Passat (B7) :: 2012 - Coolant Smell Outside Of Car
Mar 5, 2013
The car is my wifes DD. 7300mi, 2.5L I5 auto.
For the last few months whenever I walk past the car I could smell a faint coolant smell near the front of the car. My wife couldn't smell it, so I figured I would just ask the dealer about it when I took it in for the 10,000mi service. Yesterday she gets home saying she could smell it so bad, she also noticed the smell seemed to linger in the back seat when she was strapping the kid in his car seat. I checked under the hood and I can not find ANY sort of a leak whatsoever. At this point I'm thinking of taking it in to the dealer sooner to have them check it out.
Noticed a faint coolant smell on their 2.5L?
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I noticed on a few occasions that there is a slight smell of coolant around the front of our Camry after driving it a while. I haven't noticed any decrease in the level in the reservoir.
Since it's a CPO vehicle, I was thinking maybe some coolant was spilled during the inspection process. A little spilled coolant can go a long way, and last a long time.
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I just got a 2008 Passat and have noticed that after I start the car, for about 10 seconds, I can very faintly smell coolant, it happens when the fan is off or on, and the temp is either on hot or cold. Its not bad, but it is there for short time.
It reminds me of how my older VW's would have a bad heater core, but even that was only noticeable if the heat was ON, this happens heat on or off. Also I see no leaks in the engine of any sort, the car only has 150 miles on it currently.
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Brand new 2012 LS460 with one Dealer oil change:
This one started with stronger smell on passenger side but is now strong hot antifreeze smell when you open either front door. Not a drop on floor, no gauge movement from normal on hot 2-3hr trips - Only had one service six months ago at dealer just because it was to sit all year. I pulled all top engine covers off to inspect and found not one thing wet or suspect.
Ready to put on rack to look underneath (below firewall I suppose) just not sure at what, heater core connections? But a head gasket would be 1st guess? What could this be?
SAME as previous post (but no ID) from a 2008L owner: "I only have about 3,500 miles on my car, every now and then I get a faint smell of possibly antifreeze when I open either of the front doors after a good drive. It's very strange because if I try to locate the source, the smell goes away. Once I exit the car and sniff around, there is no smell in the wheel wells, in the front grill, or under the hood. I then try to sniff under the car just under the front doors, and there is no smell!"
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I have a question on the 2012 F-350 with 6.7. I have found after mid to long drives when I shut the truck down I can smell coolant when walking around the front of the engine. Seems more so from the driver side but i have yet to see any leaks or wet spots on the ground. I had the water pump and lower rad hose replaced last year under warranty and though it might have been residue but after a year and still smelling it it has to be something else. I only have 30,000km's left under warranty so if I need something replaced it should be soon
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Recently noticed after a hard rain, I get a bit of a musty smell in the car. It clears up after a day or so.
I've check everywhere. Everything is dry. I can't find standing water anywhere.
Any problems with standing water?
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on my dads 2012 TDI, he has about 53K miles on it. one day, suddenly coolant light came on, and the tank was low. Took it to the dealer, they topped if off and said they had no idea. it happened again last Friday, I topped it off with distilled water (had nothing else ATM) and took it to the dealer, they said they did a pressure test and everything is good, no leaks and sent me back.
Today, same thing happened. coolant light came on. Its getting dropped off for the 3rd time, but this time I told them I want answers, not just topping it off.
What could cause this? it seems really odd that a whole tank can empty itself without any visible leaks.
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I've owned several cars that leaked coolant, and I would be able to call myself an expert in the smell of leaking coolant in the engine bay. Besides having the low coolant, I can smell coolant after a drive. Especially when parked in my garage.
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As soon as I turn heater on I smells coolant, I checked all over inside cabin there is no coolant liquid inside, I'm wondering if the heater itself is leaking or there is another problem.
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This is my second vw I've owned and now I own a 20th ae gti. Just the other day I got out of my car and smelled antifreeze. So I popped the hood and realized there was no coolant in the reservoir.. So I went to my dealership, put some in... well that obviously isn't my problem, because the next day it was gone. Again. This is on sunday so I can't do anything about it. I made an appt to drop it off tonight @ my volkswagen dealer. It's not leaking, not smoking or burning, and the temp gauge isn't moving at all.
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So I noticed the smell of burning coolant a day after I got an oil change. My car wasn't overheating and my thermostat didn't jump at all. I open the hood and there's a little bit of smoke. I take it to a mechanic and they do a pressure check. They see dried coolant under the upper hose connecting the engine to the radiator. They tell me its the flange connecting that hose to the engine that's leaking low levels of coolant and it will cost 150 to fix.(not a gasket) I say go ahead. They're in the process of fixing it today and they call me saying "We got the part, and we're going to fix it but we think the thermostat isn't fully opening or closing which is causing the problem and it will be another 150 to fix". Now I looked up this mechanic and they have 12 1 star reviews on Yelp of people saying they were overpriced and the mechanics often piled on things once they got on.
