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Old 27th January 2011, 16:29   #1
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Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Hi everyone

I have a 11 year old Santro DX, which has done about 1,02,500 kms. It has been maintained really well and has not given me any problems thus far.

However, a couple of weeks ago, while driving, I experienced some spluttering noise and when examined, I found that the coolant was leaking (very violently at that) from the white coolant reservoir, along with some fumes emerging from the bonnet. I stopped the car and called Trident Hyundai's helpline. The person from the helpline came, topped up the coolant with normal tap water, examined the car and advised that I should get this checked at the service station. He did not find any abnormalities in the temperature at which the engine was running.

When I went to the service station, they ran a few diagnostics on the car (they hooked up a machine to the car and ran some tests), and found nothing was wrong with the car.

The car was functioning normally till today when I encountered the same issue. I was again told to take the car to the Trident service center. I am not very confident about what these guys are telling me. Could someone give me some kind of insight into this and what I should do.

Thanks in advance.
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Old 27th January 2011, 17:30   #2
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Obviously, the car is overheating. There could be many possible causes.

Start by checking if the fan is working. Radiator/cooling lines could be clogged, blocking the circulation of the coolant.

Also, please check the head gasket for damages, not that it causes overheating, but due to overheating. it could get damaged and evolve into more serious engine problems.
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Old 27th January 2011, 18:30   #3
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Also, check out the water pump. Sounds like that to me. Another possibility, badly clogged fins on radiator.
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Old 27th January 2011, 19:16   #4
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

msetlur - a word of caution here. please check it thoroughly and do not take the car onto long drives or highways (i would suggent do not use) untill it is resolved completely.

overheating cases potentially can cause your gasket going or crankshat or even a major engine overhaul / replacement finally - so please be aware of that and be careful.

It seems you have spotted the issue early, and there are some other threads (probably just few threads below your thread here) where an alto half engine is getting replaced because of similar issue (mentioned as radiator malfunction) which was not spotted on time during driving and the car stalled completely then

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Old 27th January 2011, 20:13   #5
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Thanks all of you for your advice. I will take the car to the Trident service center tomorrow and ask them to do a thorough check and hope for the best.
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Old 27th January 2011, 21:45   #6
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by narayanang76 View Post
so please be aware of that and be careful.
And yes, do keep an eye on the temperature gauge, till you get the prob resolved completely. Any signs of overheating, stop, and let the engine cool down.
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Old 27th January 2011, 22:45   #7
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by dhanushs View Post
And yes, do keep an eye on the temperature gauge, till you get the prob resolved completely. Any signs of overheating, stop, and let the engine cool down.
you can never be too dependent on sensors in an 11 year old car. in my opinion, keep the car away from bumper-to-bumper and long drives till root cause is discovered and cured. radiator cleaning would be the first thing to do, along with water pump check.
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Old 28th January 2011, 17:16   #8
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

I visited the Trident service center today and had the car thoroughly checked. We found that the part with the carbon brushes which help run the motor which help run the radiator fan were badly worn out and this caused the fan to fail when the motor did not run properly. Had the part replaced and extensively tested the car for engine overheating. Did not find any and the car is working as before. The service engineer assured me that this was the issue and that the radiator and the water pump were fine. He also ruled out any engine damage since the issue had been spotted early.

Thanks to everyone that pitched in with advice.
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Old 28th January 2011, 17:36   #9
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Glad to know that the issue was sorted out. I would like to add that it is very important to check the Radiator for clogging, as adviced by our other friends here. A thorough check-up of the radiator will definitely be needed since I had a similar problem which was, after a few headacahes, traced to a clogged radiator.

A Flush alongwith some elbow grease from the mechanic side help unclog it and all this happened when my car had run 65~67k kms.
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Old 28th January 2011, 19:09   #10
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by msetlur View Post
We found that the part with the carbon brushes which help run the motor which help run the radiator fan were badly worn out and this caused the fan to fail when the motor did not run properly.
Ah.. So I nailed it right. .

And did you check your head gasket?.
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Old 31st January 2011, 14:59   #11
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by suren181 View Post
Glad to know that the issue was sorted out. I would like to add that it is very important to check the Radiator for clogging, as adviced by our other friends here. A thorough check-up of the radiator will definitely be needed since I had a similar problem which was, after a few headacahes, traced to a clogged radiator.

