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Antifreeze smell with the AC on.

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    #1

    Antifreeze smell with the AC on.

    I was driving home the other day and thought I might have a heard a pop, then I started smelling anti freeze coming through the air conditioning. Drove it home fine and didnt overheat, checked all the lines to see if something was obviously wrong. Nothing is showing signs of anti freeze accumulating.

    The one thing I did notice was that the bottom passenger side pulley, was engaging and disengaging. The pulley itself was still spinning freely, is this the AC compressor? If so, could it possibly be bad and causing a smell similar to anti freeze?

    Side note, the intake manifold is the upgraded aluminum one, and I do have new hoses all around, new thermostat also.

    I'm leaning towards compressor going bad, water pump, or possibly heater core??? Really kind of lost here and if anyone has any insight it is appreciated. Thanks.
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    #2
    It's always a good idea to indicate which car you're dealing with. Just out of curiosity, where the heck are you located to be using AC this time of year?

    I'm guessing heater core. Oftentimes you get smoke fogging up the windshield, but maybe you're lucky in that respect. Check the coolant level in the reservoir to see if it's going down.

    I don't know much about AC, but AFAIK it normally cycles on and off rather than running continuously, so yours sounds normal to me.

    If the water pump was leaking, you'd see it around the front. It's possible to have a leak in the heater coolant tube under the intake manifold (which comes from the back of the water pump), but I doubt you'd get much smell coming through the vent.

    2000 Grand Marquis LS HPP, a hand-me-down in 2008 with 128,000 km; 175,000 km as of July 2014
    mods: air filter box 'tuba', headlight relay harness, J-mod (around 186,350 km), 70mm throttle body, KYB Gas-A-Just shocks, aluminum driveshaft, ARA3 PCM

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      #3
      Forgot to mention that 2000 Mercury Grand Marquis. Not trying to rub it in either that I'm using the AC, but I am located in Florida. I'll check that heater coolant tube, hopefully that isn't it, it didn't look bad when I changed the intake manifold.

      The coolant in the radiator was down, but not by much.

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        #4
        If it is the heater core, would I be able to just route around it until I can fix the heater core? Also I was kind of expecting for the passenger side to be damp, if the heater core was going out.

        Comment

          #5
          yeah. heater core doesn't need to be hooked up for stuff to work.

          Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. -- Albert Einstein
          rides: 93 Crown Vic LX (The Red Velvet Cake), 2000 Crown Vic base model (Sandy), 2003 Expedition (the vacation beast)
          Originally posted by gadget73
          ... and it should all work like magic and unicorns and stuff.
          Originally posted by dmccaig
          Overhead, some poor bastards are flying in airplanes.

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            #6
            You can have a small leak in the core, enough to smell but not enough to flood the floor.
            86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
            5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

            91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

            1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

            Originally posted by phayzer5
            I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

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              #7
              To route around the heater core, would I just tie the two hoses going into the firewall together?

              Comment

                #8
                Yup. I just used a 90 degree elbow piece from the plumbing section at a hardware store when I temporarily bypassed mine. Since they were so cheap, I bought two just in case there was a melting issue, but it never melted. If your car never sees cold temperatures that require heat in the passenger compartment, you wouldn't have to go through the bother of changing the heater core.

                2000 Grand Marquis LS HPP, a hand-me-down in 2008 with 128,000 km; 175,000 km as of July 2014
                mods: air filter box 'tuba', headlight relay harness, J-mod (around 186,350 km), 70mm throttle body, KYB Gas-A-Just shocks, aluminum driveshaft, ARA3 PCM

                Comment

                  #9
                  Have had mine out (non working) on my 3 cars for years. Usually not an issue here in South Florida. Not sure where MercMan lives in Florida.


                  "Hope and dignity are two things NO ONE can take away from you - you have to relinquish them on your own" Miamibob

                  "NEVER trade your passion for glory"!! Sal "the Bard" (Dear Old Dad!)

                  "Cars are for driving - PERIOD! I DON'T TEXT, TWEET OR TWERK!!!!"

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                    #10
                    South of Tampa. I do use my heat, just rarely. Thanks I will give it a try guys.

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                      #11
                      I added a plastic 90 degree piece that should be used for irrigation. It was the only thing I could find, hopefully it holds up against the heat and doesnt melt.

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