Leak - 2002 chevy venture

[baby141]

So the warranty has been up on this van for a few months and I was just waiting for some major repair job coming my way. This morning I noticed a liquid on my driveway. It is light yellow in colour. Where is this coming from and what am I looking at in terms on repair?

[rdh2]

Originally Posted by baby141

So the warranty has been up on this van for a few months and I was just waiting for some major repair job coming my way. This morning I noticed a liquid on my driveway. It is light yellow in colour. Where is this coming from and what am I looking at in terms on repair?

Yellow could be coolant. May be coming from the dreaded intake manifold problems. I would get a cooling system pressure tester and check for leaks.

[baby141]

I was not clear on the colour. It is actually greenish yellow on the ground, but when I touch it, it looks light brown/yellow in colour on my finger.

[dewaynep]

The same diagnosis as about would still hold true. You need to have the system pressure tested to see if the intake manifold gaskets or head gaskets are leaking.

[baby141]

So I took the van in for service. The only concern from the mechanic was to see where the van was leaking coolant. He could not find a coolant leak. He told me to put a piece of cardboard under the van and check in the morning. Am I missing something? He checked the radiator, pumps and hose and hoisted the van to see underneath and couldn't find any sign of a coolant leak. I don't know anything about mechanics and mentioned that when I popped the hood yesterday to check the coolant reservoir, it was empty. I filled it to the indicating mark. He told me I didn't need to fill it. He gave me the explanation that when the van is warmed up, the fluid is absorbed by the radiator and is removed from the reservoir. When the van is cooled down, the reservoir fills itself up again with the coolant. The coolant moves back and forth between the reservoir and the radiator. Does this make any sense? Please help.

[lesterl]

Thats bass ackwards, when warmed, the coolant expands and fills the jug, when cold it siphons back into the system.

[dewaynep]

Yeah, what he said. You need to get a different mechanic. The reservoir will never be lower than it is when it's cold. You should check it when it is cold and add coolant to the "full cold" line. I really wouldn't trust this mechanic to find the problem and repair it if all he did was look for an external leak. He should have pressure tested the system and also did a "block check" that would test for combustion gasses in the cooling system.

[lesterl]

Originally Posted by dewaynep

Yeah, what he said. You need to get a different mechanic. The reservoir will never be lower than it is when it's cold. You should check it when it is cold and add coolant to the "full cold" line. I really wouldn't trust this mechanic to find the problem and repair it if all he did was look for an external leak. He should have pressure tested the system and also did a "block check" that would test for combustion gasses in the cooling system.

Bingo!

Or better yet, if you havent ever replaced the LIM gaskets, do it now with the new FELPRO Permadry Plus rubber on steel backing gaskets and be done with it. Make shure you take it to someone who knows what he is doing tho.

[baby141]

I'm posting an update on my leak situation. Something really strange going on. So, to recap. I only saw an antifreeze puddle on my driveway once. It has not happened since and at least 5 days have gone by. I only noticed that the antifreeze reservoir was empty once. It too has not happened again. This was at least 5 days ago. No more puddles and the reservoir level has been fine the last 5 days. Mechanic did a pressure test and it was fine. Could this have been just a one time thing (if this could be possible), or should I invest more money and get the test that checks if there is an internal leak in the manifold gaskets. This was not done yet. I should also mention that the one time I saw the puddle on the driveway, I had backed up the van and parked it backwards on a decline. Could this have caused the external leak that I saw?

[lesterl]

Well with the resivoir having been emptied, I would get the coolant system double checked, the gaskets are known to be flakey, what holds good today might not tomorrow, then good for awhile. If you have ANY inkling to keep the van, have alot of miles on it (like 75k+), and have never had the gaskets done, it is GREAT preventative maintenance to replace them and use the good upgraded ones.

[rodgerturner]

FYI.... it'll cost you about $700-800 to have that lower intake gasket replaced if that's the issue. As said, make sure they get the new felpro gasket.. I had to do mine 3 times before this came out. It's been good since.

[rodgerturner]

Originally Posted by baby141

I'm posting an update on my leak situation. Something really strange going on. So, to recap. I only saw an antifreeze puddle on my driveway once. It has not happened since and at least 5 days have gone by. I only noticed that the antifreeze reservoir was empty once. It too has not happened again. This was at least 5 days ago. No more puddles and the reservoir level has been fine the last 5 days. Mechanic did a pressure test and it was fine. Could this have been just a one time thing (if this could be possible), or should I invest more money and get the test that checks if there is an internal leak in the manifold gaskets. This was not done yet. I should also mention that the one time I saw the puddle on the driveway, I had backed up the van and parked it backwards on a decline. Could this have caused the external leak that I saw?

Check the hoses from the radiator and keep an eye on the coolant level. If leaking at the LIM gasket, you should really be able to tell - - either by smelling the coolant or noticing the drop in coolant level (and/or the low coolant light coming on). If nothing, I would let it go.

[lesterl]

Look on the drivers side of the engine, next too the temperature sensor for signs of leakage, and on passenger side under the PS pump, could check the plugs and see if one is getting "washed", is there alot of extra white smoke from the exhaust (water)?