Help!!! ASAP!!

[tizzem]

I'm a new sho owner.. I've had this 1989 sho for about a week... Today i was going to put coolant in it, because ever since i got it it kept saying low coolant (never overheated)

When I put coolant in it, i had this bright idea to poor the coolant in my gas can so it wouldn't spill all over the engine.. well the gas can had a bit of oil in it (from my dads rc cars).

ever since i did poured it in, the car has lost power steer and has been smoking and dripping a mixture of coolant and oil.

Is my engine screwed or is there something I can do about it??

Thanks in advance.

 

[Irish Pride]

where exactly did you put the coolant? where is it dripping the oil and coolant from?

 

[zblackbeast]

^^ This

 

[tizzem]

its dripping from the front right side... its also smoking a lot .

 

[tizzem]

i put it in where it said engine coolant only

 

[tizzem]

anyone have any ideas what's wrong with it or what to do?> Thanks.

 

[jayro]

I would say atleast flush the coolant system. Check the end of the radiator where the end is crimped on....that is the normal spot that leaks. If you need a radiator, it is an easy job and radiators are pretty cheap to get.

The power steering would be a different issue than the coolant system. Check your fluid level. The power steering cooler is attached to the front of the subframe on the drivers side.....see if you have any leaks there. How is the belt for the ps? Is it tensioned and spinning the pump? If you need to add ps fluid the car uses type F atf fluid in the ps system. Good luck.

 

[kevinspann]

Does it still run fine? Is the power steering reservoir even full?

 

[tizzem]

there is also a hole in the radiator overflow bottle..

 

[tizzem]

yeah it runs good... thew bottle is empty

 

[tizzem]

the power steering was empty, i put 1 small bottle in it and drove about 2 miles. when i got home it was smoking under the hood.

 

[jayro]

Was empty???? Im not following. So is the PS full now? Is it working or not? Was the hole in the coolant bottle what caused the oil/coolant to leak all over?

 

[tizzem]

it's about a quarter of the way full. I just put a bottle in it. I'm not sure what caused the leak.. I'd like to find out though. I'm not really mechanically inclined.

 

[jayro]

The PS resiviour (sp?) has a dipstick on the lid to check the level.

Can you see the hole in the coolant bottle? If you fill it with water can you climb under ad see where it is leaking from?

 

[tizzem]

its right behind the front right tire. that's where it's leaking. and I see the hole it's right near the top of the bottle.

 

[jayro]

When you say right tire, do you mean passanger or drivers side? When you say behind the tire, do you mean toward the passanger cabin or going away from the tire toward the engine?

Can you clean up the area on the coolant bottle and use some RTV for a temporary fix until you replace it?

For us to be able to help we need a better description of locations etc.

 

[tizzem]

oh.. passenger side, and the tire upfront towards the engine.

 

[jayro]

If I remember correctly, there is a radiator/coolant hose that runs in that area. You should be able to trace it back and see if it is leaking. Of your waterpump is in that area, though I have never had one leak bad enough to leave a big puddle.

 

[zblackbeast]

The only two coolant related parts on the passenger side of the car is the lower radiator hose, and the water pump.

 

[sperold]

You have a couple of issues that are unrelated, and probably don't have much to do with your oily water mixture you put in the overflow bottle.
I had the line rot out on the power steering rack and that could be your power steering issue (but a bit of a long-shot), so check that out while it is running with someone moving the steering wheel around.
A lot of things that leak seem to end up on the catalytic converters and that could be your oily mixture from the overflow bottle.
Stay at it, and solve one thing at a time, and you will get through it.