Where is the coolant leaking from?

[96XJPete]

Two months or so ago I noticed an occasional coolant leak, about once every few weeks. Thursday afternoon it became more frequent. I only work a few miles from home, but midway home Thursday evening the temp guage suddenly went up into the red. I immediately flipped the heat on to high, pulled into a gas station, shut the engine off and popped the hood to let it cool. I noticed coolant sprayed all over the front of the engine compartment and the reservoir was almost empty. While checking it out tonight I discovered that there is a slow leak as soon as the engine heats up. Then when the fan kicks on, the leak becomes significantly more severe (If you are looking under the vehicle, the drip turns into a steady stream). The serpentine belt is drenched in coolant and is flinging it all over the front of the engine compartment as the engine runs. However, I can't seem to find where the coolant is initially coming from. Any ideas??

[Saudade]

Sounds like the water pump. It has a weep hole underneath that drains out coolant when the seal goes bad.

[dave92cherokee]

If the serp. belt is drenched in coolant then it's not the weep hole in the water pump spraying coolant up onto the belt. Even if it was the weep hole they usually seal themselves not long after the pump is put in place. I have a 92 cherokee inline 4.0 6 cyl. and the only place on the engine that could spray coolant onto the belt would be at the water outlet on the front of the engine as it is only a 1/2 inch away from the belt. Best bet would be make sure the rad. and tank are full of coolant or water to find the hole and start the engine and watch the area to see where the coolant is coming from. If it's the 4.0 then my guess is the upper rad. hose or the heater hose coming from the heater valve or the seal around the thermostat and water outlet.

[Dale Aeppli]

http://www.jeepin.com/features/waterpump/index.asp Here is a site that may help you Dale [email protected]

[Saudade]

Remove the splash shield. Hose/clean everything off and allow to dry. Top off the coolant. Disconnect the electric fan. Start the engine and allow to idle until it get hot and you notice coolant starting to leak. Don't let the engine overheat. If no leak occurs and the engine is too hot, just shut down and wait. Then use an inspection mirror to help you look around the engine compartment for signs of coolant.

Fans can blow coolant all over the place so it's important to start clean.

[96XJPete]

Thanks for everyone's help. I will look into it and let you know what I can find out... although it is 7 degrees here today, so it may have to wait a few days. Thanks again.