NINjaX7

Hey guys, I've tried searching for this a couple times and couldn't really find anything that relates to what's happening to my car at the moment. I was wondering if you guys could help out! I've only had the car for 1 week and 2 days now. First it all started the day after I let my parents drive my car around.... I turn on the car and the coolant light turns on. I drive out of the garage, and park it on the street. I figure hey, maybe it'll turn off if i shut it on and off. I try doing that and it doesn't work the Add coolant light comes on again. I run into my garage and check the coolant level from the overflow tank, and it says it's pretty low. I fill it up all the way with a 50/50 coolant/water mixture until it says full. I start the car back up again and the add coolant light shows up but goes away after about 2 seconds. I assume that everything is ok, after about 5 miles into the drive, I stop in a parking lot and the car is just steaming like crazy.. it looks like it was coming from the radiator and it smelled like coolant. So stop for a while and let it stop steaming before I start driving, The guy that was in the car stereo store that I parked in front of says that it just might be steam from the water I may have spilled onto the engine since I just filled it up with a little coolant from earlier. I get back into the car, and start to drive away, and only about 300 feet from where I just left, the hood starts to steam up even more, I pull over and lift up the hood and the air separation tank is just spraying out steam and coolant all over my engine and onto the street and the hose that was attached to it popped off. So now I have a huge puddle of coolant under the car and half the engine bay is wet from the coolant mixture. So now i'm just freakin screwed. I was fairly lucky since it happened near a gas station. After letting the car cool down quite a bit, i quickly turn and drive for about 5 seconds to the gas station and park it in the parking lot the temperature gauge was rising quickly up to the high temp dash on the gauge. I call up my stepdad and he heads over to help me out. We buy some coolant at the gas station and try filling the coolant that came out. We buy a 2 liter bottle of diet pepsi and empty and rinse out the contents to use as a mixture bottle for the coolant. After about 2 grueling hours of trying to fill the coolant into the AST we fill 4 liters of 50/50 coolant water mixture into the engine. I try starting the engine up and the Add coolant light keeps on coming up. We call up my uncle who's an engine guru, and he tries helping out over the phone, he says just keep on trying to fill the coolant, but it was at full from what we see, he says not to risk driving it home and have it towed. So I have it towed for 5 miles, and they have to call a flat bed because i have a body kit on it.... the damage was $111.89 for the tow and $14 for the coolant.

After the tow I park the car in the garage on *level ground* unlike the parking lot at the gas station and i was able to fill a pint of 50 50 mixture into tank. I try starting up the car again and this time... the add coolant light doesn't come on anymore. I leave it running for about 5 minutes and not one time did the add coolant light come on. I guess it was ok but I was wrong again. I buy a hose clamp for the hose that popped off earlier and call it a day.

The next day I recheck the coolant level and it's just full to the top. My stepdad takes it for a test drive and he says the coolant light didn't come back on. He parks it back in the garage and we eat dinner. After eating dinner we head back into the garage and the garage floor is just blanketed in coolant. So now we assume that there's definitely a leak. This morning I took off the front bumper and I'm trying to see if there's a leak in a hose (hopefully) since they are the original hoses that came on the car and it is a 1993. I refilled it with coolant and was able to fill about half a liter this morning, but i didn't see anything leaking out and the coolant level stayed the same. So i call up shucks to see if they have a leak tester, but the guy says that it might just be a hose and they don't have testers, because it won't leak out when it's cold, but it'll leak out when it's hot and under pressure. He might be right, but I'd rather take yours guy's word on it, what exactly do you think it might be based on my description? Tonight I'm having my friend come over to check it out, but i don't know if he could fix it or not since he's only done a coolant system for his chevy s-10 and his scion. Any help would be appreciated!!

-Joe

dexmex88

Don't exactly know the answer, probably because I didn't read the question, but do me a favor and lose the FNF wing!

hornbm

its a damn good idea to replace the hoses in your car anyway if they are the origionals,

replace ALL the water hoses, its a maintence item dude

NINjaX7

Haha! I hate the wing too, i bought the car like that.

dexmex88

It's cool, just giving you hell

dexmex88

I had this almost same problem when I first got my car, but thanks to my guru uncle who worked at Mazda from 92-95, my problem is fixed. I was cruising on the highway, 10 miles from where I had left and within 5 mintues my tempo went from 195 to 220. My coolant light had been coming on every 2 mintues. So I pulled over and coolant was all on the ground. My uncle came to the rescue. First I was missing the underbelly pan. Then I replaced my thermostat. Then he mixed the coolant water mix again, with the engine on, letting all the air bubbles out. Now the car runs fine! Oh yeah and my fans weren't turning on.

