Ok... my wife may have a radiator problem, although she has been pissing me off lately and nothing would make me happier than a big fat I told you so when her car over heats on the side of the road...
Anyway, her coolant level is dropping in her 2003 330Ci... but I see no leaks. I'm under the assumption that the radiator system is a closed system, i.e. its not suppose to boil or leak out under any means... except if the pressure relief valve goes and I don't know if BMWs have that.
I noticed that her level was a little low about a year after she got her car, but it was the first time I checked so I topped it up with distilled water and called it a day. Yesterday her coolant level light went on and I told her drive right home... amazingly enough she actually listened to me this time. I let the car cool for a few hours and then opened the radiator cap... HOLY CRAP was that thing low. I had to use about half a gallon of 50/50 distilled bmw anti-freeze to fill it back up to the appropriate level.
The newer BMWs have those damn plastic undercovers so I can't see anything leaking, and her catalytic converter is new enough that if there was a small block leak I'd never see it... is there a safe reason why her car would be loosing coolant? Can it be something not as tragic as a block or gasket leak? Stealerships are so damn useless now-a-days with stuff like this that I wouldn't trust them to troubleshooot it... this car would have to be smoking for them to have a chance to find the problem.
Anyway... everyone's $0.02 is greatly appreciated.
Jared
Anyway, her coolant level is dropping in her 2003 330Ci... but I see no leaks. I'm under the assumption that the radiator system is a closed system, i.e. its not suppose to boil or leak out under any means... except if the pressure relief valve goes and I don't know if BMWs have that.
I noticed that her level was a little low about a year after she got her car, but it was the first time I checked so I topped it up with distilled water and called it a day. Yesterday her coolant level light went on and I told her drive right home... amazingly enough she actually listened to me this time. I let the car cool for a few hours and then opened the radiator cap... HOLY CRAP was that thing low. I had to use about half a gallon of 50/50 distilled bmw anti-freeze to fill it back up to the appropriate level.
The newer BMWs have those damn plastic undercovers so I can't see anything leaking, and her catalytic converter is new enough that if there was a small block leak I'd never see it... is there a safe reason why her car would be loosing coolant? Can it be something not as tragic as a block or gasket leak? Stealerships are so damn useless now-a-days with stuff like this that I wouldn't trust them to troubleshooot it... this car would have to be smoking for them to have a chance to find the problem.
Anyway... everyone's $0.02 is greatly appreciated.
Jared
Comment