Hoping someone could help me with problem. My wifes 2005 pt cruiser the Overflow bottle always empty. Topped it up every couple weeks. Always down after few days . Stopped topping it up. 6 months later. Nothing in the overflow bottle. Rad is always full. After 6 months rad is still full. Bottle empty. Any ideas
The car only has 113000kms 68000 miles on it.
Have someone check for combustion gasses at the radiator fill neck. It’s a simple chemical test to determine if a head gasket is breached.
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Possible cracked/leaking overflow bottle.
Can you see a drip or coolant trail?
Havent seen any fluid drip. Nothing on the ground in the driveway. Even in the heatwave the temperature stays exactly were its been since we bought the car 5 years ago. Car never heats up past ghe normal temp.
Had one of these 05s with the same problem. The tank is on firewall far from the radiator. The hose is rediculously long and hard to track. It could be leaking anywhere between the radiator and tank, but slow enough not to leave a puddle or leaking on hot surfaces. The cap doesn’t seal very good and the tank is anchored poorly. If the tank is loose, driving will also slosh the coolant out of the tank. I believe if you make sure the tank is anchored good and remove the hose and check it and the tank for leaks you should have the problem resolved. What I did with mine was just continue to fill the tank with coolant periodically. I considered mine a junker. It wasn’t, but I didn’t like the car. On the other hand, @old_mopar_guy makes a good suggestion for checking head gasket. This is the first and best online diagnosis one can make with your description. But I’m confident you will find the problem in the hose or tank.
Thanks. My wife loves the car. For a 16 year old car its in very good condition. And very low miles. I will check this first.
fill the overflow tank to proper level and have the system pressure tested to find the leak.
Hoping someone could help me with the same problem. My wifes pt cruiser was the same. Overflow always empty. Stopped topping it up. 6 months later. Nothing in the overflow bottle. Rad is always full. After 6 months rad is still full. Any ideas
Have your cooling system pressure checked. Also have the coolant checked for combustion products indicating a bad head gasket or cracked head.
You have a leak, either a crack in the bottom of the overflow tank, or if the hose from just under the radiator cap to the coolant overflow goes to the bottom of tank on the outside, rare but I have seen a couple, the hose could be loose or cracked.