Coolant leak

[LarryLH]

I have a 2008 fleetwood Excursion with a rear radiator and a 360 hp ISC engine. There is a small leak that appears to be coming from the center of the engine below the front fly wheel or damper I think it is called. Being a rear radiator it is hard to see the front of the engine. I finally cut a hole in the bottom of the closet floor to expose the top of the engine but can't find any visible leak. Any ideas?

[Geocritter]

When I answered this query earlier I didn’t mention the two days of misery I spent in a Louisiana La Quinta parking lot trying to find the miserable tiny coolant leak. I finally found the leak by using the cooling system pressure tester when I got back to Texas. While on the road and desperate to reach my sons house in NY by Christmas, what I finally did was use a high-powered stop-leak (knowing that it could harm my cars heater). The stop-leak did work for most of the 3,000 mile R/T, but sure enough it did damage my cars heater. The heater still works but not nearly as well as it did before I added the stop-leak to the system. I’m hoping that since I’ve flushed out the system and replaced the fluids that the heater will eventually return to its former efficiency.

I would only recommend using stop-leak as a desperate measure.

Steve

[jtfcons]

I have assumed that any engine that has a coolant filter in the system would have a problem using any kind of sealant, but this Dike product interests me. I believe that a cold plug might be leaking in my engine and have considered using a sealant considering the location of the plug and the difficulty getting to in to replace the plug. I plan to test the system but, any thoughts on using a sealant?

[LarryLH]

Well I might have found the leak. I went to O'Reilys auto parts and borrowed a radiator test pump. A small leak appeared at the large hose that goes into the top of the radiator. Tightening it was a chore as it is under the reservoir. By the way my Excurion did not have an acces panel in the closet. It does now. Thanks for all your comments.

[acker1]

My small leak on my old rig was a head gasket. Hope that's not your problem! $$$$

DICK

[tinkerer]

As one other poster posted, my 2007 Discovery has an access panel big enough so I actually can stand on the engine.;)

[moisheh]

Why did you cut a hole in the floor. All Fleetwoods, as well as most other mfrs., provide a removable panel that will give you access to the engine. In yours there should be one in the closet and one under the end of the bed.

Moisheh

[azrving]

^^^^^^Geocritter

Dont put a sealer in it. Pressure test it and find the leak. Water pump, hose, hose clamp, o ring/ gaskets, rusted pipes.

[Geocritter]

I was plagued by a tiny leak in my cars cooling system on the way to New York state over Christmas. I finally filled the cooling system to the top and hooked up a cooling system pressure tester to where the radiator cap attaches and pressured the system up to 16#'s pressure. Only then did I finally find the leak!


Picture of what I found buried amidst all the mechanical engine clutter!

BTW I was able to borrow the testor from O'Reilly Auto Parts.

Steve

[wolfe10]

I would NOT use a sealer until the source is identified. If it turns out to be a replaceable part or leaking hose clamp, you don't need a sealer to potentially clog smaller water passages.

Were this a small leak in the radiator, then possibly a sealer should be considered.

[Ivylog]

LarryLH wrote:
I am pretty sure it is not coming from the water pump or any hoses.

I can highly recommend this sealer. Over the years it's saved me a lot of work on something like this. Had a leak on a Cat 3406 that was going to take hours to get to... used two cans of Dike and that was ten years ago.

[LarryLH]

I am pretty sure it is not coming from the water pump or any hoses.

[wolfe10]

Could be water pump, or could just be a loose hose clamp on heater hose or upper radiator hose. All could look from below like they came from the same place.

Find the HIGHEST point where coolant is present. That will be the source of the leak. Suspect best view will be from under the coach between CAC and engine. A strong flashlight will help.

[mabynack]

Water pump?