Hi,

I have a 4-dr. '95 Sidekick JLX with 142K mi. I got it used (96K mi.), in v. g. shape, and took it off road (i.e., unpaved roads) and from sea to shining sea.  Only three things done - (a) new tires, a little larger. By the way, they wear fast in the front and virtually not at all in the rear - is that normal? Alignment is correct and suspension checked OK. (b) timing belt - very likely, I replaced the original. (c) I put in new spark plugs - the old ones, albeit being worn (large gap), looked good.

But recently it started leaking coolant - someplace on the right side of the engine, below the throttle body, seems near the starter. I can't drive it because of this leak. Left side of engine, far more accessible, is perfectly dry. There's almost no access to the right side of the engine. I COULD NOT IDENTIFY THE COOLANT LEAK SOURCE - despite lifting the right front on jackstand, looking from above and below with light and mirrors. To take out the throttle body, pressure needs to be relieved from the fuel system and some people said it is hard to put back all those metal fuel lines...  Coolant drips from behind the oil pan. It gets there from above. I can see the two hoses entering the firewall, perfectly dry (eliminates the heater core as suspect). The radiator and hoses leaving it are perfectly dry. Has anyone any clue on possible cause? My main concern is if this can be caused by a head gasket that gave way.

Thank you very much.....

as for the tires wearing..thats totaly not normall my tires wear perfectly exepct for the right rear   it just seems to losse rubber sitting in the garage  

but for the coolant leak...my very very un informed guess is that u are right about the head gasket..from what u are saying about the heater piping being dry..theres really not a whole lot back there that will leak colant

now is this leak like..u drive 5 mins the coolant is totaly gone kinda leak..or more that kind of leak that u just have to top off the coolant everyday?

Not a head gasket, but there are 4 lines
that could be the problem, there are heater
lines (2) and the lower radiator hose on the
water pump tube, and there is a small hose
that could blow too, could also be the O ring
on the water pump tube but that's at the front,
and if you look toward the alternator you will
see another small line that is the same size
as the one under the Throttle body.

My best guess is a heater hose, I replaced
mine with silicone high temp line so I won't
have that problem for a long time.

I think it's about 12mm or 7/16" hose and there
are two of them, both heater hoses and should
be replaced regularly along with the radiator hoses,
about every two years. Good time to do the coolant
and the thermostat too.

Wild

as for the tires wearing..thats totaly not normall my tires wear perfectly exepct for the right rear   it just seems to losse rubber sitting in the garage  

That's what I thought, too - but I repeatedly checked alignment and have the shop check my suspension - when did you hear service shop guys turning down $$$? I asked them to check it out and tell me if anything's wrong, they kept saying there's nothing wrong... I ended up believing them... My 4-dr might be worse than yours - some "experts" said wear is normal, front is heavy (and I did NOT rotate tires - if one rotates them, they will obviously wear equally...)

but for the coolant leak...my very very un informed guess is that u are right about the head gasket..from what u are saying about the heater piping being dry..theres really not a whole lot back there that will leak colant

now is this leak like..u drive 5 mins the coolant is totaly gone kinda leak..or more that kind of leak that u just have to top off the coolant everyday?

It should be topped off everyday, but I left it in the garage and I drove another car, as soon as I saw coolant leaking in the parking lot at work... The car is in general good shape and I'm thinking it may be worth to try keep it that way...

Thank you for your reply,

gabe

Not a head gasket, but there are 4 lines
that could be the problem, there are heater
lines (2) and the lower radiator hose on the
water pump tube, and there is a small hose
that could blow too, could also be the O ring
on the water pump tube but that's at the front,
and if you look toward the alternator you will
see another small line that is the same size
as the one under the Throttle body.

My best guess is a heater hose, I replaced
mine with silicone high temp line so I won't
have that problem for a long time.

I think it's about 12mm or 7/16" hose and there
are two of them, both heater hoses and should
be replaced regularly along with the radiator hoses,
about every two years. Good time to do the coolant
and the thermostat too.

Wild

Well, I sure hope you're right. I'm gonna fix me some dinner and then go back to the garage and look some more at those hoses, based on what you said. That's what I call a good weekend plan...! The problem is there's such a difficult access in there, that I have a hard time trying to see almost anything. I tried to touch and feel the fluid, it worked up to a point, then I could not reach any further...  I would also guess a hose should be more likely to give way than a head gasket, but if I were sure of it, I would have had the car already fixed - by myself, if I could figure out the bad hose, or by a neighborhood shop, if not. A head gasket, though, costs more than the entire car's worth at a dealer...

I'm gonna keep looking - thanks a lot for the advice,

gabe

I know it's a tight fit, I replaced mine before
I did a body lift, and then again after, now
you just reach through the fender to fix it  

You could remove the radiator, if you don't have
A/C it will give you some easier access.