was well...

Thanks again guys...

 

[Rhett]

03Kodiak

Check those hose clamps. Make sure they are super tight. Replace factory clamps with aircraft-style clamps.

Mine would loose coolant (1/4" every couple of weeks on the overflow tank) because of a loose hose clamp on the (lower, in my case) rad hose. It was very tight, but evidently when heating up there was just enough looseness for a little coolant to weep out. It took me a while to figure that one out.

I was worried for a long time that I had a slight head gasket leak. But oil analysis said no so I was happy about that.

 

[03Kodiak]

Will do Rhett, thanks!

 

[alexefron]

im thinking intake gasket. do a search theres directions about retorquing the upper intake somewhere around here

 

[Rhett]

I think you mean lower intake in this case.

 

[alexefron]

yeah, lower. its been a long day

 

[walterd140]

If coolant is mixing with the oil, you should be able to pull the dipstick & check for milkness, right?

 

[alexefron]

should either see drops of water, or chocolate milk looking oil. If its going by the lower intake gasket it would just burn off, and not be visible in the oil.

oh, also 60/40 seems pretty high. any reason you used that much antifreze? 1:1 should go down to -34 degrees farenheit before you start getting issues

 

[03Kodiak]

Will check all of those things, thanks for the responses!!!

As for 60/40, it's just how I've been doing it on all my cars since, well, forever, and it's worked out pretty well for me...

 

[03Kodiak]

All right, here's an update:

I just went out to check it again today after a couple of quick trips (heat up, cool down, heat up) and it seems to be exactly where it was the last time I topped off (Friday night)...

So, I'm pretty sure it was an air pocket, though I did add a little more torque to the radiator clamps (thanks Rhett), so that could have done it, too...

Thanks everyone for your help!!!