I've got a 97 venge that has a coolant leak but I can never find it. It must be very minor because I never have a puddle but you can smell it when the car is running. There isn't any coolant in the oil either sohead gasket is ruled out. Are there any places on an avenger that are common for coolant leaks? I also have a knocking sound from the top pulley on the serpentine system that goes away when the car warms up. Car is the 2.5 liter V6.

Any ideas on these would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks.

 

possibly a bad water pump it has a seep hole and it leaks out the top and drains down thru the cover ...
did you check the inside of the car for moisture ??? heater core leak ???

Are you sure the knocking is the belt and not drive train noise ???

 

I listened and felt around and the knocking and vibration seems to be limited to the top pulley. It was dark when I was looking so I'm not even sure what that top pulley is for. I noticed this when my battery went dead and I had to jump the car, when I got it started it was making this noise and when I disconnected the positive terminal on the battery to check if the alternator was good the sound stopped. Could this knock be the alternator going bad?

 

It's possible that the alternator under load pulls harder on the belt ...I'd check the tensioner too