coolant leak, found it, now what

[hbueno]

For the past few months, coolant was slowly disappearing and I couldn't find the source. I could smell the telltale sweet smell of coolant at the front of the engine but didn't see anything. I dreaded the water pump, although it was replaced in August 2010.

I bought some tracer dye, but in the end, it was not needed because the leak revealed itself in a big way today as I was troubleshooting after warming up the engine on a short drive.

Note: the color is odd because I was shining a UV light on it for extra effect. It's still hot so I didn't take it apart yet, but it looks like the base of the nipple is cracked. If so, what are my options?

[924CarreraGTP]

Congrats. You have two choices. Have a skilled proffessional remove and replace the seal on the radiator side tank, or buy a new radiator or used radiator. 928 international sells used radiators with a one year warranty for $400. New ones are from $800 to $1,200. No matter what you will have to pull the radiator, and be careful removing the transmission cooler lines if the car is equipped. Use two wrenches to pull the connectors. One to turn off the connectors, and one to reinforce the joint so you don't break the radiator tanks. Pull the fan shrouds first. It looks easier after that.

[Mrmerlin]

924 C your advice may not be correct.
The usual failure mode on the driver side tank is the hose fitting cracking, the vent hose is secured to this fitting.
the fitting is simply unscrewed and a new fitting screwed into the top of the tank .
Dont over tighten the fitting snug is good.
The O ring on the fitting is the actual sealing surface not the bottom edge of the nut.
NOTE the driverside tank does not usually fail due to it not getting as hot as the passenger side,
and the DS is vented thus no air pocket like the right tank has

[hbueno]

Originally Posted by Mrmerlin

924 C your advice may not be correct.
The usual failure mode on the driver side tank is the hose fitting cracking, the vent hose is secured to this fitting.
the fitting is simply unscrewed and a new fitting screwed into the top of the tank .
Dont over tighten the fitting snug is good.
The O ring on the fitting is the actual sealing surface not the bottom edge of the nut.
NOTE the driverside tank does not usually fail due to it not getting as hot as the passenger side,
and the DS is vented thus no air pocket like the right tank has

I'm pretty sure you nailed it. I plan on working on it this weekend to confirm. It's nice having a day off, but I had a lot of other stuff to do and couldn't dedicate more than 1/2 an hour to the 928 today

Much appreciated guys.

Hugo

[Pete R]

Make sure your sure about the source. Hoses leak, drip, and fluid runs off of them hitting the belts and getting thown in the air. It can end up any and everywhere. also 928 is having a half off sale on used parts right now.

[hbueno]

Thanks Pete, it was definitely spewing from the area of the fitting. Best case is the fitting has failed, worst case is the tank is cracked where the fitting screws into it.

[924CarreraGTP]

From the looks of the picture the seal on the inside of the tank is blown. I could be wrong, but in the picture it looks like there is antifreeze coming from out of the tank/radiator joint. There is a possibility that it could be the fitting, but from what it looks like the radiator tank seal is leaking. You won't know until you pull the hose off and inspect.
I can agree that the radiator looks to be in good shape, but that means nothing. There is a possibility that coolant has just spilled all over the top of radiator. I'm just going from the picture.

[hbueno]

Here's a photo of the accused.



I'm pretty sure the radiator/tank interface is OK.

Hugo

[Mrmerlin]

the sealing area is infact the O ring not the bottom of the nut area,
so you dont have to go super tight with the plug fitting as it will again crack,
just snug is good.

[hbueno]

Just to close out the thread...

I received the replacement part last week and finally got a chance to install it earlier this evening. Went for a 50 mile drive and so far so good. No leaks.

Hugo

[AirtekHVAC]

kool...congrats

[5l32v4c]

What's the consensus on using teflon tape on screw-on radiator hose fittings?

[Danglerb]

Not if the seal is from an oring.

[924CarreraGTP]

Cool, closing out the thread with the correct fix is the way to go. I stand corrected, and we all know Mr. Merlin is the man.

[Mrmerlin]

5L instead of using teflon tape instead use Loctite PTFE pipe sealant this non setting sealant will work well .

Ususlly you dont use any tef tape near the 928

That said the usual sealing process is for either a metal sealing washer or an O ring for the radiators