[parkaz]

So my car has been losing coolant and i've taken it to the dealership twice and they cant figure out where it is leaking from so theyve just been topping it off and sending me on my way. I have been noticing a little higher of oil temps recently and just driving it around town its been getting to the half-way point. After getting it back from the dealership today I took it to my favorite road and drove it very hard and the oil temp started rising very quickly and after only a couple WOT the temps were at the 3/4 point. I immediately pulled over and let it cool off and there was a strong coolant smell. However, it cooled off quickly and on the drive back the oil temps were much less than halfway and didnt go above that. Any ideas whats going on?

 

[elyk864]

Heater core leaking? On my old car I had the thermostat housing crack and it was slowly leaking coolant from there.

 

[bootdinker]

Heater core leaking? On my old car I had the thermostat housing crack and it was slowly leaking coolant from there.

Yeah, if they can't find it easily by looking at it, I'd ask them to check the heater core. Does the inside of your car ever smell damp when you get in it?

 

[SIstomper]

Have them change the radiator. @StormTrooperST had a hairline crack in the radiator. Check the felt pad on the bottom or the radiator between the radiator and the support bracket. If its wet the radiator is gone. My ford tech buddy says they know its a issue.

 

[parkaz]

Yeah, if they can't find it easily by looking at it, I'd ask them to check the heater core. Does the inside of your car ever smell damp when you get in it?

no I haven't noticed a smell from the inside. Any other ways to tell?

 

[parkaz]

Have them change the radiator. @StormTrooperST had a hairline crack in the radiator. Check the felt pad on the bottom or the radiator between the radiator and the support bracket. If its wet the radiator is gone. My ford tech buddy says they know its a issue.

View attachment 164394

okay I'll check that tonight.

 

[Bryman13]

The dealer should be able to do a leak test if it's as bad as you say it is. There is definitely something wrong if you're losing coolant that fast. What happens under normal driving with no WOT? Do you have any leaks then or does it just take longer?

 

[bootdinker]

no I haven't noticed a smell from the inside. Any other ways to tell?

im not sure where the heater core is on the focus. I had an old escort and when the heater core went it leaked fluid down the back of the passenger side firewall. if you're losing fluid that fast thenyou would notice it.

 

[parkaz]

The dealer should be able to do a leak test if it's as bad as you say it is. There is definitely something wrong if you're losing coolant that fast. What happens under normal driving with no WOT? Do you have any leaks then or does it just take longer?

It hasn't been losing coolant too quickly, it took about 3 weeks for it to go from the full to min line under regular driving conditions. It definitely leaks more if I drive harder but I can't find any visible leaks and they said they pressurized the coolant reservoir overnight and nothing was lost.

 

[parkaz]

im not sure where the heater core is on the focus. I had an old escort and when the heater core went it leaked fluid down the back of the passenger side firewall. if you're losing fluid that fast thenyou would notice it.

I haven't found any visible leaks, the car overheated while still having plenty of coolant.

 

[Bryman13]

It hasn't been losing coolant too quickly, it took about 3 weeks for it to go from the full to min line under regular driving conditions. It definitely leaks more if I drive harder but I can't find any visible leaks and they said they pressurized the coolant reservoir overnight and nothing was lost.

That's tough. I wonder if something could be wrong with the intercooler. The stock IC is notoriously bad, and that might explain why it happens after a few WOT runs. If you plan on keeping the car that's something you should strongly consider doing anyway, maybe go ahead and do that and see if it helps. Still I've had my car for 9 months and put 10k on it (now at 56k) and I've never had to add coolant, so you're definitely losing it somewhere. What year is yours? Still under warranty? If so, it's definitely a warrantable thing that you need to stay on your dealer about.

 

[parkaz]

That's tough. I wonder if something could be wrong with the intercooler. The stock IC is notoriously bad, and that might explain why it happens after a few WOT runs. If you plan on keeping the car that's something you should strongly consider doing anyway, maybe go ahead and do that and see if it helps. Still I've had my car for 9 months and put 10k on it (now at 56k) and I've never had to add coolant, so you're definitely losing it somewhere. What year is yours? Still under warranty? If so, it's definitely a warrantable thing that you need to stay on your dealer about.

ya I was planning on replacing the intercooler eventually, but didnt want to for a couple more months as I'm a college student and dont exactly have a ton of money. It's a 2014 and it has about 1500 miles left on the bumper to bumper warranty so ya i'm gonna keep monitoring it and when it gets low again I'll take it back in. Is it normal for the temps to go that high whilst driving hard even though it's full of coolant?

 

[lug]

Intercooler has nothing to do with you coolant problem. Temps running about 1/2 up the gauge is normal depending on climate. A bit of advice....if your oil is getting a bit hot but not actually overheating, do not pull off to the side, drop rpms and cruise instead. This lets the oil keep flowing and is better for your engine. If it doesn't cool down, then you have a problem.

 

[Carlson]

What was the outside temperature? How long have you been driving it hard? Also, define "hard" (speed, gears, RPMs).

 

[Bryman13]

ya I was planning on replacing the intercooler eventually, but didnt want to for a couple more months as I'm a college student and dont exactly have a ton of money. It's a 2014 and it has about 1500 miles left on the bumper to bumper warranty so ya i'm gonna keep monitoring it and when it gets low again I'll take it back in. Is it normal for the temps to go that high whilst driving hard even though it's full of coolant?

On the stock IC, back to back pulls will definitely get you overheated. People end up going into limp mode if you do it a few times on a hot day.

Intercooler has nothing to do with you coolant problem. Temps running about 1/2 up the gauge is normal depending on climate. A bit of advice....if your oil is getting a bit hot but not actually overheating, do not pull off to the side, drop rpms and cruise instead. This lets the oil keep flowing and is better for your engine. If it doesn't cool down, then you have a problem.

I wasn't saying the IC had anything to do with the coolant itself, just the overall heat issue, which these cars are known for having. I agree though, upshift and keep moving to keep oil circulating and airflow will help keep everything cool.

 

[davesST]

Anyone think there may be air bubbles in the coolant system? I've heard of some ST owners having cooling issues, and "burping" the system. Don't know if this would help, but have heard it through the grapevine.

 

[shineboy]

2Bryman13 Back to back pulls on a hot day will not, or should not, overheat the car. Maybe hard track laps it will start to overheat but i seriously doubt several back to back pulls will overheat the car. Never did to mine when is was stock

 

[parkaz]

What was the outside temperature? How long have you been driving it hard? Also, define "hard" (speed, gears, RPMs).

Outside temps were between 50-65 degrees but it was at about 10,000 foot elevation. I was above 4,000 RPMs most of the time in second gear.