loosing coolant, however no leaks found

[bgroce]

my mother has a 1999 Lanos SE

it is loosing coolant, inside of 20 or 30 miles it starts to overheat becasue the coolant level gets low

I do not see any leaks on the ground

it does not overheat until the coolant level gets low even if just idling in the driveway...

[Daniel]

Maybe head gacket blown or/and broken head or thermostat stuck closed. Are radiator hoses hard as wood after driving 20 miles? Try some driving with thermostat removed from housing.

[bgroce]

not a bad idea, I know she (my mother) has overheated the car before

she told me that a few months ago it would use a little coolant and she would have to refill it every 3 or 4 days, but she would wait till it started to run a little hot

then she said it started to need coolant every 2 days, once a day and finally every time she drove it

another note, it started to overheat on her when the outside temp was around 85F to 100F

[bgroce]

also forgot to mention that I do see bubbling in the expansion tank... kinda makes me think that it might be a head gasket...

[Daniel]

also forgot to mention that I do see bubbling in the expansion tank... kinda makes me think that it might be a head gasket...

Could be only the head gasket if you are lucky. Since engine has overheated you should perform a head test at the shop to be sure it's still flat and leak free.

[MMamdouh]

you have a leak that's for sure... you need to compress your cooling system to find the leak

odds are you messed up your head gasket as well due to reoccurring overheating... if you are lucky enough your head will be OK

MMamdouh

[Trey05Woo]

bubbling in the coolant tank means the car is running hot. some stiring in the tank is normal since it also serves as the purge point of the system. like mm said you need to pressure test the system. you need a special screw type adaptor which screws on to the coolant tank. water pump leaks are difficult to spot and dont forget to check under dash area for heater core leaks. hopefully your head gasket survived.

[Trey05Woo]

bubbling in the coolant tank means the car is running hot. some stiring in the tank is normal since it also serves as the purge point of the system. like mm said you need to pressure test the system. you need a special screw type adaptor which screws on to the coolant tank. water pump leaks are difficult to spot and dont forget to check under dash area for heater core leaks. hopefully your head gasket survived.