Coolant Leak

[alexwolf1216]

I got ready to take the car into work today so I started her up. She fired up, no problems (maybe because its 39 degrees out) but I smelled coolant. Walked behind the car and saw green stuff on the floor. I cant see where its coming from, so I took some photos. I am assuming this probably isnt great news.

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[Josh]

I had a coolant leak from the exact same place. Turned out to be a sub par bleeder screw that wouldnt close all the way. Check the passenger side rad hose clamp. If neither is the issue id take off the intake and investigate.

[dn010]

It will be difficult to determine where the leak is going by pictures, but one thing I noticed is that one of the pictures (Pict#3) - the large hose coming off the right side of the pump - the clamp looks damp on the bottom. With the engine off, run your finger along the bottom of this hose where it meets the pump housing and see if you come up with any anti-freeze on your finger.

Any hose leaking in that area really could cause this, so go over your clamps, look for holes in the hoses and more importantly check how much anti-freeze you lost - that could indicate whether it is just a slow leak or if a hose on the back of the pump leaked so much that the VOD is full and overflowing...

[alexwolf1216]

so my overflow bottle was just a bit over the bottom hole. Its always smelled like coolant since i replaced the bottle and radiator.....so you may be right.

Lets assume the VOD is full. What is involved there....I was supposed to take my car to the mechanic tonight for AC work but im afraid to drive it 30 miles now.

[dn010]

If the VOD is full, you'd be able to peek down past the manifold in certain areas with a flashlight and see if that is actually the case (In picture 3, shine a light in the gap between the 2 hoses pictured and see what it looks like). If it is, then removing the intake is in order as well as finding out where exactly the problem lies. This happened to me once and it was the large hose on the back of the pump, made one heck of a mess. I wouldn't risk driving with a coolant leak until you find out how severe the problem is. Keep in mind, I don't believe leaks at the back of the pump are that common but it is possible - the reason the bottle is empty could just mean it was leaking for quite some time; I'd first suspect a leaky hose - how old is your pump?


so my overflow bottle was just a bit over the bottom hole. Its always smelled like coolant since i replaced the bottle and radiator.....so you may be right.

Lets assume the VOD is full. What is involved there....I was supposed to take my car to the mechanic tonight for AC work but im afraid to drive it 30 miles now.

[STAINLS]

I second checking hose clamps. With it getting colder out the rubber shrinks and sometimes with older clamps, they need to be tightened just a tad. Happened all the time on all the Fieros that I had back in the day and it's happened on both of my DeLoreans. Spots have been popping up on mine front and back for the last couple of weeks actually and it's because it's getting colder out. Couple turns of a screwdriver cleans it right up. Not saying that's your problem but that's where I'd start and it's free. With any kind of fluid leak, look for the highest point of moisture and that should put you in close proximity to your culprit. Since I've never replaced/troubleshot a water pump on a DeLorean before I'm not going to offer advice on that, however, most water pumps that I've seen go out typically leak and with your leak being centered juxtaposed the oil pan in the pictures you provided, I would at least look at that. I'm betting loose clamp somewhere or a pin hole in a hose though.

Good luck, sir!

[alexwolf1216]

Watching Mark's vids on the VOD. Doesnt look like much fun.

[alexwolf1216]

So it looks like my water pump is original, as are the coolant hoses. Maybe its time to get in there before I do the AC work. Here is what I have gathered from the readings:

Crankshaft pulley
Coldstart valve tube
Pipe of agony
AC pulley bearings
distributor cap
rotor
plugs & wires
vacuum lines
water pump
coolant hoses

Clean VOD
Clean injectors

Seems like a fun few weeks.

[dn010]

I would definitely look into replacing the old rubber hoses, clamps as well as the pump. Someone refresh my memory - does the pump have a weep hole that will leak when the seal beings to fail? If so, could be that too causing your leak...



So it looks like my water pump is original, as are the coolant hoses. Maybe its time to get in there before I do the AC work. Here is what I have gathered from the readings:

Crankshaft pulley
Coldstart valve tube
Pipe of agony
AC pulley bearings
distributor cap
rotor
plugs & wires
vacuum lines
water pump
coolant hoses

Clean VOD
Clean injectors

Seems like a fun few weeks.

[alexwolf1216]

I would definitely look into replacing the old rubber hoses, clamps as well as the pump. Someone refresh my memory - does the pump have a weep hole that will leak when the seal beings to fail? If so, could be that too causing your leak...

Yep! My list above is everything im goingt to do......add to it fuel lines.

[AugustneverEnds]

I was going to ask if your pump and such were original since you have Renault belts. So it is. Definitely would recommend a replacement on all of the stuff you listed. Also like Dn010 said there is a weep hole one the bottom of the water pump shaft. If that is wet then the pump is officially dead. I doubt that is though since your car hasn't suffered any overheating.

