Fluid Leak that went away?

[Briancp396]

I just bought a '99 4Runner 4WD with 115,000 miles on it. I was hooking up a small trailer to pull with the car on when I noticed a pinkish fluid coming from underneath the car near the radiator. I looked underneath and could not see exactly where it was coming from. It may have been running down the skid plate and coming out one of the holes. I shut the car off and ran some errands, 2 hours I came back and the stain had evaporated. I turned the car on and left it running for 15-20 minutes. No leak. What could have caused this? What is a good way to troubleshoot this problem? Any help would be appreciated. My coolant fluid reservior is near the bottom, what level should that be at?

Brian

 

[Nunyabiz]

Sounds like a possible "Pink Milkshake" situation.

 

[kball]

If it was totally dry after two hours it must have been coolant. Any oil would have left a wet spot.

To the OP, are you running a pink coolant?

 

[Briancp396]

what is a pink milkshake situation?

 

[Briancp396]

Yes, it is the red or pink coolant

 

[kball]

Yes, it is the red or pink coolant

Well then you need to find out where it's coming from. Have you had any signs of overheating?

 

[Briancp396]

No signs of overheating, runs and shifts like normal. The radiator looks to be new also. I don't think it is the pink milkshake problem, it didn't look like that, it looked like plain coolant. But I can't get it to repeat the leak, crazy?

 

[kball]

Check your trans fluid just to be sure. It should look red but clear, not milky at all. Fill your coolant overflow up to the fill line and keep an eye on it. You should not be losing coolant.

 

[Briancp396]

You were right, I took it to the dealer and it was the "pink milkshake". They replaced the radiator and all hoses, thermostat, and flushed coolant and transmission fluid. Is this all that I needed to do? How will I know if it damaged my transmission? It rides smooth currently. Should I flush the tranny fluid again soon?

 

[brian2sun]

You were right, I took it to the dealer and it was the "pink milkshake". They replaced the radiator and all hoses, thermostat, and flushed coolant and transmission fluid. Is this all that I needed to do? How will I know if it damaged my transmission? It rides smooth currently. Should I flush the tranny fluid again soon?

Unfortunately, it's hit or miss whether or not your tranny will die after the milkshake. It depends a lot on how long it was driven with the contaminated fluid. Flushing it again in a week or 2 would be a good idea, maybe a few times until the fluid stays looking clean.

 

[kball]

No signs of overheating, runs and shifts like normal. The radiator looks to be new also. I don't think it is the pink milkshake problem, it didn't look like that, it looked like plain coolant. But I can't get it to repeat the leak, crazy?

You were right, I took it to the dealer and it was the "pink milkshake". They replaced the radiator and all hoses, thermostat, and flushed coolant and transmission fluid.

These two quotes do not add up to me. Did YOU look at the trans fluid before taking it to the dealer? Did it look like a strawberry milkshake? Did you coolant and trans fluid look the same?