Leaking coolant and wobbly crankshaft
#1
05-27-2018, 07:56 PM
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Leaking coolant and wobbly crankshaft
So unfortunately im back seeking advice a lot sooner than i was hoping. Today when i pulled into my house i noticed coolant leaking. I popped the hood and there was coolant splattered all over the place. I let it cool down then refilled with coolant and started it up and let it get to temp. I checked for leaks and didnt notice any now. I let it run for a good ten mins and it appeared to not be leaking anymore. I did notice that my crankshaft pulley is pretty wobbly and making a little noise. Could these problems be related? What do i do? Where do i start? I'm no mechanic by any stretch of the word but i do have some basic knowledge and im fairly mechanically inclined but i will get lost in some automotive lingo if its not every day stuff. Thanks in advance for any and all responses.
Last edited by Unclebuck916; 05-27-2018 at 07:57 PM. Reason: Typo
#2
05-27-2018, 09:44 PM
Champion
They can be related; but may be completely independent.
Step 1 - Borrow a pressure tester, pressure test the cooling system to find out where it's leaking.
Step 2- Buy a NEW harmonic balancer, and plan on replacing it.
If Step 1 says the water pump is leaking, consider if you want to do the timing chain also while it's partway there. If not, then drain the system, replace the leaking bits, and while the radiator is out, do the harmonic balancer. Don't forget to replace the front crank seal while the balancer is out to avoid an oil leak on the new one.
(Common places for leaks are the bypass hose at the water pump to the intake; the heater hoses; the radiator hoses; the water pump; the radiator itself; the heater core. But do notice that's most of the cooling system. My truck at about 300,000 miles had a "freeze plug" start leaking; I took that as a good time to replace all the freeze plugs and the timing chain and oil pump. YMMV on that.)
Before you tackle anything, if it's a 1995 or 1996, grab the factory service manual from the FAQs here. If it's not, then I'd grab a FSM from Ebay or RockAuto first. But DO get that cooling system pressure tester; I was able to pinpoint three leaks on my truck and fix them quickly and easily, with the motor cool! Harbor Freight has one, but it's not returnable; Autozone, Advance, and O'Reilly's all list them on the tool rental, which gets your money back. (I bought a set on Ebay to keep, personally; your keep-or-rent will depend on you.) See, for instance, https://www.harborfreight.com/radiat...kit-63862.html and the one I bought, https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-18pcs-R...r/282475332583 The one I bought doesn't seal as tight as I wish at the radiator; it seeped a bit there, but I went from not able to pump above 5psi to a very, VERY slow bleed down from 16PSI, so I'm pretty much happy at this point.)
RwP
Step 1 - Borrow a pressure tester, pressure test the cooling system to find out where it's leaking.
Step 2- Buy a NEW harmonic balancer, and plan on replacing it.
If Step 1 says the water pump is leaking, consider if you want to do the timing chain also while it's partway there. If not, then drain the system, replace the leaking bits, and while the radiator is out, do the harmonic balancer. Don't forget to replace the front crank seal while the balancer is out to avoid an oil leak on the new one.
(Common places for leaks are the bypass hose at the water pump to the intake; the heater hoses; the radiator hoses; the water pump; the radiator itself; the heater core. But do notice that's most of the cooling system. My truck at about 300,000 miles had a "freeze plug" start leaking; I took that as a good time to replace all the freeze plugs and the timing chain and oil pump. YMMV on that.)
Before you tackle anything, if it's a 1995 or 1996, grab the factory service manual from the FAQs here. If it's not, then I'd grab a FSM from Ebay or RockAuto first. But DO get that cooling system pressure tester; I was able to pinpoint three leaks on my truck and fix them quickly and easily, with the motor cool! Harbor Freight has one, but it's not returnable; Autozone, Advance, and O'Reilly's all list them on the tool rental, which gets your money back. (I bought a set on Ebay to keep, personally; your keep-or-rent will depend on you.) See, for instance, https://www.harborfreight.com/radiat...kit-63862.html and the one I bought, https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-18pcs-R...r/282475332583 The one I bought doesn't seal as tight as I wish at the radiator; it seeped a bit there, but I went from not able to pump above 5psi to a very, VERY slow bleed down from 16PSI, so I'm pretty much happy at this point.)
