What fluid is my car leaking?

April 1, 4:48 AMTampa Sports Car ExaminerMichael Berenis

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Sports cars often have fluid leaks. The faster the car, the more often it leaks fluid, that's a fact. It also depends on how old your car is as to what your chances are for encountering a leak. The typical leak is always found at the worst times.

If you find the leak early, you can diagnose the problem and prevent further damage from occurring. A leaky car is a vehicle that needs repairs. Make sure you properly identify the fluid first before making any decisions to start replacing parts. A leaky fluid can be as simple as an instant fix, or they can be as expensive as $800.00 and higher for some water pump replacements.

Proper identification on four cylinder vehicles is more important that others, due to low interference timing. Coolant leaking from a timing belt driven water pump can damage the rubber compounds of the belt. If the belt goes out, you valves will crash into your pistons causing severe damage. All of this could have been avoided by fixing the leak, and is why detection of leaks is so important.

Lack of vehicle care will also create hazardous conditions resulting in catastrophic engine failure. Turbo vehicles for example, require good flow of coolant and oil in order to operate correctly. Lack of flow to a turbo of either oil or coolant will result in complete engine destruction. The turbo heats up and breaks apart. Your engine then sucks in all the metal, ending up another blown motor. Proper fluid care in sports cars is the most important thing you can do!

What fluid is my car leaking?

First, you'll need to identify what fluid your car is leaking. There are several types of fluids contained in each vehicle. The most common are listed below with pictures for your convenience:

• Oil

• Transmission fluid

• Coolant

• Gear oil

• Windshield washer fluid

• Battery acid

• Condensation

The key to solving the above issues and leaks is by first tracing the leak. Look for its residue or darkening of metal parts where grime has collected over time. Trace the gravity back upwards until you see a fresh leak. Typical fresh leaks occur near gaskets, bolts, and other divisions in metal. Hoses are also very common to leak, because the rubber starts to oxidize after time and heat exposure. Replacing and fixing the leak is very important, and can prevent further damage depending on which part is leaking.

All leaks if not fixed can cause future damage. Coolant leaks can create bubbles that in return create hot zones and reduce the cars ability to cool itself properly. Oil leaks affect oil pressure and allow contamination into the engine, eventually leading to engine failure. Transmission leaks reduce the ability to properly lubricate your transmission which can lead to destruction. Windshield washer fluid leaks are a nuisance but can cause an accident if the driver can't see objects through the window due to dirt, build up, grime, etc. Basically all leaks have a repercussion and it's best to take even the smallest drip serious.

There are several easy fixes to leaks. Small leaks can be fixed by a "Stop-leak" formula variation, which causes a nice build up of goo around the lining of all your hoses and internals. This stuff is not good to use. In the long run, it just causes other parts to have fatigue resulting in repair. It is always best to replace or fix the leaky part instead of patch it up using chemical additives.

 If you can not find your leak, or identify the fluid consider seeking a professional repair shop to handle the problem. It is usually more cost effective to identify it yourself. Here is some tips to help you identify what's wrong with your car.

1. Leaks found in the front section of the vehicle are typically oil and coolant. These can be identified by either dark brown (oil) or light synthetic colors to clear smelling like fish (coolant).
2. Leaks found in the middle section of the vehicle are typically transmission fluid, condensation, and gear oil. These can be identified by either a bright oily substance (transmission fluid) or tan/green synthetic oily substance (gear oil). Condensation is water, but can contain contaminants like road grime, dirt, etc that make it look like something else.
3. Leaks in the rear are either gasoline, or differential fluid. These can be identified by strong smell (gasoline) or oily substance (differential fluid).

Tip of the day: If you cannot identify the substance, take a sample of it on some white paper towl and hold it up to the light. Look through it, and smell it. Feel the texture of it between your finger tips. Get to know your fluids and you'll be sniffing out leaks like hound dog in no time. Leaks are very important to fix on a sports car, do not let even the slightest drip go unnoticed.

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 Video content: Valve cover coolant leak

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