Hello all. I recently acquired a very clean 1-owner 2012 Cayenne V6 with just under 50k miles in a private party sale. When I bought the car, I noticed a very slight coolant smell from the engine compartment. I still notice it a week later but there are no obvious leaks. The car did have a new water pump put in by a Porsche dealership 2k miles ago. From what I've read on my own, this coolant smell seems to be a common issue in these V6 engines? I checked the coolant level and it's full. I also looked around the water pump area and noticed some old dried coolant residue. Is it possible that it's just the old stuff burning off from when the leak was discovered prompting the water pump replacement? Regardless, the car also ran phenomenal on a 1200 mile journey back home. There were no abnormal temperatures or anything like that. Thoughts? Thanks in advance.

 

It might be old coolant burning off, if the level is not dropping over time. But if you're extra curious, this would be a good candidate for the UV dye/light method that would detect very small leaks. There are guides on youtube how to do this.