Help- Coolant leaking... but from where???
03-13-14, 11:57 AM
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Help- Coolant leaking... but from where???
I have a 2003 GS300. T-belt and water pump replaced @ 130K mi. Car now has 173K mi.
Last week my wife came home and the car was overheating and stopped when she pulled in the drive. Gauge was pegged and there was coolant everywhere.
The next day I added water and ran the car at idle, but could see no leak. It did steam and burp with the cap off, but it did not over heat. I also noticed that I wasn't getting hot air from the heater as several have posted here. This is what I have done so far:
1) Flushed cooling system with water and with radiator flush.
2) Flushed and back flushed the radiator core
3) Replaced thermostat
4) Changed oil (no water in oil and no white smoke evident)
5) Performed a block test 2X, negative
6) Replaced radiator and refiled with coolant.
At idle with the AC on for 20-30 min. the car remains at normal temp and no evidence of leaking. If I drive it for 10-20 min., the temp remains normal, but when I get back there is coolant on the ACC belt and dripping from the right fan housing (just like it was doing before the rad. replacement). But leaving it running there is no evidence of where the coolant is coming from.
Took it to a mechanic friend and hoping he would see something I haven't. He said
6) idled for 40 min. with AC on with pressure test @ 16 psi- no coolant leaking
7) the back of the water pump pulley doesn't have coolant residue.
8) Pulled the upper timing belt cover- timing belt is completely dry.
I'm stumped, he's stumped... Where ever the coolant is coming from it gets on the acc belt and pulleys and gets slung everywhere, but only when driving. It probably only lost less than a quart on my 20 mile drive into town. Next step is maybe to pull the harmonic balancer and lower T-belt cover and then put balancer and acc belt back on and run it on the rack and see if we can detect the leak that way (what a PITA!).
Has anyone ever seen such crazy symptoms or have any ideas where the hell this might be leaking from?
Last week my wife came home and the car was overheating and stopped when she pulled in the drive. Gauge was pegged and there was coolant everywhere.
The next day I added water and ran the car at idle, but could see no leak. It did steam and burp with the cap off, but it did not over heat. I also noticed that I wasn't getting hot air from the heater as several have posted here. This is what I have done so far:
1) Flushed cooling system with water and with radiator flush.
2) Flushed and back flushed the radiator core
3) Replaced thermostat
4) Changed oil (no water in oil and no white smoke evident)
5) Performed a block test 2X, negative
6) Replaced radiator and refiled with coolant.
At idle with the AC on for 20-30 min. the car remains at normal temp and no evidence of leaking. If I drive it for 10-20 min., the temp remains normal, but when I get back there is coolant on the ACC belt and dripping from the right fan housing (just like it was doing before the rad. replacement). But leaving it running there is no evidence of where the coolant is coming from.
Took it to a mechanic friend and hoping he would see something I haven't. He said
6) idled for 40 min. with AC on with pressure test @ 16 psi- no coolant leaking
7) the back of the water pump pulley doesn't have coolant residue.
8) Pulled the upper timing belt cover- timing belt is completely dry.
I'm stumped, he's stumped... Where ever the coolant is coming from it gets on the acc belt and pulleys and gets slung everywhere, but only when driving. It probably only lost less than a quart on my 20 mile drive into town. Next step is maybe to pull the harmonic balancer and lower T-belt cover and then put balancer and acc belt back on and run it on the rack and see if we can detect the leak that way (what a PITA!).
Has anyone ever seen such crazy symptoms or have any ideas where the hell this might be leaking from?
03-14-14, 07:43 PM
#2
I am assuming you're pulling the lower TB cover to see the WP. If it's leaking, you should be able to see evidence without putting it on the rack and running it. No, never seen symptoms like this before. Even though you just had the WP replaced 40k miles ago, it sounds like the o-ring where the WP mates to the block may be leaking.
03-16-14, 07:20 PM
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Okay, here's the update. After running the car with a pressure gauge on the radiator it's clear that it's being pressurized to about 30-35 psi (way too high) which is only explained by a very very slow/small head gasket leak... if I let it idle, it takes > 1hr. for it to reach this pressure. Driving it, and it pressurizes much more quickly along with coolant leaking. Not sure I want to tackle a head gasket repair, since I can get a JDM motor for ~ a grand. So, before I go down that road I'll try a temp fix with some fixafluid!
So I did some research and decided to try Blue Devil. First I drained the radiator and block.
BTW, there are several threads on here that indicate that draining the 2JZ-GE block is difficult/near impossible on a GS300... it's not! All you need is a 3/8 rachet, a long extension, a swivel, and a 14 mm socket. Reach around the back side of the exh. manifold (you can see the plug by shinning a flashlight between #5 & 6 exh.) and viola! But I digress...
Okay, back to the fixafluid. I know this is probably a waste of $53, but if I can get this sucker to run for another year w/o a head gasket or a motor swap then it's worth a shot. After draining the system I flushed it with water and then by-passed the heater core (don't want to risk getting this crap in there, since heater core replacement requires dash removal) and I followed the directions on the bottle, except I poured the whole damn bottle in instead of 1/2. I left the car idle for 65 min. (no overheating as usual) and then I drove it ~ 1 mi. but kept the rpm under 2.5K rpm. Then I parked it overnight.
