Hi all. I've been having this issue for a while and can't figure out logically where could the problem be. I noticed some times I would lose a lot of coolant after a drive. Upon stopping somewhere, I would check under the car and maybe see a drip or two of coolant and therefore, I am not sure when coolant was being lost. Coolant is then topped off

-Some times I would smell coolant inside when the cabin when driving for a short period of time
-I can also smell coolant near the exhaust after a drive. For instance, a 20 minute drive, car sits at idle for 10 minutes. During those 10 minutes, I can smell it coming from the exhaust
-While driving, some times i see white smoke coming out from the front left side of the hood. I thought maybe it was because of spilled coolant when pouring it but it would some times last a very long time with the smoke production increasing over time until I stop driving
-Otherwise, I don't see any loose or cracked hoses around but since its going through my exhaust and inside the cabin, i guess everything is sealed up properly

The only weird thing I've noticed is this but never put too much thought into it. On idle, my radiator kicks in for a few seconds on idle and turns off. Then this repeats itself every 30 seconds - 1 minute, essentially until I start driving. However, this doesn't really explain the coolant loss so I am not too sure if it is related.


If anyone has any ideas, it would be greatly appreciated!

 

Hello,

Hpw many miles? And, when was the last time (if ever) you replaced thermostat housing and water-pope?

 

Car is currently at 115k miles, purchased at 112000 and previous owner said he changed just the thermostat housing at roughly 108000 miles.

Upper coolant hose was also changed at that time.

If i were to look down at the one or 2 drips, it does seem like its coming from the the thermostat housing would be.

 

Coolant in the exhaust is never a good thing. I am sure you don't want to think about head gasket, but. I would pursue this asap with a leak down test etc.

 

Previous owner also changed the head gasket at 10800 miles

 

It might be your coolant tank. Mine was split at the seem. The small hose on the top when moved would release a small amount, and I thought that was the issue, but once tank was filled and pressurized that when it was coming out of the seem.

 

Just also performed an oil change yesterday. Oil looked like normal dark, used oil, not milky or anything. Perhaps a radiator leak? Not sure if that would explain the radiator noise though.

 

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So I would drive it for 20 minutes, let it idle for 10 and looked at it repeatedly but I don't notice anything leaking from the coolant tank itself.

Also tried from cold start just to leave it idle for 20 minutes and i see nothing. Theres also no obvious signs of leaking on the hoses below or around it.

I know the mini likes to eat up coolant but I think i've driven maybe 100 miles in the past month and i don't think that much coolant should've disappeared then.

 

it’s not coolant they like to eat it’s oil. Now that my tank has been replaced and it got a full flush, I haven’t lost any coolant in over 4000 miles. Oil on the other hand, I keep a qt in car at all times.

 

If water-pipe was not replaced with thermosat housing at 108K miles.

My 'gut' strongly suspects leak could be coming from water-pump and/or water-pipe. Knowing what I know about these cars, I'd suggest you replace water-pump (if it has not been replaced), water-pipe, and thermostat-housing, all with OE parts.

Good luck!

 

+1 Water pipe, small leak near the aux water pump. These are the places to check first like when i did mine.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...8-no-heat.html

 

I was under the impression that its both oil and coolant....

Thanks! Unfortunately sounds like an annoying job because even if the tstat is good, I may end up breaking it when taking it out....
Just to confirm, the procedure that you guys are talking about is the following correct?

Does anyone also know if this water pipe could be the reason for the fan kicking in so often? Or is that a separate issue entirely?

 

High coolant temperature or invalid coolant temperature readings (from the sensor placed within the thermostat housing) are (some?) of the causes for the radiator kicking in. Have you noticed the radiator running even though the engine could not possibly be warm enough for it to do so? Monitoring the temperature sensor's readings may give you an indication for a failed sensor. A sensor reporting a lower than actual coolant temperature (but within the "valid" range) may cause higher than normal pressure of the coolant system and therefore leaks.

Depending on ambient temperature, it may be normal for the radiator to come on and off relatively frequently while the car is standing still and the (hot) engine is idling. However, I haven't experienced mine running for just a few seconds and coming on and off every 30 to 60 seconds.

 

The pipe can leak coolant and then air can get in near the sensor, which can kick the fan on/off as it gets inaccurate readings. Thats what we see.

 

The more and more I think about this, the more I think its the coolant tank area, whether the coolant tank itself or the hoses connected to it. The white smoke that appears while driving keeps coming in mind and I think thats because of a leak somewhere in that area. When leaking, it probably spills all over, leading me to smell it in the cabin and outside the car. For smelling it in the exhaust, I'm guessing its more like I'm smelling it throughout the entire car and within close vicinity.

I guess I can start with replacing the cap, then the tank itself and seeing where that goes...

I got the hint from this thread:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-no-leaks.html

 

fwiw - I had 'white smoke' coming from front of car when driving (stopped at red light), and it tunrned out to be coolant leaking from oil filter housing.

Good luck

 

Started poking around and think I found the answer. Lifted the coolant reservoir after a drive and noticed coolant was spewing off the bottom side tube that connects into the reservior. Theory goes that I somehow pulled/twisted the tube too much at one point causing the tube to not be fully inserted. Theres a little 90 degree L plug thing and when inspected, seals look good and no visible damage so I simply just reconnected everything and ensured everything was in properly. This also kind of explains why theres only white smoking coming from the front left of the hood, as it was dripping down from the coolant reservoir and the only coolant spots I could see was the green thing (sorry I don't know the name for this part) right below the coolant reservoir. Haven't driven it much yet but the few short drives I had afterwards had zero noticeable leaks/coolant disappearing way too fast since. I'm praying that this is the permanent answer and hoping that this helps someone else out in the future.

However, this doesn't really explain the fan going off so often still but I can live with that.

 

You need to pressurize the coolant system and find the leak. It could be the common failure points. However, it could be an uncommon failure point to like the heater core in the car is leaking. You shouldn't smell coolant inside of the cabin. That sounds like the heater core to me. So that is a tiny radiator in the car. It is not a common failure point but without pressure checking, you are just guessing and could end up replacing everything before its over.

So that tank and lines going into the tank are high failure points. However, replace that and pressure check it. You can buy one of these depending on your model https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...p/34336756237/ , replace your old one, take the old one, drill a hole in it to accept a air compressor fitting to 15 psi. and put put on your expansion tank. If you put 15psi into your coolant system, it should hold that for at least an hour. If you hear a hissing sound or see coolant, there's your leak.