zebulonsmith

I just got back from looking at a 97 Z71 with a 350 vortec that leaks coolant fast enough to drown rats underneath. It was hard to get a good look at it, but I don't think it's the head gasket. There's no water in the oil, or blowing out the tailpipe.


The leak was coming from the front of the engine and it looked like there might have been a bit of coolant sitting on the top of the water pump, but it's hard to see anything in there with all that plumbing. The leak was dripping down along the right side if you were standing in front of the truck looking under the hood and landing on the steering linkages. I'm thinking it's probably the quick disconnect or the manifold gasket that I keep hearing about.

I can get a good deal on the truck as it sits, but don't want to get into a pricey repair. Does it seem to the experts like one of these common issues, or something else?

suzuki-guy

i mean if its a real good deal iw ould get it i mean honestly whats the worst it could be? at the worst i think you would have to buy a new intake manifold. You know? unlest your head is cracke dbut there would be water in your oil. if you can get a good deal on it get it!! if you can work on it yourself it would be worth it but if not the dealer or a mechanic would charge you a fortune!

MDTAHOE

Head gaskets are not a very common issue on the 350, unless it was severely overheated but then a external leak would still be uncommon. Intake gaskets and the heater fitting are very famous. The heater fitting is on the passenger side so if there is not a lot of coolant standing on top of the intake the fitting is probably not the main cause.

zebulonsmith

Thanks for the good advice. I wasn't really dressed to crawl around underneath of a leaky truck, but plan to take another look saturday morning. I can't imagine that it's that costly of a fix being that the oil is still clear, so unless it looks like a cracked head or something, which I doubt as it purrs like it was brand new, I think I'm going to snag it. The guy at the lot told me I could take it for $4k. Will probably call AAA to have it towed home and hopefully get it fixed on the cheap.

suzuki-guy

how many miles???

zebulonsmith

just over 100k miles. The truck is clean as a pin. Has obviously been kept in a garage and well maintained. If it wasn't for the leak, I'd guess it to be a $6500 truck easily. Z71 with extended cab and a short bed with a cap.

98white5.0

Check radiator hoses and connections. Also make sure the water pump is good.

suzuki-guy

sounds just like my truck but a little newer id double check the oil again what if he just put new oil in it??? you can never be to careful check it out real good!! intake manifold gaskets are common i replaced mine last year real pain!!!! also check hoses if it was something simple the guy would of replaced it to get more money. thats why i would be suspicous

zebulonsmith

More good advice, this is turning out to be a great board. After stewing on it last night, I think I'm going to risk it. Good advice on the oil, Suzuki guy. Thinking back on it, the oil was certainly used, so if they changed it, they used dirty oil. Not that I would put that past a car salesman, but this guy seemed pretty honest. I've got the VIN and plan to do a carfax report on it just to be sure there's nothing hokey going on. The service records were all from the same shop and included ridiculous charges like $250 to change an alternator. I wouldn't be surprised if the owner woke up to niagara falls underneath of his truck one day and just decided he'd had enough.

cams 98 silverado

my truck leaked coolant exactly where you said this one was. and i thought it was a head gasket but then i thought about just looking for a bolt around where it was leaking and tighten it. sure enough there was an intake bolt loose between the valve cover and the intake. i tightened it 1.5 turns and guess what. no more leaking.