Goblin blood on my garage floor

[Tone]

If it is coolant, it is probably leaking on top of the engine UNDER the intake manifold and running down the back. Is there a strong smell of AF when you open the hood as it would have to leak a lot to fill the space under the manifold to then spill over. Pressure washing the underside of the motor will make it MUCH easier to really identifiy where it is coming from. Check your oil to make sure it is not contaminated (which would indicat a bad thing) as well as opening the radiator cap for inspection. I don't believe it is leaking from the are you indicate as it is behind the main oil pan / engine - it is simply running down there.

[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, I'm gonna do some more intrusive poking around on Saturday. I was too tired to do anything more last night.

So, let me get this straight: The coolant reservoir has a tube that goes into the top of the radiator (this I can plainly see with no problem, and there are no visual signs of leakage here). From the radiator, is there another tube that goes somewhere? What should I be looking for and where should I be looking for it? I mean, I can see where the juice is pooling. I stuck my finger up on top and sure enough, it was wet with green blood up there. So, I have a good idea where the "center" of the leak is, but it is unfortunately surrounded by a lot of parts that I cannot easily see around.

Last night I lost another hour of sleep reading other websites about coolant leaks. I do not think it is a head gasket leak, as my oil is normal looking. So, I think its either something simple (jeez, I hope so) or possibly the water pump.

Has anyone on here ever had to swap their water pump? Is this a likely culprit with the VX? I read on planetisuzu that you have to remove the timing belt to get at it...ugg. I hope that's not it.

I hate when my baby is sick.

Bart

[nfpgasmask]

Hey Tone,

My oil looks good. And thinking about this further, last time I changed my oil was on Nov 17th. When I was down there then, I did notice the white stains on the underside, but it wasn't as bad as in my photo above, and I didn't think much of it. I figured I drove over a puddle of something nasty or whatever. Plus, I never had any puddles on the garage floor until the day I posted this thread, and that said, I haven't had once since. But its definitely leaking as my reservoir level has dropped. Anyway, what I'm getting at, is that my oil looks clean and normal. Last night I opened the radiator, and the fluid was right there at the top, nice and green.

If the fluid in the radiator is contaminated, is there an easy way to tell? It just looked green to me, but then again, I didn't do a finger test

Thanks, Bart

PS - I was planning to get underthere and hose off as much as I can Saturday morning. I don't have a pressure washer, so hopefully I can get it clean with the hose.

If it is coolant, it is probably leaking on top of the engine UNDER the intake manifold and running down the back. Is there a strong smell of AF when you open the hood as it would have to leak a lot to fill the space under the manifold to then spill over. Pressure washing the underside of the motor will make it MUCH easier to really identifiy where it is coming from. Check your oil to make sure it is not contaminated (which would indicat a bad thing) as well as opening the radiator cap for inspection. I don't believe it is leaking from the are you indicate as it is behind the main oil pan / engine - it is simply running down there.

[nfpgasmask]

OK, so, nice and sunny today. I can actually see under the hood now.

First, let me say, since I posted this thread, here is how much coolant I have lost:



And, thinking back, I am pretty sure that the tank was about halfway between MIN and MAX before I left Chicago a couple months ago. So, it must have been loosing juice probably for about a month now...

This shot is from underneath, about dead center. The arrows point to where I think the juice is pooling, and then dripping down from.



With hood open and the sun shining I can see another spot looking down, about dead center behind the serp belt where it looks like some more dripping has taken place.



AND THEN! I see this, up around the hoses on top of the fan housing:



Its just a huge mess under the hood and I don't know wtf to do.

I'm gonna try to clean it off under there as much as I can today, so I can try to isolate the leak(s). Also, how safe is it for me to hose off under the hood? Can I spray my hose down there without any risk of damage? Or should I just try to clean the underside?

I don't want to make the problem worse.