My issue is essentially the mechanic said "This problem could happen again if you don't replace the thermostat" but he also said they're not sure if its a bad thermostat. Couldn't they check the thermostat easily??? Like I said I said besides the leak in the flange I haven't had any issues. The car warms up fine and the temperature NEVER spikes (I had a different car overheat and blow a gasket two years ago cause I didn't notice the temp gauge for 2 miles and I LEARNED MY LESSON) I always keep a careful eye on the gauge.
My question is isn't there an easy way to check the thermostat? The mechanic keeps pressuring me to fix it. Just to be safe I am just having them fix the flange and taking it to a mechanic I trust. (I couldn't take it to him before cause he's on the other side of town and I was paranoid my car wouldn't make it)
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95 caprice 4.3L V8 150,000 miles. I smell coolant every time i drive the car (everyday). Drives fine, doesn't overheat. Smell is not inside the car but when I get out and stronger as I walk towards front of vehicle or stick my nose to the grill. Low coolant light came on about 2,000 miles ago. i filled to proper level in the coolant tank and since then only has lost an inch or so. no leaks on the ground but distinct coolant smell every time. Anything to worry about?
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It might be a bad heater core, but my heater works fine and there is no moisture on my carpet.
Occasionally I'll see traces of steam and smoke enter the car through the vents. I also smell a coolant smell. I was losing coolant very slowly, but the level has been holding.
Now my AC doesn't blow nearly as cold as it once did.
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I have an 03 Explorer with the 4.0 engine. There is a strong smell of coolant and the reservoir does go down slightly once a week or so. There is No Leak whatsoever that I see, I have checked under the hood, under the vehicle, under the dash, everywhere...nothing. Where is the coolant going? This seems to be a common problem, I work at a quick lube and almost all of these explorers are low on coolant when they come in.
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Last night while i was driving my car began to overheat. I could smell coolant burning. I pulled over and opened my hood. The coolant inside the coolant pod was boiling. Some coolant lines were steaming as well. I could also hear a gurgly like noise coming the engine. This is a 1.8t gti
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I am looking at a 05 GLI 5 speed with 133k miles. I drove it yesterday and it runs fine, but I smelled coolant after I turned it off. I was told by the dealer that the turbo is leaking some, it was spooling while driving and didn't seem to do anything funny. The check engine light came on and said coolant was low when we got back, when I cranked it back up the light was out. Just not sure about it.
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For a few months, I smell coolant when I get into the car. I thought it was the food left behind. Finally this morning I saw a small puddle of coolant on driveway. green color as we had a snow/ice storm. Lost about 3/4 inch coolant in expansion tank. still about low on cold freezing day.
I searched through this forum, not a common thing for the heater core.. There were cases about freezer plug not tight..hose clamp not tight. etc
My question is that where is the freezer plug? Any easier way to get to the the heater core.? without taking the whole dash out?
I4 2.4 ....
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I recently purchased a 2005 Elantra GLS. It is super clean and runs great. The dealer replaced the original radiator and hoses because they said the original radiator had a hole in it. After driving the car, the engine compartment has a coolant smell. No smell in the cabin. I looked everywhere but don't see any signs of a leak. There is no smoke coming from the exhaust and the oil is clean. Coolant levels in the over flow tank and radiator are good. The car is only driven short distances (maybe 100 miles per week). What could be causing the coolant smell in the engine compartment?
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Our Elantra never overheats or shows hot on the gauge but every couple months it is a little low on coolant. When I shut it down I sometimes get the sweet antifreeze smell. I see no leaks. Never a spot on the driveway. Just need to add a little. Car has about 80,000 miles. as a matter of annual maintenance I drain and fill the coolant and trans fluid once a year. Hoses are in good shape. The oil is clean and shows now sign of contamination. We Love this little car.
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My 2005 chevy silverado 1/2 ton seems to be low a quart of coolant every 2-3 months. First alerted to this during a oil change, check it monthly and need to add a little to the reservoir every other month. The temp gauge never goes over half way. I do smell antifreeze after I shut the truck down after a significant drive, but only if I walk to the front of the vehicle.
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I have a distinct coolant smell inside my Jeep (2009, 60k miles). I popped the hood and couldn't spot any leaks nor was there any fluid underneath the vehicle. I took it into a mechanic and they smelled the same thing and put the coolant system under pressure (as well as doing a visual inspection), and could not find any leaks nor was there any evidence of fluid by the vents. They also noted that my coolant levels were still full and I had not added anything to the car. The current theory is a pinhole leak in the heater core (the smell is definitely worse after the car has been driven a bit).
I have had one suggestion to add Bar's Stop Leak to the radiator, but the mechanic said this was a Bad Idea (his argument being that since there was no visible leak in the system it would likely just gum things up). Since the vehicle seems to be otherwise operating fine, I'm hesitant to replace the heater core, but there's a good chance it's still under warranty, so I could go that route.
So, could it be something other than the heater core? Should I have that replaced or would the Stop Leak be a good idea?
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