Car makes a bubbling/boiling noise when car is turned off

[swbat55]

I just drove my car for a little over an hour today, it was a pretty hot day, and when I turned the car off I heard a sort of bubbling/boiling sounds coming from around the radiator/passenger side. I am not sure what this is because i never noticed my temperature gauge going past 50%. So I was thinking it could be these things which I found from google: Air bubble in radiator fluid, car is overheating/bad sensor, possible radiator leak? I havent seen my car leaking fluid though. Do you guys have any suggestions? Thanks!
~Cam

[charliefowle03]

It may be some air in the cooling system. My previous vehicle had the same issue where the overflow was infact boiling. Eventually melted and destroyed the container. I would check the radiator cap, check the resevoir and would continue being observant of the temp gauge. Could be a themostat getting ready to poop out.

[lostforawhile]

this is normal, the reservoir is there to catch the extra coolant as it gets hot and expands, it's a siphon, so as soon as the radiator cools there is a vacuum in the radiator and it's pulled back in, this is why you aren't supposed to fill the reservoir past a certain point, if you over fill it the extta coolant ends up on the ground

[2oodoor]

May want to check the strength of the coolant, supposed to be anti boil. Half way up on the temp guage is way hotter than any 3rd gen Ive owned so it possibly could need a fresh thermostat.
What they said here in replys is true but there is more to consider. It sould not be boiling over into the overflow all the time, thats overheating.
Even on my hatch which runs warmer than the others I had, only goes up two hairs below half.. Closer to aquarter.

[88Accord-DX]

Several things cause that, weak radiator cap, thermostat, old coolant, restricted radiator, rusted out fins on water pump, radiator cooling fan not coming on at operating temperature. Worst case after all other tests look good, use a gas exhaust analyzer to sniff gasses in the radiator. I use a infrared thermometer looking at these kind of complaints.

[lostforawhile]

this is normal on this car, that's why it's called an expansion tank, as long as everything is sealed and the coolant goes back in the radiator,after it cools, you are fine, the radiator cap has two stages, one is to let some coolant into the tank as it heats up, and the second is to open and vent coolant in an overheating situation

[lostforawhile]

the best way to explain this, is think of the tank as part of the radiator, in the old days, you couldn't fill a radiator all the way to the top because the coolant had to expand somewhere when hot, when expansion tanks were invented, this allows the radiator to be completely full, plus have some reserve if the coolant level dropped, there is a valve built into the cap, that allows the excess coolant to flow to the tank, plus lets it be sucked back into the radiator when cold, it's supposed to do that, it doesn't mean anything is wrong ,as long as you dont have to keep topping off the tank, it's going to make noise, when the radiator cools, it creates vacuum, since with the excess coolant now in the tank, there was less volume in the radiator then before, this causes the coolant to be sucked back in, making your gurgling noise

[Dr_Snooz]

I've never had a car that made such noises, so I'm not convinced that it's normal. When was the last time you did a regular cooling system service (change coolant, flush, check condition of hoses, etc.)? I would consider this as your early warning that you could be having problems soon. If your coolant is rust colored, expect those problems sooner rather than later.

[Hazwan]

I've never had a car that made such noises, so I'm not convinced that it's normal. When was the last time you did a regular cooling system service (change coolant, flush, check condition of hoses, etc.)? I would consider this as your early warning that you could be having problems soon. If your coolant is rust colored, expect those problems sooner rather than later.

Same here, even if you drive hard and live in hot climate. Coolant sucking back in from the expansion tank shouldn't make a loud noticeable noise, at least I never heard any cars that I've worked on or see irl making such noise unless it overheated, low on coolant or running straight tap water. But then I could be wrong..

[lostforawhile]

After reviewing this discussion, I suggest you to hire some professional and skilled worker to solve this issue. Once I faced this bubbling/boiling noise in my Car but I solved with the help of technician.

sure Mr Spammer, we will all run right to the mechanic and bend over so we can be told it will cost 300 dollars and a can of stop coolant noise to fix the issue, now about repairing the spammer issue............

[swbat55]

It never used to make this noise so it is all new to me. I do not like going to the mechanic and have already done a lot of work on my Lxi so I am pretty familiar with the car. I think i am going to check the coolant levels. Does anyone have any advice on where I should start? Thanks.

[Dr_Snooz]

You're on the right track. Check coolant level and color. Use a coolant tester (~$3) to learn the coolant's condition. You'll probably need to change it. Squeeze around on all the hoses. They should all feel firm, yet flexible. Any that are rock hard can develop leaks and need to be changed. Any that feel squishy are going to break before long and leave you stranded. There are a million little bypass hoses everywhere that also need to be checked.

