Ok. I was changing the alternator on my Fire last weekend and when I took off my intake, I noticed some coolant in the airbox (the stock one that connects to the TB). It's coming from the breather tube that runs under the intake mainfold. I have noticed that I am adding some (not much) coolant to the overflow tank once every 1000 or so miles. My guess is the waterpump is leaking and it's getting picked up in the timing cover.

Now, I read that a weeping waterpump is ok (I forgot the thread). Should I replace the waterpump now, or is it ok to keep adding antifreeze.

Car's got 180K miles on it.



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If the water pump is weeping, it should hopefully be going out the weep hole onto the ground (which would not be harmful) and not end up in the intake system anywhere. On the 2.4 water pump, coolant can leak past the seal into the timing cover, which would show up in the engine oil. I'd consider either of these situations to be "bad" and justify replacement of the pump, especially at the milage you say the car has. Replacement of the water pump itself is not for the faint of heart (there's a write up in the FAQ under Maintenance) and since so much has to come apart, you need to determine how much work to do as you're undeniably close to rebuild time. I'd replace the timing set as a minimum, but it would also be a great time to change cams or install a header. It all depends on the shape of the car, how much it means to you and if you plan to keep it indefinitely. Good luck. - Mark

Yeah, I've been looking for a LD9 around Vegas that isn't an arm and a leg so I can rebuild it. Luckily, I can use the AFB's auto hobby shop to do the work. Maybe I'll just hold off till tax return time and find a replacement motor to rebuild and swap.



If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you're reading this in English, thank a veteran.