3.1 water leak front cover, What else needed?

[rcweston]

I've got a terrific leak on the passenger’s side of the engine toward the fire wall side. Everything looks dry on the front side around the water pump. It is dripping rapidly front the bottom of the engine at the rear (fire wall side) off of the motor mounts and the frame. I can't see any leaks but with the tire removed, I can see it running down the side of what I think is the front cover of the engine and the front of the block of the engine, about 1 inch closer to the engine than the belt tension-er resides.
I have read other post about leaking hoses and bypasses, but this is entirely on the other side of the engine.
I feel there is a great chance that it is the front cover gasket that is leaking behind where you can actually see, even with a mirror.
Since this front cover gasket is going to be replaced, are there other things I should be concerned with while I have it apart? And are there any special precautions or helps that make this procedure go easier?
3.1 engine. The car has about 185,000 on it. The crank shaft position sensor was replaced last year. 5 years ago the intake manifold gaskets were replaced.
Is there anything else in this section that would be accessible with the front tear down that could be almost worn out and would need replacing soon any way, avoiding a second tear down?

[Tech II]

Rare for a front cover causing a coolant leak.....have you pressure tested the system? Checked the water pump?

[rkvons]

If it turns out to be your front cover gasket leaking, when you take it off you will have access to your timing chain. I would check it for sloppiness and wear. Can't advise you on what to look for. I looked at mine and it seemed ok when I changed my front cover gasket. Also, you should replace your crankshaft seal.

[rcweston]

Originally Posted by Tech II

Rare for a front cover causing a coolant leak.....have you pressure tested the system? Checked the water pump?

I have checked the water pump, it looks great and no signs of any leakage. After the pump pulley was removed, I could even verify it better.
As for pressure testing, the engine created enough pressure that I had a small stream running from the side of the cover but I just could not see far enough up from the bottom to see where it came from. No sign of any water from the top view. It was coming from the rear side of the "front cover to engine block" connection that folds back on itself, making it impossible to see into the fold unless everything has been removed in front of it.
OK I got down to business this morning. Removed the neg. bat lead. removed the oil from engine, drained the radiator, removed over flow tank, removed bypass connection to water pump, removed the water pump pulley from the pump, removed belt and belt tension-er. extracted front pulley( harmonic balancer), removed 24x sensor and lifted up steering pump.
Then I cleaned and clean and cleaned the engine. Then the garage floor!
Upon taking off the front cover, as I was removing the blots, the second bolt, (large bolt on the upper rear corner), didn't want to turn, turned with lots of resistance as if it were in rubber. As soon as it started to be free, water poured out from internal of the engine. This bolt is next to the rear water port of the engine. Then the rest of the bolts came right out.
As I broke the cover loose, (very easily done) water came from the front side of the engine.
Now with cover removed, I can see the corroded gasket from the rear water port as it enters the cover and heads to the water pump on the front side of the cover. It was almost completely gone from the port toward the outside, but still intact from the port to the inside toward the timing chain. The gasket around the front water port of the engine looks good.
I'm confident that this was a major leak.

[rcweston]

Originally Posted by rkvons

If it turns out to be your front cover gasket leaking, when you take it off you will have access to your timing chain. I would check it for sloppiness and wear. Can't advise you on what to look for. I looked at mine and it seemed ok when I changed my front cover gasket. Also, you should replace your crankshaft seal.

With the front cover now off, I see the timing chain. it has a lot of tension on the front side and a slight looseness on the rear side. Not floppy , just not as tight.
Also, on the bottom of this cover, it rest on a round rubber gasket. it almost appears as if some type of RTV rubber was on it when installed. could this be replaces with high temp (red) gasket sealer?

I feel it good to replace the seal also, it wasn't leaking, but I don't want to do this again.

One last concern, the timing chain and gears appear as if they have a coating of grease on them. It's very thin (1/16") but looks like oil that has partially solidified on them; It doesn't drip off! This could be from years of accumulation. Is there a way of removing this internal grime???

Any other recommendations are much appreciated.
Thanks Rex

[rkvons]

Sorry, I've been away for awhile. I would change the oil every 3K miles and not worry about the grime.