[V8] The Cooling Labyrinth??? (used to be POP!!..hiss..)

Wed Aug 31 11:52:49 EDT 2005

Hmm.  I'm a bit confused.  Was the car running when you filled up the
reservoir tank that it ran out right away?  If not, then I have a hard time
believing it's the heater core, because the heater core is above the
expansion tank and the coolant would overflow the tank before it would leak
out of the higher level heater core.  Remove the wipers first, so you can
remove the rain diverter (13mm nuts), noting that "B" is for passenger side
and "F" is for driver's side wiper.

If the leak is coming out of the heater core/heater valve, then excess
coolant would leak out of the rain drain by the hood hinge -- right behind
the front wheel, btw.

Maybe your problem is as simple as a broken expansion tank at the lower
nipple or sending unit -- yeah, right...

Do look at things in daylight, though.

Ingo

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Klein, Nathan P" <nathan.p.klein at lmco.com>
To: "Ingo Rautenberg" <i.rautenberg at waratap.com>; <v8 at audifans.com>; "Kneale
Brownson" <kneale at coslink.net>
Sent: Wednesday, August 31, 2005 9:54 AM
Subject: The Cooling Labyrinth??? (used to be POP!!..hiss..)

> Okay, got the car towed home last night and took the engine cover and
> air box off to get a better look at what was going on.  I filled up the
> reservoir (engine off) and it proceeded to leak out every bit of coolant
> that I put in after a delay of a few seconds.
>
> Visibility down there is very poor, even with a flashlight -- but I
> think that it was primarily coming out in the vicinity of the firewall
> on the passenger side.  I saw a white plastic-looking hole that it was
> coming out of.
>
> So I removed the coolant reservoir and traced the hose that runs out of
> the bottom of the reservoir around the back of the engine.  (That hose
> is metal??)  Traced it back up to the firewall under the rain diverter
> cover.  Ran out of daylight, unfortunately.  And it was all my messed-up
> finger could handle.
>
> So......what do y'all think?  Every time I filled up the reservoir tank,
> it all immediately leaked out, hitting the ground just behind the
> passenger-side tire.
>
> Any ideas?  Am I started on the right track?
>
> Nathan
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ingo Rautenberg [mailto:irautenberg at comcast.net]
> Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 5:31 PM
> To: Klein, Nathan P; v8 at audifans.com; Kneale Brownson
> Subject: Re: [V8] POP..Hiss..Smoke..Antifreeze Smell..SOS!!!
>
> I might add that with all the room in the between the windshield and the
> firewall (NOT!), you might find it easier (read: more room) to remove
> the wiper motor assembly for better access.
>
> Ingo
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Kneale Brownson" <kneale at coslink.net>
> To: "Klein, Nathan P" <nathan.p.klein at lmco.com>; <v8 at audifans.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 5:01 PM
> Subject: Re: [V8] POP..Hiss..Smoke..Antifreeze Smell..SOS!!!
>
>
> > The heater valve and heater core box are all accessible from under the
> rain
> > diverter cover at the base of the windshield.  All you need to
> disconnect
> > inside the cabin is the box from the HVAC vents plenums.  There should
> be
> > write-ups on heater core replacement in the Audifans.com archives.
> Chris
> > Miller's 200q20v pages have a bunch of pix and text on heater core box
> > removal and disassembly.  The box is the same on the V8, I believe.
> Scroll
> > down the page at
> http://members.aol.com/c1j1miller/climate.html#Heater
> blower
> >
> >
> > At 03:37 PM 8/30/2005 -0500, Klein, Nathan P wrote:
> > >Thanks.
> > >
> > >Now, how the &*%@# do I get down in there?  Looks like a long weekend
> > >job.  If anyone has some "lessons learned", I'd sure appreciate them.
> > >Does the dash have to come off?  If so, this may be a chance for me
> to
> > >replace the dash lights.
> > >
> > >Hopefully I'll get the green light to work on it this weekend or
> > >next...I paritally severed my ring finger and am waiting for it to
> heal
> > >up.  I will probably go ahead and I/R/R everything cooling-related
> while
> > >I'm at it.  I've checked some old posts, and apparently 98-105
> degrees C
> > >on the highway is considered "running hot"......
> > >
> > >Thanks again.  All advice is greatly appreciated.
> > >
> > >Nathan
> > >
> > >-----Original Message-----
> > >From: Ingo Rautenberg [mailto:i.rautenberg at waratap.com]
> > >Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 3:06 PM
> > >To: Klein, Nathan P; v8 at audifans.com
> > >Subject: Re: [V8] POP..Hiss..Smoke..Antifreeze Smell..SOS!!!
> > >
> > >Hmm.  Sounds like the nightmare I recently went through.  In my case
> it
> > >was the heater core (as pointed out by Mr. Head) began to
> disintegrate,
> > >lodging plastic pieces into the return hose nipple of the expansion
> tank
> > >(clogging
> > >it) and leading to calcification of the radiator internals, reducing
> > >radiator efficiency to nil and causing failure first of the heater
> valve
> > >and finally the heater core.  If you're lucky, maybe it's just the
> > >heater valve (but your passenger side smoke description makes that
> > >unlikely).
> > >
> > >Good luck and let us know what you find.
> > >
> > >Ingo
> > >
> > >
> > >----- Original Message -----
> > >From: "Klein, Nathan P" <nathan.p.klein at lmco.com>
> > >To: <v8 at audifans.com>
> > >Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 2:26 PM
> > >Subject: [V8] POP..Hiss..Smoke..Antifreeze Smell..SOS!!!
> > >
> > >
> > >> Okay, so I'm sitting in the bank drive-through for about 10 min and
> > >> notice a ton of smoke
> > >> coming of the passenger side of the car all of a sudden.
> > >>
> > >> "Oh, crap," I thought.  This has happened before and it wasn't
> pretty.
> > >>
> > >> So I get back out on the road to look for a shady spot to pull over
> > >> (it's mighty hot here today).
> > >>
> > >> Pull into traffic, and I hear a POP! come from under the hood,
> toward
> > >> the passenger compartment,
> > >> followed by hissing and SMOKE BELCHING out of the defrost duct,
> smoke
> > >> blowing on to the
> > >> windshield from under the hood, and smoke coming from what seemed
> like
> > >> everywhere.
> > >>
> > >> The unmistakable smell of hot antifreeze was coming out of the A/C
> and
> > >> heater ducts.
> > >>
> > >> Short trip.  Pull over across the street under a kind-of shaded
> area.
> > >> Get out of the car, and there is
> > >> antifreeze dripping out of the car just in front of the driver's
> side
> > >> door, getting on to the door.
> > >>
> > >> My hand got wet pulling the hood lift.
> > >>
> > >> I pull back the cowling in front of the windshield, and it was like
> > >> opening a bag of microwave popcorn
> > >> too soon.
> > >>
> > >> I walked the six miles back to work rather than put in coolant and
> > >> chance it.
> > >>
> > >> The car is still there, and I smell like a hobo.
> > >>
> > >> What in the world could this be?!
> > >>
> > >> HELP!!!
> > >> _______________________________________________
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