[Slightly O/T] Too much coolant in car?

[loply]

Hi folks,

My mate woke up to find his Escort wouldn't start, quickly diagnosed as the coolant being partially frozen - a kind of slush like consistency. The water pump was therefore offering too much restistance.

Poured a few buckets of warm water over the pump and a kettle of hot water into the coolant resevoir, and it turned over fine and started.

The obvious consequence now though is that there's a litre or so of extra coolant in it.

On all my bikes excess coolant would just drain itself via a rubber tube that points at the ground, but seemingly not on his car. The overflow/resevoir tank is full and a small bore black pipe going to the top of it appears to be sucking water in (in from the resevoir, that is) and making strange noises. Also the engine temp gauge goes to maximum after a few miles.

It looks like reaching the bottom of the rad is highly inconvenient, which is a shame as I presume there's a drain bolt there.

Any ideas what the easiest solution is? And what's the exact problem too, why would too much coolant cause overheating?

I never really understood exactly what expansion tanks do and how they work...

Any help appreciated folks.
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Yamaha SZR660 Caution to the wind, the throttle pinned!

[UnknownStuntm...]

There will be a min / max level mark on the reservoir. This normally is to be used as a guide when the car is warm. If there's too much in there, get a tube in there and suck some out! Siphon method, careful don't swallow too much antifreeze, you'll get spaced out quite quick

[lydanial]

pull bottom pipe off radiator and then top up fresh with a mixture thats going to be good to about -10.

some of the smaller pipes may still be blocked and iced throughout causing the overheat.

[MaybeGuy]

probably a new engine because his is now cracked.
yaaay
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Blue_SV650S wrote: it was a sh1te wheelie, but it proves that he can get it up in 3rd and can do angles. In summery, mattsprattuk is a gobby little sh1tebag, dopehead tw4t, but sadly for all of us, he probably isn't THAT full of sh1te!!
Kickstart wrote: Hi I tend to agree with Matt. All the best Keith

[loply]

Thanks for that mate, I considered sucking it out but couldn't find a hose at the time, I'll bank that idea and possibly use it if I can find a syringe!

What do the two pipes leading to the resevoir do? And why does the top one appear to be sucking in water? (If it wasn't overfilled, it would just be sucking air)?

I understand the bit about excess water being squeezed out of the cooling system into the resevoir, but how does it get back again? And why the tube going to the very top of the res?
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Yamaha SZR660 Caution to the wind, the throttle pinned!

[MaybeGuy]

check the oil
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Blue_SV650S wrote: it was a sh1te wheelie, but it proves that he can get it up in 3rd and can do angles. In summery, mattsprattuk is a gobby little sh1tebag, dopehead tw4t, but sadly for all of us, he probably isn't THAT full of sh1te!!
Kickstart wrote: Hi I tend to agree with Matt. All the best Keith

[arry]

[loply]

I doubt anything has cracked as the coolant hadn't even frozen in the pipes, it was just a slushy feeling. The engine turned over fine, just clearly at a fraction the normal speed, so wouldn't start.

Should excess coolant just drain by itself from a pipe somewhere? Or do you need to drain it manually?

I'm hoping the overheating was just because the rad was slushy and so coolant wasn't flowing through it.... Even though we ran the car for a few miles, I guess it might not have melted fully.

PS In case anybody was thinking it, the water pump belt hasn't snapped, it is definately turning
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Yamaha SZR660 Caution to the wind, the throttle pinned!

[ms51ves3]

[MarJay]

Hmm..

It doesn't have to freeze solid to damage the engine...

All it takes is a small expansion of the coolant. The fact that it took another litre of coolant is concerning in itself, especially if it is a sealed system.

A lot of engines have freeze plugs which pop when the coolant starts to freeze so that the block is not damaged if it does freeze. If this happens it is likely you will end up with water in the oil and vice versa. I'd suggest checking the oil for water ASAP just in case.

I'm not saying it has happened, but if it has it could mean the destruction of the engine if you drive it and the freeze plugs have popped. I'm sure some car expert (such as Robby) will be able to tell us if this particular engine has freeze plugs or not.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Robby]

I haven't seen a car engine without plugs in the block that pop out when it freezes. They tend to be half way up the block, about an inch and a half across, round metal plugs. If the coolant freezes they pop out to protect the block and stop it cracking.

Of course, if they have popped out then the coolant will drain out of them onto the ground. If you started the car and the coolant has melted any residual would drain out of these holes, and you'd have an engine with no coolant. This would get hot very fast.

Having too much coolant does not cause overheating. No having enough does.

I wouldn't surprised by significant engine damage. Slushy coolant means that it's part frozen and has developed ice crystals, which expand in narrow coolant passages and exert a lot of force onto the metal around them.

Also, if it went slushy last night and you've diluted it further, it'll freeze tonight.

Actions. Look and see if the drain plugs have popped, and if there is still any coolant in the expansion bottle. Look under the oil filler cap for mayonnaise, and also on the oil dipstick. If it appears to be ok, drain the coolant to protect the block tonight, or siphon out as much as you can (at least 3L, you may find it easier to remove the lower radiator hose and drain it). If you drain it full, refill with 50/50 water/coolant. If you only siphon out a bit, refill with neat coolant.

[stinkwheel]

[crackpotterpi...]

I remember many moons ago when I first started workig on cars after leaving school (1991) when we used to get cold winters and snow quite regular,a few older cars would come in the gagrage,vauxhall vivas,ford escorts etc and the core plugs or freeze plugs as you called them used to pop out when it froze overninght,but depending on the engine this doesnt always happen the core plugs can get corroded in place, the holes are generally only set in the block for manufacture purposes.I have seen several car and hgv engine blocks and heads crack or spit internally because the core plugs didnt pop out when the coolant froze,we got down to -13 thursday night in preston,lancs according to the innacurate car thermometer anyway.........Well getting back to the original post,chances are there is some significant engine damage to the head or block.
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1990 jc20 nsr125-sold,2003 cg 125-sold currently no bike.........might get another 2 stroke me thinks much more fun

[loply]

Hi guys,

Just to give you an update, my mate took the car to a garage this morning who immediately told him the water pump blades have sheared off (on account of the ice), quoted him 150 quid to sort it. I thought it was a bit strange as the engine ran silently and purred nicely, but anyway, they say that's why it is overheating and he's happy for them to sort it.

Fingers crossed, cheers for the help.
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Yamaha SZR660 Caution to the wind, the throttle pinned!