Why does my coolant level keep dropping?

If your car’s coolant level is dropping, it is almost always due to leaks in the cooling system – the hoses, radiator or radiator cap, for example. Symptoms of this can be a rising temperature gauge, a sweet odour (the smell of antifreeze), problems with your car’s heater or increased fuel consumption.

Is it normal for car coolant level to drop?

Q: Is it normal for the coolant level to drop? Yes, due to the extreme engine temperature, the water element within the Coolant tends to evaporate, resulting in a coolant level drop.

Why do I have to keep adding coolant to my car?

Antifreeze leaks can be caused by a variety of things but the two most common factors are age and dirty coolant. Dirt or oil in your coolant can accelerate wear in your system, leading to leaks in your water pumps, at gaskets, or at o-rings. Flushing your cooling system is the best way to stop this type of leak.

Can coolant be low without a leak?

If the coolant level is going down, and there is no external leak evident, then it’s probably leaking internally, into the engine. If the car has recently overheated then this could have caused the head gasket to fail. If it has it could be leaking coolant into the combustion chambers.

How often should you need to top up coolant?

Although, this advice may vary between car manufacturers. Coolant should be topped up whenever the level drops below the guide marks. When it comes to draining and changing the coolant altogether, manufacturers guidance also varies although this can be after a minimum of 30,000 miles depending on how old your car is.

Is it normal to slowly lose coolant?

Sometimes a slow leak isn’t enough to make a puddle, but you’ll lose coolant over time. If you don’t find anything when the engine is cold, you can drive your car for a bit and let it come up to temperature. Sometimes you can spot a leak when the cooling system is under pressure.

What causes coolant to leak from the engine?

If the coolant level is going down, and there is no external leak evident, then it’s probably leaking internally, into the engine. If the car has recently overheated then this could have caused the head gasket to fail. If it has it could be leaking coolant into the combustion chambers.

What causes the coolant level to decrease in a car?

The main reason behind the reduction of coolant level is leakage. So, if the coolant level is decreasing then a person should inspect the condition of the coolant tank along with other components of the cooling system.

What happens when coolant is blown out of the overflow?

I can only assume the coolant is blown out of the overflow when the car is hot and the system then settles at that level. There’s no sign of any leaks or other problems. Unless you own a car with known head gasket issues (who said K series?!) or have suffered a major overheat, head gasket failure is rare.

Can a leaking head gasket cause a drop in coolant?

This type of leak is very tricky to detect because it only will leak when you are driving so you don’t actually see any coolant on the ground after you park your car. A leaking head gasket could cause the coolant level to drop, but usually there are other things you would notice if this were a problem.