Engine Coolant leak by water pump

91GTstroked · Dec 25, 2019

Hey guys,

Merry Christmas! Well I went to check on the 90 coupe this morning at the storage unit. It appears I have a small coolant leak.

I can see some running down the sides of the timing chain cover where it mates to the water pump. But I put my hand under the thermostat housing and had some there.

I recently bought this car and was told the water pump and thermostat were replaced in 2018. It has a edlebrock water pump.

Not much I can do do about it during the winter while it's in storage. I didn't have any leaks during the summer.

Is it possible some bolts are loose? I might try to tighten some down while the temps are in the 30's.

For now the leak is some minor drips.

General karthief · Dec 25, 2019

T stat housings are famous for leaking.
i wouldn't try tightening anything, broken bolts and stripped threads are a pain. Just put a catch pan under it and wait till warmer weather to fix.

91GTstroked · Dec 25, 2019

General karthief said:
T stat housings are famous for leaking.
i wouldn't try tightening anything, broken bolts and stripped threads are a pain. Just put a catch pan under it and wait till warmer weather to fix.

That's probably the best idea. I'll wait until spring.

Thank you!

Infoxicated5.0 · Dec 28, 2019

Your water pump may be “leaking” from the weep hole? I’d let it run a little bit and try to see where the leak is, all water pumps generally have a weep or bleed hole, but I also know thermostat housings are notorious for leaks too.

91GTstroked · Dec 29, 2019

Infoxicated5.0 said:
Your water pump may be “leaking” from the weep hole? I’d let it run a little bit and try to see where the leak is, all water pumps generally have a weep or bleed hole, but I also know thermostat housings are notorious for leaks too.

Thanks. It appears the weep hole is on the bottom of the wp. Coolant seems to be on the sides of the wp where it mates up to the timing cover.

I'll have to wait to fix it in the spring. If my guess is right,. I'll be replacing the timing cover, gaskets, and probably the thermostat housing gasket. But I'll try snuggling bolts first.

Infoxicated5.0 · Dec 29, 2019

91GTstroked said:
Thanks. It appears the weep hole is on the bottom of the wp. Coolant seems to be on the sides of the wp where it mates up to the timing cover.

I'll have to wait to fix it in the spring. If my guess is right,. I'll be replacing the timing cover, gaskets, and probably the thermostat housing gasket. But I'll try snuggling bolts first.

I think you’ll just have a bad gasket seal. Did you notice any coolant in the oil ??

Mustang5L5 · Dec 30, 2019

Leaky timing covers are a common issue. When you bolt on a water pump/timing cover, there are 4 sealing surfaces you need to seal on each side into the block. Miss one tiny little spot and a leak will develop.

7991LXnSHO · Jan 5, 2020

A coolant system pressure tester is likely to help. It will pressurize the system without being hot and make finding that leak a lot quicker. The kits are not bad to buy on amazon, and I have seen them in the borrow tools at Advance auto. I like to use the tool to chase down hose clamp and pin hole leaks, but this will be another slick use.

91GTstroked · Jan 7, 2020

7991LXnSHO said:
A coolant system pressure tester is likely to help. It will pressurize the system without being hot and make finding that leak a lot quicker. The kits are not bad to buy on amazon, and I have seen them in the borrow tools at Advance auto. I like to use the tool to chase down hose clamp and pin hole leaks, but this will be another slick use.

I'll definitely be buying one, thanks.

revhead347 · Jan 11, 2020

91GTstroked said:
I'll definitely be buying one, thanks.

The coolant pressure tester is a free Rental tool at Autozone I believe. Might be Advance; one of those stores. If it's the thermostat housing, replace it while you are at it, as the factory ones are aluminium and famous for warping. Usually they warp, because the thermostat drops down during installation, and the installer cranks down on the bolts bending it. Don't go for looks on that part, get a cast iron replacement for it. I just looked it up on Advance, and it was $10.99 with the gasket, part number "Carquest #84884." Or you can ask the parts guy for a "water outlet." The cast iron ones never leak. I guarantee that's money well spent.

Kurt

91GTstroked · Jan 12, 2020

revhead347 said:
The coolant pressure tester is a free Rental tool at Autozone I believe. Might be Advance; one of those stores. If it's the thermostat housing, replace it while you are at it, as the factory ones are aluminium and famous for warping. Usually they warp, because the thermostat drops down during installation, and the installer cranks down on the bolts bending it. Don't go for looks on that part, get a cast iron replacement for it. I just looked it up on Advance, and it was $10.99 with the gasket, part number "Carquest #84884." Or you can ask the parts guy for a "water outlet." The cast iron ones never leak. I guarantee that's money well spent.

Kurt

Thank you. The one on my car now appears to be cast iron. But I have a coolant sensor installed on it. If I did replace the housing, I'd have to tap a hole or find one already drilled out.

revhead347 · Jan 16, 2020

91GTstroked said:
Thank you. The one on my car now appears to be cast iron. But I have a coolant sensor installed on it. If I did replace the housing, I'd have to tap a hole or find one already drilled out.

If it has the bung for an extra sensor, then that's already the cast iron one from the parts store. Like I said, those almost never warp.

Kurt

91GTstroked · Feb 24, 2020

Hey guys,

I tried a pressure tester today. Car is still in storage. It held pressure for the few minutes I left it hooked up.

I did see one drip of coolant come out the water pump weep hole. Other than that nothing.

The timing cover and wp gaskets look damp though. I may just need to start it up here in spring and see what happens.

The water pump is a edlebrock and was replaced in 2018, so I've been told. It looks pretty new.

Thoughts?

Engine Coolant leak by water pump

91GTstroked

General karthief

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

91GTstroked

Infoxicated5.0

Member

91GTstroked

Infoxicated5.0

Member

Mustang5L5

That is…until I whipped out my Bissell

7991LXnSHO

wanna catch the space herp

91GTstroked

revhead347

Apparently my ex-husband made that mistake.

91GTstroked

revhead347

Apparently my ex-husband made that mistake.

91GTstroked

Similar threads

Engine Coolant leak by water pump

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

Member

Member

That is…until I whipped out my Bissell

wanna catch the space herp

Apparently my ex-husband made that mistake.

Apparently my ex-husband made that mistake.

Similar threads

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency