HELP... Thermostat housing leaking..maybe??

Big4banger · 03-30-2010, 07:18 PM

Ok, while driving yesterday i noticed a slight smell of antifreeze but since the windows were down and lots of traffic i did not pay much attn to it. then yesterday when i went to leave i noticed a nice green puddle under the front of my jeep. While doing a little investigating to see where it was leaking i found that is looked as if it was coming from the bottom of the thermostat housing. In an attempt to have it be a 3 dollar problem i ran to AZ and grabbed a new gasket and threw it on. Topped off all fluids and let it run for 10-15 min. prob solved..... or so i thought. After it got good and warm with a few cycles of heat and AC with no leaks i reached up and hit the throttle cable and as soon as the rpms went up there were a few drops of coolant running down the bottom of the housing. Checked the surface of the housing and where it mounts and nothing looked to be cracked or warped and all the hoses are good. Is there a tendency for these parts to warp or does someone have another option. thanks in advance for any help...

xjcowboy01 · 03-30-2010, 07:28 PM

Sounds like a little silicone on both sides of the gasket might do the trick. And make sure to really crank down the bolts when you reinstall.

ComancheKid45 · 03-30-2010, 07:45 PM

You likely cracked the housing right along the bottom bolt area, and when it heats up it leaks....look along the curved seem and im sure youll see a crack.

biggerbrowndog · 03-30-2010, 08:09 PM

don't crank down hard the water neck is aluminum and cracks easy

**tjwalker** · 03-31-2010, 05:58 AM

I agree that the housing might be cracked. Check it again.....shouldn't be hard to find a replacement.

There is a "torque spec" for the thermostat housing bolts for a reason so don't overtighten!

My1989Jeep · 03-31-2010, 11:25 AM

Did the gasket you get have a sticker on one side? I got one of these from AZ and it leaked. Something with the sticker glue that makes it not seal the way it should. Take it off and put some silicone on both sides of the gasket. Use the blue one for water.

jorget · 04-03-2010, 12:01 AM

i'm in the same boat too. i purchased a new thermostat house and some rtv hoping that solves my problem. how much do they need torqued to? last time i broke the bottom bolt but was able to get it off. also since you will be changing the sensor to the new house is there anything you need to do to the threads? or will a little rtv work to make sure it doesn't leak

jorget · 04-03-2010, 01:55 PM

So right now i have it torqued down to 25 ft-lbs is that correct?

**tjwalker** · 04-03-2010, 04:39 PM

I checked a Haynes manual which says 15 foot pounds. I don't have access to my FSM at the moment to verify that.

djb383 · 04-03-2010, 05:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xjcowboy01

Sounds like a little silicone on both sides of the gasket might do the trick. And make sure to really crank down the bolts when you reinstall.

Crank down the bolts and aluminum just don't go together.........bad things happen.

jorget · 04-03-2010, 07:52 PM

would 25 do a lot of damage?

**tjwalker** · 04-04-2010, 05:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jorget

would 25 do a lot of damage?

Overtightening can but doesn't always lead to damage (cracking of thermostat housing in this case) which is one of the lessons of this thread.

If the spec says 15, tighten to 15.

Big4banger · 04-05-2010, 06:16 PM

just an update, i went back to AZ, got a new housing and gasket and replaced it just because it was $17 and i had to take it off anyway to silicone the gasket. new housing, new gasket and a heavy line of silicone and my leak is gone. thanks for the replies. and also as i sit here and look at this old housing i can see no cracks but oh well. if i only have to spend $30 every time my 9 year old jeep breaks ill be a happy man..