wife's 2002 v6 FWD tip has smelled like coolant since the day it came back from the mechanic for a TB change. at first i thought "probably from all the coolant he says he spilled on the engine" but i don't think it'd still be there after weeks and about 1000 miles of driving. so at this point i'm thinking he probably didn't connect a hose properly, or something along those lines - never had a coolant smell before that.
the obvious answer is, of course, bring it back. i'd rather not do that for a variety of reasons unless i absolutely have to. i'm not too familiar with this engine though, so i'm hoping some of you gurus can point me in the direction of where i should look for loose hoses and the like.
symptoms: when i start the car i smell it outside the car, and get a lingering smell afterward on a short trip. on longer trips it seems to fade away by the time i'm there. if i let the car sit for a couple days, the smell is more pronounced. i smell it inside the car too, but i'm not inclined to think heater core as i get the smell regardless of the temperature position, and since the engine bay smells of it, it seems a bit of a no-brainer that it'd smell inside too.
any help would be much appreciated. i just don't have the time for wrenching i once did, with a 2 year old, the job, and another one on the way in june, but i'd very much like to get my wife's car as near to perfect as i can in the next few months before the baby explosion. it's a nice car and needs only a little tlc to get it in tip-top shape, i think. this forum has been gold for that, as all my previous dub knowledge extended to b4 sedans with tdi engines. i look at this v6 monster and i'm lost.
the obvious answer is, of course, bring it back. i'd rather not do that for a variety of reasons unless i absolutely have to. i'm not too familiar with this engine though, so i'm hoping some of you gurus can point me in the direction of where i should look for loose hoses and the like.
symptoms: when i start the car i smell it outside the car, and get a lingering smell afterward on a short trip. on longer trips it seems to fade away by the time i'm there. if i let the car sit for a couple days, the smell is more pronounced. i smell it inside the car too, but i'm not inclined to think heater core as i get the smell regardless of the temperature position, and since the engine bay smells of it, it seems a bit of a no-brainer that it'd smell inside too.
any help would be much appreciated. i just don't have the time for wrenching i once did, with a 2 year old, the job, and another one on the way in june, but i'd very much like to get my wife's car as near to perfect as i can in the next few months before the baby explosion. it's a nice car and needs only a little tlc to get it in tip-top shape, i think. this forum has been gold for that, as all my previous dub knowledge extended to b4 sedans with tdi engines. i look at this v6 monster and i'm lost.
rops to you. Add this to the list of mystery engine bay odors..
