I had a total coolant leak last night (around mid-night) on the way home. I managed to find a garage a fill it back up - hoping I would be able to make it home. (Big mistake) As I was in the middle of know where and it was dark and freezing outside I decided to continue. Little did I know that I was burning big time oil. When I returned home i thought the thing was going to catch fire. Luckily it didn't ! The last mile I could hear the rattling of pistons.
Im guessing finding the coolant leak and topping it back up with oil is beyond the repair I need here !
Could my car be dead - forever !
The garage cant look at it until Thursday (might be code for: "Your on your own sucka !")
Ouch , getting them that hot puts strain on lots of things,, did your low oil indicator even come on ( is there any oil left )? ? Odds are not good you didn't cause damage , but -- maybe -- . Good Luck , ( i'd give it the oil it needs and just see what happens - if you're lucky it might run and sound ok - then after just a couple minutes of run time go ahead and repair the leak and replace the anti-freeze and see.) just my opinion ,but wait and see what others say
As I was close to home we drove past some street lights. All you could see coming out of the back was big thick white smoke ! Then the oil light came on !
It may start up and run again, but you definitely did some damage. Might have cracked a head/blown a head gasket, also when you get engines that hot sometimes the rings lose their temper and don't seal right again.
I guess my advice would be to fix the leak, change the oil, see what happens. Just don't be surprised if a) you end up having to tear it down due to oil/coolant trying to occupy the same space or b) it runs OK but turns into a smoking oil burner.
VW uses a steel layered headgasket and take a bunch of heat. I have seen the plastic water outlets melted off the head and the engine was still ok. You need to find out why
1- it overheated
2- why didn't you call a tow truck which is a bunch cheaper for the tow then the mess you have now!
White smoke is water/steam and not oil. However if the oil light did come on you probably have a blown head gasket and oil got into the water (and lost oil pressure). Probably weren't actually burning oil but you probably lost it into the coolant.
Everyone would like to get to a safe place, after the vehicle has problems.
Probably should hold a class on what to do when things go awry/astray/amiss/wrong. Also things to keep in the car for emergencies like duct tape & zipties, extra coolant & drinking water, simple tools, flashlight & batteries, cell phone and/or CB radio, blanket, small properly rated fire extinguisher, flares and maybe some more things too.
Engine Idling at 5,000+ rpms = DON'T DRIVE and turn off engine immediately Major oil leak or no pressure = DON'T DRIVE and turn off engine immediately Major or minor fuel leak = DON'T DRIVE and turn off engine immediately Major coolant leak or temperature rising too high = DON'T DRIVE! But you may be able to patch things after you determine what is wrong. No Clutch Pedal = You can start it up in gear and drive it. Tire Flat = DON'T DRIVE (you can if it is an emergency but you may need a new tire and rim) until you change the tire If you drive it too fast that tire could shred and damage the fuel filler pipes besides the fact you could also lose control of the vehicle. Isn't there a recall on some models for this? I am not fond of those Fix-A-Flat cans which might be flammible.
Now with some common sense or understanding of the systems of your vehicle you can sometimes safely drive the vehicle further. Gauges can be your best friend at times if you pay attention to them along with using all of your senses including common sense. ;-)
On The Road Repairs for coolant leaks: It is best to seal or slow any coolant leaks which can be done with some simple items. Fingernail polish can seal some holes in a radiator hose along with duct tape slowing larger holes/splits. Even cutting the hose and inserting a pipe with some clamps can temporarily "fix" a leak. Running the heater FULL blast will help cool down the cooling system although you may burn up. lol Loss of hot air in the heater can be an indication of either low coolant level or coolant that is not circulating. If the V-Belt is gone you could use some stockings/pantyhose in place of it. Nowadays it is a Serpentine belt so I don't know if this trick works or not.
So it is best to have someone that keeps fingernail polish and stockings handy! lol
If you drive at least 30 mph the radiator fan is not generally needed. Turning the A/C might turn on the radiator fan and it might keep the a/c compressor off. Leaving the radiator/bottle cap slightly loose will allow the pressure not to build up in the system so hopefully the coolant will not be forced out as quick if you have a leak.
