Got A Coolant Leak! HELP!

Yeah I got a coolant leak and I just noticed it today.............

Well the whole story is.........When I first bought the car it had the Low Coolant Light On.........I took it to the Buick Dealership and they told me I did'nt have a Coolant leak it was just the sensor and they'll replace it for $120............I was like fµk that it can wait............

So anyway everything's all good and i check under my hood every once and a while so i looked under my hood a couple weeks back and noticed i was running low on coolant.........so i picked up some at autozone and I know our cars take Dex cool, but I got some Prestone Dex-Cool Approved Coolant........Seems legit......so I bought it and put it in myself with some bottled water............

So I went out today with my girl to this resturant and when i parked I noticed some fluid leaking out the front of my car and I'm like wtf? I open my hood and first reaction was to look at the coolant tank, I looked and its almost empty........I was so p!$$ Off about that today........

So could anyone tell me what can I do.........is it going to be alot to get the leak fixed.........I was just thinking about getting my coolant flushed changed and getting the leak fixed...........I hope that doe'snt cost alot............

I think I f'd up when I put the coolant in myself.........because before I did it everything was fine..........I should of just went to a dealership and got it done...........

U can tell I'm not a mechanic or a do it yourselfer ............

Check where the leak's coming from. Especially inspect the rubber hoses closely around the clamps.

Dude!!! ur a couple miles away from me. Just ride on through to Crete. I'll check it out for ya. You dont need to be mechanically inclined with a Riviera when you live as close to me as you are. Is your car leaking from the radiator itself or from a fitting or what?

97rivman wrote:

Dude!!! ur a couple miles away from me. Just ride on through to Crete. I'll check it out for ya. You dont need to be mechanically inclined with a Riviera when you live as close to me as you are. Is your car leaking from the radiator itself or from a fitting or what?

Thats the thing I don't know............its leaking right under were my left turn signal is........I guess I'll get under there and check it out today..........But ummmm as for comming to crete I'm down for that..........It would have to be Friday tho.........Are u busy on friday?.........

¤DoughBoy¤ wrote:

97rivman wrote:

Dude!!! ur a couple miles away from me. Just ride on through to Crete. I'll check it out for ya. You dont need to be mechanically inclined with a Riviera when you live as close to me as you are. Is your car leaking from the radiator itself or from a fitting or what?

Thats the thing I don't know............its leaking right under were my left turn signal is........I guess I'll get under there and check it out today..........But ummmm as for comming to crete I'm down for that..........It would have to be Friday tho.........Are u busy on friday?.........

If its under your left turn signal, it might be your radiator drain plug. it could be loose. its easily accesible from fight under the front bumper unless there is some plastic covering it. Im working on friday form 8-4 in merrillville and Then ill be home in Crete around 4:40 unless you'll be out by merrillville and want to pick me up??? Its been a long time since Ive been in a running riv. I got no license cuz the state of ILLINOIS doesnt like the way I drive... but My Riviera is almost doen except for some fµk up starter problems. We usually party late into the night at my house or Ill end up getting a phone call that my friends want me to get em another keg. Either way, itll be fun.

HA HA.........Nice.........dude I be in Merrillville all the time.........were do u work at in merrillville?

and u say drain plug? I'm going to check and see if I can find the plug........its funny because its not leaking anymore? hmmm

I work off of 80th ave and Broadway. Next to the post office, and a beaners coffee shop kinda. Theres a butteryfly drain plug that you can open and close by hand, be careful not to try and turn it too hard, or it could brake off. Thats the only thingi can think of. Are you talking about the driver side or passenger side, because the drian plug is on the driver side, a leak on the passesnger side would be from the coolant hose.

97rivman wrote:

I work off of 80th ave and Broadway. Next to the post office, and a beaners coffee shop kinda. Theres a butteryfly drain plug that you can open and close by hand, be careful not to try and turn it too hard, or it could brake off. Thats the only thingi can think of. Are you talking about the driver side or passenger side, because the drian plug is on the driver side, a leak on the passesnger side would be from the coolant hose.

oh ok........I know what place your talking bout........next to the post office and liquor store...........but the leak is happening from the driver's side........

Thanks for the reply's in here also............

its gotta be the drian plug. yeah, i work right in there. I work in the back of "Federal Park" in the last building. If you want to get together friday, Ill check your car out real good, scan it and see if theres any other codes or problems or whatever.

Word.............thats whats up........and I'm going to have to see what this scanner thing is all about, because I don't have one........Gonna have to see how it works.........

quote: "and I'm going to have to see what this scanner thing is all about, because I don't have one........Gonna have to see how it works........."

You might as well just order one now, because once you see what it does, you'll wonder how you ever got by without. There are also codes that don't trip the SES light; only way to know is to scan.

I just saw thats urs is a 95 but we can try it, other wise, ill show you how it would work on my car. It may be time to upgrade to a 97-99!!!!!

Oops.. '95s are different, but there's a scanner out there for OBDI vehicles.

i might have a smart chip scanner somewhere, It all depends on how you drive really, and how well you maintain your car, I drive like.......well......I brake $h!† constantly. If you have someone who knows what theyre doing, they dont even need a scanner to do maintenence or to locate a problem.

yeah I heard it was different for 95's

from the looks of your car, its nice and clean, you want to keep it that way. Once you start going fast, $h!† starts breaking everywhere, and before you know it, Your 5-6 grand into your car. And still not satisfied. I suggest getting another Riviera as a go-car, and keep this one as a show car...buts thats just me, and half of the people here

You can mod the car to a point and keep it nice-looking and a reliable driver. When you start ripping interior panels out to reduce weight, disabling emissions/protective systems, and tuning for all-out racing... that's when when the feel of the car can change, and things tend to break. Also, your driving habits play a big part in your car's durability. If you abuse it, something will give. If you race all the time, looks will become less of a priority, so that scratch on the door won't be as much a concern as it would be if you drove it every day.

Maintenance is key, and duties increase as you build for performance. Having a second car is fine, but the downside is the car maysit a lot, which is worse for a car than anything else. At least with a daily driver you tend to notice/fix problems before they get out of control. A daily driven car, even modded, is a healthy car in most cases.

You know what.........I was actually thinking about that the other day........but I could'nt see myself having 2 of the same car...........I was thinking about getting a Pontiac Bonneville...........

AA wrote:

You can mod the car to a point and keep it nice-looking and a reliable driver. When you start ripping interior panels out to reduce weight, disabling emissions/protective systems, and tuning for all-out racing... that's when things tend to break. Also, your driving habits play a big part in your car's durability.

What are you tryin to say???? LOL My engine broke before i did all that!!!

yea I drive my car alot too.........around town that is...........my uncle just came over and he took a look at it with me.........its my radiator.........we found the leak and I took pics of it..........I'm trying to upload them right now..........I might not be able too because I restarted my whole computer over a couple weeks ago because I had a virus and I did'nt upload all my old programs.............but anyway does anyone know how much a new radiator would be........my uncle said try autozone he said it should be around $100.........

thats about right. You got a hole in it or something?

quote: "What are you tryin to say???? LOL My engine broke before i did all that!!!"

I'm saying that modding in balance makes a reliable daily driver, and if you don't take it to the track every Wed, you don't need a 2nd car.

And if you drive like you stole it all the time, the car will let you know!!! LOL!

I think I got a hole........I did'nt really look that hard into it..........but I saw it leaking..........and I saw were its leaking from under my car...............could that leak be sealed up somehow or should I just get a new radiator?