# Coolant Loss



## Koez (Oct 27, 2019)

I have noticed a bit of coolant loss from my 2005 X-trail over the last couple years. We don't drive the car a whole lot, but over the last 8 months and 2400 km, looks like I lost about 375mL. 

There are no obvious leaks on the outside, but I have noticed white residue build up on the coolant hoses. I have wiped them off before, but it comes back. See the attached photos. About 1 year ago I did have a misfire in cylinder #3 only when starting the vehicle. I swapped the spark plugs and coils between cylinders and the problem has not returned since. Am I likely loosing a very small amount of coolant into cylinder #3? No signs of coolant in the oil when doing oil changes.

The engine has about 178,000km on it and the car is rebuilt title. I am in BC, so the car is in good shape as far as rust goes. If its a head gasket issue I am not sure how much value there is replacing it given the age of the vehicle and its not something I could tackle myself due to my living situation.


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## X-hale (Apr 17, 2017)

Seriously, 375mL. How do you even measure that small a loss in a cooling system? Don't worry about it. 
That is very low mileage for a 2005.
Our BMW mysteriously loses about 1 to 2 litres a year.


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## tonyvancity (Jan 2, 2017)

*on the subject of engine coolant I have not changed or needed to add any coolant to my 06 Xtrail / 2.5L since i bought the truck used in 2015 Fall. I take off the radiator cap now and then to check out the color & smell if the fluid is okay condition. My heat in the cab seems to work ok ( which to be honest, is Xtrail lame. Warms up eventually but in Winter months takes longer then any other vehicles i've owned new or used. Vancouver winters are fairly mild, I doubt if i lived elsewhere i'd consider it acceptable. Apparently, weakish heat output is an Xtrail quirk ). My question is should I long ago have drained it and put in fresh coolant...or drain half out and add new coolant? Or if it ain't broke, leave it be? Yes, it is mid August and currently nice warm weather. I'm thinking maybe i should drain and fill with new coolant and maybe i get slightly better heat output. What advice you guys have for me?  *


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## tonyvancity (Jan 2, 2017)

*i guess i should put in new coolant. I doubt i put on 30,000 miles in the past 5 years of ownership. And the fluid i have may be that extra long life fluid from the previous owner of my Xtrail. But to be on the safe side i will dump out and add new fluid. 



*


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## Koez (Oct 27, 2019)

X-hale said:


> Seriously, 375mL. How do you even measure that small a loss in a cooling system? Don't worry about it.
> That is very low mileage for a 2005.
> Our BMW mysteriously loses about 1 to 2 litres a year.


Thanks for the input X-hale. Seems like I might be worrying about it a bit too much. I had topped up the coolant to the full line when cold in December, then used a measuring cup when I topped it up to the full line again this morning, hence the accuracy...

It's interesting that Tony is reporting no loss at all over five years, but the overflow tank is vented so I guess we should expect a least a little bit of evaporation. I did a full coolant drain/fill about 5 times with distilled water about 2 years ago to get all the coolant out of the system.


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## tonyvancity (Jan 2, 2017)

Koez said:


> Thanks for the input X-hale. Seems like I might be worrying about it a bit too much. I had topped up the coolant to the full line when cold in December, then used a measuring cup when I topped it up to the full line again this morning, hence the accuracy...
> 
> It's interesting that Tony is reporting no loss at all over five years, but the overflow tank is vented so I guess we should expect a least a little bit of evaporation. I did a full coolant drain/fill about 5 times with distilled water about 2 years ago to get all the coolant out of the system.


*Yes, i have been pretty fortunate with my 06 Xtrail ! So far in the 5 years of ownership i have yet to see an oil or tranny fluid drip, does not burn or consume excessive oil, brake and power steering fluids never leak out and i top them up normally as needed. I had a mechanic look at my transfer case / rear differential fluids last Fall ( on a hunch i was very concerned that it could be low and i was correct). I knew the mechanic thru a shared business space so i was allowed to stand next to him with my truck up on the hoist and he confirmed it was bone dry. So i had that refilled plus engine oil job. He previously looked at my coolant levels and condition using his coolant tester and was quite pleased how good it was. I finally replaced my car battery early this year , possibly replacing the previous owner's replacement battery. So far been a very good truck with just replacing items i knew would be worn down or nearing their life span such as oxygen sensors,cam/crank sensors, pvc valve. I give it frequent oil changes or drain out part tranny fluid/add new, new air filter or remove and blow out clean with reverse vacuum hose here at home. My Xtrail seems to be happy with all that i do and rewards me with a nice smooth engine/tranny, easy cranking , tranny shits great, brakes very strong, the truck pretty peppy and i think surprises a lot of other drivers on the freeway in terms of on ramps, merging, passing while getting the intended fuel economy . Too bad i never bought my truck when it was only 4-5 years old, but i imagine it would of cost me $15K-23K if i did versus $7000 in 2015 . *


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## rogoman (Dec 16, 2004)

tonyvancity said:


