Gone are the days when a pool of green liquid under your car was a clear signal it was leaking antifreeze.
These days, antifreeze comes in a variety of colours so that pool could be green, red, orange or purple.
"That has complicated the diagnostics a little bit," says Steve Dunbar, who owns John Hall's Car Craft Ltd. in North Vancouver with his wife Kellie.
In general, many car leaks are noticed by drivers after the car has been parked as it gives the leak time to drip and a visible place to pool.
If antifreeze is leaking, common areas to check would be water pumps, radiators or hoses. Dunbar explains that, for example, a seal on a water pump could wear out allowing antifreeze to leak externally.
"Head gaskets can go and then they will allow antifreeze to get into the combustion chamber and then you'll see white steam out of the tail pipe," he adds as another example. In that case, the engine probably wouldn't run as well as it should.
Antifreeze may give off a sweet smell and it also has a sweet taste. That could present a serious safety hazard if antifreeze is making it to the ground because it is poisonous and the sweet taste attracts pets.
If the car is leaking while it's being driven and right after it's parked, that could indicate a bad leak. Other indicators of a leak could be smoke or certain smells.
Oil is something that may leak from valve cover gaskets, intake manifold gaskets, or camshaft and crankshaft seals. It may produce a burning-rubber type of smell.
In the spring and summer, when drivers start using their air conditioning again many may notice a small pool of clear liquid under their car. That's often just frost that builds up on some of the AC components and once the components warm up the frost melts off. "That leak usually originates from the passenger side right near the back of the engine compartment," explains Dunbar. Other than the air conditioning, all leaks should get checked out, he adds.
"Any leak that's making it to the ground, from an environmental point of view, as well as a cost point of view to the consumer, yes, they should be checked out," he says, adding if you're smelling it that means it's making it to the exhaust and could be a potential fire hazard.
If they are minor, these leaks generally won't affect the performance of the car, says Dunbar.
Although some might eventually. For example, with a coolant leak, if the coolant level in the engine got low enough, it could cause some problems.
"Any of the fluid levels if they get low enough can cause some problems," says Dunbar.
Although seeing a leak is generally not a reason to panic, any time there is a leak making it to the ground, it's worth getting it checked out, he adds. Antifreeze is one of the main elements that leaks, but there can be other culprits and leaks can also happen internally. For example, transmission cooler inside the radiator can leak and that leak might not be visible on the outside. If that cooler leaks to the inside of the radiator it could produce a blend of transmission oil and antifreeze, says Dunbar. "And that's certainly not a good thing for the transmission or the engine."
In general, older cars tend to leak more than newer cars due to wear and tear and "the quality of the gaskets has improved on newer cars, they just seal them up way better," adds Dunbar. "And then as an engine wears there's more internal pressures in the engine so it tends to push some of the oils out."
Dunbar recommends getting all car fluids checked two to three times a year.
Rosalind Duane, [email protected]
