strikeraj

This morning when I was checking oil level, I noticed my coolant tank is all empty. Last checked was about a month ago when I did an oil change and the tank was at max back then
There is no error showing on dash.
Tried to take some pictures with my phone from underneath. I see coolant stain all over the places. The highest is at the bottom screw of the thermostat, a big chuck of coolant crust there (note that pink bolt at the center of second picture).

Is this the thermostat housing leak or the waterpump leak?
Water pump was replaced by dealership approx 50k km ago.

Thanks a lot in advance

CharonRega

Judging from these photos alone, I'd say that's thermostat housing but it's an educated guess more than anything. If you get under your car, can you actually see/feel any cracks in the thermostat housing? Can you tell approximately where the coolant was dripping from (I'm assuming not since it looks to be a bit all over the place). Still pretty sure its the thermostat housing.

strikeraj

i was trying to take the water pump pulley off and see if there is crust inside like other DIY thread shown, but even with the belt on, im turning the engine over with the water pump bolt T_T

am I safe to counter hold using the crank bolt?

strikeraj

and I guess I have a question for people that had a leaking water pump....

When the water pump start leaking, did it spray coolant to the plastic cover and thermostat cover at the top?

strikeraj

update pictures after taking water pump pulley and injector drive cover off.....

is this the timing cover or head gasket leak?

coolant stain in between the banks as well coolant on upper side of water pump as well... so I guess not water pump leak

coolant stain in between engine cylinder banks?

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

So do you see any pink crust down below the water pump or just above it like shown in these pics?

strikeraj

I say majority is at the top.

Also, the water pump pulley doesn't have much crust inside like the other diy post shown.

strikeraj

Any other thoughts? Still trying to figure out where it has been leading from....

One more question... On the reservoir cap, one long rubber hose connects to the water inlet, does the short hose connects to anything? Or does it just hang in the air?

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

Since the leak appears to be higher up the motor, I'd start around the thermostat area.

The overflow tube there doesn't go anywhere; the exit of that tube simply rests near the top the radiator...aka, open to atmosphere.

strikeraj

Thanks for the reply. I just did a bit more testing.

1. Top up coolant in both tank and water inlet. Start the engine and turn on heat. Idle until heat starts blowing. No leak.
2. Drove to work this morning. Temp needle just arrived the middle mark about 1km from work. Stop engine and open hood in work parking lot, coolant everywhere in front of the engine, white smoke coming out. Tank is still at the full mark though. (afterthought, should have open the hood before stopping engine to see where it is dripping from.....)

I ordered the thermostat and housing from my local dealership and going to swap it.

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

Keep an eye on that temp gauge while driving it in the mean time. I've never seen my temp gauge hit the halfway mark, even on the hottest of summer days. Only ever hits a needle's width away from halfway on the cold side. You DON'T want to risk a blown headgasket!

Let us know if the replacement parts work out for you. Don't forget about blurping the cooling system after the new part install.

strikeraj

Thanks for the reply.
I have looked at a few pages for blurping the system , but still confused. Is there a good obstruction that you follow?

strikeraj

Thermostat replaced, things seem fixed and no leaking any more this morning.

The guide on CL did not really explain how painful it is to get to that third nut..... (or may be I am stupid)
Lesson learned on replacing thermostat without removing the water inlet
First nut took less than a minute
Second nut took 5 minutes by removing one small hose on the left of the inlet
Third nut at the back took me more than 30 min, need to remove the hose connecting to the bottom of the water inlet. And a socket wont fit in it due to interference with the bottom hose. I need to remove that big plastic cover to the right of the water inlet and fish a small box wrench from the bottom using right hand, while wrapping left hand fingers around the thermostat to help guide the wrench head onto the nut.

Inspection on the old thermostat housing reveals no crack, so I think it was the gasket that started the leak.

Since I did not drain the radiator, it is very helpful to stuff a few rags on top of crank pulley and water pump pulley and leave the end of the rag dangling above a drip pan. This helps guide all the fluid gushing out from hoses to more or less drip in the pan. In total I have replaced about one jug of the coolant.

Hope this will help others in the future.

I

strikeraj

update

Noticed another slower leak (drips) from the right hand small hose connecting to the water inlet.
According to parts diagram, it is called No 4 water bypass hose, part number 16281
Can someone shed some light on what this hose does?
What is the best way to fix a leak at the connection like this?

Thanks

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

Got a pic of this hose and where you believe it is leaking from?