italianjeremy

ok guys, this is a weird one.

i have a 97 xj , i did a coolant flush about a week ago , cleaned her all out.

i noticed a drip from the lower radiator hose in between where it connects to the engine and where it connects to the radiator.

i replaced the hose with a brand new lower hose, and it still drips!

it drips from where the hose connects to the engine ( water pump) . ive tighened the hell out of the clamp, cleaned off the male end of the engine side with steel wool and alcohol, retightened with permatex ultra black rtv sealant gasket maker on the engine end, still drips. ONLY DRIPS WITH ENGINE ON ... so under pressure.
i got so sick of paying 12$ for radiator fluid when i would have to yank the hose to work on it, i just bought the bars leak stuff and it slowed it down some. i used to be a steady drip, maybe 2 drips a second. now its 1 drip every few seconds or so... but enough to worry me .

anyways, only thing i could think of was RTV sealant, any ideas? hose clamp is new, water pump side is clean, and yes, i tightened the hose clamp PAST the male nipple protrusion part of the water pump,
thanks!

ZachsXJ

thats weird...I'd take the hose back and get a replacement.

offroadnut36

maybe th leak is coming from the water pump, behind the hose.

italianjeremy

plastic piece going into the hose? i dont have one . just a rubber hose, no insert or anything.

offroadnut36

Yeah i didnt read the part where it said the engine side of the hose. I thought you meant the radiator side. my bad.

italianjeremy

also, i inspected almost the whole nipple of the water pimp, its clean and shiny, no cracks. couldnt see the top of it from under the car, so thats why i say ALMOST all inspected.

xjjeep96

Had the same exact problem with my 96 2 days ago. It was actually the weep hole on the water pump running down the hose making it look like it was the hose.

italianjeremy

its def not the weep hole, this is coming from the junction of the lower hose and the pump .

offroadnut36

So everything around it is completely dry except the edge of the hose, and the hose?

JJaycXj

this happened to someone i know recently but it was the top hose im not sure what caused it

mike albo

are you sure its not from the weep hole?

italianjeremy

well the weep hole is up high on the pump, right?

my nose was 8" from this junction when it started leaking. in fact, i put my finger on the junction, to see if it would slow the flow of the drip down , and it did, thus confirming the dripping is coming from inside of the rubber hose where it meets the nipple of the water pump.... pretty much slipping past the hose clamp underneath .

xjjeep96

There r 2 weep holes 1 on top and 1 under by the bolt hole. Thats bottom one has to be the one that is leaking. Took me a little bit to figure it out too.

italianjeremy

i can almost guarantee you its not the weep hole. any suggestions otherwise? its a reputable national auto parts store (autozone in ohio) so im assuming they gave me the right diameter. it was quite easy to slide on though... who knows. i just hate using the bars leak stuff to solve the problem. shouldnt need to

italianjeremy

UPDATE:

well , you guys were right. it was the water pump ! thanks. fixed the leak