What happens to coolant on a concrete floor?

[Tony Montoya]

Does it just evaporate? I have an air bubble in the coolant system and the car got hot idling and leaked some coolant out of the over-flow bottle. I think so anyways as I was washing the car so I can't tell if it's coolant or water that leaked. The temp went from max to normal in 2 seconds when I drove the car after climbing in and noticing the temp guage.

It takes time to get heat in the car even after the temp gets to normal. Before this all happened I was only getting good 32C heat when the car was moving forward. After the temp gauge peaked the heat was working like it should with the car parked but today it took a long time before the heat flowed with the car parked. I didn't check the coolant level mostly because I have no Honda coolant at home. The puddle that I suspect is coolant is gone after 12 days. It was the size of a large Canadian coin.

 

[goldNSX]

You may check/replace your thermostat.

 

[davidf]

It will most likely evaporate and leave a slight oil residue/stain.

 

[Larry Bastanza]

So why does your car not cool when it is still? You need to do some investigation, sounds like your radiator fan is not working. The car should not overheat while being still.

Regards,
LarryB

 

[HELIJOE]

As long asyou dont have any pets its no problem. If you do have a dog or cat, they will be attracted to the smell of it and drink it. Coolant is poisonous and wil kill them

 

[Tony Montoya]

So why does your car not cool when it is still? You need to do some investigation, sounds like your radiator fan is not working. The car should not overheat while being still.

Regards,
LarryB

I will check fuse 31. I was driving the car a bit hard in our indoor garage. It was empty and it's really long. After that I took it to the wash and left it running. The car did the same thing once when I was driving up some steep hills. I left it in fourth gear, automatic, and then I pulled over for a bit and left the engine idling with the a/c on. The car burped up coolant and I had to let it cool and then took it to Acura and they added a bit of coolant and it was OK. They told me not to let the engine lug going up hill. I thought the transmission would select a lower gear if it needed to but it doesn't work like the Toyota automatic.

That was so long ago I guess I forgot about it and I didn't think 5 laps of the garage was that hard on the car.

 

[Tony Montoya]

I let the car idle for 20 minutes yesterday and it was at normal temp the whole time.

 

[j.r]

I thought it was bad to leave a car idling for a long time.

 

[Briank]

I thought it was bad to leave a car idling for a long time.

In modern cars it's not bad just unnecessary relating to letting your car warm up before driving.

 

[Larry Bastanza]

I let the car idle for 20 minutes yesterday and it was at normal temp the whole time.

Did it idle long enough that the radiator fan came on? Better yet, take the car out, get if fully warn, then let it sit and see if the radiator fan comes on, or the gauge goes up.

Regards,
LarryB

 

[Bigglezworth]

Does it just evaporate?

when it's left in the open (keep away from pets)

I can't tell if it's coolant or water that leaked.

Coolant (glycol) will be yellow/greenish in color. It is also slippery in your hands and has a distincitive taste to it. Water has none of these characteristics.

The temp went from max to normal in 2 seconds when I drove the car after climbing in and noticing the temp guage. It takes time to get heat in the car even after the temp gets to normal. Before this all happened I was only getting good 32C heat when the car was moving forward. After the temp gauge peaked the heat was working like it should with the car parked but today it took a long time before the heat flowed with the car parked.

You have an air pocket. Steam is hotter than water which is why your temp gauge skyrockets to high and them back down to low when the sensor is suddenly surrounded by water instead of steam.....

Fix the leak and then top up the coolant cannister. Tighten the rad cap half way so that you don't build up pressure. Water pump will circulate the fluid and take from overflow resevoir after thermostat cracks to circulate cooler fluid from radiator. Air will continue to purge from system as water is taken in. Keep car idling for 20-30 minutes to ensure you have all the air removed from system. Once you have a consistent level in your coolant resovoir and the temp gauge is hot, close off the cap and drive it for 10-15 mins. Everything should be good. If not start from top and do the steps again.

I didn't check the coolant level mostly because I have no Honda coolant at home.

I've mixed different manufacturers of coolant for decades with no problems.

The puddle that I suspect is coolant is gone after 12 days. It was the size of a large Canadian coin.

This is not enough of a leak to produce the symtoms you cite immediately. It will over an extended duration assuming you have not topped up your overflow resevoir however. Remember that the coolant system is not sealed like a brake system is. Get an engine to hot and the coolant will expand into the overflow resevoir. It may even overflow which is what you are seeing. This shouldn't be an issue as the engine will ingest fluid from the resevoir when the fluid contracts during cooling. If you haven't enought fluid in the resevoir for the engine to suck from you will ingest air.

I don't suspect you have a leaking hose or anything like that, but merely a situation whereby you perhaps didn't keep your resevoir topped up. Some air has gotten in and over repeated runs when it was low. I'm confident a simply purge of the air that is producing steam will rectify your problem.

Tim

 

[OLDMNSX]

You may check/replace your thermostat.

I agree with Thomas. I also agree with Larry. Now here is my take. Stop leaving the car unattended, i.e.not in the seat, while idling, unless you want to have to replace head gaskets, or worse the engine. Overheating the engine once isn't too bad, but don't keep doing it. You've got a bad thermostat and the temp sensor for the radiator fan isn't doing its job.

Brad