Thanks for the help,

Bart

[Jolly Roger VX'er]

As Tone already mentioned above...it sounds like you should check as best you can under the intake. Here is a thread below that could help you with your problem.

http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...hlight=coolant

[nfpgasmask]

Roger that Roger, and thanks for the link. I read through that thread and this definitely seems like a possibility, which totally sucks cause it looks like this is going to be something I cannot fix myself, and something that isnt going to be cheap to have a shop fix. I am already planning to do a brake/rotor bearing repack, and that is gonna cost me at least $400 when all is said and done, and if this leak problem persists, I am probably going to be out at least another $600 for labor, and probably a few hundred more for parts. And I DON'T have 2 cars. The VX is it.

On a good note, were ever it is leaking from, it seems that it is leaking REALLY slow. I took my VX to the self-car wash today. They have one of those power washers so I hosed off the under belly pretty good.

Which reminds me, is it safe to pressure wash under the hood? Or is this a bad idea?

Anyway, I stopped at Kragen and bought a jug of Prestone universal 50/50 and filled up my reservoir to the MAX line. So, I will watch it from this point forward. The thing that seems weird to me is that I don't think it is chronically leaking, I think it is only leaking sometimes.

The worst part of all this is that I don't have 2 pennies to rub together right now, so an expensive shop visit may have to wait a couple weeks.

As far as looking around the intake, I don't even know what that is. Is this where the airbox pulls air into the engine? I will have to fire up the manual and see what I can see.

I haven't even had my VX for a year, and I've only got 38,000 miles on it.
Sheesh. Talk about a high maintenance vehicle.

Bart

As Tone already mentioned above...it sounds like you should check as best you can under the intake. Here is a thread below that could help you with your problem.

http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...hlight=coolant

[IndianaVX]

bart,
im no master mechanic by any means, but when you are filling up the resevour, are you sure that the radiator is full also?? otherwise, if the rad is low, and the resivor is full, when the engine warms up, it would drop the level in the res. dramaticly, and make you think you are loosing alot. also, when the engine is upp and warm, have you done any sqeezing on the hoses??? SOMETIMES, when you sqeeze the hoses and everything is under pressure,you can cause the leak to actually "squirt, or spray" instead of just drip, and be hard to find. so get your flashlight, or 1000 million candlepoweer spotlight, and start looking between the radiator fin while your squeesing the hose, look at seams while squeezing, and so on and so on. anywhere there is a hose, or connection, the drain nut tranny lines, etc. any leak can be deceptive from it leaking, and the air blowing that leak allover the place makes it harder to pinpoint. dont know, just trying to help. maybe this is obviouse stuff. good luck with it.......im pullin for ya
david

[Ldub]

Which reminds me, is it safe to pressure wash under the hood? Or is this a bad idea?

As far as looking around the intake, I don't even know what that is. Is this where the airbox pulls air into the engine? I will have to fire up the manual and see what I can see.Bart

Pressure washing under hood probably isn't a good idea...lots of electrical connections etc. that hate water...especially high press. water that can get into places it shouldn't be.

Here's a pic with some red things indicating where to look...


See if you can trace the thing that the middle red thing is pointing to (that the upper radiator hose attaches to), back under the intake manifold where it attaches to the block...this valley under the intake is most likely where your leak is.
There are heater hoses, thermostat housing, etc. under there that could be the scource.
BTW, you'll need a flashlight...

[nfpgasmask]

OK, so, my VX has been sitting all night in the cold garage.

The level of my fluid in the reservoir has dropped almost 3/4" since yesterday!! But, there is no sign of a leak??? No puddle, no wetness underneath, nothing!

I opened the radiator cap, and fluid is right there at the top, nice and green. Since the truck has been sitting for 12 hours, could the pressure drop and thus cause the fluid level in the reservoir to drop? I guess I will find out in a little while after I drive around for a bit.

One thing I did test: I stopped running the heat (not to my wife's liking, but) and it seems the leaking has stopped or is going somewhere I cannot see at least. I guess I should try blasting the heat and see if more fluid comes out. I know you said I would notice a smell or wetness in the truck if it was my heater core, but...????

This is frustrating....

Bart

[Tone]

I suggested pressure washing UNDER the engine where the leak was seen in filth but there is nothing under the hood that can't handle water or if there is, I'd want to know about it now instead of stranded on the road. Remember, vehicles operate OUTSIDE. Of course you don't put the tip of the 1500psi washer right on anything but 12-18" is not a problem.

