Another Question for Car-Smart Peeps

Stealth01 · Postby **Stealth01** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

OK, so when we got Sarah's 94 Beretta, we thought the coolant resevoir looked empty, so we topped it off. Hard to tell by eyeballing, though, since the resevoir is opaque and impossible to see through. Looking in the fill spout doesn't help, either -- segmented tank.

The other day, when Al (goldrocket) was replacing the battery ground wire, he noticed that the coolant level sensor was unplugged, so he plugged it back in. Sarah's been getting a LOW COOLANT light ever since. So today I added about a quarter jug of coolant and started the car. Sure enough -- LOW COOLANT light is on. So I unplug the sensor and the light goes off. Plug it back in, light comes on.

I can't SEE any visible leaks. No coolant is pooling on the ground under the car. So what are the possibilities here?

1. Bad sensor?

2. Internal leak, with coolant going places it isn't supposed to?

What else?

tsx_guy · Postby **tsx_guy** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

tough one there....i would think if there was a leak you would be seeing puddles of the stuff around. Sounds like a bad sensor to me. The previous owner
didn't want to replace it and was sick of the light on the dash so he/she disabled it...

tsx_guy · Postby **tsx_guy** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

i can't be the only car savvy person here....and claiming the title is very very generous.. :lol:

Co626 · Postby **Co626** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

do u smell sugar or a sweet smell? I going to say bad sensor if you say no to that question. I would call the person you bought it from ( if you still have the #) and ask them why the sensor was pulled and go from there.

Stealth01 · Postby **Stealth01** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Crm @ Mar 28 2008, 08:14 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=36297]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

do u smell sugar or a sweet smell? I going to say bad sensor if you say no to that question. I would call the person you bought it from ( if you still have the #) and ask them why the sensor was pulled and go from there.[/b]

No, no sweet smell. And I could e-mail the person who sold it to us, but she lied about a LOT of stuff. She's rather...uhm...stupid too.

Stealth01 · Postby **Stealth01** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

OK, a couple of minutes of internet research and this is what I found.

INTERNAL coolant leaks do occur. One of the most common is a leak around the intake manifold, due to a bad intake manifold gasket.

Engines particularly noted for intake manifold gasket leaks include the GM 3.1L V6, which is in the Beretta.

So that PROBABLY means her coolant is leaking internally, assuming the level is actually going down. So Sarah will have to have her mechanic check it out and see if that's what's happening.

Colombia28 · Postby **Colombia28** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

Should have bought a mazda :P

Co626 · Postby **Co626** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

I see well I would just go get a new sensor for it ( autozone 17.00 bucks) and get a resevoir for her ( cheapo) jk

Co626 · Postby **Co626** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

well i didnt get to read the post up top sorry. OO its a v6 well that would have been helpful

MazdaTom · Postby **MazdaTom** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

Check the oil! Hopefully the oil doesn't look like cappichinno (sp). If it does, you got problems.

How long have you had this car?

If the coolant is leaking, it's going somewhere. When you are adding water/coolant, are you actually getting it full?

Army RX8 · Postby **Army RX8** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:14

Could also be that the coolant level within the radiator itself was low. If you check the radiator cold its gonna look full cuz the thermostats not open. Try running the car in the driveway with the radiator cap open. Run the Engine at about 3k RPMs and wait for the thermostat to open and keep an eye on the coolant. I had a similar problem in my 88 Mustang GT.

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