Seeing spots on your garage floor is never a good thing. This means you have fluid leaking from your vehicle, but which fluid is leaking? AmeriFix can tell you right away, but for you do-it-yourselfers, here’s a color guide to help you identify the fluid dripping out of your car, truck or SUV.
Red
If you see red fluid on your garage floor either your power steering or transmission is leaking. Most of the time, the leak is due to a hole in the lines that carry the fluids or an old and worn transmission seal.
Orange
Orange fluid generally indicates you have a rusted radiator that has a sprung a leak. The rust in the radiator turns the fluid orange. Old transmission fluid can also appear orange and could be leaking out.
Yellow
Some coolant is yellow, and you can see the color of your engine’s coolant in the overflow reservoir. If you have yellow coolant and that’s the color of the fluid on your garage floor, that’s what’s leaking.
Green
Antifreeze is generally green so you might have a leak somewhere in your radiator system if the fluid is green. This could include faulty clamps, fittings, hoses, the radiator or your water pump.
Blue
You can breathe a little easier if you see blue fluid on your garage floor. This is probably windshield washer fluid and while it’s bad to have a leaky reservoir, it won’t harm your engine if the fluid leaks dry.
Dark Brown
Old motor oil is dark brown. It does not stay the light brown color it is when you first put it in your engine. Other dark brown spots on your garage floor could be old brake fluid. Neither leaking is good.
Light Brown
If the spots are light brown, fresh motor oil could be leaking from your vehicle or it could be gear lubricant. Dab some of the fluid off the garage floor and smell it. If it smells bad, it’s gear lubricant.
Pink
Finally, your power steering or transmission fluid can also be pink, especially if it’s new. As mentioned above, leaking fluid from either of these systems is usually caused by a problem with the seals or lines.
No matter the fluid color, bring your vehicle into AmeriFix in Franklin, TN, for an inspection to avoid further engine damage. We’ll find the source of the leak and repair it for you right away. We’ve been helping Franklin drivers since 1999.