Today I drove it about 10 mi. and accelerated hard a couple of times. When I got back to my shop it was.... wait for it.... still f'n leaking! But, BUT, there was not fluid all over the place like before, AND I finally found where the leak was coming from (probably due to a lesser amount of fluid splattered everywhere). I noticed a slow but steady drip from the bottom of the passenger fan assembly, and after close inspection I determined that it was coming from the corner of the coolant overflow reservoir. Each time I blotted it with a paper towel it reappeared. Let me add that the radiator did not have excessive pressure after my drive post Blue Devil treatment.
Next, I got out the JB weld and slathered that ***** all over the corner of the reservoir where it was leaking. I found a used fan housing assembly for $20 that I'll buy if this doesn't work. Tomorrow will be the final test. If it doesn't leak from the reservoir, I'll declare it healed... at least temporarily!
So I did some research and decided to try Blue Devil. First I drained the radiator and block.
BTW, there are several threads on here that indicate that draining the 2JZ-GE block is difficult/near impossible on a GS300... it's not! All you need is a 3/8 rachet, a long extension, a swivel, and a 14 mm socket. Reach around the back side of the exh. manifold (you can see the plug by shinning a flashlight between #5 & 6 exh.) and viola! But I digress...
Okay, back to the fixafluid. I know this is probably a waste of $53, but if I can get this sucker to run for another year w/o a head gasket or a motor swap then it's worth a shot. After draining the system I flushed it with water and then by-passed the heater core (don't want to risk getting this crap in there, since heater core replacement requires dash removal) and I followed the directions on the bottle, except I poured the whole damn bottle in instead of 1/2. I left the car idle for 65 min. (no overheating as usual) and then I drove it ~ 1 mi. but kept the rpm under 2.5K rpm. Then I parked it overnight.
Today I drove it about 10 mi. and accelerated hard a couple of times. When I got back to my shop it was.... wait for it.... still f'n leaking! But, BUT, there was not fluid all over the place like before, AND I finally found where the leak was coming from (probably due to a lesser amount of fluid splattered everywhere). I noticed a slow but steady drip from the bottom of the passenger fan assembly, and after close inspection I determined that it was coming from the corner of the coolant overflow reservoir. Each time I blotted it with a paper towel it reappeared. Let me add that the radiator did not have excessive pressure after my drive post Blue Devil treatment.
Next, I got out the JB weld and slathered that ***** all over the corner of the reservoir where it was leaking. I found a used fan housing assembly for $20 that I'll buy if this doesn't work. Tomorrow will be the final test. If it doesn't leak from the reservoir, I'll declare it healed... at least temporarily!
03-16-14, 09:16 PM
#5
Okay, here's the update. After running the car with a pressure gauge on the radiator it's clear that it's being pressurized to about 30-35 psi (way too high) which is only explained by a very very slow/small head gasket leak... if I let it idle, it takes > 1hr. for it to reach this pressure. Driving it, and it pressurizes much more quickly along with coolant leaking. Not sure I want to tackle a head gasket repair, since I can get a JDM motor for ~ a grand. So, before I go down that road I'll try a temp fix with some fixafluid!
So I did some research and decided to try Blue Devil. First I drained the radiator and block.
BTW, there are several threads on here that indicate that draining the 2JZ-GE block is difficult/near impossible on a GS300... it's not! All you need is a 3/8 rachet, a long extension, a swivel, and a 14 mm socket. Reach around the back side of the exh. manifold (you can see the plug by shinning a flashlight between #5 & 6 exh.) and viola! But I digress...
Okay, back to the fixafluid. I know this is probably a waste of $53, but if I can get this sucker to run for another year w/o a head gasket or a motor swap then it's worth a shot. After draining the system I flushed it with water and then by-passed the heater core (don't want to risk getting this crap in there, since heater core replacement requires dash removal) and I followed the directions on the bottle, except I poured the whole damn bottle in instead of 1/2. I left the car idle for 65 min. (no overheating as usual) and then I drove it ~ 1 mi. but kept the rpm under 2.5K rpm. Then I parked it overnight.
Today I drove it about 10 mi. and accelerated hard a couple of times. When I got back to my shop it was.... wait for it.... still f'n leaking! But, BUT, there was not fluid all over the place like before, AND I finally found where the leak was coming from (probably due to a lesser amount of fluid splattered everywhere). I noticed a slow but steady drip from the bottom of the passenger fan assembly, and after close inspection I determined that it was coming from the corner of the coolant overflow reservoir. Each time I blotted it with a paper towel it reappeared. Let me add that the radiator did not have excessive pressure after my drive post Blue Devil treatment.
Next, I got out the JB weld and slathered that ***** all over the corner of the reservoir where it was leaking. I found a used fan housing assembly for $20 that I'll buy if this doesn't work. Tomorrow will be the final test. If it doesn't leak from the reservoir, I'll declare it healed... at least temporarily!