I just reviewed the new pics and if it is not under the intake manifold (no answer on the smell question...) then the o'rings on the front coolant manifold (where the top radiator and heater hose attach) is more suspect. It will typically only leak under pressure and bleed and stop once the engine is off. It took me a while to find it on mine and if vehicle is used for short trips only, it may not show the leak until a longer trip is taken.

[nfpgasmask]

OK Tone, thanks man. As far as smell goes, there is a faint ting of antifreeze under the hood after a good drive, but no visible vaporization or anything. The small is probably from the warm engine vaporizing the coolant that is spilled down there. I have seen no steam or anything. I'm gonna do some more testing today. I have to take my wife to the mall ( ) and its a good hwy drive to get there so I will report back later with the details.

Everyone, thanks for the help.

Bart

I suggested pressure washing UNDER the engine where the leak was seen in filth but there is nothing under the hood that can't handle water or if there is, I'd want to know about it now instead of stranded on the road. Remember, vehicles operate OUTSIDE. Of course you don't put the tip of the 1500psi washer right on anything but 12-18" is not a problem.

I just reviewed the new pics and if it is not under the intake manifold (no answer on the smell question...) then the o'rings on the front coolant manifold (where the top radiator and heater hose attach) is more suspect. It will typically only leak under pressure and bleed and stop once the engine is off. It took me a while to find it on mine and if vehicle is used for short trips only, it may not show the leak until a longer trip is taken.

[nfpgasmask]

OK, so after I drove around for a while yesterday, my coolant level in the tank went back up to where I filled it. The VX is running/driving just fine. However, after I got home last night, I slid under again with a flashlight, and sure enough, I found a single, new, wet drip of goblin blood in the same area. So its probably been leaking like this for several months without me knowing.

From everything everyone has said here, I looks like the most likely area is around the intake. I guess I will try to take a few things apart when I have some time and see if I can find the leak source.

I had my wife fire up the engine while I look around under the hood and I didn't see anything spurt or hear any hissing or anything, which kinda sucks I guess.

Do you all think its ok to drive like this? I mean, its gonna be a couple weeks before I can afford to take it in, especially if I end up needing to rent a car or take cabs to work.

Bart

[nfpgasmask]

I still drip. I was parked on an incline in my driveway this weekend while I was cleaning out the garage, and after a few hours I noticed a green drip or two underneath. So there is still a slight leak of coolant in the engine somewhere. Normally, the drips fall and vaporize somewhere inside before they actually drip out.

Annoying. Its probably that O ring Tone talked about.

Anyone else have this problem?

Bart

[Dumke]

I still drip. I was parked on an incline in my driveway this weekend while I was cleaning out the garage, and after a few hours I noticed a green drip or two underneath. So there is still a slight leak of coolant in the engine somewhere. Normally, the drips fall and vaporize somewhere inside before they actually drip out.

Annoying. Its probably that O ring Tone talked about.

Anyone else have this problem?

Bart

Sorry havent read whole post or all of them but... I have had this problem as well. I went in to get water pump replaced and both radiator hoses replaced and well leak gone. Course now its back and i need to take back in to have them check again because i am sure waterpump seal went bad again because leaking from same place. Dont ask me what that has to do with the leaking because I dunno just what mechanic said when he had it all replaced.


Course I think mine went bad because as my avatar shows I got stuck in the mud for awhile GL Bart adn i will let you know when I take it back to shop in a week or so

[nfpgasmask]

Sorry havent read whole post or all of them but... I have had this problem as well. I went in to get water pump replaced and both radiator hoses replaced and well leak gone. Course now its back and i need to take back in to have them check again because i am sure waterpump seal went bad again because leaking from same place. Dont ask me what that has to do with the leaking because I dunno just what mechanic said when he had it all replaced.

Course I think mine went bad because as my avatar shows I got stuck in the mud for awhile GL Bart adn i will let you know when I take it back to shop in a week or so

Is yours dripping a lot? Mine seems to just be a real slow leak. Its dripping underneath the engine. I am guessing its the O ring Tone talked about, but I really have no idea. Definitely let me know what your mech says.

Bart