Hi folks,

This is my very first post, because I've become a little desperate regarding my car. I have a dodge sx 2.0, which in the US is the same as the Neon, I think. Anyway, I bought it in March with 100,000 km (60,000 miles) on it, and since then have had to replace the brakes, the clutch, the front relay fan, am told that I need to replace the rack and pinion, and now am having issues with leaking fluid and overheating (eff!!!).

The issues:
- The rack and pinion: when I turn, sometimes my steering wheel will make a popping noise. I put some power steering fluid stop leak in, and it seems to be greatly improved. The mechanic quoted me $1100 for this repair... reasonable? And how long can I drive on it? Will my wheel fall off or something equally dramatic?

- The overheating: Shortly after I left town, boyfriend was driving my car, said it was leaking coolant and overheated. Upon later inspection, when coolant is poured into the plastic reservoir, it pours out (so maybe that's broken), and the radiator was "dry" (boyfriend's words). Put coolant in the rad, and last time I drove it the temperature was fine, but after about 20 minutes I started to smell coolant. I don't know if the rad is overfilled, but it was spurting out the metal cap that's labelled "hot do not touch". Once the car was cool again it stopped.

My questions with this one are -
- is the leaking because the reservoir is broken and that's where the hot fluid is routed to once its pressurized/hot, or does the reservoir not really matter? - if I replace the reservoir, given that the part is available on the internet for 20 bucks, can I do it myself?
- if not, how much should I be expecting to pay at the mechanic's shop?

If anyone can help me I'd super duper appreciate it, I feel like my mechanic sees dollar signs whenever I have an issue.

Thanks a bunch!
Jen

 

A popping noise while turning could be a worn suspension component. Usually the easily replaceable part associated with turning is the outer tie rod end. The inner can be replaced, though, most just replace the rack and pinion. Get those checked. It would also be a good time to have the lower ball joints and lower control arm bushings checked as they will also go bad in due time.

Is the gasket on the radiator cap (the "Hot Do Not Touch" one) bad? It should be round and only cover the metal part. It shouldn't be bigger or smaller. A bad radiator cap can cause overheating and coolant loss. Here's a picture of what a radiator cap in good condition should look like:

 

awesome!

I looked at my rad cap, and it wasn't on very tight (thanks boyfriend!). Other than that, it looks good, but has a little bit of wear in the rubber that is in the very middle of the cap...

Looking at the coolant levels, it looks like it may be overfilled, and fluid is being held in the reservoir now (above the "full hot" level)... I'm going to drive it a few more times and see what happens with the warm-up and cool-down cycles.

Thanks much!

Jenny

 

Alsoo... how long should I expect the rack and pinion thing to last for? I am pushing the repair back because my quote was damn expensive (1100 bones, when I only paid 2 grand for the car)... is that reasonable? Or should I go elsewhere?

 

The coolant should be drained a bit if it is overfull. As for the rack and pinion, dunno. They should last the life of the car dang near I'd think. I had one break (tie rods snapped) on one car at 30K something miles. Luckily, it was in the driveway and not driving 70MPH down the freeway. The repair was about $1,200 or something, but I also luckily had an extended warranty at the time and I got out of that bill.