[88Accord-DX]

Ethylene glycol coolant (green)is good for couple years at it's best. Cheap tester runs about $3 with little balls that float. Might consider a coolant pressure test. The small neck would require an adaptor, more of a specialty tool. A.Z. rents one, but for larger necks on the radiator.

[lostforawhile]

here's the stant adapter to use a standard pressure checker with our system, I just installed a schrader valve and made my own tester


Stant 12552 Radiator Cap Adapter | Auto Parts Warehouse

[ecogabriel]

Squeeze around on all the hoses. They should all feel firm, yet flexible. Any that are rock hard can develop leaks and need to be changed. Any that feel squishy are going to break before long and leave you stranded. There are a million little bypass hoses everywhere that also need to be checked.

If you plan on keeping the car, by all means start a plan to replace the hoses. The worse ones are has two (or three?) tiny little hoses that LX-i's have under the intake manifold that connect to the pipe going to the water pump. You will curse all the gods of the universe when replacing those.

also, check the condition of the hoses in the expansion tank. My car would spill all coolant until I replaced the hose inside the tank; funny thing it did not look defective, but replacing it fixed the vomiting coolant issue

[charliekuney]

If you plan on keeping the car, by all means start a plan to replace the hoses. The worse ones are has two (or three?) tiny little hoses that LX-i's have under the intake manifold that connect to the pipe going to the water pump. You will curse all the gods of the universe when replacing those.

This.

[EbidaDragon]

While in a different vehicle, my dad had an issue like this after a coolant flush was done improperly on his HHR.
On light acceleration from a stop, it would make this gurgling noise that I made jokes about sounding like the noise when you throw a beer into a cooler with more water than ice. The churning persisted for like another 6 months after its' first popup..and the end effect was the heater core bursting on him on his way to work one morning..While I wouldn't wish having to check your heater core on anyone, it might need to be done at some point, depending.

Still, it may just require diagnosis and some small repairs on your cooling system, so, I would agree with everyone here advising that you check out your system for issues before they leave you stranded. Best of luck.

(EDIT) I should state that his gurgling issue was also because of low coolant levels as well.

[swbat55]

Hey guys thanks for the help. A friend came over yesterday and it turns out I was dangerous low on coolant so I added a bunch of water to my resavoir and no more gurgling sound. Except now I think my power steering pressure line is leaking fluid. Is this a common problem on LXI's? Seems like it shouldnt be that hard to fix. Any tips?

[g.frost]

Adding water to a coolant system is never a good idea... It does not provide efficient cooling, boils at a lower temperature and causes corrosion. You need to replace the coolant with a proper 50/50 mix and find out where the missing coolant went. Your problem has not been fixed at all.

[Dr_Snooz]

Seems like it shouldnt be that hard to fix. Any tips?

Actually, it's a bloody nightmare. I've never cursed so much doing anything else. I threw tools down the street in frustration. The hard part is getting the new hose twisted through all the other hoses and hard lines. If you don't fix it, you risk an engine fire, so get on it.

[lostforawhile]

try routing one through whats under my hood lol, I actually have it mocked up, and it ran easier then the factory one did

[Blkblurr]

Ive had several cars that did this and it was always low coolant. my Pilot had a leak in an engine casting that was replaced under warranty and my SE-i had a loose clamp on a hose. Once fixed, the gurgling was gone.

[w261w261]

<<If you plan on keeping the car, by all means start a plan to replace the hoses. The worse ones are has two (or three?) tiny little hoses that LX-i's have under the intake manifold that connect to the pipe going to the water pump. You will curse all the gods of the universe when replacing those.>>

I got tired of cursing, and handed it off to my mechanic with the offhand "think you could just put this guy on under the manifold?" He said something like "Get that innocent look off your face!" Busted!

I gave up after only a few minutes of cursing. Nothing like my extended cursing getting the main relay out without dropping the fuse box. The result of that was I bought a new socket wrench that turns the socket when you twist the wrench's handle. Haven't used it yet, but like all specialized tools, they make you feel comfortable having one more in the box.

Another fun job for someone else is putting in a new power antenna. A bonus is that the guy you offload the job to will fail to hook up the drain from the motor, which goes into the sunroof drain. Then you wait for the drain in the wheel well to get plugged up, and you get this mysterious wet carpet up front, because your sunroof is now draining into the car.