Coolant Air Bubble Sound-hicup

[Fiat88]

After I come back from a run with the car I sometimes hear like what sounds like an air bubble going through the system. Does this indicate air is getting in the cooling system or is this normal?

[baltobernie]

If your engine temps are OK during all phases of driving, what you're probably hearing is the coolant flowing in to the overflow bottle, a proper condition. As the engine cools, this expanded coolant gets sucked back in to the radiator. That's what the bottle is designed to do.

[TX82FIAT]

Agreed, that is what the overflow bottle is designed to do. If the gurgling noise is excessive I'd mark the coolant level or take a digital pic before a drive. Ater a nice drive that fully gets the car warmed up (at least 20 minutes at full temp suggest a good 45 minutes to an hour). I would pop the hood and observe the noise as it is occurring and take note of where the coolant level is filled up to. The coolant should not get close to the top of the container if you are running at normal temp. Too much gurgling and I would suspect some air is getting in the system from someplace. Let the engine cool for a few hours and see if the coolant level is at the same observed level it was when you started. Also, I look into the coolant tank for any small traces of oil once a month just in case.

Most likely it is nothing as a little gurgle is normal. However, the loud gurgling in my spiders was an indication of a head gasket issue or excessive air in the system. If you have too much air in the system she will start to run hot, very hot, at some point during a 45 minute run when you stop at a light.

[Fiat88]

Thanks guys will take note! I just replaced the head gasket but I've heard the noise before I replaced the gasket so I wasn't sure. I'm going to disconnect the adjustable probe type fan sensor I bought a while ago and hook up the factory fan sensor again and see if the fan turns on at 190. Think this will give me a better check on the system and tell me if air is getting in.