Very Weird Water Leak - Help

[chevyaddict]

Hi All - here is one for you. It appears I have a water leak behind the driver's side head. I can't tell but it really looks like it is streaming like.... ummm... well honestly it looks like a little man is taking a pee back there! I swear its coming out of the back of the head. Car runs fine and there is no water in my oil. How could water be coming out back there? Any ideas???

 

[Red Vette]

Hi All - here is one for you. It appears I have a water leak behind the driver's side head. I can't tell but it really looks like it is streaming like.... ummm... well honestly it looks like a little man is taking a pee back there! I swear its coming out of the back of the head. Car runs fine and there is no water in my oil. How could water be coming out back there? Any ideas???

Do you get any white smoke out the tailpipe at all or is there a white residue on the tailpipe? I had the problem with my truck and it was due to water, and the oil did not show any water in it. Had to have the engine rebuilt. Since water will vaporize at high oil temps, you might not detect it in the oil at all.
But you are so good at finding things and fixing them, I expect that you will get to the bottom of the problem and will tell us of your solutions.
Barrett

 

[chevyaddict]

Do you get any white smoke out the tailpipe at all or is there a white residue on the tailpipe? I had the problem with my truck and it was due to water, and the oil did not show any water in it. Had to have the engine rebuilt. Since water will vaporize at high oil temps, you might not detect it in the oil at all.
But you are so good at finding things and fixing them, I expect that you will get to the bottom of the problem and will tell us of your solutions.
Barrett

No white smoke - car runs perfectly fine. I'm really dumbfounded by this.... there isn't any very small water line back there between the block and the firewall is there?

 

[Red Vette]

Not that I know of, but water can travel along various seams and gaskets and find it's way anywhere its not wanted. Since you said it squirts out, it must be under pressure from some source or some force is adding pressure. Do you use antifreeze? Have you been able to collect any of the water to note the difference in color from plain water? If it is not colored from antifreeze, what other source of water do you have onboard? Air conditioning produces water from the condensation, is there a way for this water to reach the discharge point?
Barrett

 

[clok1966]

Sounds like a head gasket to me, depending on where it is on motor, maybe the intake.


Clok

 

[tonylong]

The best thing is to have it pressure checked. You could spend tons of money on gaskets and such and it could just be a hose clamp. A check will reveal the real culprit.

 

[JimBobC4]

The best thing is to have it pressure checked. You could spend tons of money on gaskets and such and it could just be a hose clamp. A check will reveal the real culprit.

Agreed. Get a pressure check tool, pump it up and get a mirror back there so you can see where its coming from.

Guessing is expensive. :W

Could be an intake gasket as well.

 

[G Winter]

There is a line that goes to the oil cooler between the block and oil filter on some models. If yours has that maybe it is leaking and bouncing off the head.

Glenn


I just went out and looked at my 90 , where the hoses are a pinhole in the right place could shoot water up behind the head.

 

[chevyaddict]

Not that I know of, but water can travel along various seams and gaskets and find it's way anywhere its not wanted. Since you said it squirts out, it must be under pressure from some source or some force is adding pressure. Do you use antifreeze? Have you been able to collect any of the water to note the difference in color from plain water? If it is not colored from antifreeze, what other source of water do you have onboard? Air conditioning produces water from the condensation, is there a way for this water to reach the discharge point?
Barrett

Its definitely water with anti-freeze in it without a doubt. Its so low where it is coming out I can't imagine how it could be traveling and still look like its squirting out.

 

[chevyaddict]

There is a line that goes to the oil cooler between the block and oil filter on some models. If yours has that maybe it is leaking and bouncing off the head.

Glenn


I just went out and looked at my 90 , where the hoses are a pinhole in the right place could shoot water up behind the head.

Ok - I'll check this but the stream is so small and perfect I find it hard to believe it is bouncing off something else and being reflected like this. If that were the case it would be coming off the head in more of a spray.... I really have a hard time believing its a head or intake gasket though without any water in my oil but I suppose its possible. Is there water also running throught he oil cooler lines? I thought only oil ran through those..........

 

[G Winter]

There is a plate between the oil filter and the block which has coolant passing through it around the oil. Not sure if it actually has a heat exchanger design to it or not. The angle from the hoses could make it appear like it is coming from the back of the head.I personally have never seen a head gasket leak so badly without warning that it would put out a stream.

Glenn

 

[Hib Halverson]

Sounds like this car has KC4 and, if so, I'm gonna guess that if you jack it up and get underneath when the leak is occuring then look up, you're gonna see one of the hoses or pipes that goes with the oil cooler is leaking.

 

[chevyaddict]

Sounds like this car has KC4 and, if so, I'm gonna guess that if you jack it up and get underneath when the leak is occuring then look up, you're gonna see one of the hoses or pipes that goes with the oil cooler is leaking.

I hope so! I'll investigate this again next weekend and will let everyone know what I find!!!!

 

[chevyaddict]

Ok... so this weekend turned out to be a few months... what can I say? I can say that I completed my PHD FINALLY!!!! WOO HOO!!

Ok, so get this. This leak is definitely between the head and the block. There is no water in my oil and the car runs fine so I'm hoping that means I don't have a cracked head. The car did not get hot... how in the world did I blow a head gasket?

So, it looks like I'm replacing the head gaskets and everything else. Anyone have any advice? Is this job relatively straight forward or is there something that is going to make this job a big pain in the butt? Can I get it completed in a weekend do you think?

 

[tonylong]

Congrats o the PhD (that means Piled high and Dry right?)
Pulling the head is always a PITA. Check the cyl pressures first to be certain. If all cyls hold good pressure, check other stuff too.