QuestionI recently had the expansion tank replaced. When I turn off the car, the display shows "check eng. coolant level." I took the car back to the mechanic and he indicated that it was normal after a "burp" in the coolant and added more coolant. The display still shows. Any thoughts?
Answermechanic is correct. I would burp it a couple more times and see if that's the issue. Here's the best way to burp it:
2. With the engine running, set the climate control to the maximum heat temperature. You can set the fan to the lowest speed. The goal is to ensure the coolant is passing through the entire system, dictated by the temperature setting, not fan setting.
3. Remove the radiator cap.
4. Remove the bleed screw located in front of the radiator cap. A wide blade screwdriver or quarter will do the trick.
5. Slowly add coolant (50/50 mixture -- phosphate free!) until the red level stick rises to the top of the opening.
6. Monitor the coolant level (red stick), adding coolant as needed.
7. Air in the system is released out of the bleed screw opening.
8. As the bleeding nears completion, coolant will begin to run out the bleed screw opening. Don't close things up yet! It can take a few more minutes for all the air to fully bleed out of the system. Allow the seepage to continue until there are no further air bubbles or "burps" at the bleed screw opening. A few modest revs of the engine (no more than 1,000 or so RPMs) helps speed the process a bit.
9. Be patient, to be completely environmentally careful, have a pan or something underneath catching the coolant run off.
10. Once the system is fully bled, install the bleed screw. It's plastic and has a rubber o-ring gasket so it tighten it accordingly (hand tight; again, a quarter can get it more than tight enough).
11. Give the expansion tank a final top off, install the radiator cap.
12. Allow the system to cool completely (overnight) and give the coolant level one final check. You may need to add a bit more coolant for the level indicator to be at the proper height. Alternatively, the experts know exactly how much to overfill the expansion tank so that they don't have to do this follow-up check.
You're done. Good luck.
