the spot where the oil pan gasket makes the 90* bends at the TC cover and back of engine/tranny are where the RTV should go. It is a little "insurance" measure to prevent a possible leak.

 

^^Ahhhh. OK. Nope, never did that. As to Zman, I didn't do the bottom end of my truck. That was all on the machine shop.

 

need some help guys..

im seriously doubting myself right now, which sucks.

the heater return hose is leaking for sure, i cant tell if its leaking anywhere else as the heater return line is REALLY leaking (i think the o-ring is completely gone)

1.) does anyone know what size the o-ring should be?

2.) where else could it be coming from? i put a thin coat of black RTV on all the gaskets (themostat, WP, timing cover) oil pan doesnt seem to be leaking (fel-pro gasket with RTV on bottom of timing cover and near the rear of the pan, semi-drying liquid gasket on the rear main bearing cap as per manual/reccomended)

the top of the WP is good, hoses are good, themostat is good, top of timing cover is good, the water jacket area on the timing cover looks good as well.

could it just be the heater return? i started the truck for maybe 10 seconds, and now it is running down the oil pan and front of the engine.

any help would be great, i really need this done by friday so i can make the drive to race.

thank you in advance.

 

Check your freeze plugs in the side of the block and especially the ones behind the motor mounts. That is where mine was leaking. It isn't bad to replace either even considering the amount of room available.

 

good idea, but they werent leaking before i started this project, idk how they would be leaking now.

when i say leaking, i mean, REALLY leaking, damn near 4-5 cups of coolant in the 10 seconds i had it running.

if it was the gaskets it would seep correct? not flood out..

im leaning more towards it just being that stupid o-ring on the heater hose.

 

That damn little piece leaks all the time. You can get a new one, tube and all in the "Help!" isle, but I just put that grey permatex RTV for coolant and t stat housing on it when I put it in. comes in a very small tube.

You also might want to check that large bypass tube on the top of the water pump that leads to the intake manifold. Sometimes it looks just fine from the top, but the edge doesn't catch underneath and its not really on over the lip of the connection.

 

If you replaced the water pump, you should also replace the tube. You can get it at most any parts store and it is about $10-15 with the o-ring. You should have also had an oring in with the water pump. At minmum, I hope you replaced that with the new one. Another source of the leak in that area could be the by pass hose that is behind the tube. If you didn't pull the comprssor and bracket then it is a challenge to get the hose and clamp back on properly.