Hello-

First time posting...please forgive my ignorance if I'm missing anything in this post, and thanks in advance for reading!

Our 2004 Pacifica is leaking coolant. When the car is first turned on, nothing happens, but after about 30 seconds another noise starts (sounds like a fan perhaps?), and that is when the steady drip begins. I have attached a picture to show the location of the drip. Looking at the pic, it looks to me like there is some sort of crack, and that's where the drip is coming from (you can actually see a green drip about to fall in the pic).

Can anyone tell me what that part is, and if it's causing the problem? If that's not the problem, any educated guesses are most welcome. I'd like to get the car to stay with us through the end of the year to avoid paying property tax on the next car (In KC, MO, if you own a car on Jan 1, you pay property tax on it. Tax on the car we're likely to buy will be about $1500 the first year!). At the same time, I don't want to put in more money than makes sense, etc.

Please let me know if you have any ideas...thanks!

 

The area you're looking at is the frame of the car. The coolant leak is going to be coming from somewhere higher up and dripping/running down to that point.

If you just want to make it to the end of the year with the car, keep an eye on the coolant level and re-fill it whenever it gets down a quart or two. Keep a jug of 50-50 antifreeze in the car.

Many times, a coolant leak is something simple. Even if it's more complicated, it may not be anything close to the $1500 you are trying to save in taxes. Somebody is going to need to inspect it closely to determine where the leak is coming from and what is needed to fix it.