Coolant leak from exhaust manifold possible?

[Techlight]

Hey all

Need some help with a coolant leak.

Just finished putting in a AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l i6 in my CJ and it seems to be running hot although my gauge says it's fine. It's leaking coolant too. It doesn't seem to be coming from the normal places (water pump, intake hose, radiator hoses, etc).

The only place I can see coolant dripping from is the front exhaust manifold bolt which seems strange to me. Is it possible to have a leak from my intake manifold there, or is it just probably spraying up from somewhere. Once it cools off I"ll check the hoses to see if they're loose at all.


I snapped a couple of photos. one of the bolt and the other of the puddle under the jeep ...seems to be about a quarter cup of fluid (hard to tell in photo because my driveway is a mess still.

Any help is appreciated, thanks.

 

[Torxhead]

It could be leaking from the coolant hose that comes from the intake manifold to the thermostat housing. The coolant temp can be checked with a meat thermometer or a mechanical temp gauge.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

That bolt is in the water jacket.
Get some Permatex, Aviation form-a-Gasket thread sealer on the bolt's threads and you should be GTG.
LG

 

[Techlight]

Thanks for the replies...i love this forum.

I did check that hose on the intake...no leaks there.

Thanks for the info on the bolt...good to know! I was concerned there for a few. I've never swapped a motor and that bolt is the only place it leaks so if the permatex fixes it up I'll be feeling good...Then I can move on to all my rotted bushing haha.

Would coolant and water going into the exhaust make the pipe hot just passed the manifold? That's where I was getting a lot of my heat. If I didn't know better I'd think the catalytic converter was plugged...which I'll get checked as soon as I get it on the road.

 

[DHugg]

Would coolant and water going into the exhaust make the pipe hot just passed the manifold? .

Years past I blew a head gasket down-shifting at too high a speed. The effect of coolant in the exhaust was immediate and obvious...... thick white smoke out the tail pipe.

If it don't smoke white, your head's all right.

 

[PaRenegade]

That bolt is in the water jacket.
Get some Permatex, Aviation form-a-Gasket thread sealer on the bolt's threads and you should be GTG.
LG

^^ what he said.

 

[Dan86CJ7]

little liquid teflon sealer on that bolt and youll be good

 

[Techlight]

Just so I cover all my bases, is that the only bolt intake/exhaust bolt that goes into the water jacket? I'd hate to find one leaking 500 miles from now ya know...

And in terms of Permatex...is there a specific one I should use? I ask because I don't want to get the wrong one and have to do it twice. I have the Permatex black, and the Permatex gray water pump make-a-gasket...should I use one of these or use something like a specific thread sealer?

Thanks again for all the helpful replies...luckily for me no white smoke. I'd be pissed if the head gasket was out since it's a crate motor from S&J up north.

 

[Hedgehog]

I swapped in an AMC 360, yes it is a different critter. When I swapped in I changed the water pump. I did it late at night when I as tired and pinched the water pump gasket. What the heck, I've replaced a dozen or more water pimos and have never had one leak. So, at the time it didn't seem like a big deal at all. When I started the engin up for the first time there was a leak from a bolt that was traced down to the pinched gasket. So why mention this? Did you replace the water pump? If so were you careful wiith the way you installed the gasket? A small nick or missing some gasket seal can create enough of a void for pressurized water to find it's way out.

I also found out that some newer cars require gasket seal on the bolt threads that enter the water jacket.

 

[PaRenegade]

Theres so many choices now. Just make sure it says "thread sealant" and it resists coolant. The gray water pump sealer you have should be the ticket.

 

[Techlight]

Thanks again all for the replies...got this handled today. Ended up with the Permatex Red...waited six hours to be sure then started up and proceeded to attempt idle issue fix. No leaking coolant...will be posting in about ten minutes on the idle issue haha.