> *on the subject of engine coolant I have not changed or needed to add any coolant to my 06 Xtrail / 2.5L since i bought the truck used in 2015 Fall. I take off the radiator cap now and then to check out the color & smell if the fluid is okay condition. My heat in the cab seems to work ok ( which to be honest, is Xtrail lame. Warms up eventually but in Winter months takes longer then any other vehicles i've owned new or used. Vancouver winters are fairly mild, I doubt if i lived elsewhere i'd consider it acceptable. Apparently, weakish heat output is an Xtrail quirk ). My question is should I long ago have drained it and put in fresh coolant...or drain half out and add new coolant? Or if it ain't broke, leave it be? Yes, it is mid August and currently nice warm weather. I'm thinking maybe i should drain and fill with new coolant and maybe i get slightly better heat output. What advice you guys have for me? *


Tony, you should replace the coolant at least every two years. Getting a coolant flush will prevent the old anti-freeze from becoming acidic. This is important because once it starts to become acidic it will break down and can damage the bearing in the water pump, the rubber hoses and the aluminum components of the engine.


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## rogoman (Dec 16, 2004)

Koez said:


> I have noticed a bit of coolant loss from my 2005 X-trail over the last couple years. We don't drive the car a whole lot, but over the last 8 months and 2400 km, looks like I lost about 375mL.
> 
> There are no obvious leaks on the outside, but I have noticed white residue build up on the coolant hoses. I have wiped them off before, but it comes back. See the attached photos. About 1 year ago I did have a misfire in cylinder #3 only when starting the vehicle. I swapped the spark plugs and coils between cylinders and the problem has not returned since. Am I likely loosing a very small amount of coolant into cylinder #3? No signs of coolant in the oil when doing oil changes.
> 
> The engine has about 178,000km on it and the car is rebuilt title. I am in BC, so the car is in good shape as far as rust goes. If its a head gasket issue I am not sure how much value there is replacing it given the age of the vehicle and its not something I could tackle myself due to my living situation.


The white residue build up on the coolant hoses could be caused by the coolant oozing through the hoses, causing the effect you see there. The age of the radiator hoses could have something to do with it. Since they are 15 years old they may be breaking down and causing the coolant to slowly ooze out. That would contribute to the 375mL lose of coolant you're seeing. Squeeze the hose; it should have a firm feel; if it's very soft, it should be replaced.

Since you swapped the #3 spark plug and coil, it might be a good idea to remove the spark plugs and inspect the electrodes for any problems. The misfire you had may be caused by old plugs. The plugs should be replaced every 169,000 km. Here's a spark plug analysis chart:


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## Koez (Oct 27, 2019)

rogoman said:


> The white residue build up on the coolant hoses could be caused by the coolant oozing through the hoses, causing the effect you see there. The age of the radiator hoses could have something to do with it. Since they are 15 years old they may be breaking down and causing the coolant to slowly ooze out. That would contribute to the 375mL lose of coolant you're seeing. Squeeze the hose; it should have a firm feel; if it's very soft, it should be replaced.
> 
> Since you swapped the #3 spark plug and coil, it might be a good idea to remove the spark plugs and inspect the electrodes for any problems. The misfire you had may be caused by old plugs. The plugs should be replaced every 169,000 km. Here's a spark plug analysis chart:


Coolant hoses feel pretty soft I will say, sounds like it could be time to replace them.

I put in new spark plugs almost 5 years ago, with NGK 6240 laser platinum as I did not know when they were last changed. These are supposed to have a really long life and I have not put more than 25,000km on the car since they were swapped. Here is what they looked like when I swapped the plugs and coils in June of last year. The first photo shows the plugs in ascending order from left to right, and you can see the threads on #3 were a little darker than the others.


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## tonyvancity (Jan 2, 2017)

rogoman said:


> Tony, you should replace the coolant at least every two years. Getting a coolant flush will prevent the old anti-freeze from becoming acidic. This is important because once it starts to become acidic it will break down and can damage the bearing in the water pump, the rubber hoses and the aluminum components of the engine.


yes, i agree, thanks.....maybe i do in the next few days. I'm keeping an online eye on the cnd. tire pre mixed coolants to see if i can buy something on sale. Any recommendations?


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## rogoman (Dec 16, 2004)

tonyvancity said:


> yes, i agree, thanks.....maybe i do in the next few days. I'm keeping an online eye on the cnd. tire pre mixed coolants to see if i can buy something on sale. Any recommendations?


Most of the major brands are OK to use. My preference is Genuine Nissan Fluid 999MP-L25500P Blue Long Life Antifreeze/Coolant.


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## tonyvancity (Jan 2, 2017)

*Well, i have yet to replace my Xtrail's coolant. Today is a bit cooler temperature and i think an ideal day to do it. So i spoke to a very experienced automotive shop owner about changing my coolant and he stated what i read online. Don't power flush or use chemical flushes on a higher mileage vehicle. It can dislodge crud and cause potential blockages. He said that altho a simple drain does not get 100% of the old coolant out, no problem. Best to drain out as much of the old and just use the correct premix coolant i already purchased. And i will also drain out the coolant reservoir tank , hose it out of any old sludgy fluid. ---Keep It Simple Stupid--*
KISS formula?
The *KISS* principle states that most systems work best if they are kept simple rather than made complicated; therefore, simplicity should be a key goal in design, and unnecessary complexity should be avoided. ...
😁


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