Coolant Low

Hi All,
I have a Volvo S60. A couple of mornings ago when I got into the car the "coolant low, stop car safely" message came on. I said I would sort it out later and forgot completely, then I forgot again yesterday so this evening on my way to my friends house I stopped at the garage to buy coolant and they had none so I thought about putting water in, but the engine was way too hot (even after a short drive) so I continued to my friends house.

The car was off for about 90minutes and I decided I would do without the coolant and put water in for the time being (it says 50/50 coolant/water). When I opened the bonnet the engine was still quite hot. And when I started the car the temp gauge was up to about 2/3 of the way.

So, Have I ballsed up my car? Should the engine still be hot after a short journey and 90mins of rest. And also, is water enough to keep the engine cool?

Seth Brundle

Water is not enough to keep it cool but it might tie you over.
There is obviously an issue with the car and you should contact your mechanic ASAP and don't drive it unless you are going to the mechanic!

why do you think there is an issue with the car?

Seth Brundle

Why is the coolant needing to be topped up?
Its possible that something e.g. the head may have been damaged after your recent drive.

Big Nasty

Deleted User wrote: »

why do you think there is an issue with the car?

Most cars will go to half way on the temp guage within minutes but should stay right there. Any more and you gotta problem. The good news is it's prob just the stat sticking open and needs to be replaced. Bout €30 for the part.

I assume the coolant had run out - i've gotten the message numerous times before (maybe twice a year) but just replenished the coolant. This is the first time i've ever driven for a couple of days without filling it so I thought I might have damaged my engine by doing so.

Seth Brundle

Deleted User wrote: »

I assume the coolant had run out - i've gotten the message numerous times before (maybe twice a year) but just replenished the coolant. This is the first time i've ever driven for a couple of days without filling it so I thought I might have damaged my engine by doing so.

Coolant shouldn't 'just run out' - it was filled to a certain point and should stay at that point! If it doesn't then its leaking somehow!

MCMLXXV

MCMLXXV wrote: »

Most cars will go to half way on the temp guage within minutes but should stay right there. Any more and you gotta problem. The good news is it's prob just the stat sticking open and needs to be replaced. Bout €30 for the part.

it hasn't gone beyond half way and I think I was just paranoid about not sorting the coolant out which is probably why I only noticed the temp gauge rising quickly - so you're saying it probably does this all the time anyway? so everything is probably fine as long as I top the water up with proper coolant tomorrow?

JoeA3

I got a similar warning on a cold morning last January, topped it up with a small bit of tap water, and never saw the warning light since... this is on a VW Golf.

Seth Brundle

Deleted User wrote: »

it hasn't gone beyond half way and I think I was just paranoid about not sorting the coolant out which is probably why I only noticed the temp gauge rising quickly - so you're saying it probably does this all the time anyway? so everything is probably fine as long as I top the water up with proper coolant tomorrow?

You previously said that it went 2/3 of the way

kbannon

kbannon wrote: »

Coolant shouldn't 'just run out' - it was filled to a certain point and should stay at that point! If it doesn't then its leaking somehow!

oh no way? see I never knew that? crap so my coolant is probably leaking, feck. Well that's a right pain then isn't it! I have to say I never ever thought anything of having to fill the coolant, I thought that was normal, you know, when you check your oil, water, coolant?

god, women eh!

kbannon

kbannon wrote: »

You previously said that it went 2/3 of the way

oh jesus I'm a muppet - I meant 1/3 !

Big Nasty

Deleted User wrote: »

And when I started the car the temp gauge was up to about 2/3 of the way.

Sorry dude but 2/3 is more than 1/2!

Get it to a mechanic and have it diagnostically checked. Should tell ya pretty quick. As another poster said coolant can't just disappear overnight so it could be a leak but more than likely the stat IMO.

Edit: Whoopsies!

Quigs Snr

Your car is reporting an error and you clearly know nothing about cars. Not being critical here, these are just the facts. These 2 simple facts alone make it clear that your next course of action has to be to get it to a mechanic asap or you could seriously damage the car.

I had a car with a small coolant leak some years ago, that coolant leak very quickly turned out to be massive head gasket failure with the engine warping so much that it required replacing, if I had acted sooner it would have been just a head gasket replacement job for around one tenth to one twentieth of the price.

Do you want to see how much a new or even re-conditioned engine for that S60 will cost you ? I can promise you that you don't, you could end up putting a bin tag on it. Get to the mechanic and whatever he charges you, it will be a lot, lot less than the worst case scenario.