ViperXx

Hey all, I've got a '96 Firebird that just recently started leaking coolant and I tried running some block sealer through it and it slowed it down but its still leaking, we replaced the water pump thinking that was it but its not. It's also over heating for some reason and I've replaced the thermostat & radiator cap, checked all the hoses etc, everything seems to be fine except for that leak. It looks like its coming from the intake manifold but im not sure. I was hoping someone here could tell me.. I just took some pics, here are the urls:

http://www.viperxx.net/96firebird/ --- That's the main directory, you can view all the files there.
http://www.viperxx.net/96firebird/top2.jpg -- Thats a big pic of the problem circled, a pic of the whole engine.
these pics are closer pics of the leak:
http://www.viperxx.net/96firebird/leak1.jpg
http://www.viperxx.net/96firebird/leak2.jpg
http://www.viperxx.net/96firebird/leak3.jpg
http://www.viperxx.net/96firebird/leak4.jpg

Also, could someone tell me, would this cause the overheating? It usually runs up to about 210 (sometimes a little over) while sitting still but seems normal while driving it down the road. Oh, and I don't know if this is a problem too but the a/c just recently stopped working and I tried to recharge it with r134a coolant but it won't stay in the system, gauge always says 0 and we also just recently did a coolant system flush (same time we did the block sealer).
Any help would greatly be appreciated!

Edit: Also, leak4.jpg shows the most in detail, the leak is coming from what looks like a white gasket or sealer? Its inbetween the block/intake manfiold right above the water pump (but not coming from the water pump and doesn't look like its coming from the timing chain cover).

scamaro

just had a problem similar to this. are you losing coolant? if it is obvisouly a leak in that area then there are 2 possibilites. 1st is that i believe the temperature sensor is in that area, that could be leaking and you would either need a new one or pull that sensor out and out some thread sealent on it. 2nd is that i had to replace my intake gaskets and reseal everything and poof! no more leak. in terms of your engine getting hot, i was having the same problem but mine was caused by not having enough coolant(antifreeze) in the system, so it was not circulating. if all else fails then get some dye, pour it in the radiator, let it cycle through and then use a blacklight to find your leak. good luck!!!

ViperXx

Well, I checked the temp sensor and its not that. As for not having enough coolant, im sure it does, we just flushed it and put all new coolant in it and we've been checking it.. As for the changing gaskets, I had considered that but was hoping I wouldn't have to cause its a big pain in the ****, might as well go ahead and rebuild the engine if your going to go through all that trouble It does have a slight coolant loss problem but its very small, seems to have a small leak from that area.

scamaro

well mine leaked just a little coolant to begin with, and then it got worse. my coolant kept dissapering(sp) with no visable leaks on the ground. but i think you most likely have a blown manifold gasket. yes it is a giant pain in the *** to change but nothing last forever. i kind of expected it on my car after running hard against a friend a couple of times, that and my car has 118,000 miles on it. just keep an eye on it and make sure it does not get worse.

ViperXx

Ok, I figured as much
Thanks for the information. Also, this car has somewhere around about 120,000 miles on it, same engine that came with the car from the factory, never rebuilt or anything.