RwP
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05-27-2018, 09:49 PM
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#4
05-29-2018, 02:10 AM
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Ok so good call on the heater bypass hose. After further inspection i could tell it was leaking from there. Which would also explain all the coolant splatter as that hose is in close proximity to the belts. I replaced that and everything looks good wit that. I got a new harmonic balancer and front crankshaft seal. I will be taking it to the shop tomorrow to have that done. Is there anything else besides that crankshaft seal that ill need besides the balancer obviously? Thanks.
#5
05-31-2018, 11:07 PM
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Fixed!
They can be related; but may be completely independent.
Step 1 - Borrow a pressure tester, pressure test the cooling system to find out where it's leaking.
Step 2- Buy a NEW harmonic balancer, and plan on replacing it.
If Step 1 says the water pump is leaking, consider if you want to do the timing chain also while it's partway there. If not, then drain the system, replace the leaking bits, and while the radiator is out, do the harmonic balancer. Don't forget to replace the front crank seal while the balancer is out to avoid an oil leak on the new one.
(Common places for leaks are the bypass hose at the water pump to the intake; the heater hoses; the radiator hoses; the water pump; the radiator itself; the heater core. But do notice that's most of the cooling system. My truck at about 300,000 miles had a "freeze plug" start leaking; I took that as a good time to replace all the freeze plugs and the timing chain and oil pump. YMMV on that.)
Before you tackle anything, if it's a 1995 or 1996, grab the factory service manual from the FAQs here. If it's not, then I'd grab a FSM from Ebay or RockAuto first. But DO get that cooling system pressure tester; I was able to pinpoint three leaks on my truck and fix them quickly and easily, with the motor cool! Harbor Freight has one, but it's not returnable; Autozone, Advance, and O'Reilly's all list them on the tool rental, which gets your money back. (I bought a set on Ebay to keep, personally; your keep-or-rent will depend on you.) See, for instance, https://www.harborfreight.com/radiat...kit-63862.html and the one I bought, https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-18pcs-R...r/282475332583 The one I bought doesn't seal as tight as I wish at the radiator; it seeped a bit there, but I went from not able to pump above 5psi to a very, VERY slow bleed down from 16PSI, so I'm pretty much happy at this point.)
RwP
Step 1 - Borrow a pressure tester, pressure test the cooling system to find out where it's leaking.
Step 2- Buy a NEW harmonic balancer, and plan on replacing it.
If Step 1 says the water pump is leaking, consider if you want to do the timing chain also while it's partway there. If not, then drain the system, replace the leaking bits, and while the radiator is out, do the harmonic balancer. Don't forget to replace the front crank seal while the balancer is out to avoid an oil leak on the new one.
(Common places for leaks are the bypass hose at the water pump to the intake; the heater hoses; the radiator hoses; the water pump; the radiator itself; the heater core. But do notice that's most of the cooling system. My truck at about 300,000 miles had a "freeze plug" start leaking; I took that as a good time to replace all the freeze plugs and the timing chain and oil pump. YMMV on that.)
Before you tackle anything, if it's a 1995 or 1996, grab the factory service manual from the FAQs here. If it's not, then I'd grab a FSM from Ebay or RockAuto first. But DO get that cooling system pressure tester; I was able to pinpoint three leaks on my truck and fix them quickly and easily, with the motor cool! Harbor Freight has one, but it's not returnable; Autozone, Advance, and O'Reilly's all list them on the tool rental, which gets your money back. (I bought a set on Ebay to keep, personally; your keep-or-rent will depend on you.) See, for instance, https://www.harborfreight.com/radiat...kit-63862.html and the one I bought, https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-18pcs-R...r/282475332583 The one I bought doesn't seal as tight as I wish at the radiator; it seeped a bit there, but I went from not able to pump above 5psi to a very, VERY slow bleed down from 16PSI, so I'm pretty much happy at this point.)
RwP