My truck just started drinking coolant like crazy I have to add coolant every 2-3 days when I drive it. So all I need is someone awsome to tell me whats wrong so I can fix it. Thx Ben
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My truck just started drinking coolant like crazy I have to add coolant every 2-3 days when I drive it. So all I need is someone awsome to tell me whats wrong so I can fix it. Thx Ben
If you can see your water pump check to see if it is leaking. When they start to go bad they leak from a weep hole just behind the pump. You may have a hole somewhere in your radiator. If you see water spots under your truck after its been parked for awhile try tracing the leak up.
Well ill look for the leak, but I just replaced the plugs and one of them was soaked in oil. So the truck might be burning the coolant if it is burning the coolant what should I look for.
Water pumps are the only common leaks on these....they leak from two places. The weep hole leaks in one of ten of these and it's pretty easy to see. Most common is block to pump leaks from the gaskets....this is tougher to see because they only usually leak cold (overnight) and the coolant has so far to go to make it to the floor. A truck driven everyday with this leak will usually burn off the leaked coolant without a puddle in the garage. Look for pecker tracks....especially on the passenger side above the AC belt. Usually it will leak out the passenger side gasket, down the front of the block into the cross-pan wiring harness, across to the driver side, back towards the oil filter, down onto the skid plate or crossmember, then on to the ground if it makes it that far.
The other possibilty is it's eating coolant. If you're adding that much, it seems you'd see some steam, etc. on cold starts. It would also not be unlikely to have some overheating conditions but not always. Is there coolant in the oil? There were some 2004's built with "sawtooth" patterns erroneously machined into the head decks that cause coolant leaks between the head and block (past the head gasket) but most of these either leak externally or coolant foul the plugs (usually #8 or #1).
Not to jack a thread cause I didnt want to make one if my question relative to the thread title was answered and so it has. :)
My 99 just started leaking out the water pump weep hole, (if the original poster doesnt mind me asking/jacking his thread) what would be a choice water pump to go with or should I stick to OEM?
just stick with the OEM in my opinion otherwise there are tons of choices out there, but my opinion is that OEM had been around the longest and was originally designed for the truck.
Man sorry to hear about ur truck and the coolant, hopefully it is not a head gasket, is it running ok though?
maybe its leaking when its under power, seen that before where when you get on it a small hole or slit in the hose will open up due to the pressure going through there. just a suggestion.
Any smoke out the exhaust?
isn't there a flourescent dye you can add to the coolant to help trace the leak if its external? Maybe the heater core could be leaking. There are so many places for these beasts to leak. The black light tracing of the coolant should be the easiest way for you to find the source of your leak if it ever gets external.
If its in the oil, the oil level will be higher than normal, and if you open the oil fill cap while its warmed up, youll see a little steam, and some build up on the inside of the cap. there is a test kit, but if your not leaking it on the ground, your leaking in the oil, or burning it.Quote:
Originally Posted by RedHeartbeat
When I was at the dealership, i came across a few 5.3's that had bad castings in the heads and would seep coolant and end up mixing with the oil under the valve covers. And if i remember correctly they where covered under a bulletin or recall of some sort..
^^^ I think we're talking about the same thing.
Yes, there is dye for that. I have only used dye for refridgerant but I bet it works well.
The OEM pump is VERY expensive. Check around and look at warranties if that's the cause of the leak.
NAPA is your friend...... They have pretty good prices on the AC Delco parts.
I checked with my local napa and the only store pretty much on my side of the island now for about 28 miles (which it takes 45min-1hr sometimes to get to the other side of our island), it was $158 for a oem replacement vs dealership wanting $400... good price? :)
Told you the OEM was high.
Milky oil means you have a leak, and coolant is getting mixed with oil. If your plug was covered in oil that's not good.
yah didnt think that the plug covered in oil was good.
well couldnt find any traces of a leak anywere I was under the truck looking for trails and I took some parts of to have more room to look on top and nothing truck isnt overheating either at least my the guage reading
Let's see... no foam in the oil, no stains on the driveway, passenger side carpet is dry, no coolant leaking out of the weep hole in the water pump behind the water pump pulley, water bottle isn't showing signs of fluid leaking... what color fluid is in the truck? Can you add a flourescent dye to the radiator fluid and trace it with a black light? Check the seams of the radiator where the end caps are crimped over the plastic ends for leaks. Worst case scenario you have a head gasket leaking or bad water pump. Get lucky and its just a bad hose, corroded crossover airbleed tube or gasket or a leaking radiator tank cap causing it to steam the water out.
Have you tried putting a coolant pressure tester on it? It would help you to locate the leak cause it will pressurize the system.
Are you sure it is eating fluid? On a cold start up on a warm morning, look for a little smoke coming from the tailpipe. I know this sounds weird, but smell your exhaust...if it smells kinda sweet, then there is a leak in the block/heads somewhere...
It could be leaking and not drinking coolant ill do a pressure test this week. And when i start my truck it smells like a motorcycle kinda like a harley
Ok Girl friend to the truck to have the windows tinted and went to k-mart thats about 20miles round trip. I filled the coolant up last night. When I got home I checked it its about an inch lower from the cold fill line. Thats how fast its going.
have you pulled the plugs? If a leaking head gasket, the plugs will be wet or clean where the leak is, steam cleaned.
ill check that 2marrow morning