2.7 engine. have a little hole that keeps leaking coolant from the motor . its not cracked and there is no grooves so no screw is missing. we think it might be a freeze plug. but its very small.

820

Asked by Afsheen Oct 20, 2012 at 09:27 PM about the 2002 Dodge Intrepid SE FWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

need to know if there is a freeze plug in the back of the engine where the coolant is leaking from bcz  a hole is
there . its the black hole by the silver bolt.

34 Answers

820

went to the dealership to ask if they knew if there was a freeze plug there and they could not tell by the diagram they had in the computer. I have replaced the thermalstat bcz my car over heated and than started leaking coolant. now just have that one leak at the back . if soneone has a 2.7L engine and plz could u look to see if its a plug. or if anyone knows what the hole is for??????

30 people found this helpful.
46,415

It could be your water pump, when your W/P goes bad it will leak coolant from the small hole aka ( weep hole ). When this happens it is time to replace the pump and maybe the timming belt depending on the motor.

22 people found this helpful.
820

Thank u Michael u might be right. Will let my husband know that. :)

2 people found this helpful.
15,025

water pump is common, also thought:use a synthetic/lighter oil, as the engine is well known for problems, (when designed the passages were too small, and oil doesn't flow like it should properly internally), causing the life expectancy to be greatly reduced....

6 people found this helpful.
820

Well husband took it to someone and they said the gascet needs replacing . But they still did not say what the hole was. So not going to them. Taking it to someone elseto see what they say.

4 people found this helpful.
15,025

if you put coolant in it, and start it, letting it idle running, how long until the engine gets hot, or over heats, as driving the cool air keeps the engine cool, but running, and no water pump, 15 minutes or so, (on average) the engine will get too hot, over heat. even with coolant....

16 people found this helpful.
820

Well it wont over heat anymore after we replaced the thermostate. It just drips from the back, from the hole. Little more faster if driving. Just have to put coolant in before driving it.

9 people found this helpful.
46,415

Heres a clear diagram does the hole appear to be the same as yours?

81 people found this helpful.
Best Answer Mark helpful
820

So all I have to do is get the waterpump fixed? The other Guy was like we are going to have to reopen all the stuff that was fixed and fix the gasket. Oh thank u so much. Have been trying to find this diagram for days so could show them what I am talking about. Even the Dodge ppl could not help. U are a live saver. :) now will not look like a idiot trying to explain it.

9 people found this helpful.
46,415

Replacing the 2.7 W/P does require a large teardown of the motor. Heres a video I found online that shows some of what is involved in the W/P replacement. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5b0XhxwhOqs

95 people found this helpful.
820

Thank u have been looking up videos for it and it is a lot of work.

7 people found this helpful.
150

I'm having the same problem, but the water pump has been replaced already. When I first crank the car, the heater, or the temp gauge do not start working until i start down the road, and then the car eventually starts to over heat. Could the cooling system need "burping"?

15 people found this helpful.
820

All fixed thank God. The gasget needed replacement again. Hopefully it will not drip now.

11 people found this helpful.
135

Afsheen, you didn't need to replace the water pump? When you say the gasket need replacement are you talking about the thermostat housing gasket, because I don't want to replace the water pump if I don't need to. Thanks. And thanks Michael for the diagram that was very helpful.

7 people found this helpful.
90

I have a 2004 dodge intrepid and it keeps over heating there is no leak anywhere....but i did fond that one of my fans will not cut on could that be the reason that it keeps running hot

9 people found this helpful.
60

2004 dodge started overheating right from the car lot to about 10 minute drive to airport. I changed the thermostat and hose,didnt work, Found the radiator didnt have water when i went to drain it.checked top hose off of the below the burp bleeder no water would enter radiator and couldnt even blowin it with mouth.(not reccomended). Changed out radiator which is pretty forward procedure as long as you dont have a major storm come and attack the project ..i did. ok so got the front back together and started it. water was dripping heavily behind the passenger side rear of the motor. I had called a mechanic that tested the waterpump .i.It did not bubble but said its due to the burp system runoff.I had doubts but drove it home and let it set a day. this am went out and the rresivoir was half empty.opened the bleeder nut on top front and resivoir and started adding coolant,id did so till coolant was not coming from top of bleeder screw hole. i put back bleeder screw and radiator cap(New). then ran the motor with and without a/c .no wateer is leaking as it did prior. prior it was immediately leaking. will test drive it further in an hour with a 30 minute run across town.if it stops leaking and is all good,for sale sign likely going on it! lol this has been a nightmare but as well i did all the work myself and I am a parapelegic ffrom the chest down. meaning im wheelchair bound and could do this on cement with jacks and jack stands. if I can do this with some mechanical abilities most all could save 700.00 and do it yourselves too. be careful when you buy off a dealer an as is system.

6 people found this helpful.
390

Antifreeze leak front of engine 2.7 2005 Chrysler 300 don't know where it's leaking from

20 people found this helpful.
50

I bought my car from a mechanic. we live in desert where temps go above 105. 2004 dodge stratus 2.7..... first of these cars are already a nightmare for the person that knows a lot about cars because ff pos engine compartment is made for babies hands so everything a pain to change. anyway got the car and was told its best to circumvent fan system and tie into battery so fan runs all the time. anything done with cooling system the system has to be bled using bleed screw at top off engine near upper radiator hose. biggest problem with engine is what John points out and that's the oil sludging up. calls for 10/ 30w synthetic oil and synthetic OIL FILTER every 3000 miles. cap says 5/30 ignore 5/30w is not THICK enough unless you live in area where temp never gets over 85 f...... hope this helps.

