1988 Festiva loosing anti-freeze

[hopy-d]

My 88 festiva is loosing anti-freeze! There are no external leaks, no water in the oil and no bubbles in the raidiator. Has anyone ever had a leak in the intake manifold that would allow the coolant to be burnt in the cylinders?

Thank You in advance for your help.
Hopy-d

[Pu241]

Need some details.
When did this start?
Did you do any work on it before this started!
How much anti-freeze are we talking about?
How many miles before you notice it needs more anti-freeze?
Drop in mileage?
Positive, it doesn't leak?
Is it possible it only leaks at something other than idle?
Where are you located?
Please add your location to your profile.
I promise, no sales-persons will call!

[Levitan]

"Please add your location to your profile.
I promise, no sales-persons will call!"

Now thats Funny!!! LOL!!! Thanks John, I needed a laugh this morning! Just copy and paste that every time a newb doesn't have his location. A new Turner Classic!

[Pu241]

Levitan,
Glad to I could help you laugh!
Need a few myself now!
But I really need to "cut and paste" a set of instructions on how add their location to their profile.
It's kind of like the "search" argument.
Better to do a quick search and post the info than just say "use the search function"!
Because to be honest with you, I can't find some of the stuff I know exists in our forum, via "search".
Heck, some of I even wrote!
Besides hopy-d isn't a nubie, look at his "Join Date"!
Same as mine!

[hopy-d]

I just recently noticed that I was loosing antifreeze. I am totaly certaing that there is no external leak. The car has 242,000 miles on it and it runs good. No work has been to the motor at all. It is consuming a little over 1/2 gallon every two weeks. In that time I may drive 150 miles. I drive it 3 miles to work every day. There hasn't been any noticeable change in fuel mileage. It does smoke a little (blue smoke) but not white and it doesn't smell like antifreeze. I live in Southeast Nebraska.

Thank you for your help

[bobstad]

I don't know if this will help, but the only time I loose oil is if I'm getting on the throttle often enough; like using freeway on-ramps with lots of traffic.

The oil is somehow sucked out of the crankcase, and through somewhere in the intake process; I'd guess must end up going through the combustion chambers?

I did once get a tiny pin-hole in a small hose that is also really short on top of the motor near the end closest to the driver's side of the car, that is also near the front of the motor and which a person might never of noticed driving in wet weather; which allowed coolant to escape from the cooling system. A tiny little spray I only noticed from the smell of the anti-freeze.

[elcamino1]

Have you pulled the spark plugs? If one or all are light gray to white (old plugs) then you are burning it
Maybe headgasket,cracked head or cylinder?

[floydiancomplex]

could be the heater core under the dash. I was loosing coolant mysteriously for a
long time, when I gutted the car there was 3 or 4 gallons soaked into the sound
deadening mat. Never smelled a thing. You got a lot of miles and heater cores
have a tendency to fail.

[hopy-d]

I pulled the spark plugs a couple of weeks ago and they were light grey. I will pull the carpet up under the heater core this weekend and let you know what I find. I had the car up on a servic rack today and spent an hour looking for any kind of leaks and everything is dry. If I have a cracked head shouldn't I see an increase in water temperature?

Thanks for the help

[elcamino1]

If antifreeze is leaking into the inside of the car you will smell it.
In my car now if it rains my floor on the passenger side gets wet from a leak somewhere under the dash.
Back to ths subject,pull the spark plugs again,take a flashlight look in the clyinder at the top of the pistons they should have carbon deposit on top, if they are shiny clean or just one you're burning it.

[jglutz]

!/2 gallon per 150 miles is key. At this rate and if the leak is internal to the engine (combustion or intake paths)...you should continuously see whit smoke out of the tail pipe. Not necessarily thick white...but always a whote tinge like the car has never warmed up. At 242K I would not be surpise if some of the gaskets have erroded....especially if the have never been replaced.

If it was an external leak....you would smell it....hear it....or see it....after the engine has been stoppedpost a hot run.

Pleas don't let the engine over heat! The damage could be catostrophic.

[hopy-d]

I am sorry it took so long to get back to you guys. There isn't any leaks in the heater core. We put a piece of cardboard in fromt of the radiator to increase the temp. and still no bubles in the radiator. Spark plugs are a lighter grey than they were before but they are not white. I put some bars leak in the radiator and I will let you know how that turns out.

thanks