hi, members: this is a 2 part question, i have tried to make it short and direct:


title of thread: Inexpensive mechanic rated as high quality by friend didn't jack up car & look under?

i know this is a diy oriented forum but you may find the following interesting as a matter of practice when it comes to coolant leaks

i took my 93 4th gen v6 to a highly rated mechanic referred to me as such by a friend

he put a meter or gauge into the radiator and said it wasn't optimum pressure so there was a small leak

i let him know 8 months ago leaking under the right left right under the coolant reservoir was dismissed by a freelance mech. friend of mine as normal when adding coolant

he said no that was not normal for ANY coolant to be leaking under the front left area

he then checked all the hoses opened up the oil tank checked the oil then said he would need me to leave it there for a day to do a pressure test (im assuming said pressure test is free)

but and this is the important part:

he didn't hydraulic jack my car and look under the front left area where i mentioned the leaking of coolant

wouldn't that go without saying?

he didn't even take a flash lite to it and bend over to look under it

1) should i be taking this car elsewhere to remedy this problem because it is friggn unbelievable that he didn't look under the car at the area where i mentioned it was leaking coolant 8 months ago and also just recently?

and also....please answer this part

2) the fact that coolant is leaking under my car is good?? right??

a sign of an external coolant leak and not an internal coolant leak

an internal coolant leak would mean problems with a cracked engine block or engine head....am i right?

as always, a million thanks in advance for any help

 

"Didn't jack up car and look under".......yet. From your description, he's going to pressure test the cooling system to give you a more complete diagnostic. That's when he would look under and over everything to see where the leak is coming from.
You have the 3.4, correct? An external coolant leak could be a bad intake manifold gasket, timing cover gasket (these two are the more common), head gasket, fitting or hose, or worse case scenario, a cracked block. No sense thinking the worst till it gets looked at.

 

Update: Radiator Cap was cracked that's why low coolnt in reservoir & coolant temp sensor needs to be replaced

I came back from my trustworthy oil leak repair mechanic (from a mid-size not a real big franchise auto repair shop) who told me that the radiator cap was broke that accounted for the coolant leak

After he ordered a new radiator cap made of metal not plastic (costing me $15), he told me that was the only reason for the leak

The reason for high temperature was also because the "coolant temp sensor" needs to be replaced

I said hey isn't that just what's called a stupid light something that only gauges or measures the temperature that if it was replaced it would not lower the temp, but just instead give only an accurate reading?

The mechanic then replied that no the coolant temp sensor is an important autopart that actually signals the cooling fans in a Camaro to turn on.

I added coolant and notice there was a lot more coolant in the reservoir (when before it would disappear after 2 hours of adding coolant into the coolant reservoir) and even better....no more leaking when I park it onto the pavement!!

Furthermore, after driving it for an hour, the temperature gauge inside the Camaro's cabin only goes up half-way and not at 75 % at near the red zone.

So, that's good news:

a) a new radiator cap stopped the coolant leaking, lowered the temperature somewhat, and also kept a lot more coolant in the coolant reservoir tube

b) a coolant temp sensor quoted at $185 parts and installation and taxes is what will Even Further, even more lower my car's temperature.

Thank you...for everyone's input.

 

P.S. he also looked under my car after lifting it up and did a pressure test. in fact, this is only a minor repair $185 which includes labor. he could have said u need a new radiator, you need a new water pump etc., but I'm real lucky. that's why he has so many awesome yelp reviews. and it didn't take a day like that other mechanic near a beach who is highly rated yet does work on a car while on a cell phone making what appeared to be a personal call. the other mechanic near the beach who is supposed to be cracker jack also added some water to my coolant which some advise against. also he has side jobs under the consent of the auto shop's owner which kind of made me wonder. so i guess i made the right decision using the same mechanic who I spent $430 which repaired my oil leak

 

Your engine (as does many other types) has 1 coolant temperature sensor and 1 temperature sending unit.
The temperature sensor by the thermostat housing is connected to the computer, and yes also controls the fan.
In addition to that one, there is a temperature sending unit in the drivers side head, behind the power steering pump, which is where the temperature gauge in the dash gets it's reading from.
This is pretty common stuff that many different vehicles have, which your guy should have known about.

 

soundslike you did much better with this guy,for sure happy to hear it is fixed ,you know your right ,you hear the stories about shops telling people they need a big fix when it something small,like a radiator ,instead of just a cap ,yes cap alone can do it,this is why the bigger franchise places like a pepboys garage that has everything,in those places they have cameras ,couse you hear about it sn some do it ,with cams thay cant do it ,I think everyone should have a seceret cam sad but true these days ,would catch anyone not honest ,an the kind that does not work off the battery in the car ,I suppose any one who questions it may not be trust worthy ,cam for a car is like 20.00 thse day cheap good for accidents too safety you name it

 

TRUE with the cam. idea. i noticed my hazard puller on my 4th gen. was missing today--it's flush now with the rest of the steering wheel. in all likelihood from the ignition lock replacement by the locksmith who probably did this by accident only a week ago. now if he knew that he broke it off when he took off the steering column or didn't know about this is the question ??
anyway the estimate for this locksmith was over like 69 dollars what was originally quoted to me. it's ok since in the grand scheme of things I'm happy to have a working ignition system and a new camaro code key with the code #'s in case i need them in the future. it's ok just also 'cause this locksmith is a veteran ex military guy who probably has seen combat action, and i can probably get another hazard button at a junkyard