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Contaminated coolant contributes to engine damage by clogging up the radiator, reducing efficiency of the coolant to remove engine heat. an uncapped overflow tank is a route for debris and contaminents to enter your cooling system and if ignored, circulate crud thoughout the system and clog your radiator. So if you have lost your coolant cap,(which is easy to do) dont just say "oh, well" there is a temporary fix that will keep your coolant clean until you can get to an auto parts store and replace your cap with the proper cap. all you will need is a plastic bottle, or container cap and some electric tape, or, yes, even duct tape. eyeball the approximate inside diameter of the radiator overflow tank fill hole. place the bottle cap over the fill hole, but dont let go of the cap. if the cap is smaller than the hole wrap electrical, or duct tape around the cap a few times and replace bottle cap over the fill hole. the cap should fit snug in the fill hole. make sure you dont press cap into the fill hole too deep that you cant pull it out with your fingers. if you do you can pull it out with needle nose pliers. this will keep your coolant clean until you can get to an auto parts store and replace the cap with a proper cap.
take the overflow hose loose from the resovoir and stick it down in pop bottle with water about half full
and run vehicle if you see bubbles in it you have a bad head gasket.
If everything is working correctly; thermostat, heater core, water pump, head gaskets, etc. Then that leaves the radiator cap, the overflow hose or the overflow tank as being the problem.
As the engine heats up the coolant expands flowing into the overflow tank. As the engine cools the coolant is drawn back into the engine from the overflow tank. but this depends on the vacuum created by the cooling liquid. the radiator cap has a "valve" that lets pressure out and vacuum in. If it fails then you may not achieve a good vacuum. The hose that connects to the over flow tank must be non leaking as well; if it leaked then coolant would not be drawn back into the engine, only air would be sucked in. And lastly the coolant has to be drawn from the bottom of the overflow tank. again we dont want to be sucking air.
Some engines require a vent screw to be opened when bleeding the air out of the engine.
Javier, have you checked the coolant overflow tank for holes, cracks, or loose hose? When the engine in your car heats up, the coolant expands. The coolant overflow tank (located near the radiator) takes up any coolant that is forced out of the radiator. If the tank is damaged or not connected to the radiator correctly, the coolant will not siphon back into the cooling system when the engine cools off.
Check your coolant level. If the coolant is low it won't pass through the heater core, therefore you get no heat. The overflow bottle really isn't an accurate way to check the level, actually remove the radiator cap and look in there. You should be able to see the coolant near the top. BE SURE THE ENGINE IS COLD BEFORE YOU REMOVE THE RADIATOR CAP!!!
Yes, the vehicle overflow may be that tube which should be venting into a coolant recovery tank.. If the tank is full then it could be the tank overflow...
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