QuestionHi Tom, I hope you can help. I have a 1999 Buick Century Custom with about 71,000 miles on it. I drive it every day, and at least one day per week I drive it 100 miles or so. About 18 months ago my car was rear-ended and pushed into another car, so I had extensive front and rear damage. Everything was repaired, but a few months after the accident I began to notice that I was slowly leaking coolant from the top of my engine. My instinct was that this leak was related to the accident, but after it had been leaking for about 6 months, a mechanic told me he thought it was the intake manifold gasket going bad. He said it'll eventually get worse and go all together. Well, I didn't really believe the diagnosis, and here I am, a year later, and there has been no change. The leak is exactly the same, despite moderately heavy driving in all kinds of weather for the past year. Do you believe it could be the intake manifold gasket like he said, or is it possible I could have a small crack in the engine or a gasket may have been slightly shifted from the accident, causing the leak. The coolant only leaks outside the engine, by the way. No coolant is getting into the oil. Also, I was considering putting a sealant of some kind into the cooling system to try to stop the leak. Is there a particular brand that you find to be better than others? Anything you would recommend? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
AnswerNEVER EVER put any of that MIRACLE CRAP or as I call it LIQUID MECHANIC into ANY engine.
IF it works it is only a SHORT TIME BAND-AID repair that will cause more problems later on down the road.
Have the coolant system PRESSURE TESTED and this will show you EXACTLY where the leak is coming from. This test takes less thanan hour and is very simple to do using a PRESSURE TESTER pump and gage.
autohelp
