I am getting a very faint anti-freez smell from under the hood(I can catch a whif when I walk past the grill), but I do not see anything out of place....on the ground....or any loss of coolant from the expansion tank?
I am due for my 30K service very soon(changing both air filters, plugs, LOF, and pads on all four), so if I dont find anything I will be sure to report it to the SR so I have paper work showing when the symptoms started.

but for now.....any ideas....I did check the dip stick and coolant thinking of a head gasket....but all is well?
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Steve F. in Hoboken, NJ

Agree with the other posts. It may be easier to inspect the radiator by putting on ramps and dropping the plastic pan to see if there are any drips on it.

Steve,

I'm with James on this one. Carefully look around the radiator, often it's hard to see the leaking, because the coolant will evaporate before it hits the ground. The radiators have been known to leak where the plastic side-tanks connect to the aluminum core...

Questions, how much anti-freeze are you losing? Have you had to top up the reservoir? Have your service people been topping up the reservoir? (I know you bring it to a reputable shop in NYC)
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RussB in Ct '96 855T - '91 944T

Russ, No need to top off yet.....like I said the smell was very faint(and I have not smelled anything since thursday morning). I did see just a very small anount of white residue around the hose from the evap tanks line where it goes into the rad by the upper rad hose.....but I think that is the norm....or has been on my car.
Thanks for the tip.....I do know the weak spots of these Volvo rads(mounting brackets, side tanks, etc), and I am super careful when I pull into a parking spot not to hit the bumper stop.
Anyhow....its under warranty for another year/12K mi.....and then I have the VIP comprehensive new car extended out to 70K or 6 years, so the fix will not cost me all that much if it does develop a "real" leak.

thanks guys.....
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Steve F. in Hoboken, NJ

If you were losing antifreeze through a head gasket, you probably would not smell it under the hood, but out the exhaust.

When you smell antifreeze under the hood, you probably have a leak. I put my nose to the grille of my car once and a while. You would be surprised how quickly you can detect a problem from a smell in your engine compartment.

A small leak can leak under the pressure of a warmed-up cooling system, then stop leaking and evaporate as the car cools. If your coolant reservoir is like our 850s', its large area can hide a small leak for quite a while.

Try to check your hose connections, the radiator itself, and the coolant reservoir. some times the only indication is a whitish deposit, left as the coolant evaporates.

Good luck
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3 8s & 2 7s 725,000 miles total