Smelling coolant

[berserker6]

Figured I'd share. I can't see where it's coming from. And I'm not low on coolant so it must be a very slow drip. But you can certainly smell it. In a past life when I had a garage and all the tools you could ever want and none of my cars were under warranty I would fix it. So I made an appt. with the dealership to have them look at it. They asked if the car has been modified in anyway. I said yes but that I had never touched the waterpump/thermostat or any hoses. (Pretty much the only things that havent been messed with) They said it may not be covered. I said no sense in crying over milk that hasnt been spilt yet but in the meantime have the number ready of who I need to call on the slight wee chance VW tries to get out of it. For anyone interested I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[GTI Jake]

Figured I'd share. I can't see where it's coming from. And I'm not low on coolant so it must be a very slow drip. But you can certainly smell it. In a past life when I had a garage and all the tools you could ever want and none of my cars were under warranty I would fix it. So I made an appt. with the dealership to have them look at it. They asked if the car has been modified in anyway. I said yes but that I had never touched the waterpump/thermostat or any hoses. (Pretty much the only things that havent been messed with) They said it may not be covered. I said no sense in crying over milk that hasnt been spilt yet but in the meantime have the number ready of who I need to call on the slight wee chance VW tries to get out of it. For anyone interested I'll let you know how it goes.

Tons of guys here have had a water pump or two replaced under warranty with tunes, big turbo, ect.

Evidence is easy to see on the front of the block & or oil pan from underneath, but not quite as easy up top since the intake manifold covers it pretty well.

Best move is to find a mod friendly dealership, since it doesn’t involve a ecu scan for diagnosis VWOA doesn’t give a shit if dealerships honor the warranty, but a bitchy service writer can take it upon himself to blow it off to save he’s techs low paying warranty work.

 

[jimlloyd40]

Figured I'd share. I can't see where it's coming from. And I'm not low on coolant so it must be a very slow drip. But you can certainly smell it. In a past life when I had a garage and all the tools you could ever want and none of my cars were under warranty I would fix it. So I made an appt. with the dealership to have them look at it. They asked if the car has been modified in anyway. I said yes but that I had never touched the waterpump/thermostat or any hoses. (Pretty much the only things that havent been messed with) They said it may not be covered. I said no sense in crying over milk that hasnt been spilt yet but in the meantime have the number ready of who I need to call on the slight wee chance VW tries to get out of it. For anyone interested I'll let you know how it goes.

My thermostat housing leak was fixed under warranty when I was hybrid turbo and full bolt ons.

 

[berserker6]

Fwiw the service rep seemed pretty cool. (There was some other clown chiming in) I generally don't like this dealership from past experiences with me taking my exs car there except they're real close by. But the one VW dealership that did my tune and downpipe is an hour away. Maybe after inspection and if I'm told it wont be covered I'll pay them for their diagnosis, and call the other dealership to see if they'll honor the warranty.

 

[kevinkar]

I smell coolant all the time in my 2018 Golf R. I notice my reservoir is a bit low now and then but I see no leaks. Very annoying.

 

[jimlloyd40]

I smell coolant all the time in my 2018 Golf R. I notice my reservoir is a bit low now and then but I see no leaks. Very annoying.

Once again inspect the thermostat housing for signs of dried on leaking, staining.

 

[berserker6]

I smell coolant all the time in my 2018 Golf R. I notice my reservoir is a bit low now and then but I see no leaks. Very annoying.

My reservoir isn't low so I'm betting its just enough to drip on to something hot. Why haven't you taken it in yet? You still in warranty?

 

[berserker6]

Once again inspect the thermostat housing for signs of dried on leaking, staining.

Wasnt me this time jim but come Sunday I will know where it's coming from. I'm not dropping it off to them blind.

 

[kevinkar]

My reservoir isn't low so I'm betting its just enough to drip on to something hot. Why haven't you taken it in yet? You still in warranty?

Once again inspect the thermostat housing for signs of dried on leaking, staining.

Checked all around and don't see any dried drippings or indication of a leak anywhere. Very clean all around. Haven't taken it in yet because, if there IS a leak, it's very small and the reservoir drops very slowly. After reading a lot of threads about it, I'm not really keen on VW saying they can't find a problem and doing nothing or not wanting to take the time to fix it.

 

[D.Gage]

I’ve taken mine in a few times for this exact reason and nothing is ever found, no leaks, no evidence of a past leak, nothing.

 

[jimlloyd40]

Checked all around and don't see any dried drippings or indication of a leak anywhere. Very clean all around. Haven't taken it in yet because, if there IS a leak, it's very small and the reservoir drops very slowly. After reading a lot of threads about it, I'm not really keen on VW saying they can't find a problem and doing nothing or not wanting to take the time to fix it.

Just remember a pressure test is not conclusive. The thermostat housing only leaks when driving but you didn't see any signs of staining so it's probably elsewhere.

 

[krs]

Just remember a pressure test is not conclusive. The thermostat housing only leaks when driving but you didn't see any signs of staining so it's probably elsewhere.

I took mine in to the dealer, same symptoms, slight smell on occasion. I can see coolant dried on the block, so clearly it’s leaking. In the case of warranty work, my dealer won’t consider it because they can’t replicate any leak. It’s not always about what we all want, just because someone else in some state had a easy to work with dealer.

I’ve started the process, might wait until I get to a bigger city and try again.

 

[jimlloyd40]

I took mine in to the dealer, same symptoms, slight smell on occasion. I can see coolant dried on the block, so clearly it’s leaking. In the case of warranty work, my dealer won’t consider it because they can’t replicate any leak. It’s not always about what we all want, just because someone else in some state had a easy to work with dealer.

I’ve started the process, might wait until I get to a bigger city and try again.

Too bad you got a crappy dealer.

 

[kevinkar]

Well, as I found out in the other thread, it's not a quick job to replace the thermostat or housing (something like a 5-hour job) and I can see why a dealer wouldn't want to "waste" time on doing it as it occupies a tech for almost a full day. But it's a job that, under warranty, VW will pay for so they have no reason to not do the job. Money is money.

 

[Al_in_Philly]

Which dealer are you referring to? Being across the river from South Jersey, it'd be good to know.