Make sure the top radiator hose is clamped tight going into the engine, it could be leaking there, you could wrap a price of cloth around the heater cot hoses and drive around a bit and check them if there damp then that's the leak
That is what I am afraid of. It looks to be int he most ridiculous place to be able to reach a hand or screw driver in there. Any tips?!
My old BMW had a broken plastic pipe that was on the back of the engine block...car was down for way too long as I had to remove the intake manifolds to gain access...then realized even with that and the fuel rail removed I had to be a contortionist to get my hand back in there...
I have a short stubby screw driver...now I just need a stool to stand on to reach into my engine bay
If those are the only two places people can think of, i will check them all out the best I can tomorrow. I am still leaning heater core since that is the most likely culprit.
Are heater core hoses something that can be picked up at say...Auto Zone or will I need to order from a Nissan dealer?
If you can't fit a flathead under there, a razor is your next best option. When my busted I just cut it, there was nothing to salvage. And a tip for putting a new hose on, just dip your finger in some motor oil and rub inside the hose. It will slide right on with little effort.
You can buy the hoses at autozone or any of those places.
And if the godforesaken happens and the nipple breaks, you can buy a little brass fitting (forgot what it's called) that screws inside of the nipple and then gives you another nipple to slip the hose onto. Just seal what you screw inside with some plumbers tape, maybe some good glue or silicone too wouldn't hurt. I didn't do it when my radiator crumbled bc at the time I had the money, but I've seen it done and it holds pretty damn well!
Make sure the top radiator hose is clamped tight going into the engine, it could be leaking there, you could wrap a price of cloth around the heater cot hoses and drive around a bit and check them if there damp then that's the leak
Good idea...I like the way you think! I can't see the bottom side of it, but a white cloth tapes around the hose will show the leak very quickly if that is where it is!
There is at least one pin prick in my upper heater core hose. I couldn't see coolant leaking out of it, but when I squeazed it, coolant oozed. Even with the truck running and the heater on I couldn't see it running out though. It did look like on the back side there was a thin section of the hose, like the side wall bulged out. Looks like I should swap them out at least just to get them refreshed even if that ends up not being the main source of the leak.
Wrapped a white paper towel around the hoses....let it idle...few minutes later had a greenish yellow spot. I will replace both of the hoses with great care to not snap the nips. Thanks for all the help finding this leak. I had a hunch that was the problem but didn't want to go on a wild goose chase swapping hoses until I found it. Thanks for all heads up regarding the heater core!
Awesome! Glad you got it figured out. I'm holding off on mine to s what problems you ran into first ;-). Just kidding haha. It looks like we're finishing the job we're on a week ahead if schedule do we'll get a couple days off. Then the X gets some love!!
Still haven't replaced the heater core hoses...I have them but need to quit being lazy.
On a side note, I also had a power steering fluid leak. When unseating the PS fluid resevoir during the body lift, we must have pulled too hard up on the reservoir, loosening the hose at the bottom near the frame rail.
I replaced the hose clamps on all of the areas with worm gear clamps so they could be tightened better and made sure the hoses were seated well. No more issues!
Just wanted to follow up with the update in case someone else does the same thing
between lazy and busy, I still havnt bothered with either of those things on my truck. I found the coolant slowly (really really slow) leaking out of the upper heater core hose the other day. I usually only drive it a couple days a week and had noticed a coolant smell the last couple of weeks. I had climbed all over the truck looking for leaks and smelling things. I feared the worst and thought it was my head gasket and I was smelling it from the exhaust. Turns out it was dripping down on the exhaust when it would sit for days without running and be just enough to make a smell when it would burn off. when I drive it more often it doesnt smell at all.
After reading about the rag round the pipes I did that and sure enough after about 3 days there was just enough coolant to smell but not see. did the bl over a year ago, so I am surprised its just now leaking. Must just be the age and plastics getting brittle. I have also had the power steering leak since I bought the truck and in 4 years of driving I have never added fluid and it doesnt look like any fluid ever disappears from the reservoir, but look in the passenger side wheel well and you would think the reservoir had exploded from all the oil. Just goes to show how a small leak can look really bad when its getting blown when driving.
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Apply dirt liberally, rinse and repeat
<<<-click for build
Lifted it
cut a bit
Lifted it more
welded a lot
33's mt's
cut some more
Got a winch
Parked until I can get a new steering setup.
my PS fluid leak was BAD...like you said, it looked like it exploded on the shock and UCA...
My reservoir was draining and leaving puddles on the ground and my PS fluid pump was whining like crazy...although it only started to get bad the last 2 weeks or so...
Very simple fix though...although I had to remove the battery to get at the clamps on the reservoir.
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