What to do about this coolant leak...

[Miss Old Motors]

So i have this coolant leak, i have hooked the pressure tester up to it and from what i can tell it is the intake manifold. Now i have searched around a little before my post and cannot seem to find a direct answer. It leaks enough for me to add to it about every week. Now i am mechanically inclined, but i have personally never done one.

I went to napa looking for the gasket, my two options were the complete intake gasket set (which i am assumning is for the plenum and stuff?) and also just the lower intake gasket set. Now there was quite a price difference and i dont need to spend anymore then I have to. My question is, do i need the complete set or just the lower or upper or what?

 

[Sepiroth]

You really need to replace the lower intake gasket. Although it is good practice to replace the upper plenum gasket as well.

Be sure cylinder #1 is at tdc compression stroke, I believe, and mark your distributor and rotor prior to removal. If you dont you run the risk of getting a code letting you know your distributor is a tooth off.

Oh and while you're at it, flush that darn Dex-cool outta there and put the good ol' green sh!t in

 

[Miss Old Motors]

Haha. Thanks.

 

[Sepiroth]

BTW, are you in Indy? I ask because I'm about 2.5 hours from Indy.

 

[drumrpunk]

I am working on the SAME issue. Treepete has helped me figure out the issue and it seems pretty cut and dry. Let us know how it goes. You can read more info here to ----> http://www.tahoeforum.com/showthread.php?t=12963

 

[Miss Old Motors]

Yah im currently living in Indy going to school at Lincoln Tech. Live about a rocks through away from it actually. where are you located.

Thanks for the info drumrpunk

 

[Miss Old Motors]

Hey Sepiroth are you a member on any other forums for anything? Your screen name seems familiar..

 

[Sepiroth]

I'm on crownvic.net, GMFS.com, fullsizechevy.com, dodgetalk.com, dodgeforums.com, and a few more lol.

I live in Kouts about 2-3 hours north of Indy.

 

[Miss Old Motors]

Yah im also on dodgeforums.com.

I have the day off on monday, i think im going to start tearing apart the hoe and replaceing that gasket.

Now i know that i am going to have to pull off basically anything that is mounted or bolted to the intake, the throttle body, and distributer. Does anyone have any other tips for me? Im going to get some felpro gaskets or something. Where can I find the torque specs and sequence for everything?

 

[Sepiroth]

Be sure to remove and clean the old gasket material from all surfaces. Also while you have the intakes off, it would be a good time to clean as much carbon and black stuff on it as best you can. Try your best to not disrupt the fuel injectors. The chances of ending up with a fuel injector misfiring on you increase if they are disturbed, yes they are finnicky suckers.

Make sure you also purchase the black RTV gasket maker or sealer. You want to apply a dab to each corner of the lower intake gaskets as well as a 1/4in bead along the front and rear mounting surfaces on the block. Do not use the supplied rubber or cork gaskets, they'll leak. IMHO, Fel-Pro gaskets are the way to go.

When you reinstall the lower intake, tighten the bolts from the center out in 3 torque sequences.

First Pass. 27 inch lbs.
Second Pass. 106 inch lbs.
Third Pass. 11 ft. lbs.

Hope this helps you out.

You run into a bind, remember, we're her to help.

 

[Miss Old Motors]

Thanks for the help, shouldnt be to bad.

 

[JP422]

Some other things to think about... just suggestions:

-Definitely do it yourself.. it's not that bad.. just a bunch of steps.

-I'd recommend the new updated OEM gaskets. I haven't seen the Felpro ones.. but I heard that the newer GM oem gaskets have a metal spacer built in... this prevents the gasket seals from getting sheared when installing, and also w/ the iron/aluminum heat expansions. If I ever have to replace the IM gasket, I'm going w/ these.

-I know we all have a budget to stick w/... but this would be perfect time to upgrade to the newer style fuel injectors too... replace the junky old poppet style. Apparently the newer injectors are more reliable, saves gas, and smoothes out the idle. California has an extended warranty for this... I think it's 200k miles or 10 yrs. Unfortuneately, Im at the 10 yr mark, so I'll have to purchase them too. This is definitely an upgrade I plan to do eventually. This is not a power adder, but it should help your truck run properly, back in tune.

-Watch out for the heater hose quick connect if you haven't already replaced it.

-Mark the distributor!!!!!! You must get it back in the same spot... accurate to 2 deg.
I think the best way is to turn the crank to TDC#1, and then remove the distributor cap... and mark the rotor to the housing. (iirc it should be pointing at the Triangle '8')
Oh, and also good time to replace the cap/rotor after you replace the distributor back in.

-Also agreed w/ the Green coolant. (good time to flush the cooling system)

-make sure to torque down the head properly and in order.

Good luck!~

 

[JP422]

Here's a nice thread about the IM gasket and it's update...

http://www.pacificp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8018&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

Another trick I read about somewhere is to get 2 or 4 extra bolts.. same thread as the IM bolts... and cut the heads off... turning them into studs... then screw them into the head and it'll be a guide for the IM to be aligned when installing... as well has hold the gaskets in place... then pull out these studs and insert the normal bolt.

makes sense.

 

[treepete]

yeah the heater hose disconnect WILL break when you take it off. definately replace that thing. Its quality is super-questionable...

 

[treepete]

and go heavy on that RTV sealer. what comes in the gasket kit isnt enough... not nearly enough.

 

[JP422]

Haha... there's some guy on the forums that got 500k miles (original engine 5.7) on his chevy truck...

Damn.. that's inspiring.

 

[treepete]

no way. where did you see that?

 

[JP422]

Right here...

http://www.pacificp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8018

ThunderTT. Says he got 500k miles out of the engine untill it blew...
I'll be happy w/ 200k on mine!

 

[Rick90467]

I was doing a search for similar problems too my own, but would like some assurance of whats going on here.

My 'hoe has always lost a bit of coolant, usually 2-3 quarts a month. But know I have a full blown leak. She's streaming water somewhere above the starter aroung the block. I have read that the intake gaskets tend to go, could this be my problem? I looked real hard at the heater hoses and connections and they appear serviceable.

Excuse me for hi-jacking this thread but it looked to be a closed item and thought it might be useful in helping me find my problem.tnx

 

[Sepiroth]

IMHO, your best bet is to have the cooling system pressure tested to determine where your leak/leaks are.