low/lost anti-freeze

[Butterman]

I live in central Illinois and have a 2006 with 31500 miles. The other day I had cold air blowing from the heater. I checked the anti-freeze and the resevoir was empty and the radiator hose was empty also. Any thoughts on my problem would be appreciated. I have no drops or puddles under my truck and no visible signs any where else in the engine or on the truck underside.

 

[ata]

First check the weep hole on the bottom side of the water pump. Mine only dripped when running and not enough to relly get anything wet. Next look under the carpet on the passenger side of cab. Sometimes it leaks there from the heater core.

 

[UAV]

There's a small coolant hose by the turbo that many trucks have had problems with a slow leak. My coolant reservoir slowly made it down to the "fill" line before I noticed the orange drop hanging from the bell housing and followed it up to the hose. I tightened the hose clamp and it's been good for the last 20k, although I understand that doesn't always work and an updated hose or clamp is available from Chrysler to address the problem. Mine probably leaked since new and I never had a puddle under the truck. It's worth checking out since it's a common problem.

 

[jdbecker2]

Where at in Illinois?

I have an 06 also that had a coolant leak around the exhaust manifold. Mine was cured just by tightening up the clamps. There is a recent thread about a cummins part number for a better fix. I'll see if I can find it.



Looks like someone beat me to it, but here is the other post for the permanent fix



https://www.turbodieselregister.com...7/218959-leaky-coolant-hose-behind-turbo.html

 

[Butterman]

Thanks to both UAV and jdbecker2, your findings were exactly my problem. Found those same drips on the bell housing and dried pink anti-freeze around the hose clamps. Plan on getting the updated hose and clamps from my Dodge Ram dealer. Once again, THANKS and Thank-You TDR for this GREAT magazine and web service you provide for us diesel nuts.

 

[jdbecker2]

Butterman, it might be wise to check the dealer price compared to your friendly Cummins distributor... the dealer tends to be more expensive, and often they have no clue about what you're talking about

 

[UAV]

I'm glad you found the problem. If possible you should buy from a Cummins dealer instead of the dealership. For example, I just purchased the pin and pigtail kit for enabling manual high idle from my local Cummins dealer for $14. 62 w/ tax, the dealership wanted about 3 times that much.