Coolant leak!

HI. Just noticed a small puddle of coolant under the car. It's on the left side of the engine and I can't seem to find the origin because I'm unable to use the jack to lift the car. I felt around and noticed the back side of the sump and some of the bolts in that area are wet. Tried to look at the thermo housing and water pump and as far as i could tell they were dry. It seems like it's coming from somewhere behind the engine. Maybe an A/C pipe? (even though I don't turn it on)

Could really use some clues as I need to take it to an MOT very soon...

It'll probably be coming from the largest hose on the alloy housing underneath the coil pack. These always seem to leak, if it is this it's best to remove the casing so you can remove the crystallised sealant before putting the hose back in place. You will need a new gasket (metal) from Ford.
Barry

Thanks for the quick reply Barry. I do have another leak exactly where you said. It's an old one; about a year ago I bought a new albeit cheap pair of hoses but they are crap and can't handle the pressure between the HCV valve and the engine. Thing is though: that leak is on the right side of the car...could it have dripped onto the left side of the engine?

If it's on the other side of the engine it could be the water pump or the thermostat housing, if you look on The Skippy Kitten post from last night or the night before it gives you the details about the thermostat housing leak.
Barry

Will take a butchers.
If it's really a knackered housing, do I need to buy a new one or will a seal replacement suffice?

From what I read just replace it like you should replace the HCV, it's about £30 from Ford.
Barry

As Barry said, the thermostat housing is a likely source. Mine was 'dribbling' unless it got hot, then it would trickle out.

It looks like there's a common failure mode. It's hard to locate as its below and behind the alternator. There's a 'how to' on here that covers what to do.

A new (Ford) housing is what you want. About £30.

Be very wary of driving the car in this state. When it goes terminal it can dump coolant very quickly and risk taking the engine with it.

Thanks for the input Skippy. I just finished having another look around and it appears the leak is not coming from the thermostat housing (it's completly dry). It appears to be coming from one of the bolts that attaches the crankshaft pulley to the engine. It's seems to be dripping onto the sump and then to the floor.
I've cleaned the area and later on I will take another look to get a clearer picture.
If anyone has experienced anything similar to this...please drop a line.

Sounds like it could be water pump leak. Any history of replacement?
Paul

Water pump was replaced about 15000 kilometers ago. It's a non-Ford part (think it's Dayco)

If the leak is from that area and the thermostat housing is definitely OK then there's nowt else it can be really.

Is there a way to check if the water pump is gone without having to take the whole thing apart?

I'm not sure but most older water pumps have a "tell tale" which is a drilled hole under the bearings/seals through which water will leak if the pump's knackered so you can see it dripping. I can't remember what it was like on the Puma but if you take off the water pump pulley you may be able to see.
Barry

chilipalmer said:

[post]345518[/post] Is there a way to check if the water pump is gone without having to take the whole thing apart?

Click to expand...

If it's leaking from drive seal (as Barry pointed out) then it's buggered. If it's leaking from the gasket then it will need to come off. It would be false economy not to fit a new one.
Paul

When I get home from work I'll have a thorough look at the water pump.
Chaps, is there any brand of water pumps, besides the original, that can do the job well? I'm asking because there's plenty of them on Ebay which are only a fraction of the price local Ford is asking for it. I suspect most are sh*te but maybe there's a cheap decent one out there?

No, buy genuine Ford, it will last.
Barry

/\/\/\ good advice.
You have my sympathy, it's not the best time of the year to be fiddling about with water pumps :-(
The thing is, if it does need changing then it could be that you need to remove the cam belt as well, (I'm not too sure about the 1.4).
10 year interval for the cam belt so if it's nearly due you may as well get it done.
On the plus side it's a fair bit cheaper and easier than doing the VVT 1.7.
Paul

Right, just finished looking at the possible culprits and it does not appear to be the water pump...everything around the area looked dry as a bone. I did notice that one of the pulleys is shagged (the alternator belt tensioner). Loads of trepidation and it's moist. Could this pulley be causing the dripping?

If the water pump is leaking through the shaft seal then it would likely appear on the pulley.
The tensioner pulley itself can not cause the dripping.
Paul

Perished hose clips? Recently had same issue with mine and the plastic clips around all of the hoses lose their grip over the years. My mechanic who is a Puma whizz knew exactly where the leak would be and put his hand straight on it. Replaced the clip with a new jubilee one and leak fixed.

Good luck