[don2775]

I need some mechanic expertise here. My coolant has been slowly dripping from the belt side of the engine on my gen 3. Today it developed a loud squeal, when accelerating the motor,and just after began leaking more coolant. Is this my water pump? I hate to buy what I don't need , I think it is but I am asking to be sure,. Is this something I can do, I have some minimal knowledge of my engine and I have a chilton manual,as well. I found a new one at rockauto for about 24.00, is this better than a rebuilt one,or not?
Any questions please

 

[danhasenauer]

The squeak is probably the mechanical seal on the water pump gone bad. If it's a Vulcan engine, it's most likely the water pump...

 

[sheila]

Try to find the weep hole on the nose of the pump just behind the pulley and check for evidence of leakage. Most are on the bottom, but may be on top on a vulcan?

 

[sheila]

^ It could also be a cracked tank, hose, etc. leaking on the belt causing it to squeal.

 

[JW657]

+1^

It might not be the waterpump, it could be coolant getting on the belt and causing it to slip.

You don't need to visually inspect the weep holes, put your finger over each hole and smell for antifreeze residue, if you do then it's time for a new pump. It takes me less than 30 seconds to pop a belt off a Vulcan, just pull the belt off and spin the waterpump, along with every other pulley.

Here's a tip for removing the coolant tank if the bolt is rusted on: You'll ruin the hole by turning the bolt to loosen it, it doesn't really matter but it will make it ugly. If the bolt looks stuck, I would take the passenger side tire off, inner fender and drill upward from inside the wheel well if possible, have someone hold the nut on top with a socket to stop it from spinning with the drill.

The pump is pretty easy to remove provided you have a decent set of box ends and sockets.

 

[don2775]

I have a nice set of Craftsman tools and some regular box end wrenches, and a Chilton manual. I am looking into getting some of those ratcheting box end wrenches,too.
Any idea how long? I have no garage,so I was just wondering how long I would be in the cold.

 

[danhasenauer]

I have a nice set of Craftsman tools and some regular box end wrenches, and a Chilton manual. I am looking into getting some of those ratcheting box end wrenches,too.
Any idea how long? I have no garage,so I was just wondering how long I would be in the cold.

About a hour in the summer, 4 to 8 hours in freezing cold....

 

[don2775]

BRRRRRR.....:noes: Thanks, one is on its way!!

A question also. I might be able to use my wife's mothers garage for some warmth. It is 2 blocks away, can I drive it that far without damaging anything?
Do I need to drain anything first, I was just going to pull the pump, and replace coolant to the line in the jug.

 

[mt_goat]

My front engine cover gasket was the source of my leak, its harder to change than the water pump because the crank pulley/balancer has to come off as well as the oil pan. Oh BTW to get the oil pan off I had to remove part of the exhaust system too.

 

[JW657]

My front engine cover gasket was the source of my leak, its harder to change than the water pump because the crank pulley/balancer has to come off as well as the oil pan. Oh BTW to get the oil pan off I had to remove part of the exhaust system too.

Great point, make sure the timing cover isn't leaking before installing a new pump, I made that mistake!

I'm sure you can drive it around the block without issue. I just drained it down enough to clear the pump area and topped it off, I was lazy.

 

[danhasenauer]

BRRRRRR.....:noes: Thanks, one is on its way!!

A question also. I might be able to use my wife's mothers garage for some warmth. It is 2 blocks away, can I drive it that far without damaging anything?
Do I need to drain anything first, I was just going to pull the pump, and replace coolant to the line in the jug.

If you don't drain it down first, just be prepared to get out of the way of the first hose you pull off. Messy....

 

[darkemp]

PICS OR GTFO

no seriously posts some pictures up. Waterpump, inlet outlet, cracked radiator reservoir, lose reservoir lid, or heatercore hoses.

 

[don2775]

Upon further checking, the weep hole is dry, I restarted it today no squeal, must have been coolant on the belt. We had just come home from Rockford,IL.. driving 4 1/2 hours straight probably had something to do with coolant all over. I did discover what I think is the problem, at the lower rad. hose there is another hose T-ing off the lower hose... OEM Ford catalog says it is the Resevior to lower hose. I saw a drip, then a steady stream coming from that hose, more of a stream when I shut it off. This would explain why my coolant resv. is always low.
Easy fix..anyone?

 

[don2775]

UPDATE.....I fixed the hose leak...loose hose clamp. Now I find out that the radiator is leaking slightly. Is there anything like any type of stop leak that works well I can pour into the jug as the radiator cap I cannot get to. Is replacing the Radiator something I can do with out much experience?

 

[Jeff K]

Feel free to use that stop leak junk if you dont mind plugging up your heater core and loosing much/all of your heat in the winter, plus messing up the rest of your cooling system. Fix the problem right, dont try magic chemicals and may or may not work plus do damage to the system.

 

[ricer333]

+1^^^^ on this. I have a 2001 Taurus that NEVER had heat. But then again, it only drops down to the 30's and 40's rarely down here in Florida (although it's been more and more recently!). When I finally got around to fixing the A/C condenser up under the dash, I decided to pull the heater core and replace that too.

You see, the car was a fleet car before I owned it. It must have had the wet floor mat problem (coolant leaking from the heater core into the cabin passenger side). Someone put that stop leak **** in there. I couldn't even blow through one end of it, that's how stopped up it was.

I will NEVER use stop leak in my life. I would rather fix the problem right than band-aide it with that crap.

If you get a pressure tester (rented from AZ) you can hook it up to your degauss tank (coolant overflow tank) and bring it up to 16psi (simulating the pressure that your car gets too when the coolant is hot and being worked). Doing this will surely show you where the leak is in the reservoir or any other component.

Well worth the time to figure out exactly where the leak is.

 

[sheila]

Ricer333, i think you meant the evaporator up under the dash? The condenser is in front of the radiator.