When your car leaking green fluid, don’t be flustered. You should take an immediate action, but it doesn’t mean that you should be panic-y. Your car uses various and different types of fluid to make it run smoothly. Based on the different texture and color, you can tell from which part the fluid comes from.
What Does It Mean?
When you find out that your car leaking green fluid, it’s likely a coolant or antifreeze leak. As it was mentioned before, different colors would mean different parts. For instance, light yellow may mean the brake oil, or dark brown may refer to the compressor oil. Coolant fluid may be coming as a green, yellow, or even pink fluid. It may ‘inform’ you that there is a leak within the water pump radiator or within the hose that carries the coolant.
The main reason for this leak is likely coming from a cracked or blown head gasket. Moreover, when there is a worn out seal or torn tubes (from the radiator), it’s highly possible that you experience green fluid leakage. However, there is also a possibility that such fluid leakage is resulted from installation errors, such as improper attachment of the clamp or hose (which connects to the engine components, such as radiator or water pump). It’s also possible from the wrong usage of green fluid type.
Why the Leakage Happens?
There are some reasons why the leakage happens.
- Holed radiator. When there is a hole within the radiator, it’s not really surprising if there is a leak
- Leaky cap of the radiator. Check the cap. If you find any white and dried streak around it, it’s possible that there is a leak.
- Faulty water pump. The pump is responsible for circulating the coolant through the cooling system, regulating the rate
- Blown head gasket. Its main function is to protect the engine from pressure and coolant loss.
- Expansion tank issues.
Safe Drive
When you notice the green leakage, it is still okay to drive it around safely? In general, it’s advisable that you shouldn’t drive it around. The leakage may start small, but it would be bigger as you drive it around. Moreover, this coolant is meant to keep your engine stay cool. When you drive it in a leaky situation, it’s possible that it would make the engine hot, which leads to overheating. When the engine is overheated, it would cause more issues and you will end up with exorbitant repair bill.
So, what’s to do next? First, check whether it’s possible to ask the mechanics to come to the house. If it’s not possible, then you can drive your car to the garage. But make sure that you do it carefully and you should keep a close watch to the heat indicator. You don’t want to cause an overheating issue.
Proper Way to Fix It
Unfortunately, there is no way for car owners to perform a DIY repair, unless you have the technical and mechanical knowledge and experience to tweak the car. Contact a professional and skilled mechanic to diagnose the issues properly. They would check the radiator cap, water pump, expansion task, and head gasket, including the operational status. They would also check the connections between the water pump and radiator hose, while performing cap check along the way.
It’s also possible that the leakage is resulting from cracks, sediments, or corrosion issues. If they are the main culprit, you will have to change these parts. If you let these issues unresolved, you may risk damaging the internal engine further. In short, when you notice green fluid leakage, immediately contact the mechanics and have it repaired. That’s how you deal with your car leaking green fluid issue.