My 2002 Chevy Cavalier was leaking coolant and I found out today at the oil change place, it's leaking from the heater core, and it's cracked, meaning that's the problem. I'm only just topping off my car with coolant every 2 days until I am able to get the problem fixed (friday) but is it ok to drive my car around until then, as long as I keep the coolant level up and don't use my heat or air in my car??Heater core going bad, leaking coolant...how long can I drive my car safely until it gets fixed?As long as you don't let your coolant level get too low, you'll be fine to drive it until Friday.Heater core going bad, leaking coolant...how long can I drive my car safely until it gets fixed?keep the heater temp control all the way to cold. the coolant will not flow into the core. check your coolant level.Heater core going bad, leaking coolant...how long can I drive my car safely until it gets fixed?As long as you dont lets your engien run out of, or too low on coolant, it will not effect yoru engine.
Obviously you will be leakign coolant onto your floorboard in yoru car, which is anoying, to stop this, you can bypass your heater core by redoing the hoses that goto it, it fairly simple to do, and the end result will be you will not have heat in your car untill you replace the heater core, and reconnect the hoses.
Its springtime, and you really shoudlnt need your heat for several months, so i thing this is your best option. Also heater cores are very labor intensive to replace.
In the future, change your coolant as recomended by the manufacturer of your vehicle, failure to chang coolant will will result in the insides of your radiator and heater core coroding and cracking, which is most likel;y waht put yoru vehicle in the condition it is in now.Heater core going bad, leaking coolant...how long can I drive my car safely until it gets fixed?Drain the coolant out of the heater core.
Tie off the hoses running to your heater core.
(find the 2 hoses that run to your heater core, there should be an inlet and outlet. Now drain some of your coolant down so it doesnt leak out.
Then pop off ONE of the hoses on your heater core, run a syphon pump thru down into your heater core, drain all the coolant out.
Now take that one hose and tie it to the other Inlet or Outlet of the heatercore....so that its just loope, not running down to your engine.
Now do basically the same thing with your engine, so the hoses ARENT running to the heatercore, so it wont be constantly pumping in coolant. You may need to run to autozone or advanceautoparts to buy a longer piece of hose in order to plug off the Engine Side of it....just make sure to take a piece of hose with you so you get the right diameter hose, also measure how long of hose you will need, then goto the store and they will cut you the right size piece of hose.
Ive seen people do this before, it works definately.
