Topic: Leaking 390, Water pump? Help!!!

[67foxgt390]

   I have a 67 GT 390 Coupe at home . The car is in storage in my garage and has dropped about a gallon of coolant in a drain pan since October!! i cannot figure out where it is coming from some where in the front. The Radiator is good , hoses new and the water pump replace a couple of years ago. Not many miles on it since then. The car is hardly driven. It actually hurts driving the 4 speed due to arthritis in hips and ankles. I have grown to HATE this car and am going to sell it but want to fix this coolant leak before I do so. Thanks for any help!!

[preaction]

Is it possible it froze and cracked something has the anti freeze been tested ?

[Brian Conway]

Generally speaking if a water pump is leaking it should be replaced.  Usually a water pump leak will leave a trail.  If you cannot see a trail at the hose connections I would try a piece of tissue paper and do a search for the wet spot and go from there.  Brian

[KevinK]

You need to look around and find the source. I thought I had a leak at the freeze plug but it was dripping from the thermostat housing and running towards the right motor mount. Could be the water pump as well. You will need a mirror to inspect the bottom weep hole.  A one gallons leak is a lot.

[Bob Gaines]

The big block waterpump has a weep hole  near the nose for water to drip out when the seal starts to fail. Most likely that is where the water is coming from. If that is the case then replacement and or rebuilding of the pump is necessary if not it will only get worse.

[67foxgt390]

  Thank You every one! But is it possible to lose a gallon through the weep hole or the pump in general? Or might I have another issue more serious? The only drips I see are from the underside of the lower radiator hose. The coolant is new and the motor has not been over heated or frozen.  thanks

[67gtasanjose]

  Thank You every one! But is it possible to lose a gallon through the weep hole or the pump in general? Or might I have another issue more serious? The only drips I see are from the underside of the lower radiator hose. The coolant is new and the motor has not been over heated or frozen.  thanks

NEW and REMAN parts regularly fail so what you describe best matches up to the WP leaking as already shared

[Bob Gaines]

  Thank You every one! But is it possible to lose a gallon through the weep hole or the pump in general? Or might I have another issue more serious? The only drips I see are from the underside of the lower radiator hose. The coolant is new and the motor has not been over heated or frozen.  thanks

Is it possible to lose a gallon through the weep hole or the pump in general? The short answer is yes. I had one that was slow leaking and lots that much in a couple months while sitting and know of many others over the years with the same MO. Of course it could be something else but the water pump is the typical culprit for a car sitting. A freeze plug would be the next on the list. Sometimes the coolant will stain (lightens the color) the engine blue paint over time leaving a trail that may help tracking down the source.

[67350#1242]

You might try snugging up the water pump bolts and see if it stops or slows down - if it does the problem probably is leaky gasket instead of shaft seal. 

[J_Speegle]

Could always add some liquid designed to identify and locate leaks like this. You'll need the liquid (sold at places like Amazon ) and a UV light.

[67gtasanjose]

A cooling system pressure testor will pin it down. No guesswork required.