Coolant leak

[sparks57]

I recently found out that about every gasket and o-ring on my truck is leaking... everything from coolant to oil to power steering fluid.







Anyways, the coolant leak is ussualy pretty small, but today I found a little puddle (about 2-3 inches across). Is it something to really worry about? I know it will need to be fixed, but is it an emergency situation?



BTW: No white smoke or coolant in oil.

 

[paccool]

Depends on where it's coming from. Can you tell the general area?

Passenger side rear of engine, front center of engine or general area.

 

[dpuckett]

Finally got around to washing under the hood, huh?

Also check the radiator, and hoses. Mine has a leak from the rad neck just below hte cap, but it is just an empty driver, so I dont worry about it too much; just look at the gauge once in a while. It's been a month since I last filled it, might oughta put a gallon in it. ACtually need to get it fixed, but round here, you cant do that too much; just aint right to fix it right and not have to worry about it. Gotta keep patchin it up, then wonder why it blows up on ya 3yrs later.



CB, welcome to the 200K club. Eveything starts to leak, it seems. (good excuse for "upgrade before it breaks. ") Just keep an eye on everything, and dont let the P/S pump run out of fluid.

Daniel

 

[BKiel]

That sucks man, kinda ironic, little while back you were talking to me about my coolant leaks. I just got my water pump and orings and manifold gaskets from piers, so hopefully mines under control

 

[tugboatphil]

"just aint right to fix it right and not have to worry about it. "



Daniel, what a great quote!! Can I use it in the future? I don't know what I'd do if I wasn't wondering "hmmmm, I wonder if I should fix that (noise, leak, fill in the blank. )"



I was just thinking the other day about the trucks I used to drive as a young man. Manual steering, brakes, tiny mirrors, flat dashboard to hold spare parts and anything else. No seat belts, torn vinyl seats with exposed foam and springs... . and that constant grease, sweat, hay smell. Manual windows, inside door handles that didn't work, hole in floorboard covered with plywood.



Used to run around with a friend that had a 50's Willys pickup with the flathead 6. Burned so much oil, we'd keep a couple gallon jugs in back and just add it every now and then.



Good old days? Yeah, but I'll keep my power windows and padded seat!



As for the coolant leak, if there's some in the radiator and none in the crankcase, it's not yet become a problem... . for me.

 

[dpuckett]

tugbostphil,

Go ahead and use the quote. For that matter, anything I say here is public domain, go for it. God knows I cant make any money off anything I say. Normally end up paying for what I do say. If you do make money off me, I want a 5% cut, though.

Daniel

 

[sparks57]

It's in the front, center about. It seems to be an intermitent leak...



All my hoses are fine. The water pump should be OK, I replaced it last winter.

 

[PPeters]

I was gonna tell you to look at the pump, but you swapped it out. When mine went, I had an intermittant leak that finally blew it's wad in the drive just before hooking up the trailer to get a load of hay (glad it did it before loading 4 tons on the trailer). Checked your hoses? Get a mirror and check the weep hole on the pump, just for giggles. Where did you get your pump? I've heard from some folks that had replacements leak shortly after R&R.



FWIW



Pat

 

[JJump]

Had a similar problem

I had a nuisance leak thay I just found this week. When I would open the hood to plug in the block heater, I would see a couple drops of coolant on the head just in front of the valve cover, a couple drops on the valve cover, and a signs of spray on the intake tube & fire wall, but the hoses, radiator, and cap all were dry. I suspected the small 90 deg heater hose on the front of the head, so I replaced it along with the clamps (SS screw clamps), but the leak continued. The other day when I opened the hood, same thing. The engine was still running so I grabbed the throttle & held it wide open for a few seconds. Low & behold, a couple drips of coolant came out of the new heater hose where it hooks up to the steel tube that runs back to the heater core. Before installation, I had polished off the end of the pipe with steel wool to insure a tight seal, and the clamp was reasonably tight, but evedently not quite tight enough. Put the Monkey Grip on it & no more leak. Subsequent checks confirm the fix. I bought the heater hose from a Cummins dealer & asked for new oem spring type hose clamps, but they weren't in stock so I opted for the screw clamps. Perhaps it indicated some sort of restriction in the heater core, allowing higher than normal pressures to build in this hose-or else that water pump really pushes some water!



Hope this helps!



Joe Jump

St Louis

 

[sparks57]

Ok, the leak is definately comming from the front bottom part of my engine, and coolant is all over the place, not real bad, but the wind is spraying it all over the front of the pan and axle.



I will take a closer look.