2006 Kia Sportage V6 losing coolant

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One of my kids drives the '06 Sportage, 160K miles on it. My mother bought it new, gifted it to us about 2 years ago (they were going to trade it in but got such awful offers that they GAVE it to us...we offered to buy it, but they declined to accept payment). When we got it, the coolant was LOW, and over the past 25000 miles I've noticed an antifreeze smell toward the front of the car after it has been running for awhile. The coolant overflow tank needs a glug of coolant periodically...maybe a gallon every 6 months. The consumption hasn't changed markedly over that period of time.

The oil looks fine, the coolant looks fine, never see any wet spots on the engine or on the ground...where is the coolant going?

My gut tells me it's a small external head gasket leak that is allowing a dribble on the back of the engine(where I can't see it) to escape then burn off of the hot engine. I'm not inclined to mess with it unless it gets a lot worse...thoughts?
 
Free car and you don't want to put money in it? Throw a bottle of Bars leaks or Bars Head Gasket Fix. Should make for a good experiment if anything...
 
It's really a good-driving old rig too...and ICE COLD a/c that'll freeze ya.

I have never been a fan of "repair in a bottle" products, but I might try that for the simple reason that the kid driving it has a new girlfriend living 40 miles away, and I don't see the Kia as much as I would have previously and can't check the coolant level as often as I'd like. He's an engineering student with NO clue about how mechanical stuff works, which puzzles me a bit.
 
Originally Posted By: PaulH
your heater core is bad--that is what you are smelling. common problem in a 11 yr old car.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUS6qEVs6l8


Doubtful..With the amount he is losing, coolant would eventually end up on the floor and windows would be fogging up.. I bet the water pump is leaking.
 
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+1 Either the pump or a plastic radiator tank seal is leaking would be my guess. The WP is easy to check just look at the weep hole on the bottom and check for play.
The tank seal can be a little more difficult to see as it dries up quickly if it only a weep once the pressure is off the system. For this Bars Leak pellets or GM tabs (same thing) work great and will not clog anything in the system. They are made from ginger root which shrinks when wet and expands when dry like when it finds a leak.
A small pack of 6 should be enough for this engine, just crush them, add a little warm water and mix a thin slurry then put it in the radiator 9you may have to let a little out) not the overflow tank.

These are what you want, you can also stop in any GM dealer and get them under the ACDelco label, Subaru also sells it already mixed with water made by Holts.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Bar-s-leaks-R...13=&veh=sem
 
I'll look for stains on the radiator...I don't recall seeing stains anywhere. The serpentine belt was replaced a week ago when one of the pulleys went kaboom. I was too lazy to change it myself so I had my indy mechanic deal with it...if the water pump was leaking I would like to think he would have said something.
 
Maybe maybe not, it might only be weeping under full system pressure also if you didn't mention anything he may not have even checked the weep hole for signs of wetness.
 
Originally Posted By: CincyDavid
The serpentine belt was replaced a week ago when one of the pulleys went kaboom.


90% sure that the water pump is driven by the timing belt on these. Therefore a leak may not have been seen when changing the drive belt. Could also be leaking from something as simple as a loose hose clamp. Also keep an eye out on the overflow resivor... some older ones can develop cracks.
 
Best thing to do would to be too pressure test the cooling system. The 2.7L has a timing belt driven water pump, take the timing belt covers off to inspect pump leakage during a pressure test.
 
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