Coolant Level Question

[Skitch]

So this weekend I was changing my oil and I noticed that my coolant level was quite low (nearly at the low mark). So I am just wondering if the coolant level should be at the full mark when the car is cold or when the car is considered warm.

 

Thanks for any help.

[crudzinskas]

It really doesn't matter too much. Obviously you want to try to stay between the markers but it is an overflow tank for a reason - it's extra coolant. When I got the car, it came filled right to the low mark when the car was cold. Over a years time it went below the low line when cold and hit the cold line when warm so I filled it up to the high line when cold. It took about 12 ounces of fluid to get up to the high line from the low line. Once (if) you decide to fill it up you should be good for a long time since the fluid loss I described was only about 1 oz over a year. It's been about 6 months since I filled to the full line and it doesn't look like I lost any. It's a little under the full line now, but I filled it up in the summer and now it's winter so some drop in level is expected from the temperature difference.

[ammcinnis]

Short answer: Read your Owners Manual. There are also several previous threads on this topic here on the Forum. Search is your friend.

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=2201&pictureid=11232

[securityguy]

As they say in the forum world...RTFM.

[YeuEmMaiMai]

Subaru has a weird over flow bottle and it is harder than most cars to see the coolant level easily