So your hose clamps are a likely leak source. And the gasket between the water pump body and the back plate could also be very brittle and cracked allowing coolant seepage. Since it seems like you are heading towards taking the intake off you might want this reference:http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?429-How-to-Removing-intake-manifold

The metal line that leads from the front of the car to the water pump is known to rust and could be seeping too. You might want to stop by Autozone and borrow a cooling system pressure tester. Believe me you don't want to do all of this work, put everything back together and discover you still have a leak! The tester is free so totally worth it!

[STAINLS]

If your hoses are original then yes it is time to replace them.

As for the water pump, I did some quick digging for you and yes it does have a weep hole. Could be a possibility. See attached link:

https://support.delorean.com/KB/a39/belts-and-water-pump.aspx

[Mark D]

I would definitely look into replacing the old rubber hoses, clamps as well as the pump. Someone refresh my memory - does the pump have a weep hole that will leak when the seal beings to fail? If so, could be that too causing your leak...

I was going to say the same thing... I started getting random coolant leaks like this from time to time and tightened a clamp here and there to temporarily fix it, but another leak would always see to pop up. I finally bit the bullet and replaced all the coolant hoses front to back with new ones from DMCMW. After pulling all the hoses off I noticed a fair amount of corrosion on the aluminum pipes where coolant had been weeping past. The hoses felt aged and hardened. I think as the rubber gets old and dries out it loses the ability to expand and contract and maintain a tight seal.

It was a pretty involved job to replace the hoses, but that was partly because I also replaced the radiator and was in the middle of a bunch of other suspension work at the same time. I find it's much more enjoyable to drive the car now though knowing I'm not going to blow up a 30 year old hose on the freeway and find myself stranded.

I have yet to replace a few of the remaining hoses in the VOD, but that will probably be my winter project this year.

[alexwolf1216]

I was going to say the same thing... I started getting random coolant leaks like this from time to time and tightened a clamp here and there to temporarily fix it, but another leak would always see to pop up. I finally bit the bullet and replaced all the coolant hoses front to back with new ones from DMCMW. After pulling all the hoses off I noticed a fair amount of corrosion on the aluminum pipes where coolant had been weeping past. The hoses felt aged and hardened. I think as the rubber gets old and dries out it loses the ability to expand and contract and maintain a tight seal.

It was a pretty involved job to replace the hoses, but that was partly because I also replaced the radiator and was in the middle of a bunch of other suspension work at the same time. I find it's much more enjoyable to drive the car now though knowing I'm not going to blow up a 30 year old hose on the freeway and find myself stranded.

I have yet to replace a few of the remaining hoses in the VOD, but that will probably be my winter project this year.

I just replaced the radiator and the front hoses, but I didnt do anything from the back of the hard pipes. They looked to be in pretty good shape.

Plus, these are items that should be done anyway, and I will feel a lot better with all of these being done. I might even powdercoat my valve covers....just for fun, who knows.

[dn010]

These lines are aluminum, and if the cooling system is not properly maintained or you use the wrong coolant, the aluminum piping will corrode. Make sure when you buy coolant that it says safe for aluminum engines. I use the orange DexCool stuff, expensive but worth it to me.




The metal line that leads from the front of the car to the water pump is known to rust and could be seeping too.

[DMCMW Dave]

There will be a few posts like this in the next few weeks. It's extremely common for the hoses to suddenly start leaking when the outside temperature approaches Freezing. If it's valley hoses you really need to pull the intake and fix them, otherwise start tightening all the hose clamps you can find.

[alexwolf1216]

There will be a few posts like this in the next few weeks. It's extremely common for the hoses to suddenly start leaking when the outside temperature approaches Freezing. If it's valley hoses you really need to pull the intake and fix them, otherwise start tightening all the hose clamps you can find.

I think my car is acting like San Antonio. Temps drop low and everyone freaks out :nervous:

[STAINLS]

These lines are aluminum, and if the cooling system is not properly maintained or you use the wrong coolant, the aluminum piping will corrode. Make sure when you buy coolant that it says safe for aluminum engines. I use the orange DexCool stuff, expensive but worth it to me.

If you're going to use Dex just be very committed to coolant flush intervals. I used to build LS engines in my free time and I've seen that stuff turn solid/gel if left in there too long. There's a little crossover pipe on the heads of the early LS1 motors that I've seen completely blocked before from this stuff and it was typically because the PO left it in there for way too long. Also, don't let the fluid level get too low in your overfill tank. It doesn't like air either. Only thing I've found really nice about Dex is that it helps lubricate the water pump and various coolant seals. Very temperamental stuff and there's quite a few lawsuits still going on with GM because of it. Dex-Cool is fine to use. Just make sure you stick to frequent flush cycles with it.

