Hey guys,
I have a '97 2.2L ohv cavalier w/ 180,000km and I've noticed that my coolant has been slowly disappearing. It's not leaking very fast, as I've had to add about 2L of mixed coolant in the past 8 months or so.
It's not leaking in the oil. Or if it is, it's undetectable. I've checked the oil w/ the dipstick and I checked it at the last oil change and there was no coolant to be seen.
So where could it be leaking from? Head gasket? Water pump? Where should I inspect for leaks?
Is it allright to just let it leak as long as it's not going in the oil? (Car is a junker and I don't really want to fix it.)
Thanks.
I have something else to add here.
Sometimes when I start driving my car (after it's been sitting a while) I'll notice a "trickling water" sound come from the engine bay. It's quite noticable, but only lasts a few seconds. It started doing this maybe four months ago.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
well... if you're not going to fix it, then it shouldnt matter where its leaking to. depending on how long you plan on keeping the car though, i would look into the cost of antifreeze vs. the cost of fixing the leak and having piece of mind. where i'd start: start your car in your garage or somewhere with a concrete (not dirt) surface. let it go through a full heat cycle so that the fan comes on. after the fan shuts back off, shut off the car. look for colant on the ground, and trace it back from there.also, look for coolant near where your hoses connect, re-tightnen your clamps, or if you still have the crappy factory spring clamps put some real screw clamps on it. just some things to get you started.
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need a z24 wrote:I have something else to add here.
Sometimes when I start driving my car (after it's been sitting a while) I'll notice a "trickling water" sound come from the engine bay. It's quite noticable, but only lasts a few seconds. It started doing this maybe four months ago.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
from my experiences though not with a cavalier or any j body kind of car the water moving around noise usually denotes low coolant level. i'm actually getting a little bit of this noise now but for some reason the coolant level is exactly where it should be. anyway unless the antifreeze is leaking outside it is leaking inside. in this case maybe head gasket, intake manifold, who knows. there are ways to test for these things specifically. when you start your car after it's been sitting overnight, do you get a big cloud of white smoke coming from the exhaust? does your car overheat or does your temp gauge fluctuate all the time?
Water Pump. I have a '98 z22 and the low coolant light would come on randomly at around 180 000 k +. With the steady loss of coolant getting worse and worse, it eventually turned out to be a water pump.
Late 90s 2.2s have a factory flaw with head gaskets, or rather the guide pins in the block. Guide pins look like a 'C', and the open part may face a coolant passageway. When it does, coolant can get to the gasket and leak either internally or externally. You're lucky in that it may be leaking to the outside of the engine. Of the two pins, the one by #4 was turned wrong in mine. I had an ASE mechanic buddy help me replace the head gasket. If you are moderately experienced in repair, then you could takle the job, but it'll take you, alone, a little more than a 'day'. If your engine hasn't overheated at all, you could chance not having the head resurfaced (fixing warp, if it happened). Mine only got up as far as when the fan turns on, never got to the red range. Grab yourself a Chilton's and see if you wana tackle it. GM issued a recall for this problem, but yours, as well as mine at the time, has too many miles on the clock. You'll need new head bolts, coolant, and maybe intake and exhaust gaskets. I got some 'what'd we do' tips if you opt to fix it yourself.
