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I've got a new to me 2003 Disco 2 SE, and I need some wisdom and advice. This is my second Disco, I had an 04 HSE, and did a headgasket job on it myself a number of years ago I'm not a mechanic but I'm handy and can figure things out/ read manuals.
When we got the 2003 and began going over the systems, it had the incorrect coolant in it and was showing high temps in the 220s at idle in 35*F weather on the Ultra Gauge. The engine was swapped in less than 5K ago by an unknown mechanic before we got it and I'm curious if there are some serious issues with it that the PO didn't know about.
I flushed it 3x with distilled water and a rad cleaner, and refilled with 50/50 green and then bled the system according to the RAVE. Still had high temps, so I knew something was up, so I got a new water pump, fan, fan clutch, hoses, thermostat and radiator, as the ones on it looked to be original. I don't have a garage here at home, so I did this in the driveway in mid 30* temps. I used thread sealer on the bolts for the water pump that required it, and installed everything back together, filled it with 50/50 Green and started it up. Heater on high, fan on high, still high temps on UG, and found coolant spraying/ dripping from under the truck. I shut it off and tried to find the leak, however there was enough coolant on everything that I couldn't tell where it came from initially. I though perhaps the intake manifold / TBH as they had done the warm weather bypass, but living in a snowy state, I switched it back ( with new TBH plate and gasket) and thought perhaps it was leaking there but those looked dry, so it was lower in the system. I called it a day - took a week off for being sick-
Next time out there was today, and the expansion tank was dang near empty of coolant, I wiped down all the hoses, everything under the truck and put some UV dye in the tank to see if I could determine where the leak is coming from. I refilled the system as the RAVE says, and I didn't even have to start the truck it to see it coming out. Just behind the water pump, driver side, near the top. Is that the front engine cover/ timing cover? Water pump seems to be holding just fine, I followed the RAVE for my dismantle and reinstall. Perhaps one of the water pump bolts didn't seal well enough?
What are your thoughts? Whats next? Front cover gasket or worse, the lower corner of the head? If its the front engine cover, I should do the oil pump drive gears while I'm in there correct? Sucks doing this in the driveway in the winter that's for sure, but we need to get this thing reliable and up and running.
That's right where the water jacket passes through the front cover into the water pump. Definitely CAN leak from there, but yeah, as Richard mentioned, there are also places above that it can leak from. The coolant temp sensor is one, the pipe that goes into the intake manifold, maybe somehow running down a line near the throttle body heater. All things to check. But if not anything obvious, looks like a front cover gasket replacement.
I'll check all those things again. I put thread sealer on the bolts when I put it back together with the new water pump and torqued them to spec, it would be a bummer if it was one of those. If I do have to take it all apart again and do the engine cover gasket, what else should I be looking to do while I'm in that deep, aside from the oil pump gears?
Help! Coolant leak
