3 weeks ago after a short drive I pulled my 2016 R Conv into the garage. ( 19,00 Miles ) When I got out of the car I could smell coolant. The smell continued as it sat the rest of the afternoon. I looked over the engine compartment thoroughly convinced it must be either the stock plastic tubes or the water pump. But I could not see anywhere any fluid was leaking. The coolant bottle was just a hair below the minimum mark, so I topped it off. Called the local Jag dealer and was able to get an appointment for this coming Monday. Since then I have driven the car twice for at least 50 miles. Both times coming back in the garage, no smell, the coolant bottle is still full. I guess I hate the thought of taking this to the dealer and letting them have it for a couple of days and charging me bucks and possibly not finding anything. Just asking for opinions or anyone else has run across this same problem, if so, what were your results. So take it to the dealer or let it ride???

Thanks

 

I'd let it ride but monitor it (cold) at least once a week.

We have had a couple of instances of coolant loss. Have put maybe 8 oz. of coolant into the car each year.

 

See if there's any coolant under the supercharger, though it may be tough to see.

Also, keep in mind that when you shut off the engine, the coolant stops moving through the radiator, and the coolant pressure will actually rise some. I had a leak on a car one time that drove me nuts, unable to find it. Suspicious, after a drive, I opened the hood, shut down the engine, and waiting. After a couple minutes, a needle-thin stream of coolant magically started squirting out the side of what appeared to be a perfectly good coolant hose.

 

In my old XF with the same engine as the F-Type I had a couple of coolant leaks and one of them was really small and occasional and most of the coolant was trapped in the undertray so it was hard to notice.

These coolant systems with their plastic parts are known to crack and leak in many different places but the most common culprits seem to be the pieces in the engine block valley under the supercharger, behind the supercharger and the big pipe at the front of the engine which was revised to a more lasting version in newer cars. A waterpump that's beginning to fail can also cause a small coolant leak. One of the leaks I had in my XF was the waterpump starting to give in. I'd let the shop take a close look at these things.

 

Just to back up the above... I had a coolant leak in my 2018 R under the supercharger, dealer noticed the coolant leak themselves from the smell when it was in for something else, here's the work I had:

 

Just a quick update. Took the Jag to the dealer where they performed a leakdown test. Couldn't find any leaks anywhere. Mechanic stated the coolant cap has a vent in it and this may have been where I was getting the smell. Will just keep my eye on it for now. The only other "leak" that was found, was from my wallet!!!

 

Good news that the system passed a pressure leakdown test at least! Although I'd still be a little concerned that your coolant tank was below minimum when you checked it, seems odd? Definitely worth occasionally checking in on the tank level for peace of mind

 

Back when I was looking at F-Type Rs, I checked out one that had what I thought was a strong coolant smell when the hood was raised. The owner said I was smelling spray detailer, except that I know what both smell like, and it wasn't detailer. Anyway, I looked all over the engine bay and couldn't see where the smell was coming from, so I suppose that it's possible that the smell is entirely from the coolant reservoir vent. That said, with the car that I eventually bought never has any coolant smell at all, so I'd keep vigilant.

 

I actually meant to bring the cap up - my f type has a faint coolant smell and so do my other cars. Of course, I rarely smell it around the challenger because it has no cats and the exhaust overtakes everything. Certainly good to be vigilant but some smell is normal.

 

Yes me too? I have an XJ and am very good at checking coolant levels and it's not changing. But I still swear there is a hot coolant smell when I open the hood.
Maybe just too concerned and I am expecting coolant leaks?
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That's the way I felt. But the test turned out good and the only explanation I got was the vent from the coolant tank. Since I topped off my coolant bottle a couple of weeks ago, it has not gone down at all. I guess it's the nature of the beast??

 

I've had a persistent coolant smell since I've had my MY18, although it's not always present. The car has been pressure tested and inspected three different times by two different dealers and it passes every time. I've also been told that there is no traditional radiator cap on these radiators--the fill cap for the reservoir does double duty as both and because it's vented you will occasionally get the smell. I think overfilling the reservoir (which a lot of dealers seem to do, ignoring the fill lines on the side that don't go to the top), combined with normal expansion and contraction of the fluid into and out of the reservoir contribute to this as well.

On a 2016 like yours, there are two additional places of concern: the reservoir/cap itself, and the plastic coolant pipes under the supercharger snout and crossover pipe. As far as the pipes, you can search the forum as it has been discussed numerous times but the pre-MY18 are known to fail due to poor design so you could have one weeping and not be able to see it. However, a pressure test should catch this. There was also a TSB for the reservoir and cap as sometimes the mouth and neck of the opening weren't perfectly round and so the cap doesn't seal properly, causing the odor. I've attached the service bulletin on that so you can determine if it applies to you.

I've been to F-Type meets where the smell of coolant seems to be ubiquitous. Annoying as it may be, if you don't see signs of leaking coolant AND the reservoir does not drop, then I would not worry about it. Just remember, these cars DO NOT have a low coolant warning light so you need to check it periodically yourself or you risk running the car dry and quickly destroying the engine.

 

Yep, I too wondered about "a traditional radiator cap" on mine so a couple of weeks ago I searched the car for one and found nothing so you are right there is just the overflow tank / reservoir fill cap.

 

my car doesn't smell of coolant, but i did get a warning that my coolant was low (2014 V6). The overflow tank is solid, so didn't see a fill line on the exterior, There are plastic fins on the interior of the tank am figuring those would be the level indicators? idk, no clearly demarcations of "max / min"?

 

Are you sure you looked hard enough?
I also have a 2014 V6 and the expansion/overflow tank most definitely has min and max lines/markings on it, clearly visible on the outside, and the coolant level is also clearly visible from the outside.
Maybe you need to shine a torch/flashlight on it?

 

You are right. i looked again and found the min/max marking on the overflow tank towards the front of the car. Very little distance between the min and max lines, not even half an inch. Thanks for the input.

 

look at post #23 on my thread. you will more than likely need to upgrade all these parts as they use an older brittle plastic. many of these plastic lines that are intact will break during the removal process to replace any of the cracked lines.
the heater pipe and the outlet pipe will probably be your issue as a hairline crack would cause a small amount to leak out and dissolve on the engine block and never hit the ground.


https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/f...-256004/page2/

 

I have a 2016 R with the same issue. I took it in reluctantly and it was the overflow tank and cap. They pressure tested it and sure enough it was the TSB that is for that issue. I sent them the TSB before taking my car in since my vin was included. They pressure tested the car and found a leak there. Then like a jackass I didn't want my car to sit outside for days while they wait for parts so I went to pick it up and the kid the fetched my car backed it into the service bay but not fully clearing the door. Sure enough they closed the door and then opened the door clipping the front facia. And I was worried about the car sitting out in the rain! Anyway just have the dealer or an indy do a pressure test. That should expose your issue. I have had to add just a very small amount of coolant to the tank since I noticed the smell.

 

Now the only other thing you need is for someone to put together a a gasket and/or hose kit to finish it up! Ayone out there?

 

I thought I read somewhere in JLR lit that the coolant cap has 3 clicks to be completely closed. Since I had just looked inside that reservoir, I went right back out and refit the cap with the requisite 3 clicks.