Santa FE SM (2001-06) :: 2004 - Slight Smell Of Antifreeze / Radiator Fluid Every Once In A While
Apr 15, 2012
I have a 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe with a 3.5L engine and 92,000 miles.
For the past week or so, I have noticed a very slight smell of antifreeze/radiator fluid every once in a while. I assumed that it is a radiator hose leak or possibly a leak in the heater core. But, the vehicle does not overheat, there is no steam or fog inside that would indicate a possible heater core leak, and the radiator fluid level seemed full or almost full (although the radiator overflow container was empty). I added a little water to the radiator and filled the overflow container to make sure there was plenty of radiator fluid in the system.
I haven't seen any radiator fluid on the ground around the vehicle at anytime. When I open the hood, I don't see any leaking hoses. I took off the engine cover to see better, and I don't see any leak around the water pump, or dripping from the pump, or dripping from any hoses, etc. But, BELOW the water pump is something made of cast metal that I am guessing is the automatic transmission(?) -- I really don't know what it is. And, sitting in some valleys or crevices in that part are small pools of green fluid that clearly looks and smells like radiator fluid with antifreeze.
I ran the vehicle for a long time while watching to see if I could create or see the leak or anything dripping etc. But I don't see anything other than
those pools of green liquid just sitting there. I tried moving or wiggling the hoses, and nothing changed. I also tried keeping it running with the heat on high, then later with the AC on high -- still no change. Then I tried using paper towels and sopping up what I could that was in these valleys/crevices, then I drove it again (but only for about 4 miles so far) and I don't see any new fluid in the crevices or anywhere else.
Here are 5 photos that I took with the engine cover off while the green fluid was still there. The photos go from a wider angle overall view down to a view of the green puddles from a slight angle and then down to a top view of the green puddles.
[URL] ....
Where you may see dark areas on the water hoses near the water pump, they are just shadows created by the flash or the sun or whatever. The hoses themselves are all one color and are not wet etc.
My questions:
Am I correct that where the small green puddles are is the automatic transmission?
Is it possible that there is some connection between that (the automatic transmission(?)) and the radiator cooling system?
Is it possible that the cooling system somehow also cools the automatic transmission (or whatever that is)?
If so, could the leak be right there -- maybe where that bolt or the other wire/connection piece is -- and the radiator fluid is coming UP from there? What this may be or where the leak is coming from?
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2002 Santa Fe with 140K. Superbly well maintained.
I notice . Looked all around....then on the radiator toward the top where the metal meets the plastic. I noticed wetness across the entire radiator. Thought it may be coming from the upper hose and spreading across....Replaced the upper hose....Not the problem.
Still has anti freeze seeping across the radiator / plastic area. Does the mean the entire radiator needs replacing? I have searched the forums and seems like no one had replaced a radiator on the Santa.
Is the radiator breaking down. Oh, it's NOT the water pump.
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Went to start my truck to leave work yesterday and blew the coil on #2. It's happened before and I can fix that. The other weird thing that happened was that the radiator leaked out some antifreeze. Not a lot, but a good 2 foot puddle. The reserve was still full and it leaked from the passenger side at the bottom (below the upper hose). Upper and lower hose show no sign of leakage. I suppose the drain is on the lower end of the passenger side of the radiator and it leaked from there. Would the compression from the engine cause that to happen? Or is it something more, dare I say, like the head gasket blew?
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About a month ago, I smelled a very faint smell of radiator fluid inside the car while the air was on. This happened twice, once on the highway when RPM's were running fairly high/engine temp was slightly higher than usual, and once on sidestreets when I was driving at high RPM's/in lower gears than normal (manual transmission). When I stopped the car it cooled down to normal level immediately and smell went away. I added coolant to the reservoir.Then I noticed nothing for about a month, so I figured everything was OK.Last week, my engine was running hot (usually is at 50% on the temp gauge, it was at 75%, where 100% is red zone), driving at low speeds.
About 5 minutes before that, I had the heat on but noticed the air blowing in the car was not heated even though the engine was warmed up (I assume due to lack of radiator fluid flow through the engine). The car did not overheat, because I pulled over and added water, and later added some coolant. During that incident I did not notice any smell inside the car. At the end of the week, I noticed the car running slightly hot and checked the reservoir. It was low--most of the coolant I added had disappeared in just one week.
Usual things to check:-radiator and all hoses are new-no leaks under the car-no white exhaust/smoke or smell outside
Other things about my car: It is a 1997 Honda Civic. Has never had any major problems, and it's running smoothly, but it does burn oil. The first time I noticed the smell, it was just after I had driven on the highway with slightly low oil level (still on the dipstick, but slightly below the bottom dot. Not too far on the highway--about 20 minutes). Not sure if that could be related.
