2.5 litre coolant loss

[super7]

Hey all,

I have a mk1 1991 paj and I am loosing roughly a tablespoon of coolant monthly. Normal Temps, engine runs fine and there is no coolant in my oil or vise versa. Also new rad cap as it was leaking lots when I first bought the vehicle 5-6 months ago.

My exhaust looks and smells normal too.

Should I look at the water pump? I could always swap my timing belt sooner than later.

Thanks,

Eric

[jrrodger]

I had this problem and found it was the hoses that go into the firewall for the front heater core. They were splitting at the connector. You can "snip" about 1/2" off and re-attach without too much trouble. Although it is ideal to replace these hoses. You would see lots of nasty corrosive red materials around the area if it is leaking there.

If you have already replaced these hoses and continue to have the problem, take a look in all the frost plugs on the engine sides. There may be a rust-through happening there (may have to remove the intercooler and other parts to look). Also you can remove the upper timing belt cover and take a look to see if there is any signs of lost coolant there without taking too many things apart. There also may be a leak happening in the rear heating core underneath the back seat.

I also highly recommend flushing out the whole system before fall/winter starts.

JR