Coolant is leaking out this cap.

Coolant was coming out of cap between hose clamps. Looks like the cap is just worn out. Anyone know what this valve is for? Looks like the hose is going behind firewall to heather core.

 

That;s someone's attempt to fix that hose that has now failed. That hose coming from the heater core is suppose to be one piece.

https://www.mazdatrix.com/bhose1b.htm

 

Actually that looks to me to be one of those cheap & leak prone "T" fittings from a Prestone flush & fill kit that someone installed. Your fix advice is spot on though, just replace the hose and "T" with the single molded OEM hose and be done with it.

 

Thanks for the help. The car ran great all summer. I pulled it out a couple weeks ago, just to start it up and let it run for a min. I went inside and when I came back out the engine was covered in coolant. I'm praying there isn't any damage. It seems to be running fine.

 

As long as it didn't overheat, it should be fine. Replace that hose, drain & fill with fresh coolant. While you're at it, since you have to drain & replace the coolant anyway, it would be smart to replace all the old coolant hoses as preventive maintenance.

 

Good call. Even though it's nice to be able to flush the cooling system, the rotary cooling system is best left simplified and original when it comes to the hoses.

 

I drained and replaced the coolant. I started it up yesterday and it ran ok, but I wont drive it until roads are clear of salt. I'm pretty sure it ran pretty hot before I could shut it down.

I don't see any leaking oil, any other way to know if it caused any damage?

 

^How do you know it was running hot when you shut it down, how was it being run at the time (i.e., driving under load or just idling in neutral?) and for how long? If you just had it idling in neutral, with no real load on the engine and didn't let it idle for very long after you first noticed that it was running hot (i.e., there's a working temp gauge on the dash I assume?), then it probably didn't hurt anything.

If it overheated and managed to compromise any of the engine's water seals (i.e., O-rings between housings & plates), you can pressure test the coolant system to rule that out. Rent a coolant system pressure testing kit (usually for free - just provide a CC deposit) from your local Advance Auto, Autozone and just about any other big auto parts retailer, hook it up to your radiator per the kit's instructions and pressure test your cooling system and see if it holds the specified pressure over time. If it holds pressure over time, you're golden.

 

I would just run it and monitor the coolant level and check the exhaust for heavy white smoke (water vapor). Also check the joints on the engine where the housings meet the plate for oil pooling.

I lent my 1985 to someone that let the engine over heat and they kept driving. Toasted the engine. There was massive clouds of smoke and a lot of oil pooling on the top of the engine.

 

 

Thanks all. Im not positive it overheated. Here is what happened....I pulled it out of the garage and fired it up. Went inside, opened a beer and talked to my neighbor for a few minutes, Looked outside and the engine was off and there was anti-freeze and smoke all over the place. I figured it was toast. Tried to start it up and it wouldn't fire. I changed all fluids, added coolant, new plugs, fresh gas and the thing fired right up. The gas gauge is broken, so I think I got lucky and it ran out of gas before it overheated. As it was running and I was standing there elated, drinking another beer, coolant started flowing out of the broken cap in the pictures. I shut it down and put a new cap on it. It fired right up again and ran perfectly for about 10 minutes. Not under load, just idling. Im really hopeful there isn't any serious damage. It idles and revs just fine.

I ordered the replacement hose, thanks for link. Great site. Anyone know where I can find some touch up paint?

 

If you dont see any white smoke its probably fine.