gurgling dripping liquid sound from behind the dash when warming car on very cold day

[astriuminc]

just FYI, I experienced this morning on a very cold day when warming up the car,

I checked and it definitely wasn't a clogged A/C drain, turned out to be an air pocket in the heater core system and low coolant,

I was able to fix this by opening radiator cap to release the trapped air pocket (make sure radiator is cool before doing this)
and followed instructions I found online

"Best Answer: You're low on coolant and you are hearing the air pocket in the system as it goes through the heater core. Open the radiator cap, the one on the radiator if it has one and remove the reservoir cap too. Top up the coolant with a 50/50 mixture. Turn the heater control to the hottest setting and the fan on low or off. Run the motor for 15 minutes topping up the coolant as the thermostat opens and the air purges. Look for signs of a leak at the hoses, tighten all hose clamps, and check for coolant leaking out of the water pump."

just sharing with fellow members in case you come across this scenario:

https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100905142617AAZ58sB

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEdtHZwLKZ8

 

[batmancx]

Thanks for the tip Astrium ! I was wondering what the heck that sound was in the mornings when warming up the car !

so it's the coolant flowing thru the heater core...... (hand)

it sounded like a coffee machine percolating a fresh cup of coffee behind the radio (hahaspit),

the sound goes away after the car is warmed up,

I'm going to try this when I get home tonight !

 

[avidien]

yep, sounds like trapped air in the heater core, you guys might find this video helpful, good luck !

 

[eskimo0101]

I had an 86 Fiero GT that I autocrossed a ton and that was the worst car I've ever worked on for getting air out of the coolant system. Radiator and tank in front with coolant lines running down both sides of the car buried in the rockers to reach the engine in the rear. Probably needed an extra 2 gallons just for all the coolant circulating around in the pipes.