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Low coolant

33K views 26 replies 12 participants last post by  zaxxon25 
#1 ·
We have a 2009 malibu 3.6L that I noticed the coolant was a little low in the resovior. The "cool" mark is about the middle of the tank and the coolant is towards the bottom, so about an inch to inch and a half lower than what it should be cold. I'm going to pick up some coolant(pretty sure it's dexcool) and bring it up to the right level.

But what might have caused this? Is there any common leaks on the 3.6L that I should look into? Anything else I should be concerned about or look into?

Thanks
 
#3 ·
I have a stant pressure tester but will have to buy the adapter for this car which is the 12032 and costs 45 bucks! I love my stant tester and have used it many times but the adapters cost an arm and leg. Guess I will have to bite the bullet and order the adapter and see what the deal is.
 
#5 ·
Im having the same problem. Three weeks ago I got a new water pump that was covered under the five year 100,000 mile warranty. Now all my coolant has ran out again. I have no idea where the leak could be coming from or if its covered under warranty.
 
#22 ·
Hi 91SHOPlus, I have a leaking problem with my 2008 malibu 3.6l and I can see the antifreeze leaking on my driveway; after a closer look it doesn't seem that the leak is coming from the water pump, it looks like it's coming from the lower part of the motor (main shaft) and I'm suspecting the head gasket and I also noticed some type of foam accumulation underneath the oil cap but I'm not sure at 100%. So before I will go to the dealer to see what's happening I wanted to know if the water pump and head gasket are covered under 5 years\100 miles warranty. Besides all that I wanted to know how did it ended for you!

Thanks
 
#6 ·
@91SHOPlus, most definitely contact the dealership that performed the water pump replacement about your coolant issues. Under normal circumstances this should be covered under the Powertrain warranty.

Please, let me know how things go after you’ve visited the dealership.

Michelle, Chevrolet Customer Service
 
#7 ·
I ordered the stant adapter for newer chevys, the 12032 [ame]http://www.amazon.com/Stant-12032-Threaded-Radiator-Cooling/dp/B000CKTJZU/ref=au_pf_pfg_s?ie=UTF8&Make=Chevrolet%7C47&Model=Malibu%7C468&Year=2009%7C2009&carId=001&n=15684181&newCar=1&s=automotive&vehicleType=automotive[/ame]. It should be here tomorrow. I'll do some tests and see if I can find any leaks under pressure. I doubt that I will be able to see anything since if there is a leak it's really small but we'll see what happens.

I'm going to go ahead and change the coolant also. I'm a believer in fluid changes, they are fairly cheap and not really hard to do. I like to drain the radiator and then fill with distilled water and run up to operating temp and repeat a few times in order to do a DIY "flush". Then fill with the correct mix of dexcool to get it back to a 50/50 mix. I haven't looked at the capacities for this engine yet, just picked up 2 gallons of dexcool and some distilled water for now. I can usually get it pretty close and double check it with a snap on refractometer to make sure it's the right mix.

Also going to flush the brake fluid. I"m not sure what GM recomendations are as far as intervals but there are a few car manufacturers that recomend every two years so that's what I like to do. Brake fluid is cheap and I bought a mityvac brake bleeder a few years back, http://www.tooltopia.com/mityvac-mv6835.aspx which makes quick work of changing out the brake fluid. Anyone know the correct bleeding order for this car? I ordered a factory service manual but not sure when that will get here.

Also will do a trans drain and fill while I'm under there.

So that is my plans for the holiday vacation! Any advice is appreciated and if anyone would like pictures or even a little write up I would be glad to do that.
 
#10 ·
....Anyone know the correct bleeding order for this car?
With the advent of four wheel ABS there is no "incorrect" sequence. All four brake calipers are individually connected to the ABS module. The only shared plumbing is from the master cylinder to the ABS module.

Hook up your MityVac in whatever sequence is most convenient and have at it. FWIW, I also (try to) replace all the brake fluid every two years.

With some GM vehicles you can gain access to the front bleeder valves without removing the wheels.
 
#8 ·
I wish I was allowed to do that kind of work here at my apartment complex.

Sounds like a good plan. If you'd like to share pics and tips that'd be perfect, since that is a lot of why we're here! :)
 
#9 · (Edited)
Probably stupid question but when you drain and flush the cooling system what do you use to catch the old antifreeze and what do you do with it? You would have to have a pretty big bucket or something to flush it a few times without letting it go on the ground.
 
#11 ·
I have one of these drain pans, http://www.tooltopia.com/lisle-17952.aspx. You can get them at most parts stores. They hold 4.5 gallons. I have 4 5 gallons pails with lids on them that have a pour spout so I use two for antifreeze and two for oil. So I drain into drian pan and dump drain pan into pails. When done I take it to the city yard where they take oil and coolant for free. I think a lot of parts stores also take antifreeze. I've also read you can dump it down your drain if you are on city sewage but I would check with your city first.

With the advent of four wheel ABS there is no "incorrect" sequence. All four brake calipers are individually connected to the ABS module. The only shared plumbing is from the master cylinder to the ABS module.

