1. Home
  2. Car Maintenance
  3. Low coolant (I think) but engine not overheating

Low coolant (I think) but engine not overheating

Yesterday evening, I was checking levels on my 1992 Mitsubishi Triton Dual Cab 2.5 Diesel Ute for the first time.

There was nothing in the coolant bottle. I have driven the vehicle say

2000 miles since I bought it, and that included driving 600 odd miles in one day when it was 33 degrees..

So I filled with a 1litre bottle of liquid and it was 1) This bottle is an expansion tank - it fills up when the engine is hot. Well, it was empty after I checked it on idle after the longish trip. He said fill from the radiator cap. He said check the level of the coolant IN THE RADIATOR when the engine is cool. Which I haven't done yet

- it is dark outside! OK - maybe it does need a lot more coolant.

2) Now, I am worried that there may be a head problem as there is a bit of gunk in the expansion tank - it may not be oil though - just looks like dirt and dust in water???!! THe sort of stuff you might easily get in a vessel after 10 years. Also I had an overheating car once and it was obvious that it was heating up - I could smell it. The water pump had failed. The vehicle has done 160k miles.

As I say, the coolant has emptied quickly and the engine is not overheating even on a 600 mile run. What do people reckon, lack of levels (STILL) or a more serious issue?

thanks in advance

Mike (in Sydney) used to live in UK and like this group!!

Reply to
Mike Rogers
Loading thread data ...

There are lots of possibles but one that springs to mind is a very small leak near the top of the engine or radiator, the coolant drops to this level then scarcely drops any more, ther is still plenty in the system so no overheat.

If I were you, I would fill the system preferably with a flourescent dye in, and pressurise it, this will show where the leak is in a few moments.

MrCheerful

Reply to
MrCheerful

I don't know anything about your car but it sounds odd filling up a 'coolant bottle' to the top. If it is an expansion bottle it will have a line around the bottom half showing the max level when cold. If it is filled above that it will 'dump' the excess.

I wonder if this has happened?

Check the bottle and the handbook.

Reply to
Alan

I checked the coolant in the radiator this morning when it was light and it was up to the top. say an inch below.

I reckon I was fussing over nothing and that there is just no or little expansion and thus no overheating..the engine is well within operating temps.

filling the expansion bottle was silly anyhow duh

Mike

Reply to
Mike Rogers

G'day Cobber!

Your post reminded me of the year and a half we spent in Australia - a wonderful time! I'm afraid I can't offer advice on the Mitsubishi Ute, but I'm now an expert on the EA Ford Fairmont Ghia, a bitch of a motor that suffered from an inherent design fault (I discovered this after I bought the thing!) with the cylinder block (sand in the castings or somethin' similar)... resulting in frequent overheating!

Tried a replacement radiator from City Wreckers in Brizzy, tried new water pump, all new hoses and anti-sludge treatment, but it still ran hot. The day it got nicked by some b**tard from outside my other half's work, at the QEII hospital, the head gasket got finished off nicely.

When I finally got the thing back, I had a big bill for a newly-skimmed cylinder head and a load of labour!

It was a good fun car though - the Ford Multipoint 3.9i went like a rocket, and the Ghia 'digital dash' really looked like something out of Night Rider (did you ever have that programme over there?!)

As for your ute, if you've been bombing up and down the Pacific Highway for

600 mile runs, and you're not overheating, I'd suggest one of two things:

1) Very slight leak - perhaps weeping around a hose connector somewhere

2) You topped up a bit, but not enough -the level perhaps wasn't low enough to start causing overheating.

If there's no white gunk in the oil, you can (probably) rest assured that you haven't lost the head gasket. Similarly, if the water is (reasonably) clear, then that's a pretty safe sign.

Anyway, good luck - what's the weather like in Sydney these days?

Cheers

Al

Reply to
Alan Dempster

Mate.

The EA Falcon with multipoint injection is a stormer. Great for accelerating past roadtrains on single highways. I had one (1989)and it has 300k on it, and still went. They, and their successor, the EF were very handsome cars - shame about the European Sierras and Mondeos.

The 1980s Falcon was basically a Ford Granada with a big engine.

Nice and hot here in Straya!

cheers

Mike

Reply to
Mike Rogers

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.