Two trips to the dealer and they still "can't reproduce": after highway driving in my 2003 OBW I often can smell antifreeze. I can't see any leaks, and the coolant level does not seem to be going down. Yet, the smell is there.
Anybody else experience this?
My 04 Baja had the same problem.
It's a combo of the the radiator cap and filler neck. Seems there was a bad batch of caps made in Japan which develop cracks on the seal and leak which then results in scale forming in the fill neck. Pull the cap off when STONE COLD and look at it and inside the fill neck.
Have the dealer replace the radiator cap and THOROUGHLY clean the filler neck surfaces clean of any scale or mineral buildups. Finally have them put a very light coat of Indian Head Gasket Prep or similar water sealent along the inner seal surface flange of the radiator cap. Do not take off the cap afterwards unless you must have to do so. If you do, clean it yourself and put a fresh film of sealent on one side of the mating flange surface.
Replace the radiator cap. Had the exact same problem. Turns out to be small fissure cracks in the metal sealing ring inside the cap, specifically the phosphor-bronze sealing ring. New cap installed and all the AF odors went away.
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