Hey guys, i already read a couple of other forums with regards to the issue but they always ended being something else, with that being said, i have a 2001 mustang gt with a slight coolant leak that i pin pointed to a little black plug/grommet on the passenger side firewall about 6-8 inches ontop of the left(facing car) header pipe. i dont know what causes it to begiin leaking considering the fact that i RARELY ever put my AC on and when i did i started smelling a syrup smell from my AC. i m pretty sure its not my heater core since it just started leaking and i have 64k miles on the car. if someone can tell me if they experienced the same problem or know how to fix it i d greatly appreciate it. I thank and appreciate any help in advance.
Coolant Leak on top of passenger side exhaust header??
- Thread starter stang4life99
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SaleenGT2001
Well-Known Member
sounds like the heater core. you have to pull the dash off to get to the heater core on our cars. book time calls for about 6.5 hours. expect it to be a full day project. once you do it a few times it takes about 3-4 hours
Beasty306GT
Active Member
yup..deff your heater core....its a royal pita job.dash has to be pulled to get to the heater box ..i just replaced mine not to long ago in my 89 ..took like 7 hrs
Kind of a strange place to be leaking coolant. You might be leaking r134 from your AC, not coolant. When my headers were installed it melted an AC line and I had a similar situation. AC blew warm funny smelling air. I took it to the ford dealership because I didn't have the time to mess with it and they replaced the line, wrapped it in heat shield material, and moved the line well away from my headers. $450 later I had a recharged AC and no more leak.
wmburns
SN Certified Technician
+3 on the heater core. Let's see. Syrup smell inside car. Coolant dripping from the AC drain......
We all know that the AC creates water. The AC case is designed to retain the water and drain it OUTSIDE the car. The heater core is located above the AC. The coolant leaks down and out using the same drain.
What is the condition of your coolant? If the coolant is not in tip top shape, this can allow the heater core to rust out from the inside. Or it just may be bad luck.
Once replaced, consider installing a restrictor in the heater line. It will make the new heater core last much longer.
OBTW, pulling the dash is a big job but can be done by the weekend DIY'er. Recommend getting a Chiltion's manual. When I pulled the dash in my 1996, the Chilton's manual was more helpful than the Ford service manuals.
Allocate a full day to remove the dash. Another day to re-install. You need a buddy to help with the actual dash removal. To me, the hardest part of the job was dropping the steering column. The rest was straight forward (a lot of steps but that's where the manual helps). You will be surprised how few bolts hold the dash in.
We all know that the AC creates water. The AC case is designed to retain the water and drain it OUTSIDE the car. The heater core is located above the AC. The coolant leaks down and out using the same drain.
What is the condition of your coolant? If the coolant is not in tip top shape, this can allow the heater core to rust out from the inside. Or it just may be bad luck.
Once replaced, consider installing a restrictor in the heater line. It will make the new heater core last much longer.
OBTW, pulling the dash is a big job but can be done by the weekend DIY'er. Recommend getting a Chiltion's manual. When I pulled the dash in my 1996, the Chilton's manual was more helpful than the Ford service manuals.
Allocate a full day to remove the dash. Another day to re-install. You need a buddy to help with the actual dash removal. To me, the hardest part of the job was dropping the steering column. The rest was straight forward (a lot of steps but that's where the manual helps). You will be surprised how few bolts hold the dash in.
Thanks for all it help and responses sicksix and Saleebgt01. But If it was the heater core wouldn't have leaked from those two hoses tight next to each other mounted all the way up on the passenger side firewall and thanks dark04 gt but i didnt have any headers installed so i dk what could have damaged that hose. N e other suggestions/ideas on what it could be?? Thanks again everyone.
CobraRed_96_GT
Active Member
Yes, it does leak there. Car warms up then it's a steady drip or stream out onto the passenger side exhaust. Really sucks. Heater core.
Beasty306GT
Active Member
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