NINjaX7

I might have to get a pressure tester, and see where it's coming from, but i don't know if that'll do any good because it only leaks when it's hot and the car is off

scotty305

iTrader: (2)

One nice thing about the new forum software is it will automatically find similar threads to yours. This makes it even easier to find answers to your problems, by learning from other people's experiences.

Look at the very bottom of the page, it should be below the "Quick Reply" menu, and below the Posting Rules. It seems other people have had the same problem as you, and there might be a simple fix for it if you're lucky. Check it out: https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/leaking-coolant-out-overflow-tank-whats-wrong-311549/

A pressure tester should help you find the leak even when the car is cold: instead of waiting for the heat to pressurize the water and force it out the leak, the tester will add pressure and force water out while the engine is not running, this could save your engine from overheating.

To be honest, it sounds like you already overheated your car at least once or twice, you should really take it to a competent mechanic who is familiar with rotaries. Good luck, -s-

NINjaX7

I have no idea if it's been overheated before because like i said it's only been in my ownership for a week and 2 days

skunks

what temp did your engine get up to? I have seen temps over 245 degrees and the stock water temp gauge didnt even move a bit! if you dont have an aftermarket water temp, why the hell not??? in anycase, buy some UV leak detector to figure out where it is comming from after pressurizing your cooling system.

BTW: your refilling the engine and not just the radiator reservoir right?

oh and just to let you know, coolant (ethyle glycol) is flammable... also, there are quite a few coolant hoses running near your turbos/dp like the heater hoses and the turbo coolant lines... in all, i think there are 7+ coolant lines running thru out our engine (check them out here http://www.mazdatrix.com/bhose3.htm). most are tucked away unfortunatly and are a bitch to get to!

scotty305

iTrader: (2)

If there was steam coming out and the temperature gauge went up to wards the "H" mark, that sounds like your car overheated to me. Seriously, find a good mechanic before it gets worse.
-s-

NINjaX7

no I meant i did overheat it, but I don't know if the previous owner has overheated it in the past. And the bad thing about today, is that I refilled it with coolant and tried to see where it was coming from by warming up the engine and just letting it cool afterwards. What I saw was that it was dripping down all over the radiator and along the sides of it. most of it was coming from the top. The pictures show where it's coming from.

WaLieN

Like the posts above say -- pressure test it. There are *SO* many places where it can leak, it's not even funny.

FDeez

I say it looks like the radiator is damaged. You might as well upgrade your cooling system while you're at it. Upgrade the radiator and then go with silicone radiator hoses. Either eliminate the stock AST or go with an aluminum one. That's what I did. By the way, when you're stuck on the street, water is just fine as a "band-aid" fix to refill lost coolant mixture. There is no damage to the car is you use only water. People use water wetter + water only. On the track for motorcycles, they say water only. Personally, I use Evans Waterless coolant. But that stuff is a bitch.

Herblenny

iTrader: (13)

Definitely do the pressure test.. Do you still have OEM AST and radiator??

I would replace both and also the hoses.. Also are you blowing white smoke when you crank?? I hope its not your water seal.. If you blow your water seal, it will over pressurized the system and could blow your hoses.. Kind of like when head gasket goes out on piston engines..

Good luck!

scratchjunkie

get a new radiator, lower & upper rad hose, new or remove your ast.

lennie_hughes

when i first got my fd it was leaking around the plastic sensor mounted in front of the termostat housing, i put some gasket sealant around the threads and the problem was solved. Check to make sure your fans are kicking in if not try turning on your a/c i would replace all hoses, and double check the one that's down by the turbos when i had my intake gaskets replaced, there was a little 4 inch water hose that was ready to blow.

if you ever notice steam or the guage rising, shut it down imediately

littlemilla3

iTrader: (1)

-Get an aftermarket temp gauge so you can pull over and shut it off BEFORE you overheat instead of AFTER you've already ruined your engine.

-Replace the thermostat (OEM only), ALL coolant lines, AST, Radiator (koyo, etc.)

