MORE car problems!!!

[richmwill]

Sigh- what a day. Went up to visit the folks for a barbecue, had a very nice day- nephew was there, etc. A bit of a long trip, 3 hours total round-trip, but it was nice. On the way home, stopped for an iced coffee. Parked in the lot to drink some, left the engine running. All of a sudden car starts "dinging" (from the underside, I think), sounded almost like a small rock was being tossed about underneath. Turned the engine off, let it cool down for a few. Back on, after a few seconds the tumbling-sound returned, until I went out of reverse, back into "drive". Then it stopped, no noises, all was well for the rest of the trip. Got home, get out of the car to see that engine coolant is POURING out of the car, dripping constantly. The tank was almost full last week on my oil-check, now it's about to the "fill" line. Still dripping over an hour later- keep going back to wash it off the parking lot, I know that stuff is dangerous to animals if they drink it. Anyone have ANY ideas what could be wrong? I'll bring it to the garage tomorrow, if he has an available slot, but any clues beforehand would be appreciated. Could have been related to the long drive, it was hot today maybe it overheated, who knows? Sigh- put a damper on the end of the day, but the visit went good, so at least that was ok. Thanks for the vent.

[Bluzmann57]

1. Sounds like either a hose

or your radiator may have a hole in it. If there was white smoke coming out of the exhaust, you are in trouble however. May be a blown head gasket. Experienced at that crap. grrrr.

[richmwill]

4. No white smoke from exhaust...

Thankfully. Hopefully not a blown head gasket, I had a car need that replaced before, not fun to say the least.

[blueknight]

2. can you tell me

where the anti-freeze is dripping from?

[richmwill]

5. Dripping from...

The very front of the car, on the passenger side, from a small "hole" (part of the metal frame, not blown-through or anything) underneath the front bumper frame.

[Trillo]

3. The dinging was likely the engine overheating.

Possibly your thermostat stuck closed. You can test it in boiling water if you want and watch to see if it opens. Perhaps that caused peripheral damage, such as a burst hose, or a more simple over-pressure release from the "radiator" cap, which is often these days mounted on a plastic expansion bottle instead.

Edited to add: "dinging" was likely "pinging".
Edited again to add: If you ever hear this noise, or any other abnormal noise from the engine, often it's best to turn it off and have it towed to a repair facility, if you're not a mechanic. Engine overheating can be extremely damaging to various parts of an engine. If my car overheats, I stop the engine and have it towed home :). That's cheaper in the long run.

[richmwill]

6. Thanks to all who replied...

For their help. Just got back from the garage, turned out to be a hole in my radiator. $300 and about an hour later, and I was good to go again. Thank you all.