freeze plug leaking?

[jefferyfreeman2003]

Just found out my coolant smell is not the usual suspect..a water pump with 185K on it.

The coolant appears to be coming from just above or behind the starter??? There are no hoses in the area, nor are any leaking and spraying backward. The Radiator looks OK..no moisture in the cradle under it. Also does not appear to be streaming down from above(leaking head gasket). But this was all just on the first pass. I'm going to pull the starter now and see what I find.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

sorry..its a 2000 3.5!

Peace Out

[krivasauto]

Originally Posted by jefferyfreeman2003

Just found out my coolant smell is not the usual suspect..a water pump with 185K on it.

The coolant appears to be coming from just above or behind the starter??? There are no hoses in the area, nor are any leaking and spraying backward. The Radiator looks OK..no moisture in the cradle under it. Also does not appear to be streaming down from above(leaking head gasket). But this was all just on the first pass. I'm going to pull the starter now and see what I find.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

sorry..its a 2000 3.5!

Peace Out

There is a coolant drain plug on the side of the block just above the crankshaft position sensor.

If it is coming from the transmission end of the engine, it could be the dreaded coolant crossover pipe gaskets.

Use plenty of brake cleaner on the area. Might want to consider pouring some UV dye into the cooling system and checking with a black light.

Keep us posted.

[jefferyfreeman2003]

TY very much for the reply!

Yes, I found your crossover post after I made my post I gotta believe thats it. I can see a blackish streak on the top left side of the crossover. Where the crossover flange mates to the block. I assume thats where it originates then goes down collecting on the starter. I am going to pull the air intake tube and maybe the dogbone to get a closer look.

Either way I was not expecting a repair of this magnitude this week. I planned an afternnon to swap a waterpump and coolant. Now I need to collect the parts for the crossover and plan accordingly. I might not get to it until my school ends in July.

Foo shoo..I will report back what happens. I got a mean assortment of "crow bars"..lol..I sense a challenge in being the second to do it without removing manifold bolts!

[krivasauto]

Originally Posted by jefferyfreeman2003

Foo shoo..I will report back what happens. I got a mean assortment of "crow bars"..lol..I sense a challenge in being the second to do it without removing manifold bolts!

I really tried to give the guy who said he did it without removing the rear exhaust manifold the benefit of the doubt, but after doing the head gasket on the front head, I would be really surprised if it can be done this way - maybe there was something different about his vehicle.

One of the guys here tried doing it without removing the manifold and found that there just isn't enough room with the way the two manifolds fit into each other.

If I were to do it, I would remove the sway bar and remove the rear subframe mounting bolts (there are two) and remove the rear manifold (without pulling it out or disconnecting the EGR pipe.

Hope it goes well when you do try it.