Just to sort-of defend the original poster... I did the exact same thing as he once... for some reason I decided to drive my '62 Stude to work one morning instead of the VW I then had as a daily driver. I left at
0-dark-hundred (probably really about 5:30, but still) and took off out of my nighborhood. Unbeknownst to me, apparently the first time I revved the engine, I blew out a freeze plug. Since there were no streetlights in my neighborhood, I never saw the steam/smoke (all the coolant had already left before I passed under any lights,) so by the time I got on the highway, everything appeared normal. The engine sound was just unusual enough that I pulled off at the first exit to check it out; as soon as I slowed down below highway speed the temp. gauge pegged (it was normal while I was cruising,) and before I could get into a parking lot (only two blocks!) the "death rattle" had started.
However, it turns out that no permanent damage occurred; I had it towed home and replaced the freeze plug, added coolant, and changed the oil, and it apparently continues to burn tires for its current owner today.
Ahhh see you used your senses even the common sense! ;-) I think a lot of us have to deal with emergency situations and each one of us will decide our next course of action. Fear can make you do strange things but I am glad you decided to tow your vehicle home. ;-) And you were lucky Nate!
There's a lot to be said for driving a car whose whirly bits are rediculously overbuilt. IMHO that's true for both Studebakers and VWs... you can abuse the snot out of them and they generally are still repairable...
Of course, a Studebaker V-8 weighs over 600 lbs... there are tradeoffs...
So, after inspecting the car in daylight hours I found 2 major leaks. By the time I had filled up the coolant system, put the cap back on, it was empty again !! Im going to try and temporary repair them tomorrow, and hope there aren't any more.
I also topped up the oil which was low and started up the beast. She doesn't sound too bad ! We do have a new small rattle but nothing as bad as what it was !
I couldn't see any other leaks, or parting of gaskets.
Before I unleash the beast to the garage is there anything else I could replace/check ? Should I even drive it there? (4 miles away.)
I will give you all another update after I have fixed the coolant system !
PS: In my weak defence of finding myself in this position. It was minus 20 outside, pitch black, and clever me was wearing a crap t- shirt, (and I had no phone). The headlines the next day: "Stupid VW owner now half man half ice"....... Thanks again.
That's why i suggeted to put the oil in first and see if it would start/run, before adding coolant.
Yes, fix the leaks and let us know what they were. Then test things in your drive. Insure the brakes are still fine and you've got drive/ reverse , test all your systems , wipers /washer, lights horn, heater/blower, any and everything you can test. Let it run 10 minutes after it's up to normal then shut it off drain the oil, replace the filter and ( oil plug, :-) ) then add new oil. The new noise you hear maybe nothing new at all, just something you're hearing be because you're looking. But see if you can't locate it while it's running for ten minutes. Papertowel rolls or really long screwdrives sometimes help here. After the new oil/filter and you're sure you have the leaks fixed take it around the block bring it back and look for things like drips in the drive , oil in the water / water in the oil , mass amounts of oil smoke from the tail pipe. If all looks good, take it out for a long test drive. (rinse n repeat) . I'll most likely get ( flack ) from other posters about not draining the oil first but because it's winter, even heated garages only bring the oil temps up some, I don't think draining it cold does much . The garage has no magic wand that sees everything so the more you tell /give them the beter they can do their job.
The major leak came from a part (don't know the name of) which 2 senors are plugged into. As you look at the motor from the front its connected to the right of the engine. It has 3 pipes coming out of it, and like i said 2 sensors plugged into it. Bit of a poor explanation but it's also to the left of the air filter, about mid way up. I tried to see if a local repair shop had the spare part and they said they couldn't get any VW parts period ! Going to have to take it to a VW dealer :(
If anyone knows of any online pages I will happily point out the part.
hmmm... I think I know what you're talking about, although I can't envision it on a crossflow engine. I know the earlier engines could be backdated to a metal part but I think in your case you're stuck with getting a plastic replacement from the dealer. I think it's just called a "cooling hose flange" or something like that.
Those cheap plastic coolant flange pieces just can't take the hot/cold cycles too long and they deform and disintegrate losing their sealing ability. The hole starts out circular and end up oval shaped and sometimes crack. UGLY!
You might be able to buy it online from some good VW parts houses. Although I find that the dealer, sometimes, will sell those types of coolant flanges less expensively.
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.