Sorry if the title was at all cryptic, but as we all know title space is limited.
I have a 1999 Ford Ranger. She’s been a mostly reliable steed but given her age she is starting to have some difficulties.
Mostly recently, I have noticed a tendency to run hot when the AC is operating and to drip not just water when using the AC but also some radiator coolant.
Over the past week I have kept careful observation both before and after operating, and with and without AC while monitoring the coolant reservoir.
Now, don’t get the idea anything is gushing or anything, this is not a fast or super obvious leak. I noticed it largely because I pay attention to my vehicles (which might be one reason they run as well as they do at their ages).
I am very, very, very sure it is NOT leaking coolant when the AC is not used. I do not find evidence of leaking after it has sat overnight (I have left it for three days in the same spot, no evidence of leaking of anything underneath). It does not leak after driving when the AC is NOT used. When the AC is used, the coolant drip is roughly equal to the water drip, so it’s not a LOT of leak, but very definitely I have one spot of coolant and one spot of water under the truck when using the AC.
Well, obviously the first thing to do here is stop using the AC, which I have done. Then I topped off the coolant fluid - probably didn’t actually need it, but the fluid had gone down slightly and I figured, what the hell, I keep reserve fluids for the vehicles for just such an occasion.
No sign of coolant in the motor oil (which seems to be a common question when I describe the above).
So, with the disclaimer that you are not my mechanic and you may be reluctant to [del]diagnose the patient[/del] commit too strongly over the internet, could the Doper mechanics throw out a few guesses as to what might be going on here? Loose hose? Gasket leak? Impending zombie apocalypse?
Yes, I will take it to a meat-space mechanic in the near future, I just like to do a little research before doing that on general principles. I’m assuming I can continue to use it for short trips, but might just park it and use my car until I can get the problem looked at and taken care of, again on general principles. The only downside being that the car is going to need rear bearings soon. (I can cover the cost to do that immediately, but I was hoping to use the truck for a month or two to save up a bit more more as September had some unplanned for bills and I’d like my savings account to rebound a bit before tapping it again, if I can. Safety first, though) I had hoped to drive mostly the truck for month or two before getting those bearings done.
If it matters, most days I’m driving less than 15 miles total and 40 mph or less.
Anyhow, input appreciated.