Toyota Corolla coolant pushed into resivoir

KOWABUNGA

MEMBER
1989 TOYOTA COROLLA
4 CYL
FWD
MANUAL
175,000 MILES

I have an 89 Toyota Corolla 1.6 that is fuel injected. I had the head gasket replaced a few months ago as it had blown. I am now having issues with over heating and the coolant being pushed back into the resivoir without the coolant being pulled back into the radiator.
After an hours drive in traffic I usually have to fill the radiator with 1 litre of water. The thermostat and radiator cap have been replaced and a pressure test has been done with a pressure of between 11 and 12 in all cylinders.
What else can I check on my vehicle to find the problem?

6 Replies

WRENCHTECH

MECHANIC
20,757 POSTS

You're losing coolant somewhere and the cooling system needs to be pressure tested until the leak is found. You may still have head gasket issues. Continuing to drive it under these circumstances will almost certainly lead to another blown head gasket if it doesn't have one already.

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Tuesday, March 8th, 2011 AT 12:52 PM

KOWABUNGA

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4 POSTS

Thank you for the reply.

The coolant is not being lost, as far as I can tell it is all in the resivoir. It just never gets pulled back into the radiator. The vehicle does not have a water pump as it uses the radiator cap to regulate the water flow (I replaced the cap a few weeks ago).
Do you have any other suggestions including doing the pressure tests?

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Wednesday, March 9th, 2011 AT 5:57 AM

WRENCHTECH

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20,757 POSTS

No, I'm afraid you're wrong. It DOES have a leak somewhere. The reason it's not drawing the coolant back in is because the system is not sealed tight and it's drawing air from somewhere else instead as it cools down. It DOES have a water pump also.

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Wednesday, March 9th, 2011 AT 12:52 PM

KOWABUNGA

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Thank you, it does make sense that when it is cooling it draws air from somewhere else.

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Wednesday, March 9th, 2011 AT 1:51 PM

WRENCHTECH

MECHANIC
20,757 POSTS

It works on expansion and contraction. When it contracts it creates a vacuum to draw the coolant back into the system. If there is a leak anywhere, it will pull air instead of coolant.