Hook up your MityVac in whatever sequence is most convenient and have at it. FWIW, I also (try to) replace all the brake fluid every two years.

With some GM vehicles you can gain access to the front bleeder valves without removing the wheels.
Do you know what size wrench for the bleeder screws? I was thinking about getting a bleeder wrench if it will help.
 
#12 ·
Ok that sounds easy enough. I don't think I'll dump it down the drain although I used to just let it drain on the ground when I was younger and working on my Mustang...
 
#13 ·
Ya most cities have a disposal program, just call the recycling or waste part of the city and ask. Or call parts stores and ask. I don't dump down the drain either but have heard some cities allow it and it's fine for the water treatment places. I try not to dump it on the ground either because it's slippery and also it's sweet so pets like to lick it up which is bad for them.
 
#15 ·
I finally got a chance to hook the stant tester up today and pumped it up to 15 PSI and let it sit for a few minutes. Came back and the needle didn't move at all so there is no leak. Not sure why the coolant was low. I'm going to do a DIY flush and fill with new coolant. I'm also going to pick up a new cap since it's only a couple bucks and want to rule that out as a possible leak. Then will just have to wait and see if the coolant continues to drop.
 
#16 ·
Interesting...I have 10 Malibu 4cyl. @60K, during my ownership, 3 years, I refilled the expansion tank twice, each refill was around 1/2 quart.

I change my own oil and really didn't see any discoloration on my oil too. The car runs and drives fine except that annoying downshifting issue.

I have an Ford Escape at 130K, I am experiencing the same thing on that car as well. Every summer, I am adding 1/2 quart of coolant
Any idea about coolant loss over 3 years?
 
#18 ·
I'm not sure what the deal is. As far as I know the cooling system is a "closed" system that shouldn't have any evaporation loss. So I wouldn't think it would loss any coolant unless there was a leak somewhere. I'm going to hook the pressure tester up and let it sit for a while longer. Stant says for two minutes. I'll leave it for 15 or so and see if it moves at all. I would think that even with a small pinhole leak that the stant would bleed down a PSI or two in a couple minutes.

Using a dye kit in the coolant is the best way to find a leak. It will show the smallest external leak in the system.
I've used it in several cars, was the first step in a couple of 3.1 motors before the oil analysis's for the famous intake gasket leak.
Found a rear intake leak in my Yukon with it also. Dye light and a mirror will help you examine the entire motor & system.
A/C dye kit works great also.
I have a tracerline dye kit also and might use it. Bought it for an oil leak when I had my 7.3L superduty a couple years ago and bought the full kit with the oil/coolant/ac dyes. Also used the coolant dye on a 3.8L impala for the intake gasket leak. So I might throw some dye in after I flush the system and see if I can see anything. But I would think that a pressure test would show a leak before the dye would. When I do the flush and fill the system up I have a uview airlift that pulls a vacuum to fill it so that will pull a vacuum and should show a leak if there is one. If the pressure tester and vacuum tester don't show a leak I will fill it back up and see what happens.
 
#17 ·
Using a dye kit in the coolant is the best way to find a leak. It will show the smallest external leak in the system.
I've used it in several cars, was the first step in a couple of 3.1 motors before the oil analysis's for the famous intake gasket leak.
Found a rear intake leak in my Yukon with it also. Dye light and a mirror will help you examine the entire motor & system.
A/C dye kit works great also.
 
#19 · (Edited by Moderator)
I have a tracerline dye kit also and might use it. Bought it for an oil leak when I had my 7.3L superduty a couple years ago and bought the full kit with the oil/coolant/ac dyes. Also used the coolant dye on a 3.8L impala for the intake gasket leak. So I might throw some dye in after I flush the system and see if I can see anything. But I would think that a pressure test would show a leak before the dye would. When I do the flush and fill the system up I have a uview airlift that pulls a vacuum to fill it so that will pull a vacuum and should show a leak if there is one. If the pressure tester and vacuum tester don't show a leak I will fill it back up and see what happens.

Old school shade tree diagnosis was to cold start and watch for leak as it warmed up. Expansion on warm up usually showed a leak. Pressure test may pass but warm up expansion will cause a brief leak causing the small coolant loss over time. Dye is the sure fire way today. I too have a tracerline kit and have used it with great success. Even the smallest seep shows up.
 
#20 ·
Was poking around under the hood today and noticed the same thing ... low level in the overflow reservoir. Decided to put a dixie cup of coolant in to get it closer to the full line and immediately noticed fluid leaking out of the bottom of the reservoir. But as I investigated further the leak wasn't coming from the underneath hose attachment (at first I thought it might be loose), but instead from a plastic indentation in the bottom of the reservoir. Tested another dixie cup and the same result.

Perhaps this is the design of the reservoir to prevent overflow? A small hole on a raised plateau to reduce high levels? Anyone else care to experiment? Don't want to replace the reservoir if that's the way it is supposed to work.

I have an '08 with the 6 cyl, don't know if the design is different for 4 cyl or changed on subsequent models.
 
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