What a sweet smell! Oh its leaking.

[sicK96GT]

So for the past few days its been raining in texas... I use my defrost to clear out the windows so I can see, I start to smell coolant so I turn it back off. Now today I get to HEB and smell it even more. Mind you the defrost is off, actually everything was. I pop the hood and dont see anything leaking in the engine bay so It may not be a hose. I look under the car to see a huge puddle of green yuck (coolant) dripping beside my xpipe.


I buy coolant and fill her back up. I'm driving home and start to feel warm water (coolent) dripping on my feet!! I pull over and sure enough under the driver side its leaking very slowly.

Now first of all wtf. Second of all wtf I could short something out with that leaking near all my electrical wires.


I have not had time to start pulling **** apart but tonight I will install my underdrive pullies and have a look. Any suggestions? Ideas? Thoughts? Emotions?

 

[the98stang]

So for the past few days its been raining in texas... I use my defrost to clear out the windows so I can see, I start to smell coolant so I turn it back off. Now today I get to HEB and smell it even more. Mind you the defrost is off, actually everything was. I pop the hood and dont see anything leaking in the engine bay so It may not be a hose. I look under the car to see a huge puddle of green yuck (coolant) dripping beside my xpipe.


I buy coolant and fill her back up. I'm driving home and start to feel warm water (coolent) dripping on my feet!! I pull over and sure enough under the driver side its leaking very slowly.

Now first of all wtf. Second of all wtf I could short something out with that leaking near all my electrical wires.


I have not had time to start pulling **** apart but tonight I will install my underdrive pullies and have a look. Any suggestions? Ideas? Thoughts? Emotions?

Do you have the plastic crossover on the intake manifold? I would bet money that the intake is leaking. If not, check all of the coolant hoses near the firewall. Also, look down in the head where the spark plugs are. If you see coolant, it's most likely the intake.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

It is the heater core in the dash if it is dripping on his feet while driving.

The heater core is very difficult to change out, good luck.

 

[sicK96GT]

how can I bypass the heater core untill I have time to change it out?

 

[Dusstbuster]

It is the heater core in the dash if it is dripping on his feet while driving.

The heater core is very difficult to change out, good luck.

Thats what I was going to say. It's gotta be the heater core if it's getting to you inside. Have fun with that and ripping your entire dash off!

 

[Shiroelex]

I used a flush and fill tee to connect the two hoses together on my F150 for a summer. I don't know exactly where the core inlet is on our firewall, but you might be able to get away with my trick. They told me I would have to remove my whole dash for the F150, but all I did was removed the glove box, and there was enough room (barely) to get the core in and out. Good luck with this, and don't use stop leak!

EDIT: Ouch, I looked at my Ford Technical Service Pubs, and it says you have to remove the evaporator core housing from under the hood, and it requires the a/c system to be disconnected. Also, it's showing quick-connect fittings on the heater core hoses as well, so my trick is out of the question. I'm sure there's an easier way to do this job, but the manual here doesn't suggest that. Since it's such an involved job, I would first go to Autozone, and rent one of those coolant system testers that pressurizes the whole system. Once you get the thing pressurized, you'll know where the leak is real soon.

 

[Twista]

heater core.

remove the whole heater system ;]

 

[sicK96GT]

thanks guys, I looked up a way to bypass it filled it up again with water and drove to autozone, well first to my last class when I pulled up she started steaming and hissing at me. Leaking yummy green all over my feet.

Im going to have my girlfriend pick me up, and Ill drive to autozone and get some hose to bypass the heater core.

Ill replace everything when I have time.

 

[Dusstbuster]

What is the heater core made out of? If it's metal you could ghettofab a fix with some jbweld or something til you have the time and resources to replace the core. Or you could get really ballsy and make sure everything around it is wet/covered and try do a quick weld on the hole...If I were you I'd try pretty much anything possible to help prolong the replacement of it.

 

[sicK96GT]

Im not sure what its made out of, but being that it cracked somewhere its prob plastic. I remember when I was in high school hearing my dad bitching about replacing his heater core on his truck, I called to ask him about it and he just laughed and said have fun.


I hope bypassing it works because I dont have time for about a week to pull the dash apart.

 

[Dusstbuster]

That sucks, I know older vehicles it was metal but yeah everything is plastic nowadays so that doesn't surprise me. You could plastic weld it Just use a torch and a metal something or other and melt some plastic over the hole.

 

[sicK96GT]

I like the way you think.


I bypassed the heater core in the parking lot, was fun

She got me home, didnt overheat and radiator light didnt come on so must be holding.

 

[Dusstbuster]

I like the way you think.


I bypassed the heater core in the parking lot, was fun

She got me home, didnt overheat and radiator light didnt come on so must be holding.

Engineer in training

 

[Kilgore Trout]

I bypassed the heater core in the parking lot, was fun

Noice!

 

[ZakeriD]

been there, done that... you could leave it bypassed if it doesn't get cold where you live.

 

[sicK96GT]

Im guessing my radiator cap is bad now because when she gets a little hot starts to boil out of the cap, car doesnt overheat at all stays below 180-200.

new cap fixes this?

 

[Kilgore Trout]

The caps are known to fail and are cheap...

 

[4.6andSlicks]

You sir, are a true Mustang fanatic. With coolant running on your feet, the first thing that comes to mind is to change the pulleys

I thing we're all a little nut, don't you.

 

[SaleenGT2001]

my buddys car is doing the same thing.
does the entire dash really have to be removed?

 

[281CI96Coupe]

How does the heater core get bad?!? Does it randomly happen or if you do not maintence your car it messes up?