I popped the hood of my mustang this afternoon and noticed the coolant level was very low even though I had just had it changed. My car doesn't seem to be rising in temperature and the low coolant light is not on. I see no leaks in the driveway and so I also tried to video my exhaust while revving it a bit and no white smoke. Is it bad that this continues and if it is what can I do and what do you think is causing this problem. Thanks in advance!

 

Who changed it?

 

Jiffylube.. but when they changed it it was full at first, and now its like half of the whole coolant container. And right now I actually notice my car temperature going up and down by just a lil bit.

 

Probably didnt burp out all the air (if they even changed it... jiffy lube has a horrible rep)

 

So what are my options in getting this issue out of the way?

 

It will burp itself. Has it gone down more? Or has it leveled out

 

It has leved out now.. but its like half of the container. Should I add coolant or water? Do you think this has something to do with my temperature rising a bit?

 

Jiffy lube has low cost labor, I'll let the reader figure out what that means wrt the quality of the work.

The problem is that the air wasn't removed from the system. I don't know if the '06 requires an airlift system or not (the '11 and up 5.0 does at minimum) to prevent air pockets. The 4.6 in my '97 can be a bit of pain to get the air out, I doubt it got easier with later cars. In any case the Jiffy lube help were probably in a jiffy to move cars through and didn't take the time to do it.

The good news is generally speaking engines purge the air on their own. The coolant from the recovery tank fills the air pockets and the air goes to the recovery tank. Hence a low coolant level. Top it off with 50/50 and watch it. Given what you're saying on the dramatic change in level it's probably done purging the air.

The temp gauge will go up and down as the cooling fan comes on and goes off. Some times with speed changes (air flow). That's normal.

 

^^this

 

Thanks a lot for the helpful info.. so ill just top it up with water while the engine is cold correct? The coolant they put was yellow btw. I dunno what type that is, but just some extra info to clarify if topping it off with water is fine.

 

Color is brand. Not type

I would call and ask. Hopefully they used an extended life coolant.

 

My bad, clearly not an expert here. should I top it off with distilled water or it doesn't matter?

 

No problem.
Everyone recomends distilled. I just use my water at the house. Never had an issue. So to me its up to you

 

I'm on well water that does have some calcium in it. Will leave bad water spots when I wash the car if I don't dry immediately.
In my old F150 I have had to have the radiator repaired twice over the years. I've always just used water out of the hose. I will say there is quite a bit of calcium deposits inside the core before they boil it out. Which means there is surely calcium in the cooling passages of the engine.
So distilled probably is the best way to go for longevity of the cooling passages.

 

Makes sense. Im on well water too. But no water spots here. Our water is super soft. Makes removing soap a pita

 

Don't top off with just water you'll dilute the mix they put in which should be 50/50. Either mix your own or buy premix.

 

Like Lime GT said, never top it off with just water. Or straight anti-freeze. Use 50/50 coolant/water mix. If you dilute the mixture or over-concentrate it, it changes the cooling performance and lowers the boiling point. You'll boil over and overheat much easier. 50/50 is the optimum mixture

And don't use the red/orange coolant (DexCool)

Just to be safe, check your oil for any cloudiness. I'm sure it is just that Jiffy Lube didn't bleed the system but you should make sure the anti-freeze isn't escaping into the oil system via a failing head gasket, or on certain vehicles the intake gasket-- but I can't remember if that applies on these cars. I had a failing intake gasket on my 96 Monte Carlo I used to have and started seeing little milky wisps on the dip stick. Then before I knew it, the oil turned to chocolate soft-serve ice cream. Had to pay a shop $500 to change the gasket and clean out the entire oil system and I was **** lucky I didn't ruin my motor.

 

Thanks a lot guys. So my coolant was already a 50/50 mix. Can I top it off with a different brand? But with the same color which was yellow green..

 

Color isn't type... its brand... use pre stone extended life. Safe to mix with all types of antifreeze

 

Thanks.. I just wasn't sure if different brands have some sort of different ingredient or somethin.. )