Hi all!

Been a while since I needed to come around these parts which means the car has been running pretty good...until now! LOL

I have a coolant/water leak that started off small and now unloads the whole fill in about 2-5 miles.

The leak is located on the side of the block near the firewall. It is coming out of a HOLE that is about 3/16 in diameter and there is slightly raised edge around it. The hole faces away from you if you are reaching in under the drivers side. If I plug the hole with my finger, no leak...as soon as my finger lifts off...leakage, whether car is running or not (after I filled it up all the way before testing)

The leak is not any of the heater core hoses dribbling down. They are fine.

I am praying it is not the water pump...for I never had a water pump act like that before or have seen a seep hole that size???

Is there some sort of plug or screw or something that might have came out of that hole?

All help appreciated :-)

My car is a 1994 Honda Accord LX 4-Door, 2.2 liter SOHC, 5 Speed Manual Tranny

peace out,
daddy

 

well the only thing I can think of on the drivers side of the engine that has a hole in it would be the water pump weep hole.
The weep hole points toward the fire wall

 

Thank you for your answer...

So all the water would leak out that fast? I am not questioning your judgement, but rather with past experience such as on my Honda Preludes it never leaked like that and the seep hole was very tiny.

Plus water circulation is still taking place because I get heat in the car until the water drains all out. Also, no noises. So on my car model the water pump is inside the block?

I am not very educated on this models water pump so I apologize if I sound stupid.

If it is the water pump, then I guess I am looking at around a 600.00 repair and probably more since I would probably want to replace the timing belt also, correct?

Please someone tell me it's NOT the water pump!!! LOL

peace out,
daddy

 

There is a coolant drain plug on the back side of the engine. It's to the outside of the oil filter and above a ledge in the block. There's supposed to be a threaded bolt/washer to seal the hole. If it's missing (left loose by someone), that might explain your problem. Car will need to be elevated to access (similar to oil filter replacement).

It's not water pump, as it's under timing belt lower cover and not physically accessible.

It could also be a missing hose on the bypass pipe (metal pipe that connects thermostat housing on pax side to water pump on drivers side). There are two small hoses that should be connected to this pipe from nipple tees off the pipe, or perhaps someone overloaded one of the nipple tees and broke it off leaving a hole in the bypass pipe (pretty difficult replacement requiring intake manifold removal).

good luck

 

Thank you TexasHonda...your words are encouraging!!! Just one last little tid-bit before I crawl under the car again. I attached a drawing I mad of what the opening felt like with my fingers. Maybe that would be a bigger clue.

When I feel the hole, it feels like a raised nipple on the block, so to speak, with about a 3/16" hole in the middle (just a guess on size, but it felt between 1/8" to 1/4"). My fingers are to fat to feel if it had threads inside.

Check the drawing and let me know what ya think.

Thanks bro...much apprecaited.

peace out,
daddy

 

From your description, it is unlikely to be the bypass pipe, but could be a missing coolant drain plug. Inspection should clarify. A mirror and light may be necessary to get a direct look.

good luck

 

Thank you sir! I will post back what it is so others may benefit from the results!

Thanks again :-)

peace out,
daddy

 

You can download a pdf of the 94 shop manual from spoon honda link in the online manuals thread in the DIY section.

I posted a pic from that manual. There are two weep holes for the water pump. They will face the firewall and be very close to where the black plastic timing belt cover meets the engine block. The water pump should be about the same height on the engine block as the oil filter.

 

Hi guys

Ok...I am a little confused now...LOL I know I need to get back under the car, but it's hard for me to do these days due to a disease I have so I was really hoping I would know which direction I needed to procede with the information I provided...then pay someone to do the rest!

I am now confused because a couple of ya say water pump, and one of ya says it couldn't be the water pump (which is naturally what I want to hear). So I have some question. Even if I can't do the repair, I like to know why things happen so I have knowledge.

1) What is the reason a water pump would start seeping water from the seep hole? Is it the first sign of failure, bearings going bad, no circulation? Basically, what is it not doing correctly.

2) If the water pump was going bad, why would the water still circulate in the system? My heater for example works fine until the water runs all out of the car so I know it is circulating through the heater core.

3) If it is called a "seep" hole...is it possible at all to loose the whole content of your cooling system in 1-5 miles of driving just through a seep hole? This one has me puzzeled because I have seen these leaks before and that is all they were was leaks...not pouring out all at once, and there was usually noise from the pump as well.

Once again I am not trying to be ungrateful for the answers you guys have provided already, but rather just trying to understand them since they are different and the difference to me is huge in the pocketbook...plus like I said I am somewhat dis-abled so getting back under the car is a difficult chore for me. That is why I tried to describe it the best I could from when I was under it this last weekend...plus remember, I am a novice so certain things that might stick out to you all doesn't mean anyhthing to me until I learn about them.

Thank you again for your time and patience with me. :-)

peace out,
daddy

 

I am not sure where the hole you are describing is located.

If the location of that hole is very close to the timing belt cover, then that is the water pump weep hole. I attached a pic with a yellow arrow to the general location of that hole. You might be able to reach that from the top of the engine.

If the hole is close to the oil filter, then it may be the coolant drain that TexasHonda mentioned. I never looked for that one, but it looks like it is closer to the oil filter. I attached a pic from the shop manual.