Pulled into a gas station with my friend. got out for a sec and realized there were no open places to pump gas. we drove across the street to next gas station. on the way there in the 2nd gas stations parking lot i leaked a tiny amount of coolant and I could see the line from where i turned in, up to the place where i parked. the add coolant light came on and the gauge was about 1/3rd up from cold.

i checked the lines, 1 seemed a little loose so i tightened it up, coolant reservoir seemed full because when i tried to add some it came leaking out the top and the bottle looked full. turned on the car and let it idle for a few mins while we kept looking for a leak. eventually the fan kicked on and about 25seconds later the add coolant light had gone off and the gauge was right above cold again like normal.

kept driving home and slowed down from 75 to 30 due to traffic and while going 30 the light came on and the gauge went to about 1/3rd higher than cold again. brought it up to like 50mph and the gauge went back down & light turned off.

last but not least right when i got home and parked it it raised back up and light turned on again.

radiator = Fluidyne performance radiator

thanks for any ideas. just got the car today and the previous owner said its never done it to him. he runs a mazda race car shop, and seemed pretty knowledgeable so i trust him on that.

1st thoughts are to replace all hosing and maybe even the coolant tank if for some reason it was leaking out the top. is that normal for a full tank?

 

Seems like theres massive air in the system.

Did you burp the system and/or have a working pressure cap?

 

Sounds like you just have a small leak somewhere, find it and fix it. Nothing too exciting fortunately.

Dale

 

going to look up how to burp the system now. thanks. unsure if pressure cap is working or not, but i would assume it is?

 

I would change the cap too. It seem that it is not holding pressure. If you want to bled your system, I would highly recommend a coolant fill tool.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/OTC-75260/

Makes filling your cooling system a snap without having to bleed. You will need an air compressor.

 

I would get rid of the air in the system first.

If you are unsure about the pressure cap working or not, get a new one for extra insurance. They are like 6 bucks at the auto parts store.

Worst thing is second guessing yourself.

 

anywhere special to look for all the radiator lines like in a set?

 

If you mean new ones,

http://www.rx7store.net/product_p/samco%20hose.htm

 

With a completely stock cooling system, is the temperature gauge supposed to rise a little above half before the fan kicks in to cool it back down? Mine does that if I'm sitting at a light.

 

picked up some samco hoses. the bottom S hose was pinched in the middle due to being too long i believe. hoping that is what was causing the problem.

 

These are the same symptoms mine was having last fall. The cause = cracked center cast iron. Anytime your overflow tank is full, that is a reason for concern. Wish the best for you.

 

Did you add coolant to the overflow reservoir or the filler neck?