Problems with S3, suspect coolant leak & Turbo dump/recirc Valve noise??

[fasteddie]

Hi
I have two issues I want to ask people about. The first is clear, I am losing coolant, I have a greenish liquid running down the bulkhead - not loads but some, has anybody experienced this or does anybody know what the likely culprit is?
The second issue is a little less clear as I mostly drive with the radio/CD on. However I am confident the standard dump valve or recirc valve is making more noise than it used to. My wife who occasionally drives the car has also noticed this and she never has the radio on. It is operating, sometimes the noise is a whooshing noise, however sometimes it is consists more of a vibrating noise, performance doesn't seem to be affected, however I rarely really push the car on the public road. Is this normal?

Cheers

 

[madvw]

greenish liquid? The S3 coolant is red/orange.... or at least should be.

 

[AL_B]

Have to agree with madvw. It should really be a red liquid - if its coolant. You sure its not your washer fluid leaking?

How is your coolant level? Are you having to top it up? Water pumps and coolant temp sensors are known to go. Is the temperature gauge jumping to above 90deg quickly? That would be a sign that you are loosing coolant, or pump is gone, or coolant temp sensor faulty.

On a normal S3, you can faintly hear the turbo whistle, when on boost. Also you can faintly hear the recirc DV, when you let off the throttle. You certainly can on mine (I'm back to running the OEM valve).

If the wooshing sound you are hearing is definitely louder than normal, you could have a boost leak somewhere. Check all the clamps to the hoses around the DV, and induction and intercooler hoses are tight. Also check if the hoses have been over tightened, sometimes the clamps themselves can cut into the hose and create a split.

If you have a mate with VAG-COM, check for fault codes and log requested and actual boost.

AL

 

[cjhill]

the only other thing i can think of that is green is the air con coolant. It has a green coloured dye in it to help spot leaks.

Just a thought? - Presumably it still works ok and your getting nice cold air out? (When set to its lowest setting the air comming out should be between 0 to -10 degrees.

Hope it helps.

 

[dummi]

sounds like coolant pump get it checked asap if it is it will be chewing up your timing belt each mile.

 

[fasteddie]

aircon coolant, so could this be running down the bulkhead? the temp of the engine is a constant 90 so no problems there. In fact I had not noticed the leak until a mech pointed it out. If the coolant is red then it isn't that. As for the aircon yes it does work, but for how much longer??
Unlikely anything to do with the water pump this was changed with the timing belt some 15,000 miles ago.

As for the Turbo noise I can hear the DV when lifting off, however the other noise is just as the turbo engages but not when the throttle is hard down if that makes sense