headcheese

so earlier this spring i had a coolant leak. took it to a shop and got a new water pump which was dripping out the weep hole. shortly thereafter i had problems starting it and it would miss a lot, along with throwing a code for the distributor, and still leaking a bit of coolant here and there. should have done my homework and had them both done.

decided to attempt the job myself and over the last month or so i put in a new opti, and regasketed the water pump, used thread sealant on all the bolts torqued everything to spec. bigger job than i have ever attempted and car runs great again. was feeling good about myself.

until i find out there is still a GD coolant leak!! i think it is the same one that there has always been and the water pump was just a coincidence. can see it pooling up on the bottom corner of the block next to the oil pan on the drivers side, right by my brand new opti.

i have felt around all the hoses, even borrowed a flexy camera from work to poke around with. no idea where it is coming from and i dont know what to do.

anyone have an experience like this before and can offer any advice? or just words of encouragement? not too happy at the moment.

could it be a freeze plug?

antfarmer2

Could be a plug. Go to the dollar store and get a can of spray foot powder or go high tech and get some uv dye

headcheese

yea that was my first thought, just got some dye. wont have time to check it with a light til next week. how easy is the drivers side front freeze plug to get at? there is 4 total right? just hope its not the head gasket but think i would have found that out by now.

lt4obsesses

See what the uv dye says. With these pressurized systems, I almost betting on a pinhole leak in a hose. It doesn't take much, and they spew everywhere, so the source can be very hard to find.

enventr

Did you pressure test the system?

Cliff Harris

The front freeze plug is behind the motor mount, which must be removed to get to it.

Paul Workman

With the help of a cooling system pressure test kit (AutoZone) I was able to find just such an elusive coolant leak, after pumping it up to 20#.

I hadn't thought of the foot powder idea, but I can see how that would be a big help, especially if the area is greasy, or oily, etc.

desertmike1

You basically have the water pump, throttle body, a few hose's, temp probe, and a thermostat for possibilities.

I have always had pretty good luck with passing my fingers around until I come up with a wet one..

when all of this work was done did you replace the hose's or where they in good shape.

Mr. Peabody

Actually I believe that you have one more possibility. You are aware that each side of the radiator is "plastic" and after numerous cycles of heating and cooling a slight crack or even a pin hole can develop. This can happen on either the right side or the left side.

If you can put the vette on a lift and start it and let it idle until hot ... a peek underneath may tell you a whole lot.

headcheese

hey thanks for the replies! i have been away for a few days...

i have not pressure tested the system... might have to do this.

put uv dye in the coolant yesterday and been looking all over with a blacklight today. still cant see the origin of the leak.

it looks to be driver side, i checked the knock sensors today along with all the hoses again. i can see most all of the opti and that is dry so thats good!

was looking for freeze plug locations in the FSM and cant find much info

hoping my neighbor can let me use his lift sometime this week, i just have it on ramps.

heres a pic of the bottom on drivers side. tried wiping my finger on the engine to see if it was wet with coolant but couldnt tell for sure (real greasy) so just waiting for it to leak more haha!
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/..._103502207.jpg