Spent 3 hours chasing a coolant leak that was just a loose hose clamp

Had a 2012 Civic come in with a slow drip... customer said they were topping off the overflow every week. Pressure tested it, checked the water pump, even pulled the thermostat housing. Turns out the lower radiator hose clamp was just barely loose, hidden behind the alternator bracket. Felt like a total rookie move. Anyone else ever waste a whole morning on something that simple?

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hannaht915mo ago

Remember when I thought those were always big jobs? This kind of thing totally changed my mind.

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chen.jade5mo ago

But come on, is that even a waste of time? You found the leak and fixed it right. That's the whole job. @hannaht91 gets it, those little things are still real problems for the customer. Chasing a ghost leak for hours is just part of the gig sometimes, it's not like you were just spinning your wheels. You ruled out the big stuff and landed on the simple fix, that's a win. Calling it a rookie move is too hard on yourself lol.

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