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Last thursday night my wife said she had no heat in her car (03 gx470). I didn't know what to do so on Friday I did some research at work. On Friday my wife drove the car to work and back. Before she left work I asked her to look at the temp gauge and she never noticed it going over normal temp. On Saturday morning, I checked the radiator and it was practically empty so I drove it 3 miles to a shop to have them diagnose the leak problem. while in front of the shop I noticed antifreeze leaking from the radiator so I drove the truck home without them doing anything. Temp gauge never surpassed the middle.
I drove the truck home with the intention of replacing the radiator but I can't get the part until tomorrow (Monday) so to save time, I drained the radiator and pulled it out. I got less than 1/2 gallon from draining it. The coloring was red and green, which made me think tranny fluid and coolant but it wasn't milky and as I thought about it I recall when i did the 90k service with my bro (former toyo mech) the blocks where never drained so I'm guessing that I absent mindedly mixed green prestone with toyo coolant. Probably the reason my radiator is leaking?
After taking the radiator out, I didn't drain the coolant from the block valves, but I think it would be good to do that just to get an idea of whether or not its empty.
This morning i was thinking i should do a full flush after i replace the radiator, but since it would be impossible to open the valve on one side perhaps a flush isn't the right thing to do. Not sure if I should do a tranny dump and fill.
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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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I recently bought a 2004 Hyundai santa fe 2.4l with 94k miles. when sitting at a idle it has a slight vibration in the cabin, feels like a slightly rough idle, when you drive the vibration is gone. I also had it throw misfire codes for cyl 2 and 4. I put in new plugs and changed the wires, coils are on the way. When the car is in drive and I put the parking brake on and walk up to the motor it sounds like it has a exhaust manifold leak, but I only hear it when in drive. I guess my question is, could this exhaust leak be causing the rough idle or will this be fixed once the new coils are on?
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I will occasionally get a misfire after a rain storm, lasts about ten minutes then goes away. there is also a slight miss (no CEL) at idle, that occurs all the time. I'm thinking spark plug wires.... the plugs were done last year, but nothing else. to my knowledge the wires and coil packs are all original. i'm at about 114K on a 2004 santa fe 3.5l.
Also, does the computer store misfire codes? I know I got them in the past and i checked it at the time, but didn't write down what cylinder it was. think it'll still be in memory?
Think it's ok to change just the wires and not the coil packs? kind of on a budget...
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I have a leak coming from the top of my reservoir from the under the cap for some reason. I bought a new cap and it seem to stop for a day and now it leaking out from under the cap again. What is the reason it would be coming out of there. Am I going to have to replace the reservoir??
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I own a 2004 Santa Fe 3.5L AWD and recently when ever I drive at a highway speed 65mph or greater the ABS and Traction lights come on as well as the AWD indicator which lights up green and blinks. When this happens I feel a slight shudder in the drive line and I no longer have AWD, ABS or Traction control functioning. This condition continues until I stop and turn off and re-start the truck at which time everything is back to normal. It does not happen around town and I have had my local garage check for stored codes in the computer and there are none listed. We have also inspected the drive line on a lift and everything looks dry and fine. Other than that this truck runs and drives great.
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I bought a 2004 Santa fe with the 2.4 engine not running. It will not get spark, it is getting fuel I can smell it strong after cranking...It has a new crank position sensor, I took the timing cover off to verify. Whoever put the sensor on cut the wires and soldered/ heat shrink them back together obviously because they didn't want to remove the timing belt. It Also it has a new ignition failure sensor, all fuses are good, there was a spare computer in the vehicle which I tried still no luck. I took loom off and looked at the harness and can't find anything.
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I have an issue with my 2004 GLS 3.5 L w/ 68000 miles. After the SUV warms up for a few minutes I can hear a whine or rattle on the passenger side. I noticed a little power steering fluid leaked out the top of the reservoir (a few little bubbles in the oil). Then reading on the HMA website it says the filter in the reservoir can get clogged and restrict the flow. I took the reservoir off and flushed it out then replaced with new oil.
Unfortunately this did not fix the issue the noise is still there. It's most prevalent when you turn but the noise also picks up a little when you hit the gas. I have checked for hose leaks but cannot find one. My next step is to have the steering pump changed out. While the mechanics in there I am going to have him check the hoses/pulleys really close and look around for another leaks anywhere. Noise is annoying but the steering works fine.
