Coolant leak

[Kellson]

Hey everybody, it seems my '02 3.1L has a coolant leak. I can smell the coolant steaming off. NO visual signs of a leak though…what should I inspect to find and repair this leak? Btw the engine has just over 100k.

[Fivefingerdeathpunch]

A likely cause is intake gaskets, or maybe the thremostat housing gasket.

Both should be replaced at 100k anyway. The intake gasket are a very common failure and if not taken care of can destroy an engine.

[Kellson]

Alright, I'll look into that, I replaced the thermostat last summer—can't feel any moisture around the housing anywhere on it now.

[tech3627]

Check around the water pump, throttle body hoses, and radiator also. The intake gasket is the most common leak. It is always a good idea to replace the distributor O-ring or oil pump drive O-ring the same time as the intake.

[luckyg817]

I'd also check those notorious coolant elbows by the water pump...

[dsmuts]

Lower intake manifold gasket is the most likely suspect. luckyg817. There are no coolant elbows on his car.

[Kellson]

No coolant elbows on the 3.1? That's great news!

[luckyg817]

Oh really? Well then lucky you. Haha. One less thing to worry about.

[Scottydoggs]

lim and heads leak on those engines. either one could be the leak.


not so lucky really.

[luckyg817]

Neither ones of those are any fun. I had to swap both on mine but mine is an 04.