After some spirited driving I turned off my car and noticed the computer flashing "check coolant level". Now this surprised me because I just got the car back from the shop a few days earlier, where they replaced the coolant water pump and thermostat. As I got out of my car I saw steam coming from under the hood. After some inspection I noticed that the hose connected to the air intake piece (circled in red in the picture) was partly missing/tore up and not connected to the plastic piece at all. Does anyone know the name of this hose or the part number? The car in the picture isn't mine I just found the pic on the web for illustrative purposes. Also, I'm not sure of the terminology for these pieces so keep in mind I may be describing it wrong.
-
-
Its the duct going to the alternator. -
Hrm, think that's the air intake duct that leads to the alternator...think it may split up and lead to another item as well but am not sure...Comment
-
Yes, it does lead to the alternator. What is the purpose of this and is this what was causing the steam? It looked like there was some coolant or something sprayed inside of the engine that may have been part of the steam happening. Would that have been caused by this hose though?Comment
-
hmm... replaced the water pump and thermostat? do you still have a plastic thermostat housing?
Mine cracked (couldn't tell from a visual) when we replaced my thermostat... coolant (only a little) was hitting the radiator and burning off... causing a little steam, and a lot of stink. Luckily, Chris (understeer.com) had his old plastic one, and we replaced it... I'll be switching to aluminum next time I change my coolant.Comment
-
I think it may still be the plastic thermostat housing. Does anyone know the purpose of the air duct to the alternator?Comment
-
probably to keep it cool? : )
seriously I don't know - none of my other cars have air ducts going directly to the alternator (but the alternator is either higher or lower in the other cars, so they can keep cooler more easily)Comment
-
what year is this on?Comment
-
My car is a 95.Comment
-
My car is a 95.
95's do have an air inlet duct on the grill that leads to the alternator. The reason, the alternator is closely mounted to the exhaust manifolds, and sandwiched between the airbox and other items. It would fry without the extra cooling. But this shouldnt be tripping your "check coolant" light. You need to inspect your upper and lower radiator hoses for leaks, the radiator neck, the coolant sensor, and the water pump/thermo housing for leaks and or damage. Also check your cap, and air bleeds screws. Youll find the culprit fast with a leak.Comment
-
Maybe there was an extra bubble in the coolant and you are actually a bit low? It is possible that the steam you saw was some overflow from some spillage. Check the level of your coolant when the car is low and add some distilled water to top it off. If it gets low again, then you have a problem.Comment
-
yeah, you would hope the mechanic bled it properly, but I usually don't : )
If you can't see the problem from a simple visual inspection, I'd fill it up a bit more, watch that low indicator (should go off, at least for a little while).
Do you still have your fan? It'd make it alot easier to see the thermostat housing without it, and to see if the 'steam' you are seeing is just coolant burning off the outside of the radiator.
First thing I'd do, unless you are afraid they will hurt your car more, is to take it back to the shop that 'fixed' it...Comment
-
The steam has nothing to do with the alternator cooling duct. Top off the coolant and return the car to the shop that did the cooling system work--something is not right, provided the shop is NOT a great distance away.Comment
-
Yeah no kidding, lets see I took the car to have the cooling system worked on, now its leaking and I'm getting the low coolant light...Hmmm what could this be. Seriously, you need to return the car to the dealer, and don't be satisfied until they remedy this and replace and damaged parts(the alt. duct).Comment
-
Yeah no kidding, lets see I took the car to have the cooling system worked on, now its leaking and I'm getting the low coolant light...Hmmm what could this be. Seriously, you need to return the car to the dealer, and don't be satisfied until they remedy this and replace and damaged parts(the alt. duct).
Call me a control freak, but this is why i wrench on my own cars, i can't stand relying on other ppl to perform work on my car.Comment
Comment