Coolant issues....have a 99 xj with 150k miles. starting to notice coolant leak (see coolant on ground under jeep some times but not all times) but can not determine from where. I added about a quarter gallon to the radiator and overflow tank last night and noticed today that the overflow is empty. When the jeep gets up to temp the top radiator hoses are hot to touch as is the bottom one. The water pump was replaced in April of 2012. Could it be leaking or going bad? It had to be replaced because it went bad and the jeep began to overheat. (This makes me wonder about cracked head) I believe the thermostat was replaced at some point in the past couple of years but I negated to keep record or write down when. I've attached a picture of what appears to be water (coolant) on the engine block to the left below thermostat and to the left above water pump. I'm pretty certain that the radiator needs to be replaced. I put a new radiator cap on it about two months ago (from AZ).

My question is where to start? Do I flush it first and make sure I have some good coolant inside? Do I just try and do a cooling refresh (new radiator, wp, therm, hoses, etc) and see if that stops the leak? (prob all needs to be done anyway.)

It has a pretty good oil leak as well...I'm thinking needs a VCG. That is a post for a different thread.

Thanks in advance for any constructive advice, scolding, or criticism. I'll take what you offer and learn from it.

 

start by cleaning the area, the pressure test it

 

There are quite a few " I guess" and " not sure" 's in there.
If it was me, I would not take the gamble and would go through this thorougly.
Keeping your jeep from overheating is very important if you want to keep driving it and investing in this is time and money well spent.

For around only $250 you can pretty much replace all the components in the cooling system, take all the guessing out of it, and be good and fresh for the years to come.

You can try to tackle one thing at a time, and find a next one, but with so many questions regarding when was what done (except maybe the radiator cap), I would just fork it up and redo the cooling system. You'll thank yourself later.

 

By refresh...do you mean radiator, thermostat, water pump, and hoses?

 

He means replace all components at one time. That way you shouldn't have to keep chasing leaks. And you only have to drop the coolant out of it one time.

Replace all the clamps too.

 

Got it! Thanks.

 

I agree with changing all cooling system components, including the fan clutch, but retain those constant pressure clamps. There's nothing to compare to them. Don't get drummed into the 'worm clamp' BS. They're worthless.

 

^^ Agreed!

 

Oops wrong thread