Coolant oozing out of valve cover bolt holes

DropTopDon

DropTopDon

TJ Enthusiast
Joined
Nov 7, 2019
Messages
642
Location
VA
Taking my valve cover off, and accidentally squeezed the big hose which goes into the radiator. When I did that, coolant started oozing out of a bolt hole in the valve cover. If I squeeze the hose again it oozes more coolant. Any ideas on where to go from here?

 
I just removed more bolts and now coolant is flowing and leaking out of the rear side of my valve cover. I was turning the fan and pulleys with the serpentine belt off before this because i had dropped a nut behind a pulley, though i think that is unrelated.
 
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Yeah something is definitely wrong. I opened the radiator cap and coolant started shooting out of the valve cover because of the loss of pressure
 
That’s definitely a problem. This ain’t my area of expertise (as if I even have one), but my first guess would be head gasket related. I would expect you have coolant down in your oil pan too. I’d probably drain the pan just to see what you’ve got. Somebody else can guide you from there, but I’ll be following along for sure.

EDIT: Well maybe it's not a problem. I would still want to see what your oil (and coolant) looked like.
 
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According to that thread I just need to add sealant to the bolts? I just removed the valve cover and there isn’t any coolant on the rocker arms. Engine oil dipstick is also looking like normal oil. Will probably still drain it and check to be safe. Since I have lost a considerable amount of coolant, how can I top it off? I have heard not to mix coolants.
 
DropTopDon said:
According to that thread I just need to add sealant to the bolts? I just removed the valve cover and there isn’t any coolant on the rocker arms. Engine oil dipstick is also looking like normal oil. Will probably still drain it and check to be safe. Since I have lost a considerable amount of coolant, how can I top it off? I have heard not to mix coolants.
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did this work for you? i have same problem but i replaced the head gasket before this issue.
 
BarryB12 said:
did this work for you? i have same problem but i replaced the head gasket before this issue.
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Was the issue there prior to the head gasket replacement? In my scenario I just put thread sealant on all the bolts where coolant was oozing from. No problems yet.
 
DropTopDon said:
Was the issue there prior to the head gasket replacement? In my scenario I just put thread sealant on all the bolts where coolant was oozing from. No problems yet.
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no. I broke a bolt off and drilled it out and re-tapped. I must of drilled a little to far
 
DropTopDon said:
Since I have lost a considerable amount of coolant, how can I top it off? I have heard not to mix coolants.
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Add distilled water. I run maybe 25-35% antifreeze since it doesn't freeze here. Or drain completely and refill with 50/50 with your coolant of choice.
 
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