96 Ram is Dumping Coolant

The bell housing?

It sounds like a cracked block near one of the coolant ports.

I hope I'm wrong.

Thanks for the input. If you are right, is there an inexpensive fix or do I rob the local bank?

I've heard of block sealers that last for years, but I can't remember the names.

This stuff looks popular, but I can't endorse it. Never tried it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7pus6Xr41c

These things hardly ever heal themselves.

Alum-A-Seal ^{(not an endorsement)} might stop it for awhile. Cheap and easy to try.

I see a trip to the repair shop in your immediate future.

That is a common problem with Dodge tk's.

After replacing the knock out plugs, run a pressure check as discussed further down.

If you think you have a cracked block or head gasket problem look in to Liquid Glass radiator stop leak. I've had a few friends to use it over the years with good luck. _{Your Millage may very.}

I would put my money on a small leak between a cylinder and the water jacket ( head gasket ). This will push a small amount of compression into the water jacket and force fluid out of any pinhole available. AFTER you loose the coolant, then the thing overheats. It looks like a temp leak until you realize that the pressure and leak occur before the engine gets very warm. If you open the rad cap and run the engine, it will push water out of the rad as if it were boiling over, but there is no heat. I solved this probelm on a unit before, they had replaced the rad and water pump and pressure cap before I got to it. I strongly advise against stop-leak additives. They may help in the short term, but in the case of a head gasket they will not.

Thanks for the info.. the truck hasn't been started since it overheated, it loses any coolant added w/o it running. Is it safe to do the reccomended tests with it leaking like this?

Assuming that we are on the right track! At this point it would be a good thing to stop the big leak before you go looking for the little one. Hard to find a leak at the back end like that without pulling things apart and then you dont want to run it, but if its leaking when standing there it begins to look like a crack more than pressure induced. As long as the run times are short and you are not running dry your risk is low. The pressure test suggested by HERO will be the same result; doesnt need a running engine to show a pressure leak. If you build pressure before the engine warms up then it points to being compressed by gases getting past the gasket. Also as others have said, by this time you may have compromised a seal somewhere as a result so you may have a bigger leak now than before. The gasket leak will get slowly bigger depending on it's location, and as time passes you will push more and more coolant out. This follows your statement that it has been leaking for some time, have you noticed it leaking progressively faster ? I was hauling a 5th wheel and lost a belt because an idler failed. I did not loose coolant but could not run very long before overheating. I let the thing cool and then ran it just long enough to begin to get hot, then cooled it again. In this way I got to a safe highway parking spot after some time. The message there is if you run the engine briefly you can survive with low or compromised coolant, just watch the temp gauge. I assume you see no traces of coolant in the oil, probably hard to see it in the exhaust given the pressure is going internal. might see some white when you start, after coolant has a chance to seep back into the cylinder, but only briefly. Hard to differentiate from normal starting exhaust especially on an older engine where there is usually a little blue from the valves in there. What's the KM on the unit ? Has it seen hard duty ? Cold climate ? The best scenario is that there is only one leak and it took time to get this big. Good Luck.

The truck has pretty low miles for its age, around 130, 000. I live in Southern Virginia so it really doesn't get too cold, have used truck mainly for transportation to and from job sites. I read elsewhere that it could be a freeze plug leaking at the rear of the engine, do you think that's a possIbility?

yes it could be, given that it is draining while not running. I hope thats all it is, you did say it was at the bell, so theres one on each side. After you change that you should still run a pressure test to see if the seal leaking was the problem or the result of a problem. The other comments in this thread could still be valid, and worthy of testing once you get this particular leak fixed.

Take it to the repair shop and have them replace the freeze plugs. They have corroded from the inside out.

Still need to see where the leak actually is ! I agree that any of the other postings may be correct, but if you are thinking about doing this yourself, guessing where it is will not help. take another good look at the back. there is usually another hose running into the block at the top there, some older vehicles used a coupler there that could be the source, or maybe a sensor. difficult to really see in that area, but unless you are planning to take it to the shop anyway, you cannot fix a guess. Add water and check for the leak you can always drain and put proper coolant in after it is all over. No sense wasting coolant on a leak. If you are taking it to the shop anyhow, how far do you have to go ? Have it towed, safe not sorry.

I'm more of a paint/body guy, usually do the basic repairs myself and leave the big stuff to the pros. Gonna look into how difficult getting to those plugs is and go from there. If I have to take it to a shop, there is one 2min from my house.

You may ave a welch plug inside the bell housing, perhaps even behind the flywheel.

<https://www.google.com.au/search?q=welch+plug&client=firefox-a&hs=xSO&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=hHNCUtu3NMbwiAeXqICQBw&ved=0CD4QsAQ&biw=1026&bih=631&dpr=1.4>

If so it may be loose or corroded and leaking

Internet auction sites (names withheld) are great for solving problems like this. One simply lists the item, and a few days later someone comes along with some money and takes the thing away.

my guess

Would you be so kind as to report back to us here and let us know the solution to your problem.

Sure will.. going to do the recommended tests this weekend and will let you know the results. Thanks for all the help.

How about an update, MCAP ?

Got busy at work and have not had time to do anything... am pretty sure its the freeze plugs at the rear of the motor, will let you guys know when I dive in.