Ideas on slight coolant leak

[HardcoreKeith]

Thursday as I came out of the grocery store I noticed a small green puddle under the passenger side, front, corner of the truck. Upon inspection I was not able to determine where it had dripped from. When I got home I looked again and there seemed to be a few areas that had had antifreeze splashed onto them, but the source was elusive. It seemed like potentially it had come from the upper radiator hose, since that would be the highest source of coolant in that area and some of the components underneath that area were moist. Also, the pan underneath the radiator had some coolant in it and continued to drip for a few minutes after the engine was stopped. At both times the drip rate was approximately one drop per 30-60 seconds.

Today I went out and filled up, and then ran the truck until it was warm. At no point did it seem to ever leak coolant. So I was unable to diagnose the problem today. Maybe when I was fiddling with the hoses & clamps the other day I accidentally solved the issue.

I guess I'll wait until the problem worsens and then it will be more obvious. Are there any typical trouble spots I should definitely check though?

Also, what's the black spherical thing underneath the air intake with two flexible cables (hoses? wires?) coming out of it that head back towards the firewall? That seemed to have some coolant that had dripped onto it as well.

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

i like to use traver line uv die to trave down pesky leaks. you pour the specified amount into your radiator, take it for a drive to get it warmed up, then park it and wait till dark. youll need to buy the kit with the glasses and the flashlight to make it work properly (or you can use yellow safety glasses and a portable black light), but the leak will instantly stand out, usually the highest point that you see the die at will be the source of the leak unelss it is dripping into the fan and getting sprayed around the engine bay.

 

[Frank The Tank]

I'd say a piece of trash in your coolant system plugged the hole........

I've seen the fix last 2 days, and I've seen trash stop up a hole and it never leak again.
Just keep an eye on it and don't worry about it for now.

Frank

 

[modelageek]

any chance it it coming from the rad cap

 

[HardcoreKeith]

any chance it it coming from the rad cap

I'd say the chance is pretty small, since I don't have one

 

[modelageek]

interesting I did not know the duratec 2.3 did not have a rad cap. I need one of these new fancy cars......

 

[HardcoreKeith]

interesting I did not know the duratec 2.3 did not have a rad cap. I need one of these new fancy cars......

It's like the joke you play on the new kid. "Hey, could you grab me the radiator cap off that ranger..." But yeah, the coolant system is pressurized and only the overflow container has a cap.

 

[HardcoreKeith]

Well, the leak got worse, which made it easier to see. It seems to be coming from a pinhole leak in the radiator, just below the neck to which the upper hose attaches.

Anyone think JB Weld might do the trick? It looks like the radiator might be plastic instead of metal...

 

[Frank The Tank]

Wouldn't be a hard swap on the whole thing really....... then you wouldn't have to worry abt it. Its tough to patch these new ones.....

Frank

 

[HardcoreKeith]

Based on your recommendation I received a new radiator from Radiator Barn today. Here's one thing I didn't adequately explore: How do I refill the new, capless radiator? Attach the lower hose, and then stick a funnel in the outlet for the upper hose? Fill it through the overflow reservoir? Haynes doesn't mention.

 

[HardcoreKeith]

I just filled it through the overflow reservoir. It seemed to work well. The level dropped after I fired up the engine so I topped it off. I'll check it once more when it cools down.

Next adventure: Finding a place to dump coolant

 

[Frank The Tank]

I like to leave my coolant out where people have a lot of dogs and cats.... J/K.

pour it over a towel and take it to the dump in your garbage bag.

Frank

 

[press 1 for english]

I just filled it through the overflow reservoir. It seemed to work well. The level dropped after I fired up the engine so I topped it off. I'll check it once more when it cools down.

Next adventure: Finding a place to dump coolant

It's not too hard to figure out. Take it to auto zone or Advanced auto parts....the ones around me take used coolant.
Frank might like to dispose of it in a dump but then again, people like him give Correction Officers job security. Nothing like putting criminal evidence in an internet forum.

 

[HardcoreKeith]

Don't worry, he was just kidding, but he does highlight a good point. None of the parts stores around here will take used coolant, which I think results in most people who do their own repairs "losing" their used coolant in a dumpster.

I was able to find a county-run Household Hazardous Waste center that took my used coolant. While I was there, I got to weigh my truck on the scale -- 3440 with me in it, so like 3280 without. Full tank of guzzline.

 

[Frank The Tank]

I'ma burn in hell for the lameness of our waste dumps around here..... maybe so. Damn the luck.

Frank