[DMCMW Dave]

If you're going to use Dex just be very committed to coolant flush intervals.

I thought the whole purpose of that crap was to extend the change intervals.

[STAINLS]

I thought the whole purpose of that crap was to extend the change intervals.

Haha, I know! GM claimed it was supposed to be able to go 5 years or 100,000 miles before servicing/flushing. That's what a lot of the lawsuits are about. I recommend changing the stuff every 2 years and that's with light use. I used to (and still do) use Prestone 50-50. It's just fine in aluminum engines. I've seen Dex-Cool do some fun stuff to radiators, head gaskets, intake gaskets, cross-over pipes, and my personal favorite....heater cores.

Dex-Cool is a bad word around the LS community.

Here's a nice little write-up about it:
http://www.sancarlosradiator.com/dex-cool.htm

Also, read some of these reviews on the stuff if you want a few laughs...
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/gm_dexcool.html

Please note, I'm not crap talking about the stuff. It's fine to use. If you do, just change it every 2 years or less and make sure absolutely no air is getting into the system. Especially around the radiator and overflow caps.

[PJ Grady Inc.]

Personally I recommend staying away from Dexcool as it's designed for use in engines made in the last 15 years or so and has few proponents even among it's target audience. Stay with coolant designed for older engines which is usually green in color and change it every two years or so.
As for your leak situation I'd say since you just changed the radiator/coolant that often finishes off the old waterpump so check the weephole. If the four accessable WP hose clamps are tight and the weep hole looks good then the WP to block pipe hoses/clamps (make sure you use silicone hoses there) are the culprit in which case you'll want to change the pump and check a slew of other things when you're wondering around in..................
"The Valley Of Death".

Rob Grady

[David T]

Personally I recommend staying away from Dexcool as it's designed for use in engines made in the last 15 years or so and has few proponents even among it's target audience. Stay with coolant designed for older engines which is usually green in color and change it every two years or so.
As for your leak situation I'd say since you just changed the radiator/coolant that often finishes off the old waterpump so check the weephole. If the four accessable WP hose clamps are tight and the weep hole looks good then the WP to block pipe hoses/clamps (make sure you use silicone hoses there) are the culprit in which case you'll want to change the pump and check a slew of other things when you're wondering around in..................
"The Valley Of Death".

Rob Grady

Just tightening hoses is not a good idea. Most coolant mixes have some kind of leak sealer in them. If the connection you are trying to stop leaking has been leaking/seeping for a while deposits build up trying to stop the leak. Over tightening the hose clamps won't stop the leak. You have to take the hose off and clean the end up. If you try to stop it just by overtighting the clamp you may wind up damaging the hose clamp to the point where it will not work. Overtightening a clamp on the plastic radiator is a bad idea too, you may just crack the plastic. If the hoses are old, again, tightening is a bad idea.

[kings1527]

Personally I recommend staying away from Dexcool as it's designed for use in engines made in the last 15 years or so and has few proponents even among it's target audience. Stay with coolant designed for older engines which is usually green in color and change it every two years or so.
As for your leak situation I'd say since you just changed the radiator/coolant that often finishes off the old waterpump so check the weephole. If the four accessable WP hose clamps are tight and the weep hole looks good then the WP to block pipe hoses/clamps (make sure you use silicone hoses there) are the culprit in which case you'll want to change the pump and check a slew of other things when you're wondering around in..................
"The Valley Of Death".

Rob Grady

Unrelated to this thread, I've seen some recent posts of yours on other threads, Rob. Thanks for participating and helping us out. It's great to have you around.

With Dave S. and Rob around, we can't go wrong. :o

[djdogbone]

Alex, I just did the VOD. It's time consuming but not difficult. Dave from DMC-MW was extremely helpful. I bought what I needed and didn't over spend. Tore down in 6 hours. Was back together the next day in 4. Make sure not to over torque those bolts. That was my biggest fear with the block being aluminium...it's easy to do when you're working at odd angles.

[alexwolf1216]

Alex, I just did the VOD. It's time consuming but not difficult. Dave from DMC-MW was extremely helpful. I bought what I needed and didn't over spend. Tore down in 6 hours. Was back together the next day in 4. Make sure not to over torque those bolts. That was my biggest fear with the block being aluminium...it's easy to do when you're working at odd angles.

Great! So what time can I expect you?

[djdogbone]

Let me onow when you want to tackle it. Do you have the shop manual? You'll need torque specs when you put it back together.

[alexwolf1216]

Let me onow when you want to tackle it. Do you have the shop manual? You'll need torque specs when you put it back together.

Got the digital copy and the PDF walkthrough posted on here. I have a 3/8 and 1/2 torque, do you have a 1/4??

[djdogbone]

I think I have one. I may have used an adapter. Can't check until after dinner

[djdogbone]

Nope, I used an adapter for the torque wrench