Freaking coolant leak!

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Mopar to ya

Mopar to ya

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I just washed my Dart getting ready for the Friday night car show I was going to with a customer who has a 68 Stingray. I pulled into the garage and saw a line of drops leading into the garage. Thin, fairly clear, but didn't smell like coolant. I forgot about it until last night I pulled out and saw the drips again. It was dripping off the transmission. There was a puddle of coolant in the garage. I can't tell the source yet, but I'm hoping intake. I can see it wet below the intake and running down the bell housing. I'll get the mirror out tonight and check. Hopefully not a head gasket or a frost plug. I know there are to coolant ports at the rear of the intake that are blocked with no flow through, so I am hoping that's all it is.
 
Dry it as best you can and spray some desenex back there. It will trace the leak.
 
I'm just now putting my car back together for the same reason. I had a leak between the intake and head at the back on the right side. Took off the intake and there were some small areas of coolant in the lifter valley. The PCV hose had some water droplets in it also. It was burning some oil too.
 
No stop leak is ever going in this engine. I'll fix it right, hopefully tonight. I will get a mirror back there. I suspect the intake. I have all the parts necessary to fix it. I still have to do the new intake on my Ramcharger, so I have two sets of intake gaskets and valve cover gaskets. Off work in t minus 12 minutes.
 
Well, I couldn't see, even with a mirror. I was sure it was the intake, so even though I got a late start I pulled the intake. The rear water jackets in the head that dead end at the intake seem to be the culprit. The gasket was soft and rippled, and one side had a slight tear. The silicone on that side looked a little washed out. I started too late to finish it tonight, so tomorrow night it goes back together. I'm sure this will solve the problem. I'm getting good at these intakes. I started at 8:45 and had it apart and the intake and heads scraped and cleaned by 9:50.

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Good luck. I did the same thing last summer and it ended up not being the intake. I put some sealer in it then pulled the motor in the winter for a rebuild. Hopefully yours is fixed.
 
Great!!!! Now when and what is this car show you talk about? I would be willing to drive up one Friday and meet ya
 
I go to North St. Paul most Friday nights. Saturday there is Anoka or Hastings. Monday I occasionally hit Wagner's Drive Inn in Brooklyn Park. Every so often I go to American Motorsports in Cottage Grove for their Wednesday night Hot Rod Humpday. I'd be happy to meet you at any of them. September 1st at Blacksmith's Lounge in Hugo will be a big one as well.
 
Mopar to ya said:
I go to North St. Paul most Friday nights. Saturday there is Anoka or Hastings. Monday I occasionally hit Wagner's Drive Inn in Brooklyn Park. Every so often I go to American Motorsports in Cottage Grove for their Wednesday night Hot Rod Humpday. I'd be happy to meet you at any of them. September 1st at Blacksmith's Lounge in Hugo will be a big one as well.
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I live a couple miles from the North St Paul show area. I have yet to go to it. The Hastings show is always fun. Been to that a few times but my car wasn't running so we just went to look. Here I thought you were at shows up your way. Lol
 
straightlinespeed said:
I live a couple miles from the North St Paul show area. I have yet to go to it. The Hastings show is always fun. Been to that a few times but my car wasn't running so we just went to look. Here I thought you were at shows up your way. Lol
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Hell no! There are no car shows in this neck of the woods. Blacksmith's Lounge has about 3 a year and they get 500 plus cars. Their smaller one is Sept. 1st. The Frankensteiner's Ball in Anoka in October is freakin' huge and well worth going to.
 
Did you remember to coat the bolts with sealant?
 
I've never coated intake bolts with sealant. The bolts don't seal anything, the gasket does all the work. Exhaust manifold bolts on the other hand ... a couple go into a water jacket. I seal those.
 
Mopar to ya said:
I've never coated intake bolts with sealant. The bolts don't seal anything, the gasket does all the work. Exhaust manifold bolts on the other hand ... a couple go into a water jacket. I seal those.
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Ok.
 
Mopar to ya said:
I've never coated intake bolts with sealant. The bolts don't seal anything, the gasket does all the work. Exhaust manifold bolts on the other hand ... a couple go into a water jacket. I seal those.
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If you see oil pooling around the intake, you'll know why. Not saying you will, but it's a possibility. Sometimes oil will wick up the threads and form little puddles in the intake cavities. I always use sealant.
 
all I know is that is one Purdy engine!! Looks like lots of nice parts went into that build.
 
Bad Sport said:
If you see oil pooling around the intake, you'll know why. Not saying you will, but it's a possibility. Sometimes oil will wick up the threads and form little puddles in the intake cavities. I always use sealant.
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I've done the intake several times but never had it leak there. Where the silicone goes across the face of the valley, yes. Usually the oil seeping onto the intake is because of the mating of the valve covers and intake runners. I have my valve covers ground down so they sit flush.
 
Since the intake bolt holes go directly into the valve cover area (essentially the crankcase), they are exposed to crankcase pressure. The pressure can and will push oil up the bolt threads. It's a common problem. If you've never had it, consider yourself lucky.
 
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