Coolant Spewing out of Overflow Tank

[steven89]

So today was my first day to drive the Supra to school but some weird things happen. So i drive it to school, only hit boost twice on the way (trying to save gas hahah). But when i park it, the overflow tank was spewing out coolant. I checked it over a bit and had to go because i was late. Well at lunch time i come out to check on it, i run it for a bit and it all seems normal, checked coolant in radiator and it seemed to be at a normal level. Also no white smoke when running or no milky oil in it (checked that in fear of BHG). So schools out, i start it up, drive to the gas station and home. It drove like nothing had happened, normal temps and everything. Whatsup? is it something i should be REALLY worried about? im definately keeping an eye on it a lil more now. Im going to try to get a new radiator cap atleast as thats what decides when the coolant gets put into overflow tank

Cliffs - Kid drives supra to school, parks, coolant spews out of overflow tank. Seems ok at lunch. Drove home perfectly and no white smoke or milky oil.

 

[BorHor]

How full was the overflow before it all came out? Sometimes when it is to full it tends to spill out.

 

[steven89]

How full was the overflow before it all came out? Sometimes when it is to full it tends to spill out.

dont know how full but the bird cage light came on after it all spewed out so i filled it up half way again.. just been driving it around a lil and it hasnt been doing it anymore.

Anyone else have any ideas why this might happen? Or is it just that it was a lil too full?

 

[eman2289]

Mine started doing that very randomly. I figured it was air in the cooling system, so i burped it a few times. It seemed to help, until the car decided to have a temp. reading above the "H" on my thermostat. Turns out i had a bhg, so u might quite possibly be on the way to one also. I did not have any of those symptoms, no smoke, no milky coolant. But dont feel bad,im 17 too, mine is sitting in my driveway with a BHG and rod knock. I get to daiy drive my sisters 05 beetle. LOL.
Good Luck.

 

[steven89]

Mine started doing that very randomly. I figured it was air in the cooling system, so i burped it a few times. It seemed to help, until the car decided to have a temp. reading above the "H" on my thermostat. Turns out i had a bhg, so u might quite possibly be on the way to one also. I did not have any of those symptoms, no smoke, no milky coolant. But dont feel bad,im 17 too, mine is sitting in my driveway with a BHG and rod knock. I get to daiy drive my sisters 05 beetle. LOL.
Good Luck.

Gah i really hope i dont have one. But my temp doesnt go up above "H" on temp gauge.. so yeah.

 

[87CandyBlueT]

I'm in the same boat.(cept never had overflow spew over).
First pressure test your radiator cap(replace if necessary w/ toyota cap), then your cooling system for leaks and fix any you find.

 

[ForcedTorque]

I was really hoping we didn't see this post for quite some time. If it is BHG, it's not the end of the world. There's a good bit of help in your area. I know that's not what you want to hear, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for ya.

 

[steven89]

Well, i dont think it is. It hasnt done it again and ive driven the car a total of 2 hours after this happening.. so idk? Hope i dont have a BHG though, but its a good excuse for the parents to let me spend money on MHG

 

[jetjock]

Assuming you didn't overfill the tank I'm afraid that means nothing Steven. So you've owned this car what, 2 or 3 days? And I'm curious...where does a 17 year old get $5500 to buy a car?

 

[starscream5000]

Mommy and Daddy?

 

[bigaaron]

 

[americanjebus]

Assuming you didn't overfill the tank I'm afraid that means nothing Steven. So you've owned this car what, 2 or 3 days? And I'm curious...where does a 17 year old get $5500 to buy a car?

i was barely 16 and forked over $6k+, some of us know the definition of work. Even at that age.

on for the hg issue, i had the same issue when i first got my car, turn it off, and it gets a wet dream. I burped the system and it helped temporarily, What you need to do right now to make sure you dont overheat later and damage something is.

Go to Napa and buy a block tester, it looks like a glass crayon, it comes with a blue fluid that you fill it up with. you put the tip of the tester on your radiator filler hole and let the engine run for about 15 min. If you have a slight BHG where combustion gasses are leeking into your coolant system this will pick it up. The blue fluid will turn yellow, that means your gasket is leaking. If it stays a perfect blueberry koolaid color than your problem is elsewhere.

napa part # for the tester is Bk. 700-1006

Hope this actually helps.

 

[bountykilla0118]

Assuming you didn't overfill the tank I'm afraid that means nothing Steven. So you've owned this car what, 2 or 3 days? And I'm curious...where does a 17 year old get $5500 to buy a car?

Dropped out of school and sells dope.:nono:

 

[jetjock]

Well, if it was was mommy and daddy they're about to cough up even more. Fwiw I had to work my ass off to get my first car. You know, all that stuff about having to walk to school 10 miles uphill in the snow...both ways

A few comments about the Napa tester. It's really a Block Chek made by Test Tools Inc and can be bought many places. I feel the UView 56000 is better as it's more accurate and is generally the same or less in price. Don't use either much these days. Easier to use an exhaust analyzer to sniff a bagged radiator neck, among other tricks, but the fluid tester does work well for beginning leaks.

The way these things work is by detecting carbonic acid in the coolant. Carbonic acid is a result of CO2 (the major constituent of combustion) mixing with water. The tester fluid can be bought separate once you use it up. It's a real scam for the maker as it's easy to make your own. The stuff is 99% distilled water and 1% "secret" ingredient. You'll have to do the legwork to find out what it is though. If you're really cheap once you make the fluid it's pretty easy to make a tester.

 

[steven89]

Assuming you didn't overfill the tank I'm afraid that means nothing Steven. So you've owned this car what, 2 or 3 days? And I'm curious...where does a 17 year old get $5500 to buy a car?

I've been saving forever, and i sold my Jeep to my mom to get this. So if this coolant spewing out is BHG.. How come it doesnt do it again when i fill it back up and drive around?

This is not my first car. Just a car i've always wanted.

 

[supramad77]

BHG i would say. Same symtoms as mine. It ran fine for a couple of months doing just that. Somedays it would not do anything wrong and then it would just blow out some coolant untill about a month ago it just blew big time.

 

[IJ.]

Stick a fork in it it's done

 

[jetjock]

What he said. I've seen lots of cars do exactly that ie; go for many weeks until the leak became big enough to really show itself. During that time they'd be only occasional symptoms. The owners went through all the motions but in the end it was always the same cause.

I don't know the car's history. How many miles on the engine? Did the previous owner do any work? Did he mention how often he had to add coolant? If the reservoir was overfilled it's going to puke out the excess but if it wasn't it could be anything from a funky thermostat or bad rad cap to the beginnings of a BHG...which is where my money is.

Assuming it is as long as it's small the coolant will go out the tailpipe but as the leak worsens it'll start to get into the oil and you're going to have big problems either then or down the road after you replace the HG. That's why you need to prove it now by doing legitimate testing. I'll tell you what it very likely isn't: it isn't from outside air that's gotten into the cooling system.

 

[steven89]

ok, how much is one of those tester kits you guys mentioned above? and would o'reilleys have it?

It also did it again this morning when i parked it at school. Didnt notice until now, just went and looked into the overflow tank and the birdcage light was on. I have now changed the radiator cap and i guess the thermostat would have to be next. The car still doesnt go over the 3/8ths mark on the gauge though.

The engine is supposedly a JDM engine that has ~49k (body has 118k) miles on it. The oil is still normal looking and the coolant still comes out normal looking green.

If this for sure is a BHG (want to test it first), what would the price differences roughly be between going MHG or normal HG. Id also be changing the oil pump if im going MHG.

 

[IJ.]

Click this!

JDM means jack shit it's still a used motor......