Heater core leak

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jetstream87
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Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2015 6:59 am

Heater core leak

Postby jetstream87 » Wed Aug 07, 2019 7:43 pm

So this weekend I was driving home from work which I notice the gauge of the temperature climb 3/4 of the range. I was able to park the car and open the hood to find out it was spilling coolant (water since I did not had coolant in the system) so I tried to manage to determine where was the leak coming from. Notice it was from the heating core hose (top one). I went to autozone to get a universal hose (heating hose) purchased about 3 feet. The hose may not be perfect but after installing it with new clamps (purchased from Autozone) the leak was not present anymore. I did notice that I get light smell of coolant after the car has been driven for a while (my case 12 miles) and notice dropplets of coolant coming from the engine. Can anyone advise me what other thing can it be as I cannot see any leaks from the back at all.




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smj999smj
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Postby smj999smj » Wed Aug 07, 2019 10:09 pm

It could be any of a number of things. There are a few coolant hoses under the intake plenum that could leak. An external head gasket leak or an intake gasket leak could be an issue. A freeze out plug could be leaking. Only way to know is to get a look behind there or have it put on a lift so one can look from underneath to determine where the leak is coming from. A pressure tester could be helpful in finding the leak.

jetstream87
Posts: 172
Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2015 6:59 am

Postby jetstream87 » Wed Aug 07, 2019 10:17 pm

smj999smj wrote:It could be any of a number of things. There are a few coolant hoses under the intake plenum that could leak. An external head gasket leak or an intake gasket leak could be an issue. A freeze out plug could be leaking. Only way to know is to get a look behind there or have it put on a lift so one can look from underneath to determine where the leak is coming from. A pressure tester could be helpful in finding the leak.

True that I did put pressure on the hose that is located on top of the heating core hose and did made a hissing sound. I switched it and let it come up to operating temp and ran it. It did not leak like before at all - just when I turn it off it just drops coolant.


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