Ok. So I've had a coolant smell since I purchased the car. We started with the obvious visible issues, front housing, thermostat, hoses, new expansion tank, clamps, smell always came back in new places. Tis time I lost coolant too, a full tank in about a month. So finally we did a pressure test, and nothing. Not a drop anywhere. So I had mechanic remove throttle body and manifold hoping to find the heater hoses weeping or something. Nothing!! But we did replace all the hoses except a small one on the rear of throttle body since we couldn't find one anywhere. Smell still there. When I use the AC, there's no smell until the recycle air turns off. If I hit recycle, no smell. It's pulling the coolant smell in the vents when I stop at a light. Driving, it blows away too fast. So I'm really burnt on this problem. Could I need a new throttle body?? I KNOW this is where the smell is coming from!!!
We did succed in finding the oil leak with the oil cooler hoses.
NOW I have the check engine light after driving it for the day. Is there anything that may be causing this that may simply fix itself since we've replaced all these hoses and seals??
Oh, and the 2-2 code is back on for the drivers seat airbag.
Tis car will be the end of me!!!!!!!!

 

Ok Phil, there is a solution to this, just remember to breath.

For the throttle body, one option is to just bypass the coolant flow in the TB. I did this for the twin screw kit, not a big deal.

As for the CEL, read the code and tell us what it is. I'm sure there is a simple explanation.

 

I guess my question is: could it be a bad throttle body? Is there something internally that could be leaking and causing smell? It's obviously coolant hitting something very hot and burning off before it can be found, and since pressure test turned up NO leaks, where else should it be?
I've been told heater core is a possibility, but wouldn't I smell it even if recycle air is on? I only get it in the cabin when I stop at a lit or sign, and air is pulled in from external vents.

 

The throttle body water connections are some fittings pressed into a metal body so I am skeptical that they would leak. Possible, but pretty unlikely.



More likely I think would be the hose connections to it or the T fitting in the heater line where the throttle body ties in.

But if I pressure test didn't find ANYTHING, that is a real head scratcher.

How does the water pump look? They can fail and start leaking around the shaft and it's on the front of the engine, so not so easy to see.

 

I just have to ask; how did you do the pressure test? Did you use a Jaguar specific connection to the reservoir or the universal connection? How much pressure did you put on the system?

Not finding a leak with the system under pressure is just hard to believe. If at or above normal operating pressure we are talking about a leak that only occurs with the engine at operating temp.

One of my several reservoirs failed with a small crack in the body that did not leak but sprayed a very fine mist that just drifted off without dripping. It did not show itself until about 20 psi pumped up pressure.

 

A common coolant leak on these cars is the octopus hose under the throttle body for the heater. The plastic Norma connectors in this hose get brittle and leak on top of the bellhousing. Its hard to see but look there with a strong light after a hot shutdown. The other common leak is the heater hoses from the thermostat area across the V of the engine block, under the intake manifold. Its very difficult to see a leak in there and the heat dries the fluid quickly.

 

Don't forget to doublecheck the clamps and hose end positions on all the hoses. My wife's XK8 was losing a miniscule amount of coolant back in late summer / early autumn. The expansion tank coolant level would drop perhaps an eighth of an inch between my weekly level checks. So one Saturday morning I removed the plastic engine dust cover and immediately saw that one of the upper hose ends was not seated all the way down on its fitting and that little bit of exposed metal fitting had some small but telltale orange stains around it. I loosened the hose clamp, pushed the hose end all the way to the end of the fitting, and tightened the clamp properly. That action stopped the miniscule coolant loss problem. I topped up the coolant level to just below the filler neck of the expansion tank, and it has remained there ever since....

 

Is there a flourescent dye that can be used to see leaks, like there is with A/C? When I've had heater core issues, I've gotten condensation on my windshield above the defrost vents, and in one car, pulling up the carpet revealed the lost coolant.
Good luck with your project, wish I could help more.

 

That was the second round of hoses we changed.

 

He did around 18-19 I think. Used jag fitting, and left all night. We did find a bad cap on the fender tank. But no leak and also wouldn't burn if it did. Nothing hot there.

 

Did that and we even used new hoses on every change.

 

http://www.summitracing.com/search/P...etection-Dyes/

Maybe it will help. Could it be possible a head gasket is leaking?