Noob Coolant Reservoir Question
 

Hello all - I am hoping you can help. I bought a 2003 4.4 X5 with 80K miles on it about a month ago.

I like the rig a lot but to my dismay after driving it a couple days my Low Coolant alert came on in the dash. I added coolant and it went away - only to come back a couple weeks later.

I don't see ANY leaks/wetness anywhere but I do see a great deal of white residue around the reservoir and I suspect that maybe it's going bad... I was hoping the guys that had seen this before can take a look at the pic and tell me if they'd seen it before and what to do - if I need a new reservoir, I'd appreciate any advice on where to pick one up that's not OEM (or maybe even used) so I don't get charged my firstborn.

Thanks in advance folks.

-Tim

:welcome: to Xoutpost!

I would get the expansion tank and a new radiator cap from here. And be careful with the plastic portion of the vent hose that goes around the top, they are easy to snap when they get older...

Hi Weasel! Thank you very much for your reply - and by that reply, I will assume that you suspect that the expansion tank and radiator cap are most likely the culprit in question?

Thank you,
Tim

Ordered! Thanks Weasel!

-T

And yes, those would appear to be the culprits. :thumbup:

Thanks for the pointers folks - I replaced my tank and cap just now and road tested it - it seems to be holding steady (the low coolant light stayed extinguished).

I'll keep you all apprised - but I just wanted to write and say thanks!

-Tim

I just had to do the exact same repair at 78k - things tend to fail in these right around the same time mileage wise.

Recently I had the same problem at 100k miles. Repleced the reservoir, cap and the small pressure valve on the reservoir.

Wow, that picture looks like its from my X5; No need for me to post a new question as I have the exact issue at 79K. I will order a new reservoir.

It looks like a fairly straight forward job, but is there any tricks I should know about before taking this apart? (i.e. I don't want to break a clip or disconnect a hose at the wrong junction)