-Pressurize the system with a tester to make sure there are no leaks

-do the fan mod so you can turn on the fans before the temps get crazy

-whoever painted your car, they did a very horrible job

-lose the wing and body kit

RotorJoe

The whole point behind the pressure testing is to build up "normal" pressure in the cooling system as if it were warm. So the auto parts guy was half corrert. You will use the pressure tester on a cold (or warm, just be careful). This is just a pump with a pressure gauge on it. Pump it up to normal pressure (16psi or so depending on your caps). Watch it and make sure that the pressure does not fall. I am thinking you will see a huge pressure drop.

From your pictures it looks like it could be the radiator is leaking. Is that the stock radiator?

You also need a real temp gauge, one that is way more accurate. I hear that if you see the stock one rise at all it is already too late. I use my PFC for water temp. From 82C (About) all the way to 107 (Never seen anything higher) the stock gauge does not move. So be careful.

Good Luck.

tookwik

From the pictures it looks like you have a pretty large leak in the top of your radiator. (although I doubt that that is the problem). Check the cap on the AST to see if it has all the rubber sealing stuff lining it also (this cap should have a spring in it). Then check the filler neck cap for the same thing (but this cap should not have a spring in it). Those are two basic things you can check that could cause a problem... although if that was the case it would be leaking from your overflow tank.

Why don't you take a better look around your engine and tell us what area it looks like it may be coming from. Can you spot coolant above your radiator? besides from when it sprayed out the AST line? Is it coming out from one side more than the other? This COULD be a very simple fix if you just give us a little more info. Good luck.

And by the way, DO NOT DRIVE your car until you fix it... don't wanna have to buy a new engine do you? If you have to drive it... make sure you filled your system up COMPLETELY because as you know, its probably going to leak out again.

ljrotary

Looks just like mine when the top plastic tank on my radiator cracked.

RotorJoe

Thats what I was going for. I hear the stock radiator is..um...well not the best.

HEns

hmmmm, its been overheated, its spilling coolant and your radiator is damaged?

worse case is that you've just blown your engine, you need to get a replacement radiator and your turbo manifold has probably cracked. (this is what happened in my case)

of course it could be heaps of different things

rotarynemesis

Wow it looks like whoever painted your car did not do it properly as there appears to be overspray on EVERYTHING in the front opening.

Yes you overheated your car.
Yes your coolant seals are prob gone.
Yes you need an entire new coolant system and motor.

So sell the wing and the rice bodykit and start saving those pennys because it looks like you will need a lot of them.

NINjaX7

Yeah i noticed the bad paint job on it when i took the front bumper off. The radiator was covered in paint. And yes i hate the bodykit, but it came with it. I'm adding the C-west later on. I don't think my engine was blown. I had a guy who works with FCs all the time and had him look at my car, i trust him more than the any other guys that i talk with. So he told me to drive the car for a little bit because it could just be coolant from my overflow tank or just something simple as was with his case with his FC.. or was it his 300zx, i don't remember. And I do recall having the overflow tank indicator at full when I filled the coolant full at the AST. We checked the add coolant light sensor and it wasn't touching any coolant so we filled a little there too. I took the car out tonight for a test ride, it was really really soft driving, but before I went out I checked the coolant in the AST and it was full. I also checked the coolant in the overflow tank, and the indicator said empty. So i drove it for a good 30 minutes of soft driving and found that the temp gauge stayed between C and halfway. Not at one time did it go past halfway, even while I idled and stayed still for 5 minutes. I left the car idling and checked to see if there were any droplets of coolant that touched the ground, and I moved the car and checked the spot and there were no indications of coolant dripping. but than again it could've just dropped onto my floorpan. So after I got done driving I parked the car like I usually do and left it there for about an hour, I came back and what do you know? No coolant on the ground whatsoever. I also noticed when i first purchased the car it would belch white smoke out of the exhaust, when i first fired it up for about 30 seconds or so. This doens't happen anymore since i filled it with coolant. I can't really say what exactly happened, but I'm going to take it back to the FC guy tommorow, and see what he has to say. BTW I checked the car again about 2 and half hours after the 30 minute drive, and I looked at the ground and there was no coolant at all. Since the engine was pretty cold now, i checked the AST and it's at the same level i checked it before the drive... FULL. I also checked the overflow tank, and there was no coolant on the dipstick whatsover, but right as i got home and parked in the garage the dipstick was showing that it was right below the halfway mark between the "L" and the "F". What can you speculate from this experience? did I just put too much coolant in the system since the indicator in the overflow tank was at full, while I was able to fill the AST up to the brim, and it purged the excess?