I have a coolant leak

racertracer · **Posted:** Tue Dec 28, 2010 7:12 pm

I now have a pool of coolant on my driveway just below the passengers side (US) and I can't see where it is coming from.

Needless to say, the CRD will not be driven unitl I get to the bottom of this.

DynoPax · **Posted:** Tue Dec 28, 2010 8:39 pm

I believe I read on another post the possibility of adding some sort of coloring agent to the coolant. This would allow for easier pinpointing of leaking source, unless you have a good idea of where it's situated?

racertracer · **Posted:** Tue Dec 28, 2010 10:39 pm

I looked under the jeep and noticed that a drop of coolant was hanging on the passenger side frame rail near the exhaust pipe closest to the cat. Also looked under the hood in that general area and near the turbo and saw nothing dripping or being wet.

CATCRD · **Posted:** Wed Dec 29, 2010 12:39 am

Sounds like it's just coming from the coolant bottle or nearby hose. The oil/water oil cooler is farther forward on the passenger side, down low.

geordi · **Posted:** Wed Dec 29, 2010 1:58 am

Yea, that would be my guess as well. There isn't anything on the extreme rear outside passenger side of the engine other than the jug, and if it was to overfill from too much coolant (like from a faulty radiator cap letting too much pressure out) then it would overflow from there.

Out of curiosity... WHY do we have an oil - to - coolant exchanger on the side of the block? That seems redundant, the block is one giant oil and water heat exchanger.

flman · **Posted:** Wed Dec 29, 2010 7:42 am

Maybe it is loose hose clamps, they always seem to show up in the cold weather due to expansion and contraction.

racertracer · **Posted:** Wed Dec 29, 2010 7:50 am

This Saturday, I will be working on locating the source of the leak and report back.

onthehunt · **Posted:** Wed Dec 29, 2010 12:18 pm

Quote:

Out of curiosity... WHY do we have an oil - to - coolant exchanger on the side of the block? That seems redundant, the block is one giant oil and water heat exchange

Because it's an industrial diesel engine shoe-horned into a liberty.

racertracer · **Posted:** Sat Jan 01, 2011 5:43 pm

So today I pressure tested the cooling sytem and found that I had another leak on the other side of the coolant reservoir near the 3/8" spring clamp, so I replaced the spring clamp with a strap clamp and pressure tested the system.

All is well again.

racertracer · **Posted:** Sun Jan 02, 2011 10:23 am

The 2.8 Liter VM Motori is a strong reliable engine, but it doesn't like to overheat.

Reading about cracked heads, coolant leaks and catastrophes on this board and the web, I learned the following about our CRD.

Regarding the temperature the VM Motori engine is happy running in, here is what I found:

The VM Motori Marine engine likes to run at around 70°C (158° F) and the Automotive version at around 90° C (194° F), anything above that will lead to problems and even catastrophic failure.

I understand that when the engine overheats due to bad maintenance of the cooling system or a malfunction, things start to crack, the exhaust gaskets go and the manifold cracks near the turbo.

The moral of the story:
Proper cooling system maintenance of our CRD is imperative for engine longevity.

Use the specified coolant; keep the system clean and free of rust and sludge, find and fix leaks, stick to the cooling system maintenance schedule and if you notice rust colored coolant and any amount of dark sludge at the bottom of the plastic reservoir, your cooling system needs cleaning..... Flushed and cleaned.

I have a coolant leak

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