Triumphrat

01-11-2006, 04:03 AM

Okay, bear with me here. The Trident is only my second motor vehicle, & it's my first that uses antifreeze...
(Edit: I had the Virago for about a week, it doesn't really count.)

I was riding around today in traffic. An unseasonably warm day for NYC in January, temps pushing toward 50* F. My motor seemed to be running a bit hot. (My radiator fan didn't come on at all, but I'll wait a bit before asking about that.) When I got home, I looked the level of coolant in the bike. It was almost all gone.

Where did it go? My understanding was that the coolant system is a closed loop, with whatever evaporates condensing back into the tank. Am I wrong about that? Is it normal to lose coolant? My bike's certainly not leaking coolant in a puddle or anything obvious like that, & I'm pretty sure I topped it up after the last time it got knocked over.

Can anyone clue me in here?

Thanks,
-Kit

[ This message was edited by: KitNYC on 2006-01-11 02:04 ]

SpiderTex · 01-11-2006, 05:13 AM

You are absolutely right, it is a closed system.
The expansion tank has (at least on a Sprint) 2 tubes. One tube to connect the cooling circuit with the expansion tank, one tube which act as overflow relieve.

The connector for the overflow line on the tank has often a one way valve mechanism. It can happen that the lines are erroneously swapped. When the engine gets hot, the coolant expands and the excess is pushed towards the tank. The valve then blocks the coolant which then leaks away.

This might be the case with your bike.

Speed3 · 01-11-2006, 04:42 PM

Do you know what burning antifreeze smells like? It could be a bad head gasket. Top up your coolant and monitor it for a while. Hopefully it was just low.

01-12-2006, 09:43 PM

Thanks, y'all. Got knocked over again yesterday, grrrrrr...

I have no idea what burning antifreeze smells like, but I have occasionally smelled something burning.

I'll top it up again & monitor the level.

-Kit

Curmudgeon · 02-07-2006, 01:18 PM

I'll bet it just overflowed and just dumped on the ground when your bike was hot. I just got a '06 Speed Triple. I filled the reservoir to the high level and noticed that it spit coolant out the overflow tube until the level was back down to the low mark in the coolant reservoir, when it stopped. No big deal, I think.

Curmudgeon · 02-07-2006, 01:20 PM

Oh, and if coolant were getting past the head gasket, into the combustion chamber, you'd see white smoke coming out the tail pipe. White smoke on a cold morning, when the engine is cold is normal. White smoke when the engine is hot is not.

02-07-2006, 03:21 PM

Thanks, guys. I'm guessing I just never filled it back up after it got knocked over. I could've sworn I did, but the coolant level has been stable since the last time I filled it & all seems well as far as that goes. I do sometimes see white smoke when the engine is hot, but I gather that's to be expected in the rain. :wink:

Now, off to talk to the mechanic about where that useful little notch between first & second has gone...

Cheers,
-Kit

07-04-2007, 08:37 PM

Woo, blast from the past!

Filled the coolant tank to the max line last weekend (from min line) & it was empty last night. (Much traffic in 90* F weather. The radiator was still full, fortunately.)

I noticed 2 little spheres of something floating in the coolant tank after refilling. Some sort of grease, possibly motor oil? There was a little bit of something oily floating on top of the coolant in the radiator as well.

Is this symptomatic of a bad head gasket, or could it be something worse? Should I take it in immediately, or can I let it go another couple thou & worry about it with the 42k service?

Anybody know if replacing the head gasket is easy during a major service, or am I looking at a bunch of additional labor?

Thanks,
-Kit

danf_florida · 07-07-2007, 07:03 PM

Check your oil level. Is it okay, or too full? Does it have foam?
Check compression between cylinders. If it is the same (the exact psi)? Does it hold compression?

Pressurize the coolant system. Does the pressure remain constant?

These are only ideas, but if you have oil in coolant, it sounds like a problem that "could" range from a bad gasket to a cracked component.

Best of luck!

Jacksf · 07-11-2007, 11:26 AM

Hi Kit,
What's up with your bike? Is it still losing coolant?
You could have a leak at the base of your cylinder liners. Living in New York most likely means you don't have the space to tear it apart.
I have some Trident engine parts if it turns out to be a cracked liner.

Good luck, I hope it's nothing.

Steve