Help! Coolant loss from header overflow in austria

[eppiblue]

Waiting assistance on road side. We juts finished a steep climb and pulled over. Engine fan kicked in and after a couple of mins I noticed a leak start from the header tank overflow. It's cooled off now and I think it only leaked a bit.

What shall I tell mechanic? He may just top it up and send me away but I'm not sure what could have caused it. Low coolant alarm didn't go off. Will it need to be bled?

[wonkanoby]

depends how much was lost if still over minimum the top up is fine

is rad hot at base were bottom hose goes in ....shows stats opening

[eppiblue]

Looks like its right on the low mark. What did you mean by your second comment sorry?

[wonkanoby]

there has to be a reason it boiled up

if the thermostat was stuck its a good reason

[Simon Jones]

Personally, I would not be too concerned at this stage. Under load, the engine will be working much harder & if you're up in the mountains, the boiling point of the coolant could be lower. I would check the cap is sealing correctly: rubber ok & the seat on the header tank is not damaged, then refill to max line & see how it goes. As long as the tank was not emptied, there should be no additional air in the system.

[eppiblue]

Mechanic just came. Also Reckons cause we are at 2500 metres I shut the engine off too quickly after parking. He refilled and bled the system and running ok. Will carry on down the hill and watch closely. Thanks guys! And thanks Britannia rescue!