doumis

noticed coolant was approaching min level at last oil change and planned on heading to audi this week to pick up a gallon ...

coolant low sensor goes off today as I pull out of the driveway and I go to check the tank and its empty ... this worries me a bit as I see a lot of dried coolant all over the hoses under the tank but I cant exactly determine where the leak is coming from as of yet ...

I plan to bring it to Audi tomorrow but my question is should I fill the tank with generic coolant for the ride over to the dealer (25 miles), fill it with distilled water, or try just driving really slow ... hehe ... its pretty hot up here lately so I dont want to push the engine too hard considering I dont know how much coolant is actually left in the car at all ...

any ideas would be great ... thanks

JasonS4+Festicle

I would not fill it with generic coolant either because G12 and generics don't mix.

Are you under warranty? If so, just call Roadside and have it flatbedded - you really do not want to overheat and damage your motor.

If you're not under warranty, the first place I'd look closely at is the coolant tank.

doumis

well I do have extended warranty to 100K miles but I know thats not bumper to bumper and dont know if theyd charge me for this type of prob ...

second ive dealt the the whole towing thing before and they will only cover towing to the nearest audi dealer and that doesnt happen to be the one I take my car too ...

whats the worst that could happen if i put generic coolant in because I would assume the dealer is going to flush the system after the prob is fixed ... and the distance would only be 25 miles or so with the mixture ???

VandyS4

I'm only 5min from dealer so I filled up with HOT distilled water and crawled over there. Temp gauge barely passed normal.

JasonS4+Festicle

of YOUR choice as far as it's within 50 or so miles from you. I live in a surburb of Chicago and there are many dealerships closer to me than one in Milwaukee (where I had some work done) - When I had a problem, I called, they said the same thing about the nearest dealership - when I told them where I usually get service, they said fine and took it there.

As far as the coolant issue goes - I'd be concerned about 2 things:

1. If you have a large leak and it goes empty on your way over, you could overheat and cause engine damage

2. When you mix G12 with generics, I think you can get some reaction that makes it a solid - not exactly sure - do a search on this, it's on here, I just don't recall the details other than people saying don't do it!

If I were you, I'd get a ride to the nearest Audi dealership, get some G12 and a spare coolant tank (it's ~$30 or so I've heard) - replace the tank and fill it up - you might have just solved your own problem.

VandyS4

Call up your service dept and talk it over.

doumis

25 miles and I would have to use highways ...

VandyS4

Hmm. I guess it depends on severity of the leak. Flatbed if you can, I'd say.

doumis

is the flatbed driver gonna give me a lift to the dealer ??

I think ill go with the plan of heading to closest dealer on on hot distilled (3 miles, non-highway), then filling tank with g12, seeing if its the tank leaking, then buying replacement if neccessary and doing it myself ...

if its not the tank, and leak isnt too bad, then going to regular dealer ... and if it is really bad then getting flatbed ...

I would say screw it and just get it done at this closer dealer cause it doesnt seem like the biggest problem but my regular dealer should cover this cost since I brought up this issue to them once before when I found a lot of dried coolant above my oil filter and asked them to check it ... they told me it was no big deal, standard stuff ... and now all this happens ... heh maybe they shouldnt be my regular service dealer

wehyaseh

If you absolutely need to, distilled water is a better option than the generic coolant