Coolant Useage

[KRL]

At the weekend I noticed my coolant dropped just below the minimum level. My car is 10 months old and has covered 21.5k A quick search of the forums here shows me that a lot of 2.0 TDI owners have had problems suffering from coolant loss. Have any 2.0 TFSI owners had similar problems?

The cooling system is supposed to be filled up the at factory and not need topping up again as it is a closed system. So I am wondering why mine has dropped below the minimum level.

I am aware that the coolant level can appear to increase when the engine is warm and shrink when the enging is cold. My coolant level was below the minimum when the engine was cold, however it never used to be so some coolant has been lost somewhere.

For now I have topped it up to see if the level drops again, if it does I'll take it to a dealer to get there thoughts.

Comments appreciated.

 

[RobinA3]

Mine's not required to be topped up for 17k miles

 

[steve184]

well since it is sealed - you have answerd your own question - and somehow yours isn't sealed, ie, you either have a leak or your head gasket has gone! - the liquid has to go somewhere it can't just disappear

 

[JamS3]

It can!

Some cars use coolant more than others, the cars at work we have often need filling up because they are used 24hrs a day and punished, they dont have leaks and the headgaskets definately haven't gone on them.

This may be the case with your car KRL as to do 21.5k in 10 months is a bit more than the "average".

Just top it up and I bet it wont go down for a while!

 

[KRL]

Well my car does cover quite a few miles. It is treated very well though, always warmed up and cooled down properly and I would say motorway miles are some of the least stressfull for an engine as the engine is kept at a constant low stress rpm.

I have been working abroad for the last 5 weeks (still am) so the car has been sat at home getting very little use. It is just being driven by my wife at the weekends. Could this have had any effect on the coolant level?

 

[Staz]

It's not the liquid that leaks it's the vapour. It's almost impossible to create a vapour proof seal. Very small particles can escape from joints and gradually over time you can lose coolant.

It's the same as your air con system, and exactly why it needs to be recharged after 3 years or so. Refrigerant leaks over time.

P.S anyone got an MG ZR/Rover 75 with air con as their second car?