A Flush alongwith some elbow grease from the mechanic side help unclog it and all this happened when my car had run 65~67k kms.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dhanushs View Post
Ah.. So I nailed it right. .

And did you check your head gasket?.
I am grateful for all the advice that I received. It helped me explain what I thought was wrong to the service advisor, who I might add was very helpful and prompt in attending to my issue. I sometimes feel that the service centers tend to treat you better and take you more seriously if you show some knowledge about automobiles.

I did get the head gasket checked and it showed no signs of any damage.

I completed a Bangalore - Coimbatore - Bangalore trip over the weekend, and the car gave me no trouble. I was constantly monitoring the temperature gauge and the needle never went beyond the 40% mark. I drove the entire trip with the AC at 2. The only issue is that my fingers are aching from keeping them crossed all the time
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Old 31st January 2011, 22:16   #12
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Glad to know that the car is perfectly fine.

Also, this is the perfect time for you to start the habit of driving with an eye on the gauges, tell-tale lights. It helps a lot.
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Old 22nd June 2011, 15:51   #13
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by dhanushs View Post
Glad to know that the car is perfectly fine.

Also, this is the perfect time for you to start the habit of driving with an eye on the gauges, tell-tale lights. It helps a lot.

Guys,
I faced a similar type of issue while travelling to mountains , suddenly after appox 200 km the temp meter crossed more than 2/3. At that time I switched off the engine and poured water on the radiator and the temp became to normal.
After 25 km again the needle crossed 2/3. I stopped the car and switched off the engine and found that the fan is not working. Luckily there was a maruti service station where I changed the relay (in the fuse box)of the fan and that moved the fan.
After one night stay we move ahead. After 35 kms the issue reappeared. This time a burst in the coolant connector ( looked like cigar pipe having rubber )this was changed by the Hyundai service station along with packing and new 2 ltr coolant and water.
I was constantly monitoring the tem gauge. The issue reappeared again this time I am clue less. Everything seems to fine.
[FONT=Symbol]· [/FONT]Coolant level ok
[FONT=Symbol]· [/FONT]Radiator fan is working
[FONT=Symbol]· [/FONT]Engine oil ok

Your suggestion please . just for got to mention that all this was in NON _AC mode

Cheers
Srinivas
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Old 23rd June 2011, 10:35   #14
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

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Originally Posted by svpatra View Post
Guys,
I faced a similar type of issue while travelling to mountains , suddenly after appox 200 km the temp meter crossed more than 2/3. At that time I switched off the engine and poured water on the radiator and the temp became to normal.
After 25 km again the needle crossed 2/3. I stopped the car and switched off the engine and found that the fan is not working. Luckily there was a maruti service station where I changed the relay (in the fuse box)of the fan and that moved the fan.
After one night stay we move ahead. After 35 kms the issue reappeared. This time a burst in the coolant connector ( looked like cigar pipe having rubber )this was changed by the Hyundai service station along with packing and new 2 ltr coolant and water.
I was constantly monitoring the tem gauge. The issue reappeared again this time I am clue less. Everything seems to fine.
[FONT=Symbol]· [/FONT]Coolant level ok
[FONT=Symbol]· [/FONT]Radiator fan is working
[FONT=Symbol]· [/FONT]Engine oil ok

Your suggestion please . just for got to mention that all this was in NON _AC mode

Cheers
Srinivas
If coolant level is fine and radiator fan is working, then most likely it's failed water pump and/or clogged radiator and/or stuck (in closed position) thermostat valve. All these will result in non circulation of coolant and hence overheating even if fan is working. Please have these checked one by one and update us.
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Old 23rd June 2011, 13:10   #15
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Re: Santro - Coolant / Radiator related issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by amit1234singla View Post
If coolant level is fine and radiator fan is working, then most likely it's failed water pump and/or clogged radiator and/or stuck (in closed position) thermostat valve. All these will result in non circulation of coolant and hence overheating even if fan is working. Please have these checked one by one and update us.
Thanks Amit,

What's the procedure to test the water pump.
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