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My 2004 Dodge Stratus has been spiking hot on the temperature gauge recently. For the last few days it has had a strong smell of antifreeze. I haven't seen and dampness on the passenger side floor board, so I don't think it is the heating coil. Seems to have been running a little hotter than usual recently (week). Coolant levels seem to be in good shape. Doesn't look low when hot or cool. Fan seems to be running when the car is on.
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I have a 2004 Subaru Legacy Wagon with around 90,000 miles on it. I purchased the car in 2008 with about 26,000 miles on it. Starting two years ago, whenever the air temperature is below 15-20 degrees, my car will develop a smell of antifreeze in the cabin when I start it and let it warm up for a minute or two. It did not do it for the first winters I owned it. I have not been able to detect the smell outside of the vehicle, and I have not been able to detect the smell in the summer months, even if the car is left idling for several minutes. The White Whale (my cars name according to my wife) was worked on by my local mechanic (where the car was purchased) last winter. They considered and replaced the thermostat, a leaking (or at least they thought it was possibly leaking) hose, and then finally after consulting over the phone with the Subaru dealer that is a little over 45 miles from my house, decided that the problem was likely the head gasket.
So at around 65,000 miles I had the head gasket replaced by the Subaru dealer. Problem is, they replaced it in March, and the temps were high enough that I couldn't really tell if the fix had fixed the original problem or not. It had seemed that the smell was at least less intense, but hard to tell. So, here we are in the midst of January, yesterday the car started beautifully (which is one reason that I love this car) after sitting outside all night at -11 degrees Fahrenheit with wind chills down to below -30. Last winter, in these conditions, the smell would be so strong that I would get nauseated driving the entire 15 minutes to work.
This winter, since the repair, the smell seems limited to only the first idling time. After that, the cabin seems to get cleared out with fresh air, and the smell dissipates. There have never been any check engine lights, the oil and coolant levels have never been a problem, the temperature is never higher than just above the mid-line on the gauge which has stayed the same all throughout the time I've owned it, and performance has been completely unaffected by the smell, other than my performance as a driver when trying to navigate in a car that reeks of antifreeze. Also, I have never noticed what some describe as a haze or liquid building up on the windshield when a heater core goes out and my mechanics, both dealership and local, assured me that this was not the problem.
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We now have a new problem. Motor is leaking antifreeze out of what i will call a weeping hole in the on the #5 cylinder side of the block. The hole, which is manufactured in the block. Is where the antifreeze is seeping from. The hole is located above the bottom bolt an just below the top bolt for the transmission. the hole is on the block. I think that there might be a freeze out plug on the back of the motor block where the leak is coming from. The block was not leaking before we removed the heads for valve job.
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I was warming up my wife's 07 Expy the other day. Yes, I know this is the F150 forum but it's essentially the same drive train and there are more users in this forum. So anyway, it was a cold day so I started the truck to let it warm up for 10 minutes. When we went to leave I could smell anti freeze in the truck. The truck wasn't over heating, there were no puddles underneath it. I opened the hood and there was no obvious leak anywhere. The only thing I noticed was a spritz of droplets all over the intake cover and other black surfaces were it stood out. It was as if the engine had sneezed out some anti freeze, but no visible sign of where it might have come from. It's running fine and hasn't done it again since.
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I have a 08 f-150 with a 5.4. Started smelling anti-freeze in the cab, with that classic windshield haze of a leaking heater core. I don't have anything on the floor, nor is the engine heating up. Temp gauge is where it always is. This doesn't smell all the time.I just drove 4 1/2 hrs. with no problems. Other than the heater core ?
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A friend just had a transmission line pull out of his radiator and blow fluid all over everything.
How do these lines work? Are the kind of like the fuel lines that just plug in and are held in my a retainer clip?
Does the whole radiator have to be changed to fix it or can the "fitting" be turned out of the radiator and replaced?
Looking at the line that is still in the radiator, the fitting looks like a large hex nut at the radiator with a thick rubber washer on the outside.
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I checked the coolant level on the reservoir and it was low.
I decided to add coolant by removing the radiator pressure cap, however, the coolant fluid is full under this cap.
So my question is where should I add coolant? through this cap or the reservoir?
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I have a 2001 Ford F250 V10 crew cab, I am getting trans fluid in radiator. i have had radiator replaced. it was good for about 3 months.
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I have a 2006 2.7 gls awd santa fe ,the alternator bearing went bad and got stuck took the alternator to a repair shop to get fixed, put it back on the santa fe the alternator worked just fine now i have the radiator fan and ac fan not working, I turn the ac on and none of then work I wait for the car to heat up and nothing happens I check the radiator fan by connecting it directly to the battery and it works fine ,i have swap the horn relay with the radiator relay and it is working fine. I will check net the fuses, then the thermostat and later on the temperature sensor.
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