5 people found this helpful.
260

My best friend owns a mechanic shop. The 2.7L motor is notorious for the shaft to fail on the water pump. The water pump is ran by the timing chain/crank and the propellers of the water pump quit spinning. When this happens coolant leaks out of the weep hole directly under the thermostat housing.Since the water pump is internal, the leaking coolant mixes with the engine oil and causing instant sludge. If you catch it in time you can save the motor. Most shops will think it is a leaky thermostat housing, blown head gasket, or cracked block. Mechanics will pressurize the coolant system to find the leak. This in fact will cause them to misdiagnose the problem. In truth it is a bad water pump. It is recommended by Chrysler/Dodge that you replace the water pump at 100,000 miles even though a lot of cars don't even make it to 70,000 miles. This is a huge "FAIL" on Chrysler/Dodge to design a motor like this, sell it to the public and not stand by their product. There should be some sort of recall and they have lost all future business from me. I will never own another Chrysler product again. You will get nothing but the "run around" from them and most shop's will lie because they don't want to do the job.

10 people found this helpful.
260

If you are going to replace the water pump yourself on the 2.7L they make a kit that comes with everything you need-timing chains, water pump, tensioners, crankshaft sprocket, camshaft sprockets, chain guides and some kits include the oil pump. It is very important that you buy the correct kit, since there are two different kits you can buy. Buying the wrong kit will cause catastrophic failure! To buy the correct kit you will need to know which power control module (PCM) your car has. Earlier models will mostly have the SBEC power control module. 2004 2.7L motors are the transition year and will have the older and newer PCM. The newer PCM is the NGC power control module. In order to find out which PCM you have you will have to write down your Vin# and call your local Chrysler/Dodge dealership and ask them to check your vin#. The difference between the two kits is the cam sprockets. On the cam sprockets the timing marks are different.

16 people found this helpful.
80

I have an 2003 Chrysler Sebring coupe. My issues I'm having is every two 2 days I'm having refill my radiator. I see no signs of leaks on the floor. Its causing my engine a weird cranking problem. It takes a minute to crank. I changed the radiator that solved the problem for about a week. Now it still loosing radiator fluid my fans are working properly. I haven't checked the thermostat yet. That's my next option even the mechanic said that this was weird. My temp gauge works what could this be?

5 people found this helpful.
340

I have to replace my water pump AGAIN & I have a question that may seem dumb but I'm trying to keep this car that I've dumped LOTS of money into from going to a junkyard. The temps are dropping and I am having it replaced Saturday. Until the I need to know if there is a way to keep antifreeze I it so it don't freeze. It's leaking pretty quickly but I can't tell if it leaks all of it out. Does anyone know if it does hold enough antifreeze in it to not freeze up when you have a bad water pump? I bought stop leak but have been advised not to put it in there or I'll clog up the radiator? Anyone have any ideas for me? I have a couple more days to get threw untili can get it fixed. I appreciate any feedback!!

5 people found this helpful.
40

I have a 1999 dodge intrepid 3.2 engine we replaced the radiator due to overheating along with the thermostat and heater hose(old one collapsed) the guy went to bleed it to make sure all the air was out the bleeder screw broke so we went and got a new one now water and coolant is coming from the bleeder screw what can I do to stop this leak. Thanks

4 people found this helpful.
20

I have a 2003 dodge intrepid 2.7 /motar. It has a leak on rhe top front of the notar underneath the mitar cover what could it be and where is it coming from . Please e mail me info if I cant get info. Right now. To dabr7565@gmail .com go figure a woman has to a temp this project with no clue of what it is causing the problem. When I add water I can see by looking under the left side of the black cover water that shouldnt be there. I do have the engine running while adding water. Please someone help

1 people found this helpful.

Head gasket blown it happened to my car the same way i since replaced both head gaskets and no leak

100

On 2001chrysler Concorde 2.7liter I brought anew water pump on motor and put back together on motor then put anti -freeze in raditor and Start the engine and I notice the anti-freeze come out from water pump weep passage really fast and what should I do with water pump replace or not?

10 people found this helpful.
60

Yo have 2008 dodge charger it's liking from tha little Littlehole I thought was the thermostat i change still liks from there little hole

5 people found this helpful.
60

I have 2008 dodge charger it's liking from tha little hole I thought was the thermostat I change it new gaskets and everything Still liikts from ittle hole

1 people found this helpful.
10

2004 Chrysler Sebring 2.7 The thermostat housing has been a nightmare for me, I have replaced it 3 times and it causes the same problem. They make it out of plastic and it warps.

1 people found this helpful.
10

He's right. There's actually 2 weep holes. One on the thermostat housing and the other is between the heads. Under the intake. But if youre losing coolant which will be evident by putting a piece of cardboard under the car engine, or steam coming up in the before mentioned spots, definitely going to be the waterpump. That said, its not your typical older Ford or Chevy waterpump swap. This is not a job lightly considered. It's somewhat complicated and requires specialized tools and knowledge to even consider tackling. If you have the know-how, the tools arent terribly expensive though and are able to be rented or borrowed from your local auto parts store.

1 people found this helpful.

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