Hi,

I have a 97 Ram 1500 with a 5.9 V8. It is leaking antifreeze right behind the alternator. It is about .25 to .75 inch of a hole. It is just below and left of the thermostate housing. It is on the passenger side of the engine. It leaks if it is running or not running. Any help would be appreciated, no Dodge dealer in my area can help me, they all seem to have no knowledge of the 5.9 V8.

Thank you,
Brian

 

Brian,

I might be able to help you with this.

Can you take a picture or elaborate a little further, I might have a different setup in the 5.2L engine 2001 model year but I just got done replacing my water pump.

There is a hose that goes to the top of your water pump, if you can check that with a flashlight and see if there is leakage coming out of there, but the would be closer to in between the alternator and AC Compresser/Unit.

Please take a photo of the engine bay just behind the fan shroud, and the area you believe the leak is coming from..

Is it dripping down over top of your harmonic balancer pulley? Has it been over heated at all? When did you notice this?? About how much coolant is leaking out?

 

Sounds like temp sensor(not likely), bad heater hose, bypass hose, thermostat housing or gasket,upper rad hose or the timing cover housing gasket. You simply have to pin point the leak.

 

The hole next to the black wire is where it is coming out of. Here are two pics.






Brian

 

Okay I am going to have to opt out of this one, it looks like it just might be over my head. Sorry. It looks like you might be dealing with a couple of issues, maybe not all too big.

 

Looks to me where there should be your temp sensor Should be a single wire with a gray connector. The temp sender would go in that hole. Never seen one come out like that. That is the only hole right there. Just replaced mine. Your temp gauge should not even be working assuming you can run the engine.

 

From your picture there appears to be a hole in the cylinder head casting below the rocker arm cover lip. What is the reddish material that seems to be near the hole? Is that material being blown out of the hole?
It would seem to me that you have a cylinder head problem. We have had the thermostat housing leak but only when the truck was running and hot.

sprntpshr

 

That is just rust on the block. I was shinning a flashlight on the hole in addition to the flash on the camera. There was nothing being blown out of the hole, there is some gunk around the thermostate housing. It is not the temp sensor as there is one next to the heater core hose and the temp gauge is working. I am going to have it towed to my mechanic but he can't get to it till next Wensday.

Brian

 

Well I don't know of any other hole that should be in that area. This is a clean hole? Or a rough hole. If it is rough you got some serious electrolosis going on. If it is a clean hole then something is missing. Go to Hughes Engines web site and take a look at the oem upgrade mainfold pic for the 5.9. Maybe that will give you a better clue. Stock manifold with some extra goodies.

 

Seeing as i've replaced lots of intakes in my day, there are coolant passages that run across the intake in the front and rear to each head an if its coming out of the corner of the intake/Head then your intake gasket is leaking on what looks like the left side. Its pretty common on higher mileage small blocks the gasket will deteriorate where the coolant flows, hopefully its not getting into the oil gallery.