So I did some research and decided to try Blue Devil. First I drained the radiator and block.
BTW, there are several threads on here that indicate that draining the 2JZ-GE block is difficult/near impossible on a GS300... it's not! All you need is a 3/8 rachet, a long extension, a swivel, and a 14 mm socket. Reach around the back side of the exh. manifold (you can see the plug by shinning a flashlight between #5 & 6 exh.) and viola! But I digress...
Okay, back to the fixafluid. I know this is probably a waste of $53, but if I can get this sucker to run for another year w/o a head gasket or a motor swap then it's worth a shot. After draining the system I flushed it with water and then by-passed the heater core (don't want to risk getting this crap in there, since heater core replacement requires dash removal) and I followed the directions on the bottle, except I poured the whole damn bottle in instead of 1/2. I left the car idle for 65 min. (no overheating as usual) and then I drove it ~ 1 mi. but kept the rpm under 2.5K rpm. Then I parked it overnight.
Today I drove it about 10 mi. and accelerated hard a couple of times. When I got back to my shop it was.... wait for it.... still f'n leaking! But, BUT, there was not fluid all over the place like before, AND I finally found where the leak was coming from (probably due to a lesser amount of fluid splattered everywhere). I noticed a slow but steady drip from the bottom of the passenger fan assembly, and after close inspection I determined that it was coming from the corner of the coolant overflow reservoir. Each time I blotted it with a paper towel it reappeared. Let me add that the radiator did not have excessive pressure after my drive post Blue Devil treatment.
Next, I got out the JB weld and slathered that ***** all over the corner of the reservoir where it was leaking. I found a used fan housing assembly for $20 that I'll buy if this doesn't work. Tomorrow will be the final test. If it doesn't leak from the reservoir, I'll declare it healed... at least temporarily!
03-27-14, 03:29 PM
#6
im having the exact same problem right now. just changed the t-belt and WP and when i went for a test drive the car overheated. saw some coolant gushing from the passenger side radiator so i figured it was old so i changed the radiator to a new one. test drive, and again it was over heating. now it wasnt gushing too much coolant but it was still coming somewhere from the passenger side fan area like you said. however i think i have a bad thermostat, reason is because top radiator hose is super hot while the lower one that goes to the WP is cool all the time. will be changing the Thermostat later, hopefully that fixes the problem. but im still leaking from the fan area. any updates on the coolant reservoir? did that fix your problem? sorry for the long post 
03-27-14, 04:23 PM
#7
Data Pt:
There are fluorescent dies that are available in small vials that glow under UV light. Glasses are also available to help see...Years ago bought some from GM parts counter for ~$5 FWIW.
There are fluorescent dies that are available in small vials that glow under UV light. Glasses are also available to help see...Years ago bought some from GM parts counter for ~$5 FWIW.
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03-27-14, 07:14 PM
#9
I was going to suggest the reservoir but you ended up discovering that was the problem. I also think that the car has overheated before in the past but didn't run long enough to cause major damage. It did manage to slightly crack the gasket though. I'm assuming you bought it used? If you only plan to hold onto it for just another year then no biggie....
03-31-14, 04:41 AM
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2 Weeks Later- Final Update
Okay, after two weeks the results are mixed. For the most part, everything has been okay. The car has been driven by the spousal unit ~ 50 mi + each day to work and back. I check the coolant every other day and the reservoir has been about 1/2 full and the radiator topped out. Friday she drove it on a 160 mi round trip into the city and got caught in stop ad go traffic for 40 min. Car did fine, but when I checked the coolant yesterday, the reservoir was empty and the radiator level was about 1/2-3/4 inches down from where it had been.
What I can say for certain is this: the car has not overheated and is no longer throwing coolant all over the engine compartment under driving conditions as it was before, so I'm giving the Blue Devil juice a
for that. After 700 or so miles there is still a slight coolant loss, but no visible evidence of it leaking from the reservoir or anywhere else. If I'm losing it to combustion, I'll just have to live with it for now and keep a close eye on the coolant level (and keep an emergency gal. in the trunk). Either way, this route was better than a head gasket replacement or junk engine install... YMMV.
Walt
What I can say for certain is this: the car has not overheated and is no longer throwing coolant all over the engine compartment under driving conditions as it was before, so I'm giving the Blue Devil juice a
for that. After 700 or so miles there is still a slight coolant loss, but no visible evidence of it leaking from the reservoir or anywhere else. If I'm losing it to combustion, I'll just have to live with it for now and keep a close eye on the coolant level (and keep an emergency gal. in the trunk). Either way, this route was better than a head gasket replacement or junk engine install... YMMV.Walt
Last edited by WaltL; 03-31-14 at 04:50 AM.
03-31-14, 04:46 AM
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I was going to suggest the reservoir but you ended up discovering that was the problem. I also think that the car has overheated before in the past but didn't run long enough to cause major damage. It did manage to slightly crack the gasket though. I'm assuming you bought it used? If you only plan to hold onto it for just another year then no biggie....
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