Bad radiator cap?
- Thread starter suprafanatic
- Start date
Over pressurization of the cooling system,
lack of presure in cooling system,
Sustained improper pressure in cooling system,
Collapsing radiator hoses,
exploding radiator hoses,
Vacuum in cooling system,
Overflow level never changes,
cap is leaking coolant out,
cap is missing parts of itself,
etc.
What are you dealing with that leads you to think the cap is bad?
cliffs: a lot of things can happen, it just depends on how it fails
lack of presure in cooling system,
Sustained improper pressure in cooling system,
Collapsing radiator hoses,
exploding radiator hoses,
Vacuum in cooling system,
Overflow level never changes,
cap is leaking coolant out,
cap is missing parts of itself,
etc.
What are you dealing with that leads you to think the cap is bad?
cliffs: a lot of things can happen, it just depends on how it fails
Pushes coolant into the overflow bottle as it warms up. Eventually pushes enough to spit on the ground usually before it even gets to temperature.
pull the cap off and check the rubber gaskets on it. sounds like its not sealing properly. also a new rad cap is 5 bucks? if it looks bad, try a new one.
enjoi.this;1824394 said:
This is pretty much what I'm experiencing. I have two different radiator caps, BOTH are pretty old caps. The one I originally had on I drove for about 2 hours and a decent amount of the coolant had been pushed out into the overflow tank and started to drip out onto the ground. Once the car cooled I took the cap off and couldn't see any water in the radiator so I had to add some. Second cap I had I put on to see if it would make a difference on the two hour drive back home. With the second cap it did let some coolant out but not nearly as much. I took the cap off again after cooling and I could still see water near the top of the radiator only like 1/4 inch down. Should I get a new cap?
I went to autozone to get a new cap but the one they had for my car didn't fit my radiator at all, it was to small.
ATL88Supra;1824405 said:
This is exactly why I didn't post my symptoms in the very first post. I've been around long enough to know how that will end up. I have good reason to believe its the cap, but can't find a new one that fits.
suprafanatic;1824411 said:
If you're having trouble finding a decent cap, do yourself a favor and go to your local Toyota dealership. The extra $10 is completely worth it.
Go to the dealer- should be around $15 and it'll fit for sure (unless you're running an aftermarket radiator) But even then I'm using an OEM on my Koyo.
would they have them in stock or would they have to order them? I've gotten one from autozone in years past that fit my 87. Maybe the guy that gave it to me this time was a dummy lol. They aren't to bright around our autozone.
But other than it pushing out a little coolant the car has NO other issues. It doesn't over heat unless I drive with the really bad cap on for a long period of time. Second cap it wont over heat cause it doesn't let enough out. No oil in the coolant, no coolant in the oil. No milkshake under the oil cap. No loss of power. Starts up right away and drives great. No smoking what-so-ever even under boost, had a friend follow me for a while to check.
But other than it pushing out a little coolant the car has NO other issues. It doesn't over heat unless I drive with the really bad cap on for a long period of time. Second cap it wont over heat cause it doesn't let enough out. No oil in the coolant, no coolant in the oil. No milkshake under the oil cap. No loss of power. Starts up right away and drives great. No smoking what-so-ever even under boost, had a friend follow me for a while to check.
The best person to ask if they have a cap on hand is the person who works the parts counter. Give them a call tomorrow morning and you'll know. I would be willing to bet they do have one on hand, since it's universal for many different Toyota vehicles.
For the low fluid in the radiator, check the hose from the radiator to the overflow, and the hose to the bottom of the overflow. If those have a leak, it will push coolant out just fine, but suck in air when it cools.
So when you say check those two hose's for a leak are you talking an air leak? or a coolant leak from the hose? I know the hose going down into the overflow tank is extremely loose, it falls off almost every time I pull the cap for the overflow. So maybe its pulling only air back instead of coolant.. but still why would it be pushing out to much coolant?
Actually it just clicked with me, I think your onto something with my issue. The first radiator cap I had on was bad and it was allowing to much coolant out, period. The second cap I used barely let any out, but when it cooled it couldn't suck anything but air back in and that's why it was like 1/4 inch low in the radiator. I'll make sure the hose going into the overflow tank is tighter and check for any other air leaks. Thank you for bring that point up, not sure why I didn't think of that, but I didn't lol.
suprafanatic;1824391 said:
It will only fail one way, which is losing the seal and resulting pressure. That would push the coolant into the overflow more than normal, and it wouldn't pull back in when cooling.
gtsfirefighter
SM Expert on White trash
I bought a new Toyota cap from the dealership for $17.00 last week. The had to order it but I got it the next day.
On the other hand, my old 91 turbo had the same symptoms you're having. I thought it was the cap. It wasn't...
Do a leakdown test. That's how I discovered it wasn't the cap. If you're car smokes and sputters after a leakdown test...well...
On the other hand, my old 91 turbo had the same symptoms you're having. I thought it was the cap. It wasn't...
Do a leakdown test. That's how I discovered it wasn't the cap. If you're car smokes and sputters after a leakdown test...well...
It's actually a very common thing to overlook - they aren't pressure hoses, so nobody thinks about them leaking coolant, never mind air.suprafanatic;1824475 said:
