So, I'm getting to that, if I fix something, something else breaks parts. I finally buttoned up all my oil leaks but now I have a coolant leak. I'm loosing about a cup of water a day. I know typical thought of water seals However I took a second to take a step back. I recently changed the upper radiator hose and water filler cap, I'm not seeing any white smoke at start up, the water, as far as I know only leaks when the car is turned off after driving. So here's the kicker the water seems to be coming out near the dead center of the car, not the radiator over flow reservoir. It's hard to tell for sure at the moment since the under tray is still in place I'm I'm working 14 hrs a day. I thought I saw coolant down past the upper radiator hose on the brackets down beneath. I'm not confident the lower radiator hose isn't leaking, but I figured it would be a more consistent leak if it were. Is there a way to visually check the water pump? Or is it hidden behind all that stuff?

 

The water pump should have 2 weep holes, one on top and one on the bottom. Both are directly behind the pulley. Try to locate and check the bottom weep hole on the water pump. If you can tell that it's wet, that is usually a good indication of a dying pump.

In the picture below, you can see where the top weep hole is for reference.


When my original water pump was going out, it leaked coolant out of the bottom weep hole and looked like it was coming from the middle of the engine bay. The difference with the symptoms I experienced, however, is that my leak stopped once the car was adequately warmed up. This would be worth investigating further on your end.

If you do end up changing out your water pump, it might be worthwhile to upgrade to a RE-Medy pump.

 

Which pulley? And do the symptoms I list fit this theory?

 

i had a similar issue , if you still have the coolant passing by your throttle body , the hose that leaves your throttle body and goes back into the motor when it cracks it will leak from the center of the car and it is almost impossible to see

 

Oooo, thanks for the heads up, I'm going to have to check that.

 

Do you still have a stock radiator? I suffered the exact same symptoms when my stock rad end tank cracked.

 

i would go rent a cooling system pressure tester so you can pressurize the system when cold. pump the system up to 13psi and look around with a light, eventually you should find where it is coming from without the guesswork.

 

^ +1, I had a tiny leak that I couldn't find, turned out someone tapped the t-stat housing for a gauge and just plugged it with a screw. Water was leaking out of there slowly and never made it to the floor, but with a cooling system pressure tester I was able to find the leak right away.

 

As an update, I have an aluminum radiator, and looking around I find coolant on the under tray on or around the sway bar on the passenger side. I couldn't as of yet, find a leak in the water hose that goes to the throttle body.

 

save yourself the headache and take my recommendation. major auto parts stores like kragen and auto zone will rent you the test unit for the cost of the unit and return ALL of your money when you return it.

 

Really? What about the smoke pressure system to look for boost leaks?

 

This is the best idea honestly safest . and surest way to do things .

 

i thought we were trying to fix a coolant leak, not a boost leak.

 

I've just had the same symptoms, coolant on the undertray and sway bar after the car has been parked. Just like RotaryEvolution suggested got a pressure tester from Oreilly's, pumped it up and got under there to see where it was coming from.

Really hard to see, but it's looking like it's coming from the weep hole on the bottom of the pump - not awesome.

Thought is was the lower radiator hose at first and replaced it, but that didn't solve it. It's just tough to see the weep hole through all of the things in the way while it's spitting coolant in your face...

Anyone know of a good write up to replace the water pump, haven't done that yet.