1st Gen Durango 1998 - 2003 Durango's

water loss

Old Jan 5, 2011 | 12:26 PM
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wheres all my fluid going ? 1998 durango lossing water out of radiator no leaks anywhere to be seen. could i have a blown head gasket? there is water coming from the tailpipe but not much.
 
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Old Jan 5, 2011 | 04:00 PM
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I would say a blown head gasket. Fill it up make a trip down the road and let it sit and see if you smell radiator fluid.
 
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Old Jan 5, 2011 | 04:18 PM
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That is not a lot of info. How does the oil look? Is the engine misfiring? How often do you need to add coolant? Oh and what does the tranny fluid look like?
 
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Old Jan 5, 2011 | 07:34 PM
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Originally Posted by GREEN D MIKE
wheres all my fluid going ? 1998 durango lossing water out of radiator no leaks anywhere to be seen. could i have a blown head gasket? there is water coming from the tailpipe but not much.
I believe your best bet for checking for a blown headgasket would be a compression test.
A very small crack may not contaminate the oil (Milky/brownish color) enough to be readily seen.
Some condensation (water not coolant),especially in this cold weather, from the tailpipe is to be expected. Compression testers are not very expensive and better yet do you have a friend who has one?
 
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Old Jan 5, 2011 | 07:58 PM
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Look straight down on the stat neck. Any green yellow color is evidence of a leak there. Evaps off before you see it on the ground if that is the case.

IndyD
 
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Old Jan 5, 2011 | 10:06 PM
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is there any other place it can leak and evap before it drips just woundering cuz i have to put coolant in every other week also ony like a cup (12oz) about
 
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Old Jan 5, 2011 | 10:42 PM
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Originally Posted by pkucan
I believe your best bet for checking for a blown headgasket would be a compression test.
A very small crack may not contaminate the oil (Milky/brownish color) enough to be readily seen.
Some condensation (water not coolant),especially in this cold weather, from the tailpipe is to be expected. Compression testers are not very expensive and better yet do you have a friend who has one?
+1 on that!
 
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Old Jan 6, 2011 | 07:53 AM
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Not sure what engine it is but mine was doing that also 99 (5.2). Turned out it was the timing chain cover gasket. Coolant flows through it to the water pump. I did have a drip or two on the ground when mine was leaking but most of it evaporated before getting that far.
 
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Old Jan 6, 2011 | 10:26 AM
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Originally Posted by AJP1978
Not sure what engine it is but mine was doing that also 99 (5.2). Turned out it was the timing chain cover gasket. Coolant flows through it to the water pump. I did have a drip or two on the ground when mine was leaking but most of it evaporated before getting that far.
my ram was doing that 5.9 and i think thats were my durango is doing it also 5.9 thanks bud ill check it is it hard to change that after i already have the water pump off ive changed that before
 
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Old Jan 6, 2011 | 02:02 PM
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A quick glance at my Hayne's manual tells me that it's not really more difficult, just more work to do. In addition to what you had to do for the water pump, you're also going to need to remove that alternator, a/c compressor & bracket, and idler pulley. It also says that the front two oil pan bolts thread into the timing chain cover so you'll need to remove those, and that it may make the job easier to just go ahead and remove the oil pan altogether. Sounds like a good excuse to take care of your next oil change.

So, nothing terribly complicated, just lots and lots of wrench turning. Shouldn't be too bad as long as you have a warm place to work.
 
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