Cause of coolant leak in the 850 cabin

Discussion in 'Volvo 850' started by Fred, Jan 30, 2007.

  1. Fred

    Fred Guest

    Dear All,

    I need help!

    I was cleaning my 96, 850 car the other day and noticed some spillage
    on the floor carpet of the drivers side. At first I thought it was due
    to melting snow but that was not the case, because the color was
    greenish. On close scrutiny i realised this was engine coolant.
    However, this leak has not affected the engine temp which is normally
    at the 3 pm position. I checked the coolant level in the reservior and
    its also ok.
    I also opened the hood and touched the two hoses that feed the heater
    core and they are not that hot..you can hold on them for a minute
    without being burned!



    Qn: Do I need to replace the heater core? Why do I only get heat after
    the car has warmed up?

    Thank you for your advice and help.

    Frederick
     
    Fred, Jan 30, 2007
    #1
  2. Fred

    Roger Mills Guest

    In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

    Why do I only get heat after the car has warmed up?
    What do you expect?!
    --
    Cheers,
    Roger
    ______
    Email address maintained for newsgroup use only, and not regularly
    monitored.. Messages sent to it may not be read for several weeks.
    PLEASE REPLY TO NEWSGROUP!
     
    Roger Mills, Jan 30, 2007
    #2
  3. Fred

    Glenn Guest

    Yes the heater core is on its way out this is what supply's heat to the
    cabin since you do not really say how long the engine was running before
    you touched the heater hoses they should be hot you may have 2 problems
    if you never have had the thermostat replaced now is the time along with
    the heater core there are still another 2 months of winter & if you live
    in a cold climate then you really do not want to be without heat now
    Glenn K
    Volvo Certified Technician
    ASE Certified Technician


    --
    "*-344-*Never Forgotten"
    Is for the New York City Firemen who lost their lives on September 11,2001.
    The official count is 343, but there was also a volunteer who lost his life
    aiding in the initial rescue efforts. And I will never forget them as
    long as I live,
    nor should any American.
     
    Glenn, Jan 31, 2007
    #3
  4. Fred

    JRE Guest

    It's not that unreasonable a question. I get heat in my 850 before the
    temperature gauge has even moved, in only about 3/4 mile to a mile.
    It's got heat incredibly quickly, faster than my Hondas were, faster
    than my BMW is, much faster than anything I've ever owned before, in
    fact. (Hey, ya don't think it gets cold where it was built, do ya?)

    And...once the car is fully warmed up, the heater will not-so-slowly
    cook you in your own juices here in upstate NY.

    JRE
     
    JRE, Jan 31, 2007
    #4
  5. Fred

    Andy Guest

    Hi Frederick,

    I hope I'm not too late with this warning:
    Don't try to dry out the coolant soaked carpet within the car by applying
    hot air from e.g a hair dryer.
    I've just experienced a similar leak in our '93 240 Classic and, like you
    assumed it was water. I pulled out all loose carpets and mats and propped
    up the main carpet in the driver's footwell. I then placed a hair dryer
    under that carpet to dry it and the floor below. This had proved effective
    on previous water leaks. The loose carpet and mats were hung up to dry
    indoors. The result some hours later, despite having all the windows ajar,
    was a coating of antifreeze on the inside of all the windows and other
    surfaces of the interior and this has proved to be very difficult to remove
    completely. (The car was outside in frosty weather. The antifreeze on the
    carpet had been vaporized by the hot air and had then condensed on the cold
    surfaces in the car.) The loose carpets failed to dry. The retained an oily
    coating of antifreeze.

    The only solution seemed to be to first thoroughly wash and rinse the loose
    carpets and mats and then allow them to dry. The main carpet was washed and
    rinsed and mopped up, with difficulty, in the car and then dried.

    Lesson learned.................................

    Good luck with your repairs.
    Andy I.



    : Dear All,
    :
    : I need help!
    :
    : I was cleaning my 96, 850 car the other day and noticed some spillage
    : on the floor carpet of the drivers side. At first I thought it was due
    : to melting snow but that was not the case, because the color was
    : greenish. On close scrutiny i realised this was engine coolant.
    : However, this leak has not affected the engine temp which is normally
    : at the 3 pm position. I checked the coolant level in the reservior and
    : its also ok.
    : I also opened the hood and touched the two hoses that feed the heater
    : core and they are not that hot..you can hold on them for a minute
    : without being burned!
    :
    :
    :
    : Qn: Do I need to replace the heater core? Why do I only get heat after
    : the car has warmed up?
    :
    : Thank you for your advice and help.
    :
    : Frederick
    :
     
    Andy, Jan 31, 2007
    #5
  6. Fred

    Roger Mills Guest

    In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
    OK - sorry - it sounded like you didn't realise that the hot water in the
    heater comes from the engine - which has to be hot before you can get any
    heat out of the heater.

    But it now seems as if there is a delay in the engine heating up. This is
    most likely caused by a jammed open engine thermostat. The stat is supposed
    to stop the water going through the radiator until the engine is hot. If
    water goes through the radiator from the outset, it takes a very long time
    to get hot - which is probably what is happening.
    --
    Cheers,
    Roger
    ______
    Email address maintained for newsgroup use only, and not regularly
    monitored.. Messages sent to it may not be read for several weeks.
    PLEASE REPLY TO NEWSGROUP!
     
    Roger Mills, Jan 31, 2007
    #6
  7. Fred

    JRE Guest

    You're confusing me with the OP, who might or might not understand how
    the system works.

    In any case, I agree that if there isn't heat very quickly it's probably
    thermostat time. My mom gave us the 850 (she was tired of it after 11
    years and they didn't want to give her anything significant if she
    traded it in). We drove it home from FL, stopping in Raleigh to replace
    the thermostat...which had apparently forgotten how to close after
    living in FL for a few years. ;-)

    JRE
     
    JRE, Jan 31, 2007
    #7
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