2000 996 Porsche mystery coolant disappearing...............

[Johnny-5]

*update*

I just read online that the new coolant color is pink/red in color and is completely compatible with the older version of coolant. can anyone confirm this?

That is correct.

Old and new Porsche coolants are compatible.

Thanks Loren! One more question is the coolant premixed? I just pour it in and Im good or do I still mix it with distilled water?

Nevermind I believe this is concentrated so it will have to be mixed with distilled water! Ill touch base once everything is in and driven to bleed the system!

Edited June 4, 2012 by Johnny-5

[Loren]

Porsche coolant should be mixed 50-50 with distilled water.

[Johnny-5]

Porsche coolant should be mixed 50-50 with distilled water.

Thanks! I didnt see anything on there stating it was concentrated or not so I just assumed it was and mixed it 50/50.

update on the process:

Everything has been replaced and filled. Confirmed no leaks from hoses, fuel lines, etc.... Started the car and topped it off and keeping an eye on the gauge. Warmed the car up and was sitting around the 180 mark. I saw it climb a little past 180 at idle so I turned it off. Wasnt able to drive it for 30 minutes as people stated to get more of the air pockets out of the lines. Probably will try that later today or this week.

Is there any additional processes Im missing to bleed the system?

[Johnny-5]

Got another issue with the coolant. I just got around to driving the car today and took it out for a spin and noticed that the temp gauge started to go past the 180 and got to the end of the 0 before I turned it off. Drove it straight back home. I parked the car and heard something hitting the headers sort of like a frying sound (when water or something hits something hot) and saw coolant leaking. I cant seem to find out where its leaking from? The tank is brand new and all hoses were fine and clamped down. How do I know if the coolant sensor is bad? But technically it shouldnt leak from there anyways as its not inside the tank!?! Im drove with the breather valve open could it be leaking from there? Is it still not bleed correctly?

Any help would be great.

[Johnny-5]

Ok after doing some searching on the net it appears that normal temperature is between the 8 and 0. Can someone confirm this. When driving the car previously I never really kept an eye on the water temp so dont remember where its usually at.

As for the leaking I still cant figure out where its leaking from. I started the car after it cooled down a bit and still can seem to find where its leaking from? Could this have just been a fluke? Could it have leaked from the breather? I did drive the car around with that valve opened. Just closed it last night and will be topping off the fluids later today. Im tempted to drive it around again but the leak is sort of concerning!

[Beninki]

As stated before, it could be your AOS. I just changed mine out after having the same sypmptoms that you were having. Actually, the bellows on the AOS was leaking oil as well. The top connection to the AOS was leaking coolant at a steady rate. Now the car idles great and no more coolant on the floor. Check out my post on Rennlist.

[Johnny-5]

As stated before, it could be your AOS. I just changed mine out after having the same sypmptoms that you were having. Actually, the bellows on the AOS was leaking oil as well. The top connection to the AOS was leaking coolant at a steady rate. Now the car idles great and no more coolant on the floor. Check out my post on Rennlist.

The original leak has been resolved I found the crack on the old tank and replaced everything like the pump, thermostat, tank, etc. Found no leaks when I started it and let it idle. Before when I stated it I noticed the leak right away right above the exhaust tip so I know it not that. I drove the car around for more than 30 minutes yesterday with the vent pulled up the entire time so Im just wondering if it leaked due to that?

Lets just say it was the AOS why would it start leaking out the blue now? Because of the water pump? Pressure? Just dont see that happening. Throttle body was clean and Im not seeing any signs of a bad AOS.

[britdave]

I have heard, and also found out, you can have air pockets in the lines, very easily, if you don't suck/ remove all the air out,and it's best to use a special machine to do this, otherwise you will experience overheating problems and more. It' s not like a coolant change on your everyday normal type car, it's a Porsche, and there are many feet of long pipes going from front to back in there. Thats why I actually DID NOT do this job ( "coolant change ") because I heard all sorts of nightmare stories about, that if you don't get all the air out of the system, this can lead to BIG trouble.

The local Porsche dealer had a sale on the coolant change, so because it was about $180.00, and they had the SPECIAL machine,to get all the air out of the system, the Porsche coolant,etc, I let them do it (I usually do all the minor maintenance myself) However I knew this can be dodgy ! Beware of this if you attempt it yourself, better get all the air out ! Interesting note : They (Porsche) of course supplied all the coolant, and labor cost, but they were going to use 'regular tap water' for the other 50% of the fill. I had brought my own distilled water,and told them to use that, I was surprised that the dealer wouldn't have done that also, as I brought 4 gallons just in case, and it was only 75 cents per gallon. You would think they would have used distilled wouldn't you ? :eek: DC

[Johnny-5]

I have heard, and also found out, you can have air pockets in the lines, very easily, if you don't suck/ remove all the air out,and it's best to use a special machine to do this, otherwise you will experience overheating problems and more. It' s not like a coolant change on your everyday normal type car, it's a Porsche, and there are many feet of long pipes going from front to back in there. Thats why I actually DID NOT do this job ( "coolant change ") because I heard all sorts of nightmare stories about, that if you don't get all the air out of the system, this can lead to BIG trouble.

The local Porsche dealer had a sale on the coolant change, so because it was about $180.00, and they had the SPECIAL machine,to get all the air out of the system, the Porsche coolant,etc, I let them do it (I usually do all the minor maintenance myself) However I knew this can be dodgy ! Beware of this if you attempt it yourself, better get all the air out ! Interesting note : They (Porsche) of course supplied all the coolant, and labor cost, but they were going to use 'regular tap water' for the other 50% of the fill. I had brought my own distilled water,and told them to use that, I was surprised that the dealer wouldn't have done that also, as I brought 4 gallons just in case, and it was only 75 cents per gallon. You would think they would have used distilled wouldn't you ? :eek: DC

Yea I was just told this would be just as good and can be done yourself but thats why I was freaking out on the temps and drove it straight home. Ill probably check it out again today worst case scenario Ill take it in and have it done the right way. Just want to make sure that the coolant leak was a fluke so Ill probalby drive with the valve closed this time. Im surprised Porsche uses tap water considering the car and how much they charge for everything! They could at least go out of there way a bit to get distilled! Gee's!

By the way anyone ever encounter like a whirling sound up front? When my radiator fan kicked on I felt the suction on the drivers side but nothing on the passenger side? Just a whirling sound coming from that area? Im wondering if my fan is shot? Do both kick on or does the passenger kick on at another time? Is it common for these fan to fail? Ill probably be hitting that out today as well as cleaning the air ducts.

Edited June 9, 2012 by Johnny-5

[logray]

If you put in too much coolant it can spill out the overflow tube and onto the hot exhaust or engine. This is why it is always important to try and account for how much coolant comes out of the car during work so you know approximately how much to put back in.

Yes there is a special manual bleeding procedure in the workshop manual, and it is somewhat complex if you don't have a vacuum fill tool (such as the uview 55000). I have this tool and have used it countless times. It is well worth the money.

edit: if the coolant level is low before starting, or even as just as a good thing to do regardless (part of the WSM procedure)... with a cold engine, run it at idle for several minutes and keep pouring in fluid into the reservior until the level doesn't drop any longer. Then install the cap. Dont let it warm up too much otherwise the coolant will start overflowing. Don't overfill. When you install the cap make sure the threads are on straight and the cap is tight.

Without a vacuum fill tool, I've found the best way to get the air pockets out is to put a gallon of premixed coolant and water in your trunk. Then be prepared to drive somewhere and sit for a long time. I don't recommend just idling the car in your driveway because that won't accomplish anything. Before driving off, make sure the coolant level is at the max mark and the manual bleed valve is open. And of course, you want to ensure there are no leaks in the system otherwise you will be adding coolant forever. Turn the heater on high and the blower on low. Drive the car from cold up until operating temperature. Once at op temp, check the coolant level. DO NOT OPEN THE CAP. If it is still OK, then the next part should clear out the air in the system. If the coolant level is NOT OK at this point and is very low, allow the car to cool down (an hour or two) so you can open up the cap and add more coolant so it's up to the safe zone (then repeat the above driving procedure). If the coolant level was OK once you were at op temp, start the car again and make sure it is still at operating temp. Find a little used portion of road and open up the throttle. 2 to 3 quick blips up to 6,000 RPM should be enough to clear out the air. Let the car cool down again, then remove the cap and top it off up to the max mark. As long as there are no leaks you should be OK. Keep the gallon in your trunk just in case and watch it very carefully over the next several days.

This is why the manual procedure sucks, there is a great risk of overheating and causing major damage to your $15,000 engine.

Edited June 15, 2012 by logray

[Johnny-5]

If you put in too much coolant it can spill out the overflow tube and onto the hot exhaust or engine. This is why it is always important to try and account for how much coolant comes out of the car during work so you know approximately how much to put back in.

Yes there is a special manual bleeding procedure in the workshop manual, and it is somewhat complex if you don't have a vacuum fill tool (such as the uview 55000). I have this tool and have used it countless times. It is well worth the money.

Without a vacuum fill tool, I've found the best way to get the air pockets out is to put a gallon of premixed coolant and water in your trunk. Then be prepared to drive somewhere and sit for a long time. I don't recommend just idling the car in your driveway because that won't accomplish anything. Before driving off, make sure the coolant level is at the max mark and the manual bleed valve is open. And of course, you want to ensure there are no leaks in the system otherwise you will be adding coolant forever. Turn the heater on high and the blower on low. Drive the car from cold up until operating temperature. Once at op temp, check the coolant level. DO NOT OPEN THE CAP. If it is still OK, then the next part should clear out the air in the system. If the coolant level is NOT OK at this point and is very low, allow the car to cool down (an hour or two) so you can open up the cap and add more coolant so it's up to the safe zone (then repeat the above driving procedure). If the coolant level was OK once you were at op temp, start the car again and make sure it is still at operating temp. Find a little used portion of road and open up the throttle. 2 to 3 quick blips up to 6,000 RPM should be enough to clear out the air. Let the car cool down again, then remove the cap and top it off up to the max mark. As long as there are no leaks you should be OK. Keep the gallon in your trunk just in case and watch it very carefully over the next several days.

This is why the manual procedure sucks, there is a great risk of overheating and causing major damage to your $15,000 engine.

You wouldnt happen to be local would you? If so you able to let me do the vacuum at your place to bleed the system?

[Johnny-5]

Got a quick question regarding the coolant and redline water wetter. I didnt really flush the old yellow/green coolant from the system when I did everything and added the new pink coolant which they are both compatible but Im also thinking of putting in redline water wetter will that be ok to have that many mixtures of coolant and additives in the car? Im thinking it shouldnt be an issue but I figured I just post to confirm.

Also for the ones that added the water wetter any noticable differences in temp? Minor? Gradual?

[JFP in PA]

The only thing products like this do is make your wallet easier to sit on; don't waste your money................

[logray]

I've read/heard the following regarding these products:

If you use straight distilled water in the summer, add water wetter or similar product.

If you run coolant year round, it won't do much.