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Losing coolant - 98 ContourGT

K

klfdl

New CEG'er
Joined
Jun 3, 2005
Messages
13
Location
Ontario
I've had a consistant cooling system problem since I had a major overheat in 2005. This site saved the day by advising that it was in fact, a water pump issue and not in need of a new motor. Since then however, the cooling system has never been the same. I am on my 2nd waterpump since then, new rad fan, a couple of weeks ago a new rad and thermostat. And I am still losing antifreeze. There aren't any leaks that we can see, and the compression test showed all was very good.
Do you have any suggestions what could be causing this? Would the intake manifold gasket affect this?
Thanks for any/all input.
 
Sounds like you have bits clogging the system. You also might have an issue with the WP housing. Their is a ring that can become unstaked and lodged up against the impeller. Looks like you have the ultra rare GT edition. Might have a more elaborate system. :D
 
Do the sniff test

Do the sniff test

You 'might' have a small leak in the head gasket that only shows up with a warm engine. Warm up the engine and stick your nose near the exhaust, if you smell a sweet smell you know where your antifreeze is going. But I wouldn't get my short in a bind over a slow leak, antifreeze and water are still pretty cheap.

I also assume you have done the garage floor check. Do you have any fluids on your garage floor in the morning?
 
possibly a head gasket. no noticeable leaks? a major overheat can be from the head gasket. whats probably happening is that coolant is entering the combustion chamber and is being burned. an emissions check will tell you if it is. or you could take it to a repair shop and have a block test done.

edit: ARGHHH! beat me to it!
 
sorry - the GT was a typo. i meant GL.
nothing in the car or on the car indicates anything other than GL Sport.

is there a way to confirm exactly what it is, perhaps with the VIN#?
 
didja do the nose test

didja do the nose test

I was serious about the nose test. Cheap, easy, and effective.
 
Thanks Andres, but no sweet smell.

Compression test - excellent all the way around
Emissions test - 6 mos ago - excellent
New rad, new rad fans, new thermostat, waterpump & housing all good but car losing coolant big time.
No white smoke out of exhaust, barely a drop coming out after running for awhile.

Possibly the heater core?
Possilbly the intake manifold gasket?

It's more than just a matter of topping up my coolant mix. I can't take this car on any significant trip. ie if i drive it for 60mins on a highway/freeway is guaranteed to overheat at some point after that. I don't want to put coolant in it because its just gone.
 
Wouldn't hurt to pull plugs and look at them. If longterm burning coolant the offending cylinder's plug will look different from others sometimes. May be cleaner because of the "water injection" it's getting. Maybe rusty. Drive it to make lose the coolant and crawl up under it with a flashlight. I have had several lost coolant issues on both Focus and Contour fours where small amount escaping from different hose clamp areas so small, I never found on ground. Like to never found leaks, just knew they were there because coolant disappearing. I didn't lose as fast a rate as you though. Also, longterm burning coolant will pinhole the upper cylinder area from repeatedly being blasted with steam, it WILL eventually damage engine. If enough leaks at one time once leak really bad, will show up all at once when cylinder hydraulically locks while starting. Then usually connecting rod bend and next break. A very small crack in exhaust port could leak a small amount that would just seem to disappear without affecting engine running. That area hottest part of the head, logical to crack there first. You can try bypassing heater core by tying the 2 heater core hoses with a union, would involve a little work, but you'd know whether that was it.
 
Have you had the car up on a lift at all? Make sure to check EVERYWHERE for leaks. I had it pooling up on the tranny and in the subframe, and it was burning off the exhaust, so NONE of the coolant dripped to the ground. This was when it was leaking from the heater hose...
 
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