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Whatэs going on with my antifreeze coolant in my car?

My car overheated and now it won't start. What could the problem be?

  • I don't know much about cars, but ever since I got this car, I noticed I have to put more anti freeze in about every two weeks, which is more frequent than normal. Other then that, the car has been running great. About two weeks ago, the check engine light came on. I took it to Auto Zone and they hooked up that machine that tells you what's wrong with it, and they said the light went off because the gas cap was loose, so not to worry about it. The other day, I was about to go on a long trip, so before I left, I put more anti freeze/coolant in, about 3/4 tank full. After about ten miles of driving, I noticed the car was heating up and the needle was getting close to the H, then it started going back down. I pulled the car over, and right before I turned the engine off, I noticed the check engine light was flashing. I turned the car off and white smoke started coming out of the engine and the tank for the anti freeze. I popped the hood and saw antifreeze spilling out around the cap and onto the ground. After the car cooled down, I opened that tank for the antifreeze and noticed the level slowly going down so I put a little more in. After waiting about 20 minutes, I tried starting the car but no luck. Ever since then it hasn't been able to start. It will roll over and crank like it's about to start, but then it won't do that final jump. A friend tried jumping it with his car, but it didn't work. I checked the oil level. It was fine and the oil was still that dark brown color. I took it to a mechanic and they said it could be a number of issues, possibly a blown head gasket, but they said it probably wasn't worth it to get it fixed cause it's and old car and not worth much. They never took it in the shop or anything, they just tried starting and then said the engine was probably blown. I explained what happened to a friend of mine that was a mechanic for many years and he said it sounds more like something with the water hose or radiator hose or something. He said if it was the head gasket, then the oil would probably have a white color to it. From what I told him about it it, he thinks the car is probably fixable and that the mechanic I took it to just doesn't want to mess with it. Do you think it would be worth the money to have it towed to another shop and get a second opinion? It's a 97 Mercury Sable. The car ran great up until this incident. I've had a head gasket blow on a car years ago, and when it did, the car suddenly didn't have that jump in it, like it could only go up to a certain speed all of a sudden and I noticed a distinct difference in the feel of the car and the noise it made. This never happened with my Sable so I'm skeptical about it being a head gasket issue.

  • Answer:

    Your mechanic is probably right, it may not be worth fixing. In that case you won't get much for it from a private person or junk yard. You will get a better tax deduction if you donate your car to charity. I have donated a few cars at http://www.cars4charities.org/

King at Yahoo! Answers Visit the source

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Sounds like a blown head basket

it sounds to me like you have a couple things going on here- 1- you have an antifreeze leak. If you shut the engine off before it shut itself off, the odds are better that it didn't suffer any damage from the overheating. However, you need to figure out where the antifreeze is going. It may still be a head gasket, or could be something else. 2- the check engine light. Your car's computer has found a fault, and won't let the car start. I don't think this is related to the issue you had on the road, I think they are just happening at the same time. Yes, I would get it to another shop and have someone else look at it. It could be a couple of simple fixes. At worst, you spend a bit of money to find out your car is for sure not worth fixing, as opposed to a lazy bum that doesn't want to look at it.

Eddie

You have to learn something about cars. Your words were..."I noticed I have to put more anti freeze in about every two weeks, which is more frequent than normal"...and the fact is you shouldn't have to add ANY antifreeze once it's full unless you have a leak, either internal or external. Find a new mechanic! And here's the fact about overheating... http://www.aa1car.com/library/overheat.htm Of course it matters whether you use 50/50 antifreeze/coolant or water/antifreeze mixture. There is no such thing as 50/50 antifreeze/coolant because antifreeze is 100% antifreeze and "coolant" is what happens when you mix 50% antifreeze and 50% distilled water. And that is what you're supposed to use. You still might have a blown head gasket because of your lack of knowledge, and letting the car run in an overheated condition.

Michael S

it don,t have to be the head gasket, it might be the intake gasket leaking ! you say the reservoir keeps going dry ? it might be the radiator cap ! is the radiator staying full ? antifreeze in the oil or white smoke coming out the tailpipe is 2 indications the head or intake gasket is leaking ! if not any of those things happening then change the radiator cap and thermostat ! it might be a good idea to flush out the cooling system too !

bandit_60

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