Think i'm in trouble :(

[rx7-mark]

hey up sweeties, mrs mark here
I think i'm in trouble, i had the warning light for the coolent come on again (came on a few weeks ago too) of course stopped again, let it cool down and filled it back up. You know that over flow white plastic bottle, ours is always empty, doesnt look like it ever had water in it (apart from last time when i filled it up cos thought it was leaking, then rang jimmys and bought a new one) guess i have a spare one down.
Im using water and its getting lost somewhere, i've stuck my head in the engine for ages looking and feeling everywhere and i cant see no where thats leaking.
Do i need a rebuild? would anyone be able to tell if i did from the info i've given? i know its alot to ask but you guys have always helped me in the past, and wanted to know what you guys think before we take it to a garage and start paying out if we dont need too.

ps start it up in the morning and theres white smoke, but it soon clears when the engine gets warm, car is running fine, temp gauge on the car never goes up high, the gauge mark put in reads about 85ish.

Helppppppppppppppp
Thanks
Julie

[davegttph1]

stuck your head int he engine? bet that hurt :eek: lol

your not filling the white water bottle to the top are you? there should be a dip stick on the cap that lets you know the water level, maybe youve been overfilling it?

[Carl]

Hi Julie,
It could mean that you need a rebuild,the only way of knowing is to get the coolant system pressure tested to see if the engine has got a water seal leaking.
Pulling the spark plugs out can sometimes show if there is a problem too.
Regards
Carl

[rx7-mark]

lol trust you dave
No dave, i did fill it once, but then mark put a new bottle on so it didnt do anything.

Carl
What would taking a spark plug out tell me? am guessing that there would be water around it?

omg getting a right little engine girlie arent i

[bassman]

I am experiencing exactly the same thing.

white smoke if it hasn't been driven for over a week but this very quickly disappears, and the last two times I have driven it and put my foot down the coolant alarm has beeped, even though just over a month ago I had the coolant drained and renewed during my service.

Could this be a bit of trapped air in the coolent tank is possibly something more serious?

The last two times I have driven it she has been jerky in the higher revs when I put my foot down. I am not sure if this is a problem with the spark plugs because although they are only about a two months old, about a month ago the car was flooded so could this have made the plugs a bit dodgy?

Luke

[iaint]

Pressure testing the coolant system with the bottom plugs removed will tell you is there's a leak - water will come out of the holes!!!

When mine was on the way out I had a standard pressure test (i.e. plugs in) and, while there was a drop in pressure indicating a leak there was nothing visible (i.e. it was internal).

The Expansion tank - white plastic tank on the front drivers side of the bay should have water in it but you should never need to fill here. You should fill via the central cap (metal pressure cap), should also not need to touch the other pressure cap - the AST to the right of this.

It certainly soulnds like a water seal failure but not definate until proven.

If it is a seal the problems with topping up will get worse/more frequent and starting will get poorer. If money's not that tight, get it done sooner rahter than later.

In the 2 years since mine was rebuilt it's not needed any water adding at all although it's been changed in the interim period.

[stu0x]

I had this problem - the hose to the AST had snapped off. Check that your AST doesn't have any cracks/leaks (very